Join Queensland Symphony Orchestra along with conductor and host, Vanessa Scammell, for a trip back to the cinema classics of the 1930s through to the 1980s. Enjoy a selection of sepia-toned classics with legendary music from films such as The Wizard of Oz, The Pink Panther, Psycho, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Goldfinger and much, much more! Experience the powerful impact these iconic film scores had on cinema, defining the industry and becoming synonymous with entire film and television genres.

Genre-defining Music
The year is 1960 and the film world is about to be rocked by 45 seconds from a one-world film title: Psycho. The now legendary “shower scene” astonished audiences at the time with its depiction of violence – we have to remember that this was over 60 years ago. Starring the original Scream Queen, Janet Leigh (mother to horror movie legend Jamie Leigh Curtis), Psycho turned film standards and the horror genre on its head. Psycho set a new level of acceptability for violence and sexuality on American screens and is arguably the first of the “slasher” film genre – and this was in no small part thanks to the music.

As an early pioneer of talkies (non-silent films), Director Alfred Hitchcock understood the responsibility directors had when it came to incorporating music into his films. In a 1933 interview with Cinema Quarterly, Hitchcock himself said “There is, somewhere, the correct musical accompaniment for almost any scene — music which will improve the scene. But none at all is better than the wrong music.”

Hitchcock would hire the best of the best in the movie score industry, and it would pay off big time. Bernard Herrmann’s “Short Suite for String Orchestra” includes his now-immortal second movement “The Murder” – trust us, you’ll know the one.

Since its release, “The Murder” has become synonymous with the slasher genre, sending a perpetual shiver up your spine each time you hear it. Little would Hitchcock or Herrmann know that over the next 64 years, this 45-second snippet would be used in countless parodies, homages, movies, TV shows, commercials and across social media.

The Lasting Impact of Music
Psycho is just one example of the power and immortality of music scores, with dozens more not only impacting genres but also civil rights movements and modern pop culture.  

Judy Garland and her heavenly rendition of Somewhere Over the Rainbow from the technicolour classic, The Wizard of Oz, not only catapulted Garland to fame but became a beacon of hope for those searching for belonging.

The song would be forever tethered to Garland, who became an icon to the LGBT community of the 1960s. Somewhere Over the Rainbow is said to have partially inspired artist and activist Gilbert Baker in his creation of the first Rainbow Flag.

The 1963 film, The Pink Panther, would show off a theme song still relevant in the 2000s, being danced to by Cameron Diaz, Lucy Liu, Drew Barrymore, and the pop group, The Pussycat Dolls, in the 2003 film Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle. Even the 2006 reboot of the Pink Panther Films (starring Steve Martin as Inspector Jacques Clouseau) couldn’t go past using a remixed version of this iconic theme for its release.

Relive Reel Classics with a live orchestra
Friday 11 October and Saturday 12 October, Queensland Symphony Orchestra will take audiences on a nostalgic ride through these triumphs of early Hollywood. Enjoy classic scores from films including:

• Psycho
• The Wizard of Oz
• The Pink Panther
• 2001: A Space Odyssey
• Goldfinger
• Born Free
• The Magnificent Seven
• Raging Bull
• On the Town
• Carousel
• Alfred Hitchcock Presents

Join us for an adventure through the Reel Classics with Queensland Symphony Orchestra. Book now at qso.com.au/reelclassics.