Terror Tracks - Music, Sound and Horror Cinema - Philip Hayward
An Audiovisual Foreshadowing in Psycho
Terror Tracks - Music, Sound and Horror Cinema - Philip Hayward
Scott Murphy [+]
University of Kansas
Scott Murphy is an associate professor of music theory at the University of Kansas. His publications include articles on Brahms, Ives, Bartók, Penderecki, and on
music in science-fiction films.
Description
This chapter proposes a way of reading the film Psycho and analysing the structure of both the aural and visual components of the main title that supports Hermann's claim that 'The climax of Psycho is given to you by the music right at the moment the film begins.' The chapter's argument to support this comes in two parts: the first uncovers a structural similarity between Herrmanns music and Basss titles, and the second relates aspects of these structures to a psychoanalytic interpretation of Norman Batess character.