Loke Chung Yow 143035

I will look into film composer Hans Zimmer, whose profound works have inspired me over the years. A

Germany born composer and starting out as a keyboardist for various bands, Hans Zimmer wrote jingles and

theme song for Going for Gold.

Marrying technology with traditional orchestral arrangements, Hans Zimmer has created hybrid

scores: arrangements that do not correspond to a defined genre category. By integrating both sides, Hans

Zimmer has achieved fluidity between boundaries, weaving between genres of a given film while

maintaining control over the cohesiveness of the overall sound. Moreover, technology allows Hans Zimmer

to score without a real band; a virtual orchestra, which allows a wide range of sounds and orchestral effects

with minimal costs.

Examples of Hans Zimmer’s successes include Rain Man, Lion King, The Last Samurai, Mission

Impossible 2, Pirates of the Caribbean, Dark Knight Trilogy, Sherlock Holmes, and Interstellar. Since the

early days, he has integrated world music in his works. Rain Man sees a unique flavour of steel drums with

synthesisers, Lion King witnesses the marriage of African sounds with orchestra, and the Last Samurai

combines Japanese flair with traditional orchestra.

The Dark Knight trilogy and Interstellar are unique cases for him. Hans Zimmer resorts to his

signature electronic-meets-orchestra style for the Dark Knight trilogy. Interstellar sees a bleak texture of

ambient strings, hollow pianos, eerie choirs and haunting pipe organs.

Of course, this is a surface of Hans Zimmer’s deep and meticulously crafted sound. His approach to

contemporary film composition is an inspiration to composers, arrangers, and keyboardists alike.

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