"When I listen to any music," Ryuichi Sakamoto shared, "I automatically see musical notes and instruments. In films, just one tone, a sound could mean a lot. I paid attention to every noise on the train and counted every different noise. Spins, boxes crashing, people talking, cable wires." He noted, "Echoes of cities are different. The first time I went to London, I was kind of surprised I flew from Tokyo to London and echoes the cities had were very different. It was quite tricky, because my music's kind of depressed and flat on the surface. (Bernardo) Bertolucci forced me to write more and more emotional music. He kept saying, 'More emotional'. It was very difficult. Before 'The Last Emperor', I was kind of afraid to let people into my music. I could hardly communicate with people. But after the experience of 'The Last Emperor', I easily could communicate with people. I was surprised."
"TV is the closest thing we have to a cultural heritage," it was explained. "If you call somebody Spock, it's part of our daily vocabularly. People recognize it as a common bond." Bill Conti composed music for movies and TV emphasized, "You've got one minute behind the main title to set the tone and try to capture the viewer. Music is the best way to telegraph what is going to come." Craig Safan believed, "One of the most important things a film composer does is come up with a sound for a project. Every movie and television show sounds different. After reading the first script of 'Cheers' the sound came to me. I said I wanted an instrument that sounds like a bar. Jimmy Burrows, who's the director and one of the executive producers, suggested a clarinet. Then it came to me." Bill added, "It's a constant challenge that requires a great dramatic sense; knowing a lot of music is not necessarily the answer." On 'Dynasty', Bill remembered, "the producers wanted scope, something that would convey the class and sophistication of the story." On 'Falcon Crest', it "was to suggest a big, powerful family, certainly not underprivileged, as you can tell by scenes of the mansion. I gave the theme a lot of rhythm, with strings carrying a long melodic line and horns providing the energy." On 'Cagney & Lacey', "I used 2 saxes for the intro, then followed with happy music that could easily follow a comedy. For the theme I use a synthesizer rather than a big orchestra. The theme ended with the alto saxes, which seem to suggest women."
"'Leave It to Beaver,'" it was mentioned, "is not a difficult piece of music. It’s a lot more expensive to recreate it, but it makes a lot more sense to go into a studio and make a 90-second version and pay the money so that the album is a pleasant listening experience and doesn’t feel like a bunch of commercial jingles." Mike Post recounted,
"In the old days, music for television and films was perishable music. It was unobtrusive – it just hummed along there and didn't hurt anybody. That's not so now. It's not unobtrusive anymore and I feel partially responsible. (Henry) Mancini would find a musical signature and hang in there with it, not change the music every 2 minutes to fit the action. The music would play to an overall scene. All modern-day film composers owe Mancini a debt." Henry maintained, "Back in the old days of the big–studio operation, scores had to be turned out on an assembly-line basis. Each studio maintained its staff orchestra, and the accent was on the classical approach. Now each score is hand-tailored for the particular movie, and we can use more contemporary materials, including jazz and even rock'n'roll."
"The music," it was pointed out, "is not necessarily secondary but it is supportive and works in concert with the script. It's not the same as writing a hit song or a symphony. What I'm trying to do is support something dramatic. It's very challenging." For example, "(Hill Street Blues) is a series so brilliantly written, so startling and complex in its atmosphere and methods, that it requires a new level of attention from its audience. It and a few other shows have sent a message that you can do good and popular television, that those 2 things are not mutually exclusive." All in all, "If you have a good song from a hit TV show, I don’t see how you can miss with a record. You’ve got a built-in acceptance already."
