Alan Silvestri is an American composer who first dreamed of being a jazz guitar player; he was born in New York City and raised in Teaneck, New Jersey. He spent two years at Berklee School of Music in Boston and later became a performer and arranger. Silvestri then made his way to Hollywood, where he successfully composed music for a film called "The Doberman Gang," He made a name for himself in the film composing world. In the 1970's Silvestri's part in a show called "CHiP's" got the attention of the filmmaker, Robert Zemeckis. Since then, their collaboration has created a dynamic duo as a genius composer and filmmaker making 21 films. Some films they've worked on together include the "Back to the Future" trilogy, the "Polar Express,"Forrest Gump," and recently "The Witches," and more. Silvestri's fantastic work on "Forrest Gump", got him awarded Oscar and Golden Globe nominations.
Silvestri has scored many films of all types of styles and genres. As most know him for action, adventure, sci-fi movies, he is also rounded in family films including "Parent Trap," "Stuart Little 1 and 2," "Lilo and Stitch," etc. While he has worked on many well-known films, some of his most famous work is in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). He composed for four films in the MCU, "Captain America: The First Avenger," "The Avengers," "Avengers: The Infinity War," and more recently "Avengers: Endgame. Being a part of this many films makes him the only composer to have this many in the franchise.
Silvestri's "The Avengers Theme," was first introduced in the franchises' "Avengers" movie in 2012. This theme can be recognized by most if you are familiar with the films. Silvestri allows listeners and film watchers to feel the scenes even more than they already perceive as they take in the music as well. Usually when watching, people don't fully realize that small musical moments are just as important as the bigger ones. An example of a big musical moment would be "The Avengers" theme as it is described as anthemic by Silvestri himself compared to a small moment which would be filler music throughout scenes as background music or a transition to the next scene.
Silvestris' work on Avengers: Endgame (2019) has been the most recent work that has had such an effect worldwide. His work on songs from the movie like "Portals" and "Main on End" grasped fans attention instantly. The reprise of the original Avengers theme happens throughout these songs, making a lasting statement as this is the saga's last installment. The famous theme stands out amongst other things, and you know what is happening or what is going to happen next as soon as you hear it. He describes the music in "Portals" as celebratory due to the events during the scene. Alan Silvestri has made his mark in the film composing world and, essentially, the music world as a whole, with his great works being shared globally through the love of film and music combined as one!
Hi, Lydia. Your blog post was very interesting! I did not know who wrote the music for The Avengers, so it was interesting to read about his background. You make a great point about the way film composers use their music to evoke certain emotions.
I love it! I wish he could have scored more of the films, because it would have great to have more thematic continuity like you mentioned with the Avengers theme returning. I'd love to talk about this more because I'm a huge film music fan and have always wished that the scores could have been more consistent throughout the saga.
I like your mention how the small moments are as important as the grand moments in film music. I think most of us (especially musicians) recognize the grand moments - opening themes, leitmotifs, climaxes, etc. But we don't always realize how the in-between music is adding to our experience in watching films. I haven't seen any of the Avengers myself but I love this film music. I'll be looking up more music by Alan Silvestri! -Hyrum Arnesen
I really appreciated your presentation and exposure to a different genre of music than I typically think of in an academic setting. (I'm the one in the wrong! haha) Although the Marvel movies have taken over the world, I had never heard Silvestri's name before, and am curious as to what other films he has composed for!
Hi Lydia! Thanks for this great post on Alan Silvestri. I had no idea who he was prior to this and was so excited to learn that he worked on music for the Marvel franchise, these are some of my favorite movies! The Avengers Theme is so powerful and iconic and has been one of the post influential pieces of music in my lifetime. I remember feeling absolutely transported when the piece “Portals” came on in the theatre due to Alan’s artistry. It really enhanced the power of the scene with all of the Avengers and their allies coming in through Dr. Strange’s portals. It was epic! Thanks for introducing me to the person behind this iconic music!
