Music is one of the important parts of people’s lives. It allows us to relax, calm down, and enjoy the moment. With the right music, it’s possible to create a wonderful atmosphere and make everyone feel comfortable.
The importance of music is understood by psychologists. They say it can change our mood and even have a positive impact on our health. The representatives of the entertainment industry also know how influential sound might be. That’s why soundtracks are an integral part of diverse movies and games. Today, we’ll speak about the history of soundtracks and their essence.
What is a Soundtrack
The soundtrack is a music piece which is specially created to accompany films, TV shows, video games, etc. With this special music, the creators can reach many important effects:
| Effect | … | Explanation |
| Emotional expression | Music is strongly connected with people’s emotions. To correctly demonstrate the feelings of movie heroes, finding talented actors is not enough. A suitable soundtrack will intensify the moment and let people understand what the characters feel even without words. The feeling of happiness, fear, or sadness can be easily expressed with music. | |
| The creation of a unique atmosphere | Movies and games are created in diverse genres. The creators should create a clear tone for their work to make it capable of making a statement. When a film or game is supplemented with a suitable soundtrack, the audience can feel a very special atmosphere. Just consider the example of the first game of the Silent Hill series. With the help of music, the developers managed to create a terrifying atmosphere, which made millions of people thrilled. | |
| The reflection of a certain culture | Every culture has its specific music. The same is with subcultures. Thus, soundtracks can transfer people into certain environments and locations. | |
| Illustration of movements | When someone is speeding or slowing down, it might be underlined by the music. It makes people feel as though they are part of the action. | |
| The creation of plot relations | Every character is special. When certain music is connected with a hero, it might underline certain traits of the character and let the audience better understand a storyline. | |
| Awakening of particular emotions | Music is a perfect tool to manipulate our emotions. The right sound can make us feel frightened, upset, happy, and sympathetic. Many dramatic scenes would look senseless without a soundtrack. | |
| Reference to a certain time period | Certain sounds can easily take us back to the past and allow feeling that special atmosphere. The same technique is effective for flashback scenes | |
| Change in time perception | Without sounds, it’s impossible to understand how much time has passed in a movie. Sometimes characters have to wait or, on the contrary, many things happen in a few seconds. It’s all underlined by the music. | |
| Creation of the feeling of magic | If you watch any magical scenes without a sound, they will be shallow. The music is the only thing, which creates an atmosphere of magic for both games and movies. |
Stages of Development
In the past, movies were not that expressive. Humanity wasn’t able to create such a powerful tool as music accompaniment in the blink of an eye. Thus, let’s consider the main stages of development:
- The silent period from the 1890s to 1929. During that time, the audience could only enjoy a phonograph or live musicians performing the music for a film. It was necessary to fill up the silence, mask the noise, which was produced by projectors, and provide a certain feeling of reality to the audience. The synchronization with video was far out of question.
- The golden era. The opportunity to make sounds synchronized appeared by 1929. Thus, from 1930 to the 1950s, people could enjoy the most creative movies with awesome sound and talented actors play. Many legendary soundtracks were created during that time, for instance, Max Steiner wrote an awesome leitmotif for the original King Kong movie.
- Branching of sounds (from the 1950s). While music added to movies used to be more European-like, during this period, the situation started to change. Films demonstrated more diverse soundtracks, which belonged to various styles – jazz, pop, western, etc. Later, synths obtained greater popularity for soundtracks, while the traditions of the golden era were still preserved.
- A piece of art (from the 1990s to our time). Modern films are much more diverse compared to the past. Their creators used very different soundtracks, which might belong to any possible existing style. More composers even without a symphonic background started to appear in the industry. To create the right atmosphere, emotions, and references, movie directors do very hard work.
Soundtracks for Games
Cinematography went a long way before modern sounds were integrated into the industry. However, the situation with various games is different. They have been created with music from the very beginning. However, the development of technologies influenced the quality of soundtracks in a positive way.
Today, it’s impossible to find any game without a soundtrack. It’s important even for casual online games available at online casinos US and on other platforms. The music influences the popularity of slots and other products. As one of the gambling experts Max Bet from SlotsUp.com claims, he always considers the quality and suitability of music added along with many other game features. What’s more, they’re even rewards granted for the best sounds in casino games.
Music always gives a feeling of reality and creates a special mood when you play. A good soundtrack can make gamers play for hours or leave the game in a second.
Conclusion
The history of soundtracks demonstrates the importance of music for people. Nice and suitable sounds are an integral part of modern movies and games. Certain compositions even become legendary and people keep listening to them for decades. Thanks to technological development, everyone can enjoy the best-quality music in films and other products of the entertainment industry today.
