A note on recent studies
by copej
Half of this post is a little overdue. I’ll start there
I really enjoyed studying Aaron Copland and not only because we share a last name. One of my favorite movies is the Spike Lee 1998 film He Got Game. Here’s a short plot summary from Wikipedia:
Jesus Shuttlesworth (Ray Allen), a student at Lincoln High School from Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York, is being pursued by the top college programs in the nation. His father, Jake (Denzel Washington), is a convicted felon serving time at Attica Correctional Facility for accidentally killing his wife (Jesus’ mother) by pushing her while arguing with Jesus at the age of 12. The father is temporarily released by the governor, an influential alum of “Big State,” one of the colleges Jesus is considering, so that he might direct his son to sign with the governor’s college in return for an early release.
It’s a really good film, and Spike Lee makes a very unexpected artistic decision by featuring the music of Copland on the soundtrack. Most of the action takes place in the projects of Coney Island where Shuttlesworth lives. He’s not from a well-to-do area, and rap would seem to fit better with the plot. However, Spike Lee uses Copland to bring out the beauty in basketball. Many shots are in slo-mo and focus on the dexterity and smoothness of Shuttlesworth’s motion (it helps to have a future hall of fame NBA player as the actor). I suggest viewing the movie, and here’s a clip of the intro accompanied by Copland
The other half of my post also relates to the intersection of music and film. I’ll keep it short. At the end of class last Thursday, we briefly listened to Pärt’s “Spiegel Im Spiegel” and discussed it’s simple rhythm and melody using triads. However, the piece itself does elicit an overwhelming emotion when put in the right context. The recent movie Gravity is a 90-minute emtional rollercoaster, and the trailers feature Pärt’s piece; I think it’s very effective.
The Thousand-Year Ears 
The juxtaposition of Copeland’s music with scenes of basketball is quite striking. Music and images can evoke many feelings. When appropriately placed together each highlights the best aspects of the other.
Sometimes when I listen to music I imagine what music videos would best suit the song. Other times, I try to envision at what point in a movie a song could be played. I’m very intrigued by the use of music in seemingly non-musical settings (basketball games, coffee commercials, etc.)
Great observations, and I love the movie choices.
Interesting post. I always get excited when I watch a movie or see a commercial that utilizes an obscure song I know. Remember the Titans’ use of “Your Hand in Mine” by Explosions in the Sky is a good example:
I also remember a Residence Inn commercial that featured “The Trees Were Mistaken” by Andrew Bird:
In regards to He Got Game, I don’t like the music that was chosen for the intro, I didn’t feel as if it fit the images being depicted on the screen. As for Gravity, I thought the music fell right in and agreed with the motion picture.
I agree that the usage of Copland’s music in the introduction to the movie is very beneficial in showing the beauty of the game of basketball. Although this might be unconventional music to use in the introduction of this type of movie, it just shows the affects of this music are very widespread. I definitely like Spike Lee’s decision in using this music for the introduction
I think that these are two great examples of how the music we have been looking at appears in film. There is definitely something that reflects the power of the game of basketball in the first video. The music really adds another dimension. Also, the end of the second clip is extremely effective. While it is simple, it leaves an impact on the viewer.
I think that it was a brilliant idea to use Copland’s music in the introduction of the movie. It definitely highlights the beauty of the game. Even though this music is not of the ordinary type that usually appears at the beginning of the movie, it gives the scene more meaning and emotion.
A great observation. Many classical pieces are used in movies all the time. we just sometimes miss it. Your example of gravity perfectly fits what you are saying in this post.
Thanks for sharing. Copland’s music was definitely a good choice there. It’s so cool to see the music we’ve studied in movies – I never would have noticed this before!
I thought that using Copland within the realm of basketball created an interesting and unique spin. Usually we think of basketball and hip hop as going together but by using Copland I can definitely understand how the director was trying to bring out the serenity and natural beauty of the sport. From a more general perspective, I feel that experimenting with music produces valuable insight into our notions of stereotypes and perceptions. In this “experiment” the result is absolute beauty.
This is a very interesting post. For me it raises a few ideas about how music has evolved. Instead of writing works for operas composers can write for movies as another way of presenting their works in a dramatic setting. It’d be interesting to trace how soundtracks evolved from earlier films to now.