Really glad to see Silvestri getting some recognition here, especially since he's such a prolific composer. I still get chills whenever I watch the climactic scenes from Back to the Future because of how powerful his score his. Of course, that "Portals" scene from Endgame is also brilliant.
Thank you for bringing Film Music into the blog! It's such an important part of recent music history and outside of Williams and Zimmer we do not discuss the composers enough. I wasn't aware of who composed the scores for the films, and will now listen for his style when watching. -Bryce Newcomer
Hi Lydia, thanks for sharing music and your blog. I have watched the movie Avengers and big fan for the movie. Unfortunately, I didn't know the name of the composer who composed the music Portals from Avengers. The music have powerful beats and beautiful melodies. I would like to hear and search the other of his music. - Haksung Lee
Hi Lydia! Like a lot of people, I did not know he was the man behind one of the MOST ICONIC THEMES of the decade, and thanks for writing about him! The grandeur of these scores I always found really compelling but also I like how you included the note about smaller moments and transitions being just as important, if not more. Thanks for such a great post and fun presentation too!
I think that everyone agrees that your blog was so interesting. I think your presentation gave us the opportunity to hear this music with new ideas, many times we only identified the music from movies because we related immediately with the scenes of the movie or the characters. Or at least that is my case, that's why I liked your presentation because you made me think about those composers and how they have innovated in the music that is created for films.
It's crazy how much a soundtrack to a movie can strongly influence scenes. I watched Portals twice, once with my computer muted and the subtitles on and once with the volume full blast. I definitely felt more of the intensity and emotions with the volume on rather than just listening to it without sound. Thanks for sharing! -Taiga Benito
Finally getting to see the face behind some of my favorite film scores was really awesome! Seeing how he went from jazz performer to film composition was a very interesting read. Thanks for sharing! -Zack T
Valerie Coleman is a Grammy-nominated composer and flutist. She was a founding member of the Imani Winds wind quintet and is a current performer with the harp-viola-flute trio Umama Womama. She is also currently the Clara Mannes Fellow for Music Leadership at the Mannes School of Music, serving on the flute and composition faculty. Coleman has appeared with many orchestras, chamber groups, and on many records throughout her career. She is also an accomplished composer and arranger. In 2019 and 2020, the Philadelphia Orchestra commissioned her to arrange Umoja and write “Seven O’Clock Shout,” respectively. Her piece Umoja has taken many forms, including wind quintet, concert band, and flute choir. The word umoja is the Swahili word for “unity” and is the word associated with the first day of Kwanzaa. The piece contains a call and response theme that represents unity in the music. Seven O’Clock Shout was
Menelaos Peistikos is a Greek composer and pianist currently based in Toronto, Canada. His music is inspired by an extreme variety of musical genres, ranging from baroque and renaissance music to contemporary classical and cinematic music, as well as from folk Greek to Japanese, Tibetan, and Indonesian Gamelan music. Peistikos is also heavily influenced by other artistic disciplines, especially by the oeuvres of Plato, Albert Camus, Friedrich Nietzsche, Alan Watts, and Edward Hopper. For Sun's Light: Molinari Quartet In February 2019, Menelaos won the 3rd Prize and 1st Prize of Public at the 7th Molinari String Quartet Composition Competition in Montreal, Canada, for his string-quartet composition For Sun’s light . In December 2018, he won the 2nd Prize at the 4th Opus Dissonus International Composition Competition for solo piano in Brazil for his composition On the Vision and The Riddle . On the Vision and the Riddle He is a current student at the University of Toront
We Shall Not Be Moved was composed by Daniel Bernard Roumain with a libretto by Marc Bamuthi Joseph, and directed by Bill T. Jones. The opera brings in musical signifiers from several genres while pointedly critiquing issues such as police brutality, the rights of transgender individuals, and structural racism within the US public education system. While the opera has not been taken on by another company since its premiere in 2017, it is an overlooked example of the possibilities illuminated by the frameworks and orientations of Black Opera as defined by Naomi André , and, I would argue, contemporary US opera more broadly. The opera grew out of an Opera Philadelphia collaboration with a non-profit called Arts Sanctuary called "Hip H'Opera," initially launched in 2007. In the Hip H'Opera program, students "[learned] the history and aesthetics of hip-hop and opera . . . and then "[used] poetry, fiction, and non-fiction [to capture] their own urban stories.
