Bernard Herrmann's The Ghost and Mrs. Muir

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"In Bernard Herrmann's The Ghost and Mrs. Muir: A Film Score Guide, David Cooper examines Herrmann's career in general, as well as the specific elements that went into the creation of The Ghost and Mrs. Muir's score. Cooper traces the development of Herrmann's craft as a film composer, expecially through his radio work, where he encountered many of the great artists of the age, most notably Orson Welles." "In this guide, Cooper considers Herrmann's musical technique and theorizes some of the ways in which music can be meaningful in film. He also explores nonmusical contexts of the film, including the screenplay's relationship to the popular novel from which it was adapted, as well as the contribution of director Joseph L. Mankiewicz, the performances of Gene Tierney and Rex Harrison, and the editing of Dorothy Spencer. Cooper also provides a quantitative, evidence-based study of the score. A rundown of all the cues in Herrmann's manuscript is followed by an examination of the score as a musical artifact. In his evaluation of the overall approach to the soundtrack, the author considers the musical detail of the score's structure, its themes, and their orchestration. Cooper's thoughtful assessment of Herrmann's score is a fine tribute to this major work by a great and influential composer."--Jacket.