Alternate themes for Trek

[Ian Keldon]

Avoiding the obvious use of other sci-fi themes, can you think of any that would make good themes for a Trek show or movie?

Off the top of my head I can come up with 4 or 5 (in no particular order):

JAG
The Cape (the one about Cape Canaveral, not the superhero one)
Flight of the Intruder
The Final Countdown
Captain America

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

Ok, some of these might be pretty obvious, but what the hell, its only a little fun:

• Starfleet Criminal Investigative Service
• Selar, M.D. (medical-based series with Suzie Plakson in the lead role)
• Temporal Investigation
• Starfleet Academy (a four-year series focusing on the future officers of Starfleet)
• Civilians In Space (life in the unknown away from Starfleet)
• Ambassador-At-Large (an elite UFP diplomat on a mission to create the peace)

 

[xortex]

Excellent thread. I was just about to do some research on theme songs appropriate for Trek as I want to try to write something for a fan film in the sci-fi/fantasy realm which are very similar musically. There was this one excellent theme from a fantasy film like 'Willow' or 'Conan' or something like that that was just so thrilling and exciting that I'm dying to hear it again as writing a good tune is extremely tough. It seems to me the Goldsmith and Williams tunes will never be matched as the incidental music to TOS won't either. They are transcendant.

I was just thinking about a story my father told me about a panel of composers of standard songs giving a talk and Mel Torme was one of them and someone mentioned he wrote 'Chestnuts roasting on an open fire' - the Christmas song and one of the other panelists turned to him and said 'You wrote that?' as though it's always been around and wasn't written by a Human being. I was also just wondering about what Tracy Torme was doing but that's another thread.

Another favorite tune of mine was from 'Voyagers' about the time travelleling kid and Phinnius Bogg. I'm also wondering who would do a new Trek tune justice on a related note in the giant shadow of what has come before.

 

[Ian Keldon]

Ok, some of these might be pretty obvious, but what the hell, its only a little fun:

• Starfleet Criminal Investigative Service
• Selar, M.D. (medical-based series with Suzie Plakson in the lead role)
• Temporal Investigation
• Starfleet Academy (a four-year series focusing on the future officers of Starfleet)
• Civilians In Space (life in the unknown away from Starfleet)
• Ambassador-At-Large (an elite UFP diplomat on a mission to create the peace)

I think you misunderstand...I don't mean plots or story themes, I mean literal theme music as in opening credits music.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

Duh Brydon!

 

[xortex]

Goldsmith's tune was wicked and insanely great as it captured the spirit of Boldly Going in a proclamitory constantly leaping and reaching out soaring melody and also has the same chord progression from C major to E major that that Blue Yonder air force song does and yet is very original. The Wars theme by Williams is actually not so original. It is almost note for note, the same melody as the Brahms second piano concerto or at least they can be superimposed and overlapped and skirts the line of Mahler's first symphony. Certainly Tchiachovsky would have been an excellent composer choice if movies had existed during his time. Alas, he nor Prokofieff - other true golden tunesmiths - ever knew what a Klingon was, but TOS's fourth's based harmonies was very ruggedly American and Bartok sounding though Courage wanted it to sound exotic like a Swiss alps song or whatever with rythmic congo bass drums - which was out of place and incongruent with a soaring soprano's solo long line. Horner should be given another shot at writing something electrifying like only he can. Somebody turned me on to the 'Glory' score's mystical theme. Though correct me if I'm wrong but his closing credits theme for Aliens while great really sounds indirectly plagerized from some great composer like Prokofieff or somebody like that like Billy Joel's recent classical output doeas as well ripping off Brahms and Schumann - which happens alot unconsciously and Hans Zimmer's 'Gladiator' tune sounds alot like A Tchaichovsky symphony to me - the third I believe - 'the Little Russian'.

 

[Nerys Myk]

The Hawaii 5-0 theme. It would sound great against visuals of swooshing starships.

 

[Ian Keldon]

^Ugh...

No offense, Nerys, but that's possibly the worst suggestion I've heard, including ones made to me in person.

There's nothing nautical or majestic about 5-0's theme. Nothing to suggest the nobility and grandeur of the Great Grey Ladies of Starfleet.

Admittedly a lot of my choices have a bit of a martial feel to them, my current fave outside of S-F being the theme from Flight of the Intruder (CV-63's theme).

My favorite S-F non-Trek contender would be seaQuest's theme.

 

[Nerys Myk]

^Ugh...

No offense, Nerys, but that's possibly the worst suggestion I've heard, including ones made to me in person.

There's nothing nautical or majestic about 5-0's theme. Nothing to suggest the nobility and grandeur of the Great Grey Ladies of Starfleet.

Admittedly a lot of my choices have a bit of a martial feel to them, my current fave outside of S-F being the theme from Flight of the Intruder (CV-63's theme).

My favorite S-F non-Trek contender would be seaQuest's theme.

Not nautical????? There's water and boats all over Hawaii!!!!!!

 

[xortex]

If you want another laugh, go over to televisiontunes.com and click on Blackstar. It's hysterical.

 

[-SS-]

CBS Evening News with Dan Rather theme

http://youtu.be/keA7vfK_Wbk

 

[Green Shirt]

I think you misunderstand...I don't mean plots or story themes, I mean literal theme music as in opening credits music.

Well, to be fair to Bry, the word 'music' never appeared in the OP.

 

[ngc7293]

Metallica's "Through the Never" It mostly works, that is if you like heavy metal for your Star Trek theme!

 

[sojourner]

A lot of the score for Tron: Legacy would work wonderfully for Trek I think. Lots of sweeping string instruments and building crescendos.

Obviously the stuff from the nightclub scene is a no go.

 

[SilentP]

A lot of the score for Tron: Legacy would work wonderfully for Trek I think. Lots of sweeping string instruments and building crescendos.

Obviously the stuff from the nightclub scene is a no go.

Hey, people have to chill to some kind of music in their universe, who says that kind of music wouldn't last till then also the track 'Fall' I think on the soundtrack which starts in the club would work quite well in certain moments.

 

[Redfern]

The first few bars (stanzas?) of David Bowie's "Putting Out Fire with Gasoline" would be appropriate (to the point of cliche, I'll admit) for backstory scenes featuring M'Ress or any other Caitians. That is, the melody without the lyrics.

Sincerely,

Bill

 

[-SS-]

The first and fourth movements of Respighi's Pines of Rome would be great themes for a classic Trek movie.

http://youtu.be/Zk2q8GU3ZsA
http://youtu.be/TQwGTe_MueM