Hi, Lydia. Your blog post was very interesting! I did not know who wrote the music for The Avengers, so it was interesting to read about his background. You make a great point about the way film composers use their music to evoke certain emotions.
ReplyDelete-Noah W.
I love it! I wish he could have scored more of the films, because it would have great to have more thematic continuity like you mentioned with the Avengers theme returning. I'd love to talk about this more because I'm a huge film music fan and have always wished that the scores could have been more consistent throughout the saga.
ReplyDeleteI like your mention how the small moments are as important as the grand moments in film music. I think most of us (especially musicians) recognize the grand moments - opening themes, leitmotifs, climaxes, etc. But we don't always realize how the in-between music is adding to our experience in watching films. I haven't seen any of the Avengers myself but I love this film music. I'll be looking up more music by Alan Silvestri!
ReplyDelete-Hyrum Arnesen
I really appreciated your presentation and exposure to a different genre of music than I typically think of in an academic setting. (I'm the one in the wrong! haha) Although the Marvel movies have taken over the world, I had never heard Silvestri's name before, and am curious as to what other films he has composed for!
ReplyDelete- Laura Ruple
Hi Lydia! Thanks for this great post on Alan Silvestri. I had no idea who he was prior to this and was so excited to learn that he worked on music for the Marvel franchise, these are some of my favorite movies! The Avengers Theme is so powerful and iconic and has been one of the post influential pieces of music in my lifetime. I remember feeling absolutely transported when the piece “Portals” came on in the theatre due to Alan’s artistry. It really enhanced the power of the scene with all of the Avengers and their allies coming in through Dr. Strange’s portals. It was epic! Thanks for introducing me to the person behind this iconic music!
ReplyDelete-Abby Ryan
DeleteReally glad to see Silvestri getting some recognition here, especially since he's such a prolific composer. I still get chills whenever I watch the climactic scenes from Back to the Future because of how powerful his score his. Of course, that "Portals" scene from Endgame is also brilliant.
ReplyDelete- Cameron DeLuca
DeleteHi Lydia,
ReplyDeleteThank you for bringing Film Music into the blog! It's such an important part of recent music history and outside of Williams and Zimmer we do not discuss the composers enough. I wasn't aware of who composed the scores for the films, and will now listen for his style when watching.
-Bryce Newcomer
Hi Lydia, thanks for sharing music and your blog. I have watched the movie Avengers and big fan for the movie. Unfortunately, I didn't know the name of the composer who composed the music Portals from Avengers. The music have powerful beats and beautiful melodies. I would like to hear and search the other of his music.
ReplyDelete- Haksung Lee
Hi Lydia! Like a lot of people, I did not know he was the man behind one of the MOST ICONIC THEMES of the decade, and thanks for writing about him! The grandeur of these scores I always found really compelling but also I like how you included the note about smaller moments and transitions being just as important, if not more. Thanks for such a great post and fun presentation too!
ReplyDeleteHello Lydia!
ReplyDeleteI think that everyone agrees that your blog was so interesting. I think your presentation gave us the opportunity to hear this music with new ideas, many times we only identified the music from movies because we related immediately with the scenes of the movie or the characters. Or at least that is my case, that's why I liked your presentation because you made me think about those composers and how they have innovated in the music that is created for films.
Thanks,
Citlalmina
It's crazy how much a soundtrack to a movie can strongly influence scenes. I watched Portals twice, once with my computer muted and the subtitles on and once with the volume full blast. I definitely felt more of the intensity and emotions with the volume on rather than just listening to it without sound. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDelete-Taiga Benito
Finally getting to see the face behind some of my favorite film scores was really awesome! Seeing how he went from jazz performer to film composition was a very interesting read. Thanks for sharing! -Zack T
ReplyDelete