Soundtrack Research

I feel that one of the most important parts of a horror film is the music; this is because it increases the tension and adds to the fear factor. For example in Alfred Hitchcock’s film ‘Psycho’ the shower scene would be not nearly as scary if there was not the sound of high pitched violins implying the strokes of a knife. Most horror films have an ‘auditory symbol’ which makes the audience relate a piece of music to a certain film or particular villains.

This piece of music is called ‘Serpentine Treck’. The repetitive tune could be seen as alarming to the audience as it may cause them  to worry and  be concerned for the victims. The music almost  seems as if it has got stuck in a groove and causes tension as you wait for it to change: you expect the action to move on when the music changes. The quiet drum in the background could also suggest death as it is similar to the sound of a drum as someone is led to the gallows. This piece could be used when we are leading up to the villain’s first attack as it is repetitive which will give the scene a good, steady beat.

This piece of music is called ‘Redletter’ which suggests death and blood. The sounds which are heard in this tune are a lot quieter which makes the loud instruments all the scarier. The quietness may make the audience anxious as they feel something dramatic may suddenly happen when they are not expecting it. The music has a background beat which, although not obvious, has the effect of a heart beat and could make the audience tense.

The next tune is called ‘private reflection’ and seems a lot different from the other pieces of music as it is eerier and slow. The title suggests that it is reminiscent of the past as someone could be reflecting upon their private memories. This music is more quietly beautiful but, like some of the others, it is very repetative as if someone is frozen in a moment of time.  We could use this piece of music in the scene when the victim has been killed as it is sad and reinforces the idea of death.

This piece of music has been titled ‘One of them’ and sounds very dramatic. The strong drum beat in the back ground could suggest footsteps or even someone’s heart beat. This could cause the audience's heart beat to quicken and may make them feel frightened as they can tell the victim is becoming scared.

This piece of music is called ‘Interloper’. It is quite quiet and slow as the drum beat plays continuously in the background. I feel that it would not be seen as a scary piece of music but could be used when building the tension as it’s quite unpredictable and keeps changing the beat. We could use this piece for the lead up to something dramatic as it may cause the audience to be put on the edge of their seats.

This tune is titled ‘epic unease’ and at the beginning, seems to suggest time passing by as the quiet noise in the background sounds like a clock. The instruments used then get stronger and more pronounced and dramatic which could evoke the feeling to the audience that the villain was becoming stronger and gaining power. We could use this in our film when the villain is approaching the victim and is about to act.

This piece is called ‘constancy part 2’. The overlying section in this piece seems almost up beat but it is the background which makes it sound more ominous and urgent. The repetitive sound of the violin could make the audience feel apprehensive about what is yet to come and worry about the victim. Towards the end we hear a sound like a clock striking: this is a stategy often used in films to indicate that time is up.  We could use this piece when the victim is shown on the screen as it would suggest to the audience that they are in danger.

This piece of music is called 'house of leaves' and is very effective at building tension and fear. The high pitched sound could be a stringed instrument which is very prominent throughout the piece. This sound gets louder and more instruments are introduced. This could make the audience feel terror as the noise is so overpowering. It is also very effective because the gental piano notes in the background provide contrast to emphasise the wail of the louder music. We could use this piece of music when the villain in our film is about to attack his first victim.