The original score to the 1991 science-fictionaction film,Terminator 2:Judgment Day is composed by Brad Fiedel. The film,directed by James Cameron is a sequel to the 1984 film The Terminator,and the second instalment in the Terminator franchise. Fiedel who scored for the first film using synthesisers and electronic instruments,had produced the score for Terminator 2, in an "acoustic and organic manner". According to Fiedel,he created the score in such a way,to bring a "warmer tone" on depicting the relationship with young John Connor and the Terminator. The recording and production process involved two CMI machines and synthesisers,with an ensemble orchestra assisting the electronic sounds.[1]
The first issue of Terminator 2:Judgment Day (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) was released by Varèse Sarabande in 1991,followed by subsequent reissues in the following years. It was remastered twice for digital and physical releases. The first remastered score was released by Silva Screen in August 2010,and the second remastering under the title Terminator 2:Judgment Day (Original Soundtrack Recording),was released in March 2017 by StudioCanal and UMG.[2]
Production
The Terminator composer Brad Fiedel returned for the sequel. Film industry professionals regarded his return with concern and skepticism;they believed his style would not suit the film.[3][1][4] Fiedel produced the score for Terminator 2,even before the film entered production. He quickly realized that he would not receive the finished footage until late in the production after most effects were completed;which made it difficult to commit to decisions such as use of an orchestra because,unlike ambient music,the score had to accompany the on-screen action.[4] He used organic and acoustic sounds,which were compiled using the limited technology he had available.[4] The score was recorded and produced using a Fairlight CMI.[5] Fiedel order two CMIs:one machine was used for producing percussive instruments and the other contained the remaining instruments,and had created all the exact versions of the time signatures and tempos,to carefully sync with the sounds.[6] Both Fiedel and Cameron wanted the musical tone to be "warmer" due to its focus on a nobler Terminator and young John. He then experimented with sounds and shared them with Cameron for feedback.[4]
While The Terminator score had mainly used oscillators and synthesizers,Fiedel recorded real instruments and modified their sounds. He developed a library of sounds for characters such as the T-1000,whose theme was created by sampling brass-instrument players warming up and improvising. Fiedel said to the players,"You're an insane asylum. You're a bedlam of instruments." He slowed down the resulting sample and lowered the pitch,describing it as "artificial intelligent monks chanting". Cameron considered the "atonal" sound "too avant-garde" for him but Fiedel justified it as an accompaniment to Cameron,who was making a film "people have never seen before".[4] The motifs he created,was really almost musically generated from altered forward and backwards sounds of samples.[6]
While post-production happened at the Skywalker Sound in Lucas Valley,California,Fiedel could not hear the final cut,as he was busy on producing the final score at his garage in Studio City,Los Angeles. While working on the film's music,he had a person sitting outside the garage and after Fiedel mixed the cues,he went to Hollywood Burbank Airport to take a flight to Lucas Valley,and submitted the cues to the studio personnel. He felt that the sound really worked well.[6]
Releases
Terminator 2:Judgment Day's soundtrack was first issued by Varèse Sarabande,which released the original version in CDs,LPs and cassettes in 1991,and reissued again in 1993 and 1997.[7][2] Silva Screen Records released the remastered edition of the score in CD on August 17,2010,and in vinyl on August 19,2014.[8] Another remastered edition was published by Universal Music Group and StudioCanal,which released the album on March 24,2017.[7]
Reception
Writing for the online music database AllMusic,Heather Phares felt that the score "expands on the largely synth-based sound of the original Terminator music with taut,percussive interludes and evocative,symphonic passages".[9] He felt that the selected pieces "range from the spare to the claustrophobic,but all of them capture the post-apocalyptic tension of the film perfectly".[9] Michael Quinn of BBC wrote "T2 emerges as an almost faultless soundtrack,exhaustingly bombastic and ear-splittingly uncompromising as it is. Instead of expanding on the original,Fiedel boils it down,distilling it into a concentrated,metal-clad clenched fist that pounds furiously away with nightmarish intent. As a threnody for the catastrophic events it accompanies,Fiedel’s score is a coruscating cinematic masterpiece. It’s not an easy listen,by any means,but its sheer conviction and willingness to pursue so intense a musical idea –one that vehemently refuses to be diluted by harmonic warmth –makes the soundtrack to T2 all the more compelling."[3]
Writing for Den of Geek,Glen Chapman gave 5/5 to the album and called it as a "classic soundtrack" which is a "worthy addition to any record collection".[10] About the 2010 re-issue,Chapman wrote "Even though there aren’t any extra tracks,it’s easy to hear the care and attention that has gone into the re-master,with the improved audio quality and,as such,it comes highly recommended."[10]Filmtracks.com gave a mixed review,calling it as a "wasted opportunity",and wrote "doesn't mean that the score needed to be a big orchestral affair;that would have defied the personality of the concept. Instead,it means that even in the electronic realm,there were so many possibilities left unexplored that could have yielded a fantastic synthetic score. The title theme remains Fiedel's best and most lasting contribution to cinema and yet the composer did not make any substantial attempt to manipulate it for the purposes of suspense on screen. In terms of the album's listening experience,the highlights are not surprisingly the only three full renderings of the original film's theme [...] despite its dated sound and extremely primitive rendering,the original Terminator score remains the best balanced. Movie franchises,and especially cult favorites,deserve musical continuity,and while Feidel's follow-up score does technologically advance his material from the first film,it doesn't really reflect the depth of the concept."[11]
