2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
Alex North’s riveting soundtrack for the film 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) is a compelling collection of intense instrumental music that keeps the audience on their feet; however, North’s soundtrack never premiered with the film. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) is a revolutionary scientific fiction film released in 1968, produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick. The film follows the space voyage of Dr. Floyd and his experiences beyond the physical realm. The film is critically acclaimed for the realistic nature of space travel and special effects ahead of its time. Kubrick hired the famous film music composer Alex North to compose the score for the avant-garde film. Upon watching the premiere of the film, North realized his entire score had been discarded; Kubrick had kept the temporary score he constructed during the filming and editing process. This failure to disclose Kubrick’s decision to Alex North resulted in one of the most shocking director’s choices during the 1960s. Also unheard of, a majority of the scenes in the narrative have no music, relying solely on sound effects and dialogue in the soundtrack. Due to the sparing nature of the score, when music is heard, it is understood that the piece plays a critical role in the scene. Stanley Kubrick’s musical style, specifically his placement of the score, and his decision to fearlessly reject a top movie composer allowed Kubrick to form an iconic score that changed musical scoring in films forever.
Stanley Kubrick is widely considered to be one of the most influential Hollywood filmmakers. The screenwriter, director, and producer is known for his exceptional realism and his knack for creating unique shots and cinematography in his films. After graduating high school, Kubrick began to explore the creative field. He began with the basics of film production and directing, finetuning his craft. He earned a job as a photographer for a magazine which encouraged him to take a more serious look at his passion. It was then that Kubrick decided to begin making his own films on an incredibly sparse budget (Benson). Born in 1928, Kubrick hit his stride in the late 1950s, a revolutionary time period for film. With evolving technology and constantly improving cameras, Kubrick truly was born in the right time period. Within the first 6 years of his first film being released, one of his movies began to gain attention. His film The Killing (1956) grew in popularity, only fueling Kubrick to continue his work. Not only a director, but also a phenomenal writer, Kubrick once said “A film is - or should be - more like music than like fiction. It should be a progression of moods and feelings. The theme, what's behind the emotion, the meaning, all that comes later.” He certainly followed his own advice and has a stunningly unique style compared to other directors of his time.
During his nearly 40 years of writing, producing, and directing, Kubrick put out 17 films including the incredible films Paths of Glory (1957), Spartacus (1960), Dr. Strangelove (1964), The Shining (1980), and of course, 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). After Kubrick created Spartacus (1960), his and his wife, Christiane, moved to the UK where he continued to make films. This allowed him a unique opportunity to have complete artistic control regarding his work paired with financial backing from leading Hollywood studios. After having produced Dr. Strangelove (1964), Kubrick had a new obsession with extraterrestrial life which spurred him to begin screenwriting 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) (Glemis). On December 29, 1965, the filming began in England. After being released in April 1968, the movie quickly attracted the attention of many. This science fiction film eventually earned Kubrick his only personal Oscar in 1969 for Best Visual Effects, Special Visual Effects. Throughout his career, Kubrick and his films were nominated for over 95 awards and honors, winning 40. His incredible screenwriting, cinematographer, and use of music has made Kubrick one of the greatest and most influential people in the film industry (imdb.com).
Alex North, named Isadore Soifer at birth, was an incredibly influential film score composer. He is well known for his work in A Streetcar Named Desire (1947), as it was considered one of the first scores based around jazz. North has an impressive record and most commonly used leitmotifs to create theme within the movies he composed for. In 1985, North was a recipient of the legendary Lifetime Achievement Academy Award, becoming one of only two film composers to receive it. With all of North’s success, it is difficult to ignore his rejection from Kubrick’s score of 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). Typically, when producing a movie, directors compile a temporary soundtrack. This score is solely meant to fill empty space and give a feel for the type of music that is desired by the director. Kubrick, the world-renowned director, however, is not famous for going along with the expected; Kubrick hired at least 3 composers to write music for the film. Michael Benson, a filmmaker and the author of Space Odyssey: Stanley Kubrick, Arthur C. Clarke, and the Making of a Masterpiece, stated:
“The initial composer, Frank Cordell, was an English composer who had really established a track record scoring various films in the UK. He was brought on in the beginning. But Kubrick didn’t know what he wanted. Cordell was brought on and given a contract and given pay but not given access to Stanley, who didn’t want to talk to him. So it was very bizarre (Bullard). ”
Kubrick was known as somewhat of a wild card, so many say it is no surprise that he went through so many composers and decided to run with a compilation score of preexisting classical music. During the cutting of the film, Kubrick entertained the idea of selectively choosing certain pieces from the temporary soundtrack to work in with North’s score. Throughout the process, Kubrick quickly became enthralled with his temporary soundtrack. While this is certainly a director’s decision, what turned the rejection into a public scandal was his failure to communicate his decision with North. After backbreaking hours (literally, North once showed up to the studio in an ambulance due to a back injury) within the two weeks he had been given before the deadline, North composed 40 minutes of unique instrumental music which he believed was a perfect fit for the movie (North). It was only upon his viewing of the premiere that his rejection came to light. North walked away, frustrated and embarrassed, a completely warranted reaction.
