Hans Zimmer – Appreciation

Hi!

I enjoy music, some would say too much, I generally have something in my ear at all times of the day. It used to be more media / visually driven, but while I have been working from home I have found that it is easier to have music in my ear rather than visual content. This has led to me on different weeks listening to different types of music. I have gone through the pieces that I focus on for maybe 2 weeks at a time.

But this week, I decided to type orchestra into my sky box to see what pieces came up as options. I saw Hans Zimmer in Vienna, with him being a composer I know well (Due to his work on The Dark Knight and The Amazing Spider-Man 2), so I decided I would spend 2 hours listening to his work live. After this I have now spent about 10 days straight only listening to pieces by Hans. Have to say, they are amazing pieces.

As I mentioned above, I know Hans Zimmer from his work on TDK and TASM2, but I never even gave a seconds thought to the fact that he would have also scored Batman Begins and The Dark Knight Rises. With now TDKR being the piece that I listen to while I am out running due to the changes in instruments and the impending sense of doom (Which makes sense considering the film if you have seen it!) But what other films has he scored that I have found over the past week;?

• Inception

Considering this was a film based around dreams and going to question what constitutes reality, I feel that Hans did an amazing job of allowing the listeners to get lost in the music. Following a quick search for more information around this soundtrack and his inspiration for it, he revealed that the entire list of songs came from Edith Piaf’s song ‘Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien’. This can be seen (Heard?, I’m going to use heard from now on), thanks to the influence from the strong trombone and the slightly threatening violins which are are in the background of most if not all the tracks.

• The Dark Knight

I did not want to include any songs I had listened to previously (So you will not see any TASM2 mentioned), but the ominous feeling from TDK is something that has a distinct sound and you know straight away what you are listening too when you hear it. The backing track for Batman himself is 16 minutes long and it opened in Vienna. Hans is someone I had always seen advertised on my Facebook page and had encountered in various places over the internet, so being honest, I did not think he was overly successful. (Boy was I wrong!). But as someone who is known mainly for the pounding of brass and being able to create an atmosphere with minimal notes, this score allowed him to sit with himself and any ‘demons’ he may have had, and bring them to light in a beautiful fashion.

• The Da Vinci Code

If you have not seen this film, I recommend it, if you have never listened to the score, I implore you. If you have seen it, you know it is based around Christianity in a manner of thinking, there are a lot of churches basically. Which means Hans needed to use various instruments and ideals to create a piece that was able to transport you to a place of worship without physically being there. Through his use of a large orchestra, chorus and organ, you are giving this feeling of awe and being in the presence of a higher power.

• Interstellar

If you couldn’t tell by now, Christopher Nolan likes to work with Hans Zimmer. After The Dark Knight trilogy, Inception and now Interstellar (Alongside Dunkirk later in their relationship), they have collaborated probably the most I have seen of a director and a composer. I was intrigued to know which instruments were the focus of this piece as while you can hear them, you are not listening in-depth, you are just aware that they are there. (In a good way). It turns out, Zimmer and Nolan went to Londons Temple Church to record on a specific Organ! (It was a 1926 Harrison & Harrison Organ for any buffs out there!) While using the organ, he also utilised 34 strings, 24 woodwind instruments, 4 pianos and a 60 strong voice choir.

• Gladiator

I had not forgotten about this, it is just one I have not listened to enough to properly comment on! But when I look online for the opinions of others, it is consistently ranked in the top 2 (!) scores created by Hans. Many people who have written these opinions, have said in their body of work that this is a film that is made due to its music, with this music using a simple but great melody throughout its entirety.

I think most if not all of Hans pieces are legendary in their distinctive way, and in each separate album, he has at least 2 songs that have become synonymous for me with the character for whom they were written or the film they portray. He is the composer I hear now when I see Batman, Superman, Spider-Man, Space and when I enter a church.

I still struggle to think of how anyone is able to come up with music! I think just about anyone can learn to play a song, or practice enough to play it effortlessly, but to create it, out of thin air, is outstanding. It didn’t exist, then it did, because of that person. It is jaw-dropping stuff. Benny Blanco has said that he can not play a single instrument, but he hears the music in his head and is then able to create it. It is a skill I wish I was able to have.

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Until next time 🙂