Listen Up! Sports Geek Breaks Down the (Musical) Score -- by Richard Briggs

Richard Briggs is a contributor
to The Skewed Review, and is
the outgoing Editor-in-Chief
for Dixie Sun.
Check out his
Sports Geek articles here!

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT | SPORTS & RECREATION | SPORTS GEEK -- The art of the theme song is too underrated. It’s time for it to get some love.

Sports, television shows, movies, and superheroes--they all have that tune in the background that rings within our ears and then sends messages to our brains. Our brains then interpret the sounds and we know the familiar notes being played. Whether we receive goose bumps to Superman’s heroic theme or hide in terror when the “Imperial March” signals the arrival of Darth Vader, something happens biologically that excites us when we hear theme music.

I apologize for the previous paragraph sounding like Chapter Four in a psychology textbook, but this is serious stuff.

After my third time watching Marvel’s “The Avengers” in the theater, I finally paid attention to Alan Silvestri’s score for the film. If you need background music while reading this piece, then go to YouTube andsearch Alan Silvestri “The Avengers.” I’m actually listening to it right now.

It’s so cool how old school it is when it comes to movie themes, yet it has a modern sound to it as well. Absolute genius. It further shows the perfection of the whole Avengers project. The music has the superhero feel to it, and then there’s a slight hint of “Phantom of the Opera” at one point with the drum set. It’s subtle and lasts for only a few measures, but it sounds so cool.

Theme music is a necessity for sports because it gives television broadcasts a sense of familiarity. TV broadcasts are so much more graphically developed today, and it’s nice to have something we can cling to from the past. That’s where theme music helps. When I was a kid I especially loved the NBA on NBC theme music, and still today we have the Monday Night Football theme music and the NFL on Fox.

Going back and listening to some of these themes has been giving me goose bumps. It’s hard to put all of this into words because the basis of this column is dependent on sounds.

My favorite movie montage is in “Major League” as the Cleveland Indians go on their big winning streak to force a division championship game with the New York Yankees. The music is so goofy, but it does something inside me. As I said before, music does something to us biologically. Perhaps someone smarter than I can leave a comment explaining the whole process of the chemicals and endorphins released when listening to music.

Theme music, and music in general, goes unappreciated, but next time you’re in the theaters pay attention. A lot of the reason we feel amped at certain points of the movie is because the music is helping us get there.

When the Avengers are in a circle in the middle of New York during the movie and the camera rotates around them, that specific spot was designated to let the music give us goose bumps. When Clark Kent first ripped open his suit to reveal the Superman “S” in the 1978 film, the music matched his action so we could get amped to see Superman. And when Jack Sparrow is singing that one famous “Pirates of the Caribbean” song, the film cuts to black, and the end credits roll, the fast-paced Pirates theme music is meant to remind you of the awesome film you just watched so you’ll walk out of the movie theater and tell all your friends.

Music is awesome--especially theme music. Take notice the next time you’re in the movie theater.