The Stories Keys Can Tell: A New Approach to Film Soundtracks

The Stories Keys Can Tell: A New Approach to Film Soundtracks

Audio recording of a lecture given by Tahirih Motazedian on September 4, 2026 as part of the Dean’s Lecture & Concert Series. The Dean’s Office has provided this description of the event: “Key is one of the simplest building blocks of music and a central property of a work’s musical identity—we refer to “Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony in C Minor,” not “Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony in Four Movements and 34 Minutes” or “Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony With the Very Iconic Motive.” But for a variety of reasons, key has always been ignored as a significant parameter in film music. This talk will show how keys can tell stories in film. The concept of soundtrack is expanded beyond just original scoring to include pre-existing music and sound effects, which represents a paradigm shift in how we perceive films since sound effects aren’t normally heard as “music.” Studying the keys traversed in a film can reveal fascinating insights and hidden layers of narrative meaning, granting new ways to engage with our favorite films.”

Santa Fe, NM

2026-09-04

Meem Library has been given permission to make this item available online.

sound

mp3

English

SF_MotazedianT_The_Stories_Keys_Can_Tell_2026-09-04

M4A

00:52:43