Critic Jonathan Broxton wrote "Brad Fiedel’s adherence to the sound and texture of the franchise is admirable,and the new material for the T-1000 is certainly memorable and fits the concept of the character well. But,one can’t help but feel that there were a number of missed opportunities here. The lack of any real emotional connective musical tissue between Sarah,John,and the T-101 is disappointing,as is the somewhat predictable nature of some of the action material. Finally –and perhaps worst of all –the score’s apparent use of dated equipment,especially the synth choir and the synth brass,makes the score come dangerously close to undermining itself,with its tinny sound making what should have been emotional and epic seem,at times,weak. On the original Terminator score,when Fiedel was flying by the seat of his pants,doing everything in his garage with no money,the end result was near-miraculous. On Terminator 2,when he’s got a cut of the movie’s $102 million budget to work with,you should really expect more. Casual fans of the franchise will absolutely love it,but anyone looking for a score with perhaps a little more meat on its exoskeleton."[12]Seattle Post-Intelligencer wrote "The overall sound of the album is electronic,but it's been tailored to the scenes painstakingly so that you can get the gist of what's going on in the movie without having it memorized. This soundtrack is fast in all the right places,such as the chase scenes. When you consider that the Terminator franchise is,at its heart,basically an implacable man horror movie,then this CD goes really well with that idea."[13]
The Terminator is a 1984 American science fiction action film directed by James Cameron. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as the Terminator, a cybernetic assassin sent back in time from 2029 to 1984 to kill Sarah Connor, whose unborn son will one day save mankind from extinction by Skynet, a hostile artificial intelligence in a post-apocalyptic future. Kyle Reese is a soldier sent back in time to protect Sarah. The screenplay is credited to Cameron and producer Gale Anne Hurd, while co-writer William Wisher Jr. received an "additional dialogue" credit.
The Fairlight CMI is a digital synthesizer, sampler, and digital audio workstation introduced in 1979 by Fairlight. It was based on a commercial licence of the Qasar M8 developed by Tony Furse of Creative Strategies in Sydney, Australia. It was one of the earliest music workstations with an embedded sampler and is credited for coining the term sampling in music. It rose to prominence in the early 1980s and competed with the Synclavier from New England Digital.
The Emulator is a series of digital sampling synthesizers using floppy-disk storage that was manufactured by E-mu Systems from 1981 until 2002. Although it was not the first commercial sampler, the Emulator was innovative in its integration of computer technology and was among the first samplers to find widespread usage among musicians. While costly, its price was considerably lower than those of its early competitors, and its smaller size increased its portability and, resultantly, practicality for live performance. The line was discontinued in 2002.
The Prophet-5 is an analog synthesizer manufactured by the American company Sequential. It was designed by Dave Smith and John Bowen in 1977, who used microprocessors, then a new technology, to create the first polyphonic synthesizer with fully programmable memory. This allowed users to store sounds and recall them instantly rather than having to reprogram them manually; whereas synthesizers had once created unpredictable sounds, the Prophet-5 moved synthesizers to producing "a standard package of familiar sounds".
Bradley Ira Fiedel is an American composer. He has written for film and television and became well known for his collaborations with James Cameron on The Terminator (1984), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) and True Lies (1994). On these scores he mostly used synthesizers, but composed a number of scores utilizing various acoustic instruments, including full orchestra.
A synthesizer is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and frequency modulation synthesis. These sounds may be altered by components such as filters, which cut or boost frequencies; envelopes, which control articulation, or how notes begin and end; and low-frequency oscillators, which modulate parameters such as pitch, volume, or filter characteristics affecting timbre. Synthesizers are typically played with keyboards or controlled by sequencers, software or other instruments and may be synchronized to other equipment via MIDI.
The Terminator: Original Soundtrack is a soundtrack album by Brad Fiedel, composed and performed on synthesizer for the 1984 film The Terminator. Fiedel described the film's music as being about "a mechanical man and his heartbeat". Almost all the music in the film was performed live.
Terminator 2: Judgment Day is a 1991 American science fiction action film directed by James Cameron, who co-wrote the script with William Wisher. Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Robert Patrick, and Edward Furlong, it is the sequel to The Terminator (1984) and is the second installment in the Terminator franchise. In the film, the malevolent artificial intelligence Skynet sends a Terminator—a highly advanced killing machine—back in time to 1995 to kill the future leader of the human resistance John Connor, when he is a child. The resistance sends back a less advanced, reprogrammed Terminator to protect Connor and ensure the future of humanity.
