Modernist vs Classical

Approaching the Nature of The Soundtracks in Stanley Kubrick’s Movies

Stanley Kubrick’s approach to music has made him a favorite film director of many classical music listeners. He claims this honor by the clever, and seldom subtle, use of the popular works of the Masters. However, one quality that distinguishes him amongst other directors who employ classical music into their films is that Kubrick is not one to shy away from the newer additions to the canon – at least those that were considered new additions during his career. Kubrick will move from Ligeti to Strauss without pause and yet he uses the music as more than an underscore to the action on screen. Since I have been a fan for many years of both the director and his use music, I wanted to explore his use of modernist music and to see if there was a difference between his use of modernist works and classical works. After reviewing his most well known works, I have found that Kubrick does have a tendency to approach the two camps of music in different ways.

I believe that when Kubrick listens to orchestral music, both classical and modern, he listens to it with tonal ears. In other words, while Kubrick might embrace dissonance, he still hears it as dissonance (Paulus 103). Therefore, since much of the modern music he uses is atonal, the modern works will be viewed differently than the tonal classical music. The classic music is resolute. It ebbs and flows but it can always find a home base for the listeners to relate to. However, the dissonant sounds of Ligeti have no cadences, keys nor discernable form, therefore, it is more unlikely for Kubrick to choreograph his cinematography with the sounds of Ligeti than with overtly dance-like works of Strauss Jr. With all of these differences, Kubrick approaches classical and modern works differently by using classical music as juxtaposition and modern as a tense underscore.

Kubrick viewers probably think of 2001: A Space Odysseywhen they think of the director and music. This is a good choice because there are many moments in the film where the soundtrack overshadows what is on screen. The first evidence of his variant use of classical and modern music is in the overture to the movie. Before the bright blue MGM logo appears on the screen, the audience is presented a performance of Gyorgy Ligeti's Atmospheres to a blank screen. Due to the lack of any non-auditory information, there is no way to view this musical excerpt as some kind of juxtaposition; however, Atmospheresdoes serve its role as an overture because it provides the tense mood of the Sci-Fi epic. When the overture is ended, and the disruptive MGM logo has faded away, the title sequence begins, underscored with Richard Strauss’s Also sprach Zarathustra, which will serve as the movie’s quasi-leitmotif. While this appearance of the piece seems to only function as an underscore, it also is also functioning as foreshadow to the movie’s main plot points due to the work’s reoccurring nature.

This piece appears twice more. The first when the lone, ape-like pre-human first discovers how to use tools, and the second when Dave has his transformation at the end of the movie. These two scenes highlight the major theme of the movie that is man’s intellectual and technological evolution. Kubrick’s reoccurring use of Strauss here wonderfully articulates the action on screen. This is typical of how Kubrick uses preexisting, classical music in his movies. Instead of just having a noise of an underscore, he decides to juxtapose the visuals with the music in order to bring out a deeper meaning of the movie.

By using well-known works, rather than an original work, Kubrick is able to juxtapose rather than underscore. He views preexisting music as “found objects,” and that translates into his movies (Byrnes). Richard Strauss is used here to exalt the instances of man’s evolution, which is similar to how Kubrick uses Johann. Strauss II. In perhaps the movie’s famous sequence, the space montage in 2001is set to The Blue Danube. While Kubrick could have had a film scorer write an original waltz for this scene, he ultimately decided to go with the famous work instead. By doing this, he creates an impactful scene of technology dancing, and he achieves this by the use of juxtaposition. He uses the famous romantic waltz to highlight the beauty of man’s technological advances. Any other piece might have been less impactful. The Strauss Jr. work, in addition to being a well crafted piece, is well known, therefore, it can offer meaning deeper than just pleasing sound.

Kubrick also uses classical music as juxtaposition is in the scene of HAL 9000’s death. Considering the expansive detail that the movie went into HAL’s background, it is a good assumption that HAL is perhaps the most technologically advanced object yet seen in the movie. Therefor, when Dave removes HAL’s memory slots, the scene symbolizes the destruction of man’s technological evolution. Kubrick, once again, underscores this major plot point with music. This time, however, instead of a prerecorded performance of a classical work, Kubrick uses HAL singing the opening lines of the well-known tune, Daisy Bell. The juxtaposition of the music and the scene still works the same, if not more impactful, as the Strauss examples. The music is used to emphasize the major themes of the story. By having the supercomputer, HAL, relapsing back to singing a child-like song, Kubrick highlights the theme of man’s dealings with the evolution of technology.