After his rejection of North’s score, Kubrick failed to utilize film composers in his later movies. As expected, this decision upset many people, especially film composers. Famous composer Bernard Herrmann, when asked about Kubrick’s decision, responded:
''It shows vulgarity, also, when a director uses music previously composed. I think that 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) is the height of vulgarity in our time. To have outer space accompanied by “The Blue Danube”, and the piece not even recorded anew (Byrnes)!''
Kubrick stood by his decision and stated that he went through a “completely normal” process of testing out different scores and pieces and ultimately he had to make the decision to keep his temporary score. In 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) specifically, Kubrick had absolutely no regrets about discarding North’s score:
“Why use music which is less good when there is such a multitude of great orchestral music available from the past and from our own time?... When I had completed the editing of 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), I had laid in temporary music tracks for almost all of the music which was eventually used in the film. Then, in the normal way, I engaged the services of a distinguished film composer to write the score. Although he and I went over the picture very carefully, and he listened to these temporary… he, nevertheless, wrote and recorded a score which could not have been more alien to the music we had listened to, and much more serious than that, a score which, in my opinion, was completely inadequate for the film (Shetty).”
While many disagree with his choice, there is seemingly no debate whether or not this decision worked for him. Kubrick continued to direct respected and admired films well throughout his 80s.
The movie itself has a number of spectacular scenes in which the temporary tracks fit the visuals extremely well. The first scene in which the music is particularly influential takes place within the first twelve minutes of the film. Leading up to the scene, the words “The Dawn of Man” stand alone on the screen, followed by a series of landscape shots. After nearly two minutes of silence, there is chaos in the animal kingdom as a cheetah leaps out to attack an ape. These apes are understood to be our ancient ancestors and display human character. During the twelfth minute of the film, a black monolith arises from the ground on the apes’ home turf, followed by the apes gathering around the mysterious rectangle. This scene last for nearly three minutes, paired with an incredibly dissonant piece, “Requiem for Soprano, Mezzo Soprano, Two Mixed Choirs & Orchestra”, composed by György Ligeti. The busy piece seems to have been meant to represent the unknown and the confusion surrounding the monolith. The piece quickly picks up tempo, featuring dissonant strings and a haunting single violin draw. “Requiem for Soprano, Mezzo Soprano, Two Mixed Choirs & Orchestra” also features low chanting voices and a type of buzzing sound. The piece quickly cuts to the next day, the silence of the sunrise making the audience feel as though perhaps the scene had not ever happened. This piece does not follow typical classical music standards and was an interesting choice for the first piece after the opening title. That being said, the controversial piece fits extremely well with the understanding of the scene. The confusion both for the apes and for the audience is matched with an equally confusing piece, creating an undoubtedly complimentary match.
On astronaut Dr. Frank Poole’s birthday, HAL alerts Frank to the TV, on which a birthday message from Frank’s parents appears. Kubrick chose to pair the scene with a somber classical piece by Aram Khachaturian, named “Gayane Ballet Suite (Adagio).” The importance of this piece lays in the scarcity of somber music in the film. Certainly, Kubrick included a number of dramatic, hair-raising orchestral pieces, however, “Gayane Ballet Suite (Adagio)” is the only instance in which I believe the music is intended to invoke a certain sadness for the character. Despite many death scenes and upsetting discoveries, Kubrick fails to pair somber music to such scenes. There is a certain amount of importance which becomes associated with the scene due to the sad nature of the violin. The steady strings rise in volume upon the completion of the parent’s upbeat birthday song rendition and takes over the scene as Frank lays on the bed.
Kubrick certainly knows what music to place and where, however, these are not the only scenes in which he practices incredible placement. As much as the music plays a role in specific scenes, there are many parts of the movie in which it is completely silent, with the exception of the sound effects added. A scene in which silence plays an integral role is the scene in which Dr. Franke Poole loses control of his mission. He was sent out of the ship to repair a transmitter; however, Kubrick chose to leave out the explanation of exactly how Frank loses control. The mission commander, David Bowman watches in silence from the ship as he sees Frank frantically flying away from the ship. The lack of orchestral music in this scene only adds to the emptiness of space, the intensity of the scene, and the inability to do much to save him.
