A Research Guide to Film and Television Music in the United States

Jeannie Gayle Pool and H. Stephen Wright - Foreword by Leonard Maltin

Unlike traditional music, film music sources are often difficult to locate and do not follow the patterns that researchers are trained to identify. Although there have been several self-described introductions to the field and articles that summarize the problems and state of research, there is no resource that gathers together all of the basic information that is vital to film music research. In this volume, Jeannie Gayle Pool and H. Stephen Wright address the difficulties scholars encounter when conducting research on film and television music.

Intended as a guide for scholars and researchers in navigating the complex world of film and television music, this book provides a detailed taxonomy of film music primary sources and explains how to find and interpret them. The authors tackle the problems of determining film score authorship and working with recordings of film music. A bibliographic essay summarizes the major works and trends in film music research and provides clear pointers to the most important resources in the field. An up-to-date guide to important collections of film music sources and other research materials is also included. Designed to clarify the nature of film music source materials and how they are generated, A Research Guide to Film and Television Music in the United States provides clear signposts for scholars and identifies opportunities for further research.

Scarecrow Press

Pages: 192 • Trim: 6½ x 9½

978-0-8108-7688-0 • Hardback • December 2010 • $70.00 • (£54.00)

978-0-8108-7689-7 • eBook • December 2010 • $66.50 • (£51.00)

Subjects: Performing Arts / Television / Reference, Music / Reference, Performing Arts / Film / Reference

A Research Guide to Film and Television Music in the United States

Hardback

eBook

Summary

Unlike traditional music, film music sources are often difficult to locate and do not follow the patterns that researchers are trained to identify. Although there have been several self-described introductions to the field and articles that summarize the problems and state of research, there is no resource that gathers together all of the basic information that is vital to film music research. In this volume, Jeannie Gayle Pool and H. Stephen Wright address the difficulties scholars encounter when conducting research on film and television music.

Intended as a guide for scholars and researchers in navigating the complex world of film and television music, this book provides a detailed taxonomy of film music primary sources and explains how to find and interpret them. The authors tackle the problems of determining film score authorship and working with recordings of film music. A bibliographic essay summarizes the major works and trends in film music research and provides clear pointers to the most important resources in the field. An up-to-date guide to important collections of film music sources and other research materials is also included. Designed to clarify the nature of film music source materials and how they are generated, A Research Guide to Film and Television Music in the United States provides clear signposts for scholars and identifies opportunities for further research.

Details

Scarecrow Press

Pages: 192 • Trim: 6½ x 9½

978-0-8108-7688-0 • Hardback • December 2010 • $70.00 • (£54.00)

978-0-8108-7689-7 • eBook • December 2010 • $66.50 • (£51.00)

Subjects: Performing Arts / Television / Reference, Music / Reference, Performing Arts / Film / Reference

Author

Jeannie Gayle Pool Ph.D. is a musicologist, composer, documentary filmmaker, and producer. She is a consultant for Paramount Pictures Motion Picture Music Department and the author of Peggy Gilbert & Her All-Girl Band (2008) and American Composer Zenobia Powell Perry (2009), both published by Scarecrow Press.

H. Stephen Wright is a librarian at Northern Illinois University. He is the author of numerous articles and books on film music, including Film Music at the Piano (Scarecrow, 2003).

Reviews

This volume offers fundamental guidelines to film music research, covering everything from locating original scores to how to read a cue sheet. The authors explain the origins and development of silent-film accompaniment, and detail the many ways a written score may differ from the finished recording. A listing of primary sources is bound to be as useful to researchers as the warnings of pitfalls in “reading” an original score. I was happy to provide a short foreword to this useful volume, which is yet another example of why people who think one can find everything one could possibly need online are wrong.
— Leonard Maltin's Movie Fan

Recommended for film and music reference collections.
— Library Journal