The impulse to combine music and film goes back to the very beginning. The Lumiere brothers first silent film screening in Paris in 1895 was accompanied by a pianist. When films were added to vaudeville theaters at the beginning of the 20th century, music was provided by an in-house musician or organist, small ensembles, and even full orchestras.
Romantic-Classical styles and orchestration dominated the early years of sound films, and an emotional language of film music became widely understood. As film subject matter expanded, jazz and other "modernist" genres were added. Powerful rhythms, memorable melodic themes, and repeated motifs were common, as well as more subtle, quiet music to create mood and atmosphere. What we call ambient music today, was—and still is—a major part of film music, and came to be called the "underscore."
On this transmission of Hearts of Space, ambient and atmospheric music for film, on a program called "UNDERSCORE 3." Music is by TIM STORY, LISA GERRARD & PIETER BOURKE, LUDOVICO EINAUDI, HANS ZIMMER, MYCHAEL DANNA, ENNIO MORRICONE, TOM HOLKENBORG, and featuring BRIAN KEANE'S score for DANTE: INFERNO TO PARADISE.
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