Soundtrack Mix #24: Hans Zimmer Through Time

The idea of a focus on the soundtrack work of Hans Zimmer was an exciting prospect. How can I spin this subject  and create a new way to approach these popular scores that are loved by so many? The task itself was far more daunting; scouring through Zimmer’s filmography felt like being an archivist, for a film composer only active since the mid 80s, his output is significant. He’s one of the most famous contemporary film composers on the world stage today; the type whose fans create YouTube videos of hours-long ultimate Zimmer loops and purchase his instrumental sample packs for their digital audio workstation software. In a popular culture that feels despondent towards cinema and the many players involved in the making of it, Zimmer strikes out as a household name.

In going about this mix, Zimmer’s whole filmography is explored. His cherished signature sounds are represented: tribal instruments, uplifting vocals, and the use of synthesizers both in a cleverly hidden way (not too zany for big blockbuster animations) and his outwardly electronic works. His scores frequently begin gently and descend into drama, often using classic riffs with a minimal approach. Some comment on his sound being too technically simplistic and over done. I’d argue it’s powerful in its emotive theatricality. In a time where producers and musicians without film backgrounds are creating scores that re-contextualize what film music can be, the way Zimmer’s output hits is that you feel totally at the movies. As the head of the film music division at Dreamworks alongside running his own film music production company, Remote Control Productions, Zimmer is constantly working with other composers and musicians, behind the scenes on many projects—it’s the kind of Hollywood that has an essence of the Golden Age to it.

Zimmer’s ambient output over the last decade through collaborations with Christopher Nolan and Dennis Villeneuve connect the composer with his past. Growing up in Frankfurt, Zimmer was exposed to playing the piano and attending classical concerts at a young age; as a teen he absorbed the experimental tones of Can and the krautrock of Neu as well as acts like Tangerine Dream and Jean Michel Jarre, influences which gave a taste for the electronic instrumentals that would shape his scoring career. He moved to the UK and started a band in his 20s, and it was there that his early film compositions began. Some of those early works featured in this mix include the twisted atmospherics of Bernard Rose’s equally twisted dark fantasy Paperhouse, Nicolas Roeg’s unorthodox period drama Insignificance, and Stephen Frears’ My Beautiful Laundrette, the British classic depicting issues of love, sex, and class during Thatchers’ reign (music from the latter comes in the form of a brilliantly brooding synth pop song that has been on repeat in my home for weeks now).

The mix is more or less split down the middle when it comes to featuring Zimmer’s beloved moments and unfamiliar material that’s equally immersive, all carried with Zimmer's signature mood. Notable collaborations include with Dead Can Dance’s Lisa Gerrard—the two created the score for Gladiator and have since worked on numerous projects. Gerrard’s voice is perfect for cinema and I still recall the shivers felt upon first hearing her vocals for Gladiator. Zimmer regularly collaborates with Ridley Scott and worked closely with his brother Tony Scott throughout his career. True Romance would not be the same film without the opening steel drums of “You’re So Cool,'' a nod to Carl Orff’s “Gassenhauer” which soundtracks Martin Sheen and Sissy Spacek’s the runaway love birds of Badlands (1973), the spiritual predecessors to True Romance’s Patricia Arquette and Chrisitan Slater. His score for Terrence Malick’s The Thin Red Line and collaboration with Benjamin Wallfisch for Dennis Villeneuve’s Blade Runner 2049 both hold a transcendent quality. There’s also collaborations with Johnny Marr, which includes the guitar for Inception, and the knockout ensemble (Tori Amos, Grace Jones, Wendy & Lisa and Jane Siberry!) for Barry Levinson’s Toys. Highlights in the quieter works include the delicate melancholy of The Peace Maker, the Enya-esque ambience of Beyond Rangoon, and a surprisingly tender moment from Cool Runnings. And a special shout out goes to the macabre scores for the American The Ring series.

With a recent Oscar nomination for Dune—in my opinion absolutely deserved—this mix is a focus of the work of a film composer at the top of the big league, creating exciting sounds for some of the biggest names in town. 

1. Burning Secret Suite, Burning Secret (Andrew Birkin, 1988) 00:00
2. Insignificance Suite, Insignificance (Nicolas Roeg, 1985) 07:20
3. Hans Zimmer & Pat Metheny, Let Joy And Innocence Prevail (Instrumental), Toys (Barry Levinson, 1992) 13:05
4. Definitely Unexpected, The Holiday (Nancy Meyers, 2006) 18:02
5. My Beautiful Laundrette, My Beautiful Laundrette (Stephen Frears, 1985) 21:30
6. Hans Zimmer & Benjamin Wallfisch, Memory, Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017) 25:00
7. The Coral Atoll, The Thin Red Line (Terrence Malick, 1998) 26:15
8. Days of Thunder, Days of Thunder (Tony Scott, 1990) 34:10
9. Me & My Daughter, We Get On Like A House On Fire!, Paperhouse (Bernard Rose, 1988) 36:40
10. S.T.A.Y., Interstellar (Christopher Nolan, 2014) 42:00
11. Hans Zimmer & Klaus Badelt, The Angler, The Pledge (Sean Penn, 2001) 48:00
12. Waters Of Irrawaddy, Beyond Rangoon (John Boorman, 1995) 52:50
13. The House Of The Spirits, The House Of The Spirits (Billie August, 1993) 56:20
14. Henning Lohner; Martin Tillman & Hans Zimmer, Let The Dead Get In, The Ring Two (Hideo Nakata, 2005) 61:20
15. This Is Going To Hurt, The Ring (Gore Verbinski, 2002) 65:15
16. The Mole, Dunkirk (Christopher Nolan, 2017) 67:40
17. Time, Inception (Christopher Nolan, 2010) 73:04
18. End Credits, Cool Runnings (Jon Turteltaub, 1993) 77:00
19. Hans Zimmer, Denez Prigent & Lisa Gerrard, Gortoz a ran (Breton) - J'Attends, Black Hawk Down (Ridley Scott, 2001) 78:45
20. Moonlight, Green Card (Peter Weir,1990) 84:20
21. The Burning Plain, The Burning Plain (Guillermo Arriaga, 2008) 85:35
22. Going To Mexico, Thelma & Louise (Ridley Scott, 1991) 88:02
23. Hans Zimmer & Benjamin Wallfisch, All The Best Memories Are Hers, Blade Runner 2049 (Denis Villeneuve, 2017) 90:05
24. Sarajevo, The Peacemaker (Mimi Leder, 1997) 93:06
25. Vide Cor Meum, Hannibal (Ridley Scott, 2001) 93:50
26. Flying, The Burning Plain (Guillermo Arriaga, 2008) 97:40
27. Living Funeral Assembly, The Weather Man (Gore Verbinski, 2005) 98:44
28. What Happens Now!,  Interstellar (Christopher Nolan, 2014) 99:50
29. You’re So Cool, True Romance (Tony Scott, 1993) 101:48
30. Part III, Pacific Heights (John Schlesinger, 1990) 105:22
31. Drive From The Country, Rain Man (Barry Levinson, 1988) 108:05
32. Dream of Arrakis, Dune (Denis Villeneuve, 2021) 109:28
33. Roberto’s Room, Two Deaths (Nicolas Roeg, 1995) 112:01
34. Prepairing For Travel, 12 Years A Slave (Steve McQueen, 2013) 114:00
35. Transformation (End Titles), Hillbilly Elegy (Ron Howard, 2020) 114:38
36. Family, The Peacemaker (Mimi Leder, 1997) 119:20
37. Hans Zimmer & Lisa Gerrard, Sorrow, Gladiator (Ridley Scott) 120:25