Saturday Night at the Movies

Discover the remarkable stories behind some of the most popular film music of all time

From Jurassic Park to ­The Lord of the Rings, Vertigo to Titanic, a powerful score can make a movie truly extraordinary. The alchemy between composer and director creates pure cinematic magic, with songs and melodies that are instantly recognisable and eternally memorable. So what is their secret?

Saturday Night at the Movies goes behind the scenes to reveal twelve remarkable partnerships, and how they have created the music that has moved millions. Discover how these collaborations began and what makes them so effective: the dynamic personalities, the creative chemistry, the flashes of genius. ­The best scores come from sound and image working together to bring the director's vision to life, but many scores also stand alone as towering achievements of composition that have shaped the face of modern music.

Featuring such luminaries as Alfred Hitchcock and Bernard Herrmann, Christopher Nolan and Hans Zimmer, and James Horner and James Cameron, Saturday Night at the Movies explores the creation of film favourites such as Back to the Future, Fargo, Edward Scissorhands and many, many more.

Includes:
J.J. Abrams & Michael Giacchino
Kenneth Branagh & Patrick Doyle
Tim Burton & Danny Elfman
James Cameron & James Horner
­The Coen Brothers & Carter Burwell
Alfred Hitchcock & Bernard Herrmann
Peter Jackson & Howard Shore
David Lean & Maurice Jarre
Sam Mendes & ­Thomas Newman
Christopher Nolan & Hans Zimmer
Steven Spielberg & John Williams
Robert Zemeckis & Alan Silvestri

Auteur

As executive producer at Classic FM, Jennifer Nelson works with presenters including Alexander Armstrong and Bill Turnbull. She has produced Classic FM's weekly film music programme since 2014, interviewing many of the directors and composers featured in this book. She has won Gold Sony Radio Academy Awards as producer of music documentaries for BBC 6 Music and Absolute Radio, and was named 'Producer of the Year' at the inaugural Global Awards in 2015. She is currently studying part-time at Birkbeck University for a Creative Industries Management MSc and when she isn't in the radio studio or university library, can often be found in the cinema.