The critical importance of silence in film scoring

One of the most consistently underrated elements in music is the lack of any music at all – complete silence.

It’s a bad habit we composers have. When presented with a void, we feel obliged to fill it with notes. The more music we can shove out the better, we think — that is, after all, what we’re being paid to do. What good is a composer if they’re going to stick a full bar tutti rest in the middle of a perfectly good wall of sound?

The truth is, some of the most effective music cues in film come to a complete and momentary stop for a dramatic moment on-screen. This usually goes hand-in-hand with a particularly well shot or well acted moment, where the performance is so powerful it just stands on its own.

Often in moments like these of high drama, it’s more emotionally compelling to leave a scene (or even a few beats) devoid of music – it instantly forces the audience into a much more intimate relationship with the characters on screen. The experience becomes much more visceral – more human – in that moment, and the audience empathizes much more profoundly with what is happening on screen.

It’s widely conjectured that the first silent movies had music played over them because audiences were unnerved at the “ghosts” onscreen. When it’s just you and the actors and a profound silence, it really does move the experience beyond your comfort zone and into your personal space. In a way, modern film audiences are not too far removed from the days of silent film – we still respond similarly when confronted with these “ghost” moments.

Think of a murder scene, for example. The music could accompany the killer stalking his prey, building tension slowly and methodically. The music builds as the killer nears his victim. He raises the knife, the music becoming more insistent. The victim turns and sees him, and we see the terror in her eyes. Now the music drops out completely, leaving just you (the audience), the killer, and his victim in a distinctly uncomfortable silence. The knife comes down, and we live the murder along with the characters onscreen. After a few moments, in the aftermath, we might add some low, dark, subtle music to gently bring the film back out of the audience’s personal space.

Ultimately, these are decisions that should be made at a spotting session. And clearly, silence is not for every scene. But composers should keep a keen eye out for moments like these that would be best served sans music – directors usually love the idea.

Posted Thursday, April 8th, 2010 at 3:01 pm