MAGNIFICENT MOVIE MUSIC
Rachel Franklin has a fascination for the golden age of movie music. She has created many lecture series and piano presentations on film scores that are huge hits with devotees, and she loves to bring this captivating subject to new audiences. A recent highlight was her uniquely curated show that she presented for the Avalon Theatre Chevy Chase’s annual gala, celebrating 90 years of film music Oscars. She has given a gala opening performance for the Chesapeake Film Festival which garnered her a return invitation to be their festival gala closing event two years later. She’s also presented several movie music courses for the Smithsonian Associates, and continues to lecture-perform on a variety of film music subjects for listeners throughout the region. She is constantly exploring new aspects of film music craft and history.
Composers such as Bernard Herrmann, Max Steiner, Ennio Morricone and John Williams have engraved iconic scenes into our collective memory with their extraordinary music, even if the rest of the movie might have faded. What’s driving our limbic system and creating those indelible cultural memories?
With fascinating film clips, witty commentary and gorgeous piano demonstrations, concert pianist and movie fanatic Rachel Franklin delves into the hidden magic of some of the greatest film music ever composed. We look at the history and craft behind the composer’s work, enjoy some Oscar-winning sounds and share great movie trivia. Fasten your seatbelts…it’s going to be a fabulous ride!
“What a production Rachel…congratulations…..your performance closed the festival with just the ELAN and touch of eloquence and elegance we hoped to have… I am still in the Stars about it all. Fantastic job.”
~ Cid Collins Walker, Artistic Director, Chesapeake Film Festival
“We look forward to attending all of Rachel’s lecture series and concerts. If we had to pick a favorite, it would be Magnificent Movie Music! As a filmmaker, I now have a better understanding of the vital contribution the composer makes assisting the director’s vision to guide the viewer’s emotional experience as the film unfolds. I would give it five stars.”
~ Jane Barbara, Chair, ScriptDC, Women in Film & Video, Washington DC. Writer/Producer, Testa Dura Media
Rachel Franklin featured on WERA, Arlington in the Morning with Ulysses E. Campbell
Rachel Franklin Presents: Magnificent Movie Music
Experiencing superb movie music can have a life-long impact. Director Alan Parker stated “A great film score gets under your skin, triggers your subconscious, enhances the drama and helps drive the emotional power train of the movie.” With fascinating film clips, witty commentary and gorgeous piano demonstrations, concert pianist and movie fanatic Rachel Franklin delves into the hidden magic of some of the greatest film music ever composed.
Jazz: Modern Soundscapes in Film
Enjoy spectacular jazz sounds from some of the world’s great movie scores, composed by some of the world’s greatest jazz musicians, including Duke Ellington, Quincy Jones, Chico Hamilton, Sonny Rollins and Miles Davis. Films range from noir and crime, to comedy and drama.
Jewish Composers and the Golden Age of Film
It is impossible to imagine many movies without the great Jewish composers of the 20th Century. Such figures as Max Steiner, Bernard Herrmann and Elmer Bernstein have engraved iconic scenes with their extraordinary music. Travel through time with Dr. Rachel Franklin tracing the immigration patterns of Jewish musicians from Europe and Russia to Hollywood, and investigate how so many became such an integral part of cinematic history.
Shakespeare: the Music Behind the Movies
“The Play’s the Thing” declared Hamlet, but nowadays he could easily have substituted “The Film.” Since 1900, this haunted Dane has starred in over 50 movies! From Macbeth to Othello, Romeo and Juliet to A Midsummer Night’s Dream, virtually every play by the Bard has enjoyed multiple productions on celluloid. Master composers such as Nino Rota, Patrick Doyle and William Walton illuminate Shakespeare’s texts while helping us relate emotionally to his astonishing stories.
William Wyler: the Films and the Music
Director-superstar William Wyler made some of the most magnificent films in the Hollywood canon, and worked with many distinguished composers. This dazzling array of musical talent includes Max Steiner, Miklos Rosza and Aaron Copland, and their movies range from Ben-Hur to The Best Years of our Lives.
