I’ve been thinking about this subject for quite a while….what has happened to tv music these days? The BBC (who I know I tend to bash a bit on this blog) really seems to have its eye off the ball. I should be careful what I say for offending my fellow colleagues who, after all, are only responding to briefs (I assume) - but there could be no doubting that the general standard at the moment is very low, no one seems to want to take any risks and we are left with program after program where the theme is not only forgettable, but trite to the point of being pointless; after all what is the point of having music at the start of your show? Tradition I guess - a format getting on for 70 years old. Most of the time I am hearing theme tunes at the start of a show and then never referred to till the end - take Mary, Queen of Shops with its bewildering array of recent pop hits that seem to serve no other purpose than to keep a rather tepid reality format clunking on for its hour slot.
Many classic themes of old are actually still going: Mastermind, Doctor Who, University Challenge etc - and I think it is no coincidence that these shows are being revisited with success because their theme tunes give them such a strong identity. I was listening to the theme for “I’d do anything” and couldn’t even recognise it as a piece of music. Notable exceptions would be David Lowe’s theme for Grand Designs - a gentle waltz that has helped what is really just another reality show feel like it is set apart as somehow a more solid program. David Lowe is without doubt the current king of theme tunes and although I have the utmost respect for his output, I can’t help feeling his influence is part of the problem. His style is instantly recognisable - Countryfile, Holiday and the all-conquering BBC News Theme (amongst many others) - and if he is the King (the modern day Hazzlehurst) we seem to have been left with many poor imitations. Certainly from the pitches I have been involved with recently the feeling has been that if I haven’t basically ripped Mr Lowe’s style off I have no chance of progression within the project. Personally I find this synthetic production style interesting but not classic - functional but, on the whole, forgettable.
The counter-argument is that functionality is surely its first port-of-call - but so many programs with this type of theme tune fall by the wayside. I was personally very pleased with ITV’s reintroduction of their wonderful News at Ten theme with its bombastic symphonic call to arms. It was a bad call to drop it and 10 years or so later it has finally been reinstated as a trump card.
This overall malaise isn’t just within television; I went to see Hancock a couple of nights ago. As a composer myself I would jump at the chance of a Super hero theme yet I left the movie not being able to recall a single melody, theme or otherwise of a score so flat they may as well not have bothered (notably Cloverfield “didn’t bother” with good effect - I don’t argue that all films need music) and on one level I sympathise with the composer - film producers these days don’t seem to want the music in their film to make any statement at all.
I had a chat with a film producer recently who thought the music in There Will Be Blood (Jonny Greenwood) made too much of a statement. I felt this gave a lot away as personally I thought it was one of the great scores of recent years - the nub here is that composers like me feel the music should be as much of a character as any of the leads whereas the producer is more likely to feel it should support the main characters and overall feel of the script. A score like this seemed to give the film its gravitas - careful use of Brahms Violin Concerto also added a superb contrast in relief to this high-minded soundscape. What I think is key here is that the director took a chance and made a statement - it came off and now has undoubtedly given the project extra longevity….after all: would 007 be on his 22nd film without such a good theme tune? I doubt Hancock will last that long!!