Another scene in which Kubrick opted for silence instead of music occurs within some of the final scenes of the movie. After coming to the realization that HAL had an ulterior motive throughout the whole course of the trip, Frank decides to power down HAL 9000 for good. To do so, he must crawl into the clockwork of the machine and do so by hand. The ten-minute ordeal of Frank ejecting HAL’s disks one by one is accompanied only by HAL’s efforts to convince Frank to stop. The decision to not include music was a bold one; however, in this case it only elevated the emotions felt by the audience. A character beloved by many betrayed Frank, leaving the audience shocked and confused. HAL’s monotonous pleading for his life only justifies Frank’s choice, as the emotionless robot attempts to mend his only friendship. HAL’s betrayal is a keystone moment in the movie and the decision to not pair the scene with music enhanced the scene with an ability to reflect on all that had happened in the complicated film. Shutting HAL down meant that Frank was going to be alone until the end of his journey; a fact that is on the minds of anyone while watching the scene. Not only does shutting HAL down mean he will no longer have any kind of technological assistance, but it also means that Frank is alone. Being left completely by yourself in space is a terrifying thought, and I doubt any orchestral piece would be able to match the wide range of emotions both the characters and the audience feel. Truly being an auteur director, Kubrick’s decision to only include music in a few scenes (most of which are at the beginning of the film) turned the film into a deeply reflective and intense watch. The deafening silence in critical scenes only raises the intensity and tangibility of the pressure and trials the characters go through. Kubrick’s goal was to create a movie that needed no “outside storytelling.” He wanted the audience to be able to completely comprehend and enjoy his film without the crutch an emotional musical piece can provide. His compilation score included many revolutionary pieces created by composers all over the world. The scarcity of music in the film only enhances the effect that music has when it does appear in the film. Because music is heard so rarely, when a piece does begin to play, the viewer is keen to focus in on the meaning of the song and the effect it has on the scene. Kubrick made a number of very controversial decisions when it came to the movie. His fearless ability to have complete artistic control over his film and the audio associated with it is nothing short of a miracle. Rarely are directors able to have such a comprehensive control over their own work, though Kubrick’s reputation and incredible cinematography certainly helped. Kubrick’s individual style and lack of fear created a piece that will go down in history one of the most revolutionary films ever created.
Updated Sources:
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Burt, George. The Art of Film Music: Special Emphasis on Hugo Friedhofer, Alex North, David Raksin, Leonard Rosenman. Northeastern Univ. Press, 1994.
Byrnes, Paul. “Kubrick Knew the Score, and He Used It.” The Sydney Morning Herald, 2013, www.smh.com.au/entertainment/movies/kubrick-knew-the-score-and-he-used-it-20130114-2cpnb.html.
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Hardy, Rob. “The Opening Scene of '2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)' Just Isn't the Same with a Different Score.” No Film School, 23 Dec. 2014, nofilmschool.com/2014/12/opening-2001-space-odyssey-different-score-just-isnt-same.
Heathcote, Christopher. “Music, Science and 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).” Quadrant Magazine, vol. 62, no. 1/2, Jan. 2018, p. 119. EBSCOhost, login.pallas2.tcl.sc.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=f5h&AN=127327130&site=ehost-live.
McKay, Frances T. “Movement in Time and Space: The Synthesis of Music and Visual Imagery in Luchino Visconti's Death in Venice and Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).” Proquest, ProQuest Dissertations Publishing, search.proquest.com/docview/303268126?accountid=13965.
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Orris, Scott. “Empty Space: The Depersonalization of the Future in 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).” Film Matters, vol. 9, no. 1, 2018, pp. 109–116. EBSCOhost, login.pallas2.tcl.sc.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=mzh&AN=2018442474&site=ehost-live.
Scheurer, Timothy E. “The Score for 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).” Journal of Popular Film & Television, vol. 25, no. 4, Winter 1998, p. 172. EBSCOhost, login.pallas2.tcl.sc.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lfh&AN=329645&site=ehost-live.
Shetty, Sharan. “The Original, Unused Score for 2001: A Space Odyssey Is ... Not As Good.” Slate Magazine, 2014, slate.com/culture/2014/12/alex-norths-2001-score-watch-the-original-music-for-kubricks-space-odyssey-video.html.
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