{"id":47102,"date":"2024-09-06T10:42:29","date_gmt":"2024-09-06T08:42:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/2740f1cd-fa96-484a-84b2-def540596da6"},"modified":"2024-09-06T11:07:19","modified_gmt":"2024-09-06T09:07:19","slug":"beetlejuice-beetlejuice-a-guide-to-the-soundtrack","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/rss_feed\/beetlejuice-beetlejuice-a-guide-to-the-soundtrack\/","title":{"rendered":"Beetlejuice Beetlejuice – a guide to the soundtrack"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By <\/p>

Published: Friday, 06 September 2024 at 08:42 AM<\/p>

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It\u2019s 36 years since Tim Burton\u2019s\u00a0Beetlejuice<\/em>\u00a0first lit up cinema screens, swiftly becoming a cult classic thanks to its madcap mix of comedy and horror.\u00a0<\/p>

So it must be some sort of record, then, that the director has waited this long to deliver a sequel,\u00a0Beetlejuice Beetlejuice<\/em>, which features returning cast members Michael Keaton, Catherine O\u2019Hara and Wynona Rider, not to mention composer Danny Elfman<\/a>.<\/p>

What is Danny Elfman\u2019s music for the original\u00a0Beetlejuice<\/em>\u00a0like?<\/h2>Elfman\u2019s second feature film score for Tim Burton was really unlike anything heard before it. His first , for Burton\u2019s\u00a0Pee-Wee\u2019s Big Adventure,<\/em>\u00a0tipped its hat to two of Elfman\u2019s favourite composers, Nino Rota<\/a> and Bernard Herrmann<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>
Beetlejuice<\/em>\u00a0has some of the rhythmic energy of Rota, but it\u2019s a sound all Elfman\u2019s own. The original score features a relatively small orchestral ensemble of brass, strings, harp and percussion, originally conducted by William Ross.\u00a0<\/p>
The 10 best film scores by Danny Elfman…<\/a><\/li><\/ul>
The \u2018Main Titles\u2019 begin with a hint of Harry Belafonte\u2019s classic song, \u2018Day-O\u2019 (which makes a full and very memorable appearance later in the film) and turn into a wild romp, a musical cavalcade if you will.<\/p>
There\u2019s wholesome, perky string music for the Maitlands (Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis), the couple who find themselves \u2018recently deceased\u2019 and quirky music for the afterlife featuring solo violin and hand percussion. From there it\u2019s aheady mix of comical, lightly horrific scoring for the ensemble with blasts of pipe organ, flaring brass and the return of Elfman\u2019s romping main quasi-quick march theme, all as the newly-dead Maitlands attempt to rid their house of its new living occupants, the Deetz family.<\/p>
Six of the best horror film scores…<\/a><\/li><\/ul>
What music is in\u00a0Beetlejuice Beetlejuice<\/em>?<\/h2>
The new film has far more songs in it, with Jimmy Webb\u2019s \u2018MacArthur Park\u2019 significantly used in two versions by Richard Harris and Donna Summer. \u2018Tragedy\u2019 by the Bee Gees makes an appearance, as do tracks by Richard Marx (\u2018Right Here Waiting\u2019) and Sigur R\u00f3s (Svefn-g-englar). Horror fans will be amused by the use of Pino Donaggio\u2019s main theme from the film\u00a0Carrie<\/em>, too.<\/p>
Harry Belafonte\u2019s \u2018Day-O\u2019 makes a return appearance, but in the guise of an a cappella children\u2019s choir with lead solo vocal from Alfie Davis. The young singer is joined by the Sylvia Young Theatre School Choir for the performance, which is amusingly \u2018plummy\u2019 (aka rather British).<\/p>
<\/div><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Trailer: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice<\/em> (2024)<\/figcaption><\/figure><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is Danny Elfman’s music for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice<\/em> like?<\/h2>Danny Elfman brings back his wild main title theme, adding a few more bells, whistles and vocal elements \u2013 huffing male voices and plenty more eerir women\u2019s voices. He also explores the theme a little more, taking it to some interesting new places. On the whole, though, it\u2019s the\u00a0Beetlejuice<\/em>\u00a0theme we know and love \u2013 which is just as it should be.\u00a0<\/p>Elfman also makes heavy use of pipe organ, with touches of chimes\/tubular bells for certain accents and there\u2019s a fabulous return of his solo violin music for the afterlife (replete with hand percussion).<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/articles\/different-parts-of-a-pipe-organ\">What are the different parts of the pipe organ?<\/a><\/li><\/ul>There\u2019s a more expansive feel and a polish to the new music, which isn\u2019t surprising given how recording quality has improved, not to mention the fact that Elfman has 36 years more experience in orchestral and film music.