The Day the Earth Stood Still -- Bernard Herrmann

Bernard Herrmann's score for the 1951 film The Day the Earth Stood Still is a remarkable example of an early sci-fi movie soundtrack. And though it may be true nothing like it had ever been heard before in popular cinema, it went on to become one of the most imitated scores in film history. Copied by countless film composers, it soon became impossible to listen to the score without hearing the cliche.

It seems to have had an impact on film music similar to John Williams' music for the initial Star Wars film. Most of the film music of the time had a similar feel--up until perhaps Stanley Kubrik's "temp track" in 2001: a space odyssey, which must have seemed so fresh, or Jerry Goldsmith's Planet of the Apes.


Bernard Herrmann

Herrmann didn't introduce electronic sounds into film music, but his work on this film seems to have made them iconic, leading to eventual overexposure. In fact, by the 1970s, electronic sounds were in a sense stigmatizing, to the point that George Lucas and Walter Murch, when they made THX 1138 in 1970, constrained themselves not to use a single electronic sound. Quite a limitation for a film that takes place in an underground city packed with technology!

Instrumentation

Herrmann employed tape techniques, electric organs, electronically amplified strings, the chilling sound of bare pianos, an immense percussion section including vibraphones and glockenspiels and, most significantly, the Theremin, a haunting electronic instrument that was already familiar to cinema-goers and destined to become the most identifiable cliche.


A Theremin, and the inventor demonstrating the instrument

If you've ever imitated a cheesy horror or sci fi flick's soundtrack by singing ooooo weee oooooo ooooo...well that's the Theremin, right there. The player never touches the instrument, but moves his hands in the air about antennae which control pitch and intensity. It's difficult to learn how to play the instrument well and there are few Theremin players in the world who can do a credible job (I once went to a Halloween "pops" concert where the Theremin player was basically incompetent, not that it mattered much, because just hearing the Theremin live was a treat for the audience).

Listen

Here are samples of music from the film, arranged into a suite and conducted by the composer, from the classic Decca recording of the early 70s. The orchestra is either the London Phil or the National Philharmonic Orchestra; unfortunately, the notes are unclear. This brief (11:36) suite is split into two parts on YouTube, 1 and 2. I've also given you links into the time indexes of each of the eight queues in the suite:

Suite, part 1 (5:04)

Outer Space (1:58)
Radar (2:24)
Gort (0:42)

Suite, part 2 (6:32)

The Robot (1:57)
Space Control (1:18)
Terror (1:58)
Farewell (0:34)
Finale (0:45)

To see how Olivier Messiaen's idiom jibes with Herrmann's, try this brief redub of a the "Space Control" scene from The Day the Earth Stood Still played first with the original score and then overlain with a clip from Messiaen's somewhat more sophisticated Trois Petites Liturgies de la Presence Divine, written about 8 years before Herrmann composed his score. Messiaen's score doesn't use a Theremin. It uses the ondes Martenot, an electronic instrument which is similar in sound (in fact, the principles are virtually the same...I'll post about this soon). It wouldn't surprise me if Hermann was influenced by Messiaen's music. By the way, notice the much faster tempo in the original "Space Control" queue as it appears in the film vs. how Herrmann conducted it on the Decca recording above.

Messiaen redub

To be honest, I think it's fair to say that Herrmann, as a composer, was overrated, but his music is definitely memorable and effective as film music. He knew how to set a mood and provoke emotions. On my dark, lonely 5 am drive into the office this morning, listening to the "Gort" and "Robot" queues gave me chills.


Gasp! Klaatu disembarks!