Wreck-It Ralph: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack album to the 2012 animated film Wreck-It Ralph. The film's score was composed by Henry Jackman, and the soundtrack featured three original songs and three incorporated songs, with Jackman's score accompanying the remainder of it. Artists featured in the soundtrack are, Owl City, AKB48, Buckner & Garcia, Skrillex, Noisia, Kool & the Gang and Rihanna. The soundtrack was released by Walt Disney Records on October 24, 2012 and received positive reviews from critics.
Terminator: Dark Fate is a 2019 American science fiction action film that is the sixth installment in the Terminator franchise and a direct sequel to Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), ignoring the events of Rise of the Machines (2003), Salvation (2009), and the reboot Genisys (2015). The film stars Linda Hamilton and Arnold Schwarzenegger as Sarah Connor and the T-800 Terminator, respectively, reuniting the actors after 23 years. It is directed by Tim Miller and written by David S. Goyer, Justin Rhodes, and Billy Ray from a story by James Cameron, Charles H. Eglee, Josh Friedman, Goyer, and Rhodes. Cameron also produced the film with David Ellison.
Whiplash (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album to the 2014 film Whiplash, directed by Damien Chazelle. The soundtrack was released on October 7, 2014, by Varèse Sarabande and features 24 tracks, which were split into three parts. Each part, consists of varied musical selections, original jazz pieces, original underscore parts and classical jazz standards that featured various artists, including Stan Getz, Duke Ellington and other musicians. A deluxe edition of the soundtrack was released in March 2020.
Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol is the score album to the 2011 film Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol. The fourth installment in the Mission: Impossible film series, starring Tom Cruise, and the sequel to Mission: Impossible III (2006), the film is directed by Brad Bird and featured musical score composed by Michael Giacchino, who scored for Mission: Impossible III (2006), and also for Bird's previous animated films, The Incredibles (2004) and Ratatouille (2007). Varèse Sarabande released the soundtrack on December 13, 2011.
Snowpiercer: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the album consisting of the original score composed by Marco Beltrami, for the Bong Joon-ho directorial Snowpiercer (2013). The album was published by CJ E&M Music, and released in South Korea on 21 August 2013, followed by an international release on 9 September. The soundtrack for the North American release, was distributed by Varèse Sarabande, and saw an official release on 11 June 2014.
Terminator Genisys: Music from the Motion Picture is the soundtrack album composed by Lorne Balfe for the 2015 film of the same name, directed by Alan Taylor, which is the sixth installment and a reboot of the Terminator franchise, taking the premise of the original film. The album was initially set to be scored by Christophe Beck, before Balfe replaced him. Hans Zimmer served as the executive producer of the film's soundtrack. The album featured 22 tracks, and was released on June 17, 2015 under the Skydance Media and Paramount Music labels.
Terminator: Dark Fate is the soundtrack album to the 2019 film of the same name directed by Tim Miller, featuring musical score composed by Tom Holkenborg in his second collaboration with Miller after Deadpool. The film is the sixth installment in the Terminator franchise, and a follow-up to Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), ignoring the events that occurred in the other installments, post James Cameron's return and creative control to the franchise after directing the first two installments. The film stars Linda Hamilton and Arnold Schwarzenegger as Sarah Connor and the T-800 Terminator, respectively, reuniting the actors after 23 years.
The Iron Giant is the 1999 animated science fiction film directed by Brad Bird for Warner Bros. Feature Animation. The film featured original score composed by Michael Kamen, in his first and only collaboration with Bird, as all his future films were scored by Michael Giacchino beginning with The Incredibles (2004). The score featured additional performance from the Czech Philharmonic symphony orchestra at Prague, conducted by Kamen himself and recording of the score happened within one week.
Halloween Ends (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album to the 2022 film Halloween Ends, directed by David Gordon Green; a sequel to Halloween Kills (2021), the thirteenth instalment in the Halloween franchise and the final film in the trilogy of sequels that started with the 2018 film, which directly follows the 1978 film. John Carpenter, Cody Carpenter and Daniel Davies, returned for Ends after previously scored for the first two entries in the franchise.
Ex Machina (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the score album to the 2015 film of the same name. Composed and produced by Ben Salisbury and Geoff Barrow of Portishead, the film marked their first feature film scoring stint, after the soundtrack for the initial temp score to the 2012 film Dredd, was not accepted by the directors, and then released into a standalone album titled Drokk. Garland then roped the duo for Ex Machina.
The Invisible Man (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the score album to the 2020 film The Invisible Man, inspired by H. G. Wells' novel of the same name. Composed by Benjamin Wallfisch, the album was released on February 21, 2020 by Back Lot Music, a week before the film's release. Wallfisch used string orchestra to compose for the film, mimicking Bernard Herrmann's technique for the score of Psycho (1960), while blending synth and electronic music. It was released on vinyl editions by Death Waltz Recording Company and Mondo on June 5, 2020.
Eagle Eye (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack to the 2008 film of the same name directed by D.J. Caruso. The score is composed by Brian Tyler who recorded the score at the Sony Scoring Stage in Sony Pictures Studios, Culver City, California. The score was released by Varèse Sarabande on September 30, 2008.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