<\/p><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What films has Danny Elfman scored for Tim Burton?<\/h2>Burton and Elfman have enjoyed (and occasionally endured) an almost-40-year collaboration. The director sought ought the composer to write the music for his first feature film,\u00a0Pee-Wee\u2019s Big Adventure<\/em>\u00a0in 1985. That was followed by\u00a0Beetlejuice<\/em>\u00a0(1988),\u00a0Batman<\/em>\u00a0(1989),\u00a0Edward Scissorhands\u00a0<\/em>(1990),\u00a0Batman Returns<\/em>(1992),\u00a0The Nightmare Before Christmas\u00a0<\/em>(1993, not directed by Burton, but written and produced by him),\u00a0Mars Attacks!<\/em>\u00a0(1996),\u00a0Sleepy Hollow<\/em>\u00a0(1999),\u00a0Planet of the Apes\u00a0<\/em>(2001),\u00a0Big Fish<\/em>\u00a0(2003),\u00a0Charlie and the Chocolate Factory<\/em>\u00a0(2005),\u00a0Corpse Bride<\/em>\u00a0(2005),\u00a0Alice in Wonderland<\/em>\u00a0(2010),\u00a0Dark Shadows<\/em>\u00a0(2012),\u00a0Frankenweenie<\/em>\u00a0(2012),\u00a0Big Eyes<\/em>\u00a0(2016),\u00a0Wednesday<\/em>\u00a0(2022-present, main title theme).\u00a0<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/tv-and-film-music\/best-film-scores\">The best film scores of all time…<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/news\/first-ever-london-soundtrack-festival-planned-for-2025\">First ever London Soundtrack Festival planned for 2025<\/a><\/li><\/ul><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Tim Burton films did Danny Elfman not write the music for?<\/h2>Only two of Burton\u2019s feature films have music by other composers. Howard Shore scored 1994\u2019s\u00a0Ed Wood<\/em>and Matthew Margeson and Mike Higham scored 2016\u2019s\u00a0Miss Peregrine\u2019s Home for Peculiar Children<\/em>.<\/p><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Where can I hear the soundtrack for\u00a0Beetlejuice Beetluejuice<\/em>?<\/h2>The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack for\u00a0Beetlejuice Beetlejuice<\/em>\u00a0is out on 6 September from Watertower Music, available to stream wherever you enjoy your music. It features all the songs in the film and Danny Elfman\u2019s \u2018Main Title Theme\u2019 and \u2018End Titles\u2019. It\u2019s highly likely an album of just Elfman\u2019s music will follow.<\/p>Image: Warner Bros Pictures<\/em><\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n<hr class=\"no-tts wp-block-separator\"\/>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Published: Friday, 06 September 2024 at 08:42 AM It\u2019s 36 years since Tim Burton\u2019s\u00a0Beetlejuice\u00a0first lit up cinema screens, swiftly becoming a cult classic thanks to its madcap mix of comedy and horror.\u00a0 So it must be some sort of record, then, that the director has waited this long to deliver a sequel,\u00a0Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, which […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":47103,"template":"","categories":[1],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"4"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/09\/beetlejuice-beetlejuice-a-guide-to-the-soundtrack.jpg",1200,800,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/09\/beetlejuice-beetlejuice-a-guide-to-the-soundtrack-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/09\/beetlejuice-beetlejuice-a-guide-to-the-soundtrack-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/09\/beetlejuice-beetlejuice-a-guide-to-the-soundtrack-768x512.jpg",768,512,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/09\/beetlejuice-beetlejuice-a-guide-to-the-soundtrack-1024x683.jpg",800,534,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/09\/beetlejuice-beetlejuice-a-guide-to-the-soundtrack.jpg",1200,800,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2024\/09\/beetlejuice-beetlejuice-a-guide-to-the-soundtrack.jpg",1200,800,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Published: Friday, 06 September 2024 at 08:42 AM It\u2019s 36 years since Tim Burton\u2019s\u00a0Beetlejuice\u00a0first lit up cinema screens, swiftly becoming a cult classic thanks to its madcap mix of comedy and horror.\u00a0 So it must be some sort of record, then, that the director has waited this long to deliver a sequel,\u00a0Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, which…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/47102"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/47103"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47102"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47102"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}