The classical works used in 2001used so prominently that it appears that the images are choreographed to the music. This is different than how Kubrick uses modernist works. As stated before, the first modernist work used in this movie, Ligeti’s Atmospheres, is used without context; therefore it creates a tense mood that mirrors the intensity of Ligeti’s micro-polyphonic masterpiece. This is similar to how Kubrick uses the other Ligeti works throughout the film. Ligeti appears three more times, with three different works, throughout the movie, as well as appearing once as an entr-acte. The reappearance of Ligeti corresponds with the reappearing black monolith. While it might seem like Kubrick is using Ligeti as a leitmotif, the use of a different work by the composer for each occurrence suggests otherwise. What is more likely is that Ligeti’s music is in the style that Kubrick desired for that scene. Ligeti, while well known is the modern concert hall, does not have a name or a work that is recognizable to much of the movie’s audience. Because of this, it would be hard to view Ligeti’s music as a use of juxtaposition since many of the viewers would not know what to juxtapose in the first place. The works of Strauss and Strauss Jr. are familiar to the audience and come from a time far from the year 2001; therefore, they add commentary to what is on screen. Ligeti’s modernist works do not have the same qualities therefore they are approached differently in the movie. They underscore the action and enhance the unfolding drama, however, they do not add commentary.

Another movie by Kubrick that is famous for its use of preexisting music is A Clockwork Orange. This dystopian, Sci-Fi film follows the disturbing life of Alex, a teenager that is into “ultra-violence” and Beethoven (Burgess). Kubrick took that character trait and explored it intensely in this movie. Various different romantic works appear throughout this movie. Some are in their original form and some have been reworked for electric instruments but are still recognizable. By using older, renowned works as much of the movie’s underscore, Kubrick lays into the juxtaposition of art and violence that Burgess introduced in his novel. Any filmmaker could have used a violent score whenever violence appears. Sometimes this can be very impactful such as in the infamous “Shower Scene” in Hitchcock’s Psycho. However, by using classical music, Kubrick is able to an extra layer of commentary into his movie. It is not a character just committing violent acts in this movie, but the violent acts are being committed by a boy who knows how to appreciate beauty and willfully disregards it.

This juxtaposition is highlighted in the scene where Alex and his “droogs” break into the author’s home (Burgess). In this scene, while performing vile acts to the author and his wife, Alex provides his own underscore by singing Gene Kelly’s rendition of Singin’ in the Rain. This scene is impactful because the song suggests a happy nature yet the drama on scene is anything but pleasant. It shows Alex’s will disregard for the people he tortures by juxtaposing a beloved show tune with disturbing imagery. While the song was not a direction by Kubrick himself, his enthusiastic approval the song further shows that Kubrick tends to embrace pleasant music as a tool to compare and contrast.

Kubrick does a similar tactic in his Vietnam War movie Full Metal Jacket. In the closing moments of the film, the audience is shown various shots of the American soldiers marching away from a burning Vietnamese town. As the march progresses, the soldiers begin to sing the Mickey Mouse March from the show The Mickey Mouse Club. Similar to A Clockwork Orange, Kubrick achieves a wonderful commentary on war by juxtaposing the violence that had just occurred and the commercialist child’s song. Thus supporting the idea that Kubrick approaches non-modern works as a tool to compare and contrast.

One of Kubrick’s movies that is seemingly lacking classical music is the psychological horror film, The Shining. While it is probably unknown to many of the viewers of this film, Kubrick uses many preexisting orchestral recordings as the soundtrack to this movie. It just is difficult to pinpoint what is playing because the soundtrack is almost entirely modernist music, and much of the music is by the Polish composer Krzysztof Pederecki. The Shiningfeatures six different works by the composer; however, due to the composer’s unique but non-tonal style, the six works seem to blur together. The music also rarely takes the forefront in The Shining. While in 2001the music is jarringly obvious because it is often the only thing audible, the music in The Shiningis often under dialogue or only is prominent for a few seconds. Because of these qualities, Kubrick is approaching the music as a tense underscore rather than commentary. The music often mirrors and enhances the action on screen.

