The New Millennium

America’s Role in World Culture

• Other countries try to copy American culture• Non-Western regions:– Combine American pop traits & ethnic melody

instrument and singing voice in style of region– Bollywood: India

9/11 and Hollywood

• Inhibited making films about current events due to fear of being racially prejudiced

• Turned instead to fantasy/adventure stories– Doesn’t offend anyone if the hero is killing aliens

or robots

Realism Continued

• Black Hawk Down (2001) Hans Zimmer– U.S. soldiers drop into Somalia to capture lieutenants of a

warlord and find themselves in a battle in 1993– Blends American popular music and Middle Eastern Muslim

music• Pearl Harbor (2001) Hans Zimmer

– Love Story set against historical backdrop• Theme for Danny & Rafe is used for Danny & Evelyn; Rafe & Evelyn get

their own theme

– Uses music to portray Japanese as thoughtful– Powerful choral lament during bombing– Theme song doesn’t work due to style mismatch

Moulin Rouge (2001)

• Revitalized the musical genre• Includes performers whose acts are part of

the story• All of the songs but one are borrowed from

other sources• Postmodern story: Characters drawn from 19th

opera. Men are artist types and woman of loose morals dies at the end

Moulin Rouge Songs

• Diamonds Are a Girls Best Friend• Elephant Love Medley– All You Need is Love (Beatles)– Heroes (David Bowie)– Up Where We Belong (from An Officer & A Gentleman)

– I Will Always Love You (Dolly Parton/Whitney Houston)– One More Night (Phil Collins)

– Pride (In the name of love) (U2)

• Your Song• Like a Virgin• Roxanne

Return of the Musical• 2001: Moulin Rouge• 2002: Chicago• 2003: School of Rock• 2004:

The Phantom of the Opera, Ray

• 2005: The Producers, Rent

• 2006: Dreamgirls

• 2007: Across the Universe, Enchanted, Hairspray, Sweeney Todd

• 2008: Mama Mia!• 2009: Fame• 2010: Burlesque• 2011: Footloose• 2012: Rock of Ages, Les

Miserables, Pitch Perfect• 2014: Into the Woods

Escapist Fantasy/Adventure Films

• Harry Potter– John Williams composed 1st 3 scores– Main themes: Hedwig A & Hedwig B• Stand for all things magical• Used the celeste to create a childlike magical sound

– (like Home Alone & Sugar Plum Fairy)

– All composers used the Hedwig theme to maintain continuity

Harry Potter Composer Comparison

• Sorcerer’s Stone (Williams)• Chamber of Secrets (Williams)• Prisoner of Azkaban (Williams)• Goblet of Fire (Patrick Doyle)• Order of the Phoenix (Nicholas Hooper)• Half Blood Prince (Nicholas Hooper)• Deathly Hallows I (Alexandre Desplat)• Deathly Hallows II (Alexandre Desplat)

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy

• 3 Films based on a series of novels by J.R.R. Tolkien– Fellowship of the Rings– The Two Towers– Return of the King

• Score by Howard Shore• 11 Hours of Music: large use of leitmotifs for

places and characters• Orchestration:

Main Themes

• The Shire• The Fellowship• The Ring