Description

‘Reveals the stories and the people behind your favourite film scores’ – Nick de Semlyen, editor of Empire
‘Brims with enthusiasm and joyful insight’ – Richard Ayoade

How can a film score make you cheer, shiver, cry or punch the air? How do directors communicate their musical vision to composers? And when does a soundtrack take on a life of its own?

Award-winning film critic Mark Kermode and radio producer Jenny Nelson embark on a full-throttle trip down the glorious rabbit hole of film composition to answer these questions and more.

Celebrating the emotional connection that audiences form with film music, exploring the evolution of film scoring from silent films to the present day, and examining how what we hear has an impact on what we see, Mark talks to some of his favourite composers and delves into the movie music he loves.

Including interviews with extraordinary talents from Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood to Oscar-winning composers Rachel Portman and Howard Shore, and the stories behind iconic soundtracks such as Jocelyn Pook’s Eyes Wide Shut, Michael Kamen’s Brazil, and Vangelis’s Blade Runner, Mark Kermode’s Surround Sound is a thrilling take on how great scores are brought to life on the silver screen, perfect for film buffs and music lovers alike.

Publisher Review

Wonderfully enjoyable and informative . . . opens up a different way of listening and appreciating . . . a superb account, at once lucid and complex. — Richard Dyer * Literary Review * A celebratory tour d’horizon of film music history that covers an enormous range, from the popular to the classic to the bracingly avant garde . . . Excellent. * Sight and Sound * Movie music may be an essential component of cinema but it often gets overlooked. [Mark Kermode’s Surround Sound] gives it the focus it deserves, revealing the stories and the people behind your favourite film scores. — Nick de Semlyen, author of The Last Action Heroes Part memoir, part detailed examination of the essence of film music, Mark Kermode’s Surround Sound goes way beyond the usual suspects to explore the music of many half-forgotten and less mainstream composers. I learned a lot. — Anne Dudley, Oscar-winning composer of The Full Monty Another witty and wise affair . . . an entertaining and assorted history of music and sound in cinema. * Empire * A fascinating read for every film music enthusiast. Thoroughly enjoyable and amusing. — Rachel Portman, Oscar-winning composer of Emma Passionate without being didactic . . . reminds us that cinema is an art form for the ear as well as the eye. — Richard Ayoade Turns up the power of movie scores . . . a must-have for cinephiles and music fans. * The Irish Times * A treasure-trove of quotes and anecdotes a perfect place to start if you want to discover new films, scores and soundtracks. * Shortlist * Typ ic ally enthralling and com pre hens ive . . . a gold mine for soundtrack obsess ives and new comers alike . . . a com puls ively read able book that moves with the propul sion of John Wil li ams’s Jaws while exhib it ing all the breadth of Miklos Rosza’s Ben -Hur. * BBC Music * An accessible, unpretentious examination of the evolution of film music . . . and what makes the book truly satisfying is that it gives the full picture of the process of film composition (pun intended), for better or worse. * Sunday Independent *