There are, however, two instances where Kubrick does allow the music to take the foreground. There is the final scene, where music is heard as if coming from a party in 1920’s ballroom, and then there is the opening scene. In the opening title sequence, accompanying the aerial shots, there is an electric rendition of the famous chant Dies Irae. This musical excerpt is notable because it combines Kubrick’s use of both classical and modernist. By using a chant often associated with requiems, Kubrick is foreshadowing the drama that will unfold in the movie. He is also foreshadowing that the departure from the character’s home is their march to their death. This is a marriage between Kubrick’s two approaches because he is able to create uneasiness in his film by juxtaposing the Dies Iraewith peaceful images. He has combined his use classical music and modernist music just as the arranger combined the old chant with new synthesizer.

The last movie I will use to compare Kubrick’s approach to classical and modernist music is his last film, Eyes Wide Shut. This movie has two prominent musical excerpts: Shostakovich’s Jazz Suite, Waltz no. IIand Ligeti’s Musica Ricercata, Movement II. Shostakovich appears hear mainly as an overture, but what is interesting, is that it straddles the line between Kubrick’s use of classical and modernist music. It does seem to be more of tense atmospheric scene setting than a tool of juxtaposition because it does not contrast enough with the images being shown. This is similar to much of the music of the Soviet Realist era. The music should be populistic and should not contrast with the goals of the State. However, as was much of the Soviet ear, Shostakovich’s Soviet Realist music can be seen as a mask that the composer had to wear to hide his true nature. By approaching Shostakovich in this manner, it compares nicely to the events in Eyes Wide Shut. This comparison can be found not only in the film’s literal masquerade, but also in the love life of the main character that is being underscored by the Jazz Waltzin the opening scene of the movie. Much of the relationship in the movie focuses on the disconnect between the two parties; likewise, much of Shostakovich’s fame comes from the disconnect between the composer and his country.

The other modernist work in this featured in this movie, Ligeti’s Musica Ricercata, Movement II, is special because it is diegetic and the action of the scene is choreographed to the music. The choreography in this scene is different than the choreography in 2001because it is dialogue rather than a dance. In addition to the work not being well known, the fact that the scene is only dialogue gives it a more of natural feel which makes it difficult to view the use of this song as juxtaposition. This scene is the climax of the masquerade where the main character is forced to identify his self in front of the anonymous crowd. The music here wonderfully strengthens the drama. The pauses in the score offset the pauses in the dialogue and climax of the piece matches the climax of the scene. Kubrick is using the music not to explore a deeper meaning but rather to enhance the intensity of the plot.

Stanley Kubrick is known for many traits. He is demanding, a perfectionist and a music lover. His use of preexisting concert music in his films in notable because he does not shy away from having the music be the highlight at any given moment. Kubrick is also notable because he embraces contemporary music and will place modern composers next to the classical masters. However, Kubrick does approach the use of classical and modernist music differently in his films. He tends to use the more tonal classical works as a tool to juxtapose the music to themes in the movie’s plot, whereas he tends to use modernist works as an underscore to intensify the drama that is unfolding. Regardless of the differences, his choices are effective. These bold choices are why famous orchestras will hold concerts where they play along with his movies and why the director will go down in film and music history.

Works Cited:

2001: A Space Odyssey. Directed by Stanley Kubrick. United States: MGM, 1968.

A Clockwork Orange. Directed by Stanley Kubrick. United States: MGM, 1971.

Burgess, Anthony. A Clockwork Orange. New York: Ballantine Books, 1963.

Byrnes, Paul. "Kubrick Knew the Score, and He Used It." The Sydney Morning Herald. January 14, 2013. Accessed May 11, 2018. https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/movies/kubrick-knew-the-score-and-he-used-it-20130114-2cpnb.html.

Eyes Wide Shut. Directed by Stanley. Kubrick. Warner Bros., 1999.

Full Metal Jacket. Directed by Stanley Kubrick. Great Britain: Warner Bros., 1987.

Paulus, Irena. "Stanley Kubrick's Revolution in the Usage of Film Music: 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)." International Review of the Aesthetics and Sociology of Music 40, no. 1 (2009): 99-127. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25594489.

The Shining. Directed by Stanley Kubrick. Warner Bros., 1980.