Looking to collect signed film score sheet music

January 11, 2007 2:06 PM

I'm looking for nice looking sheet music to start a signed collection. Don't worry, there is

I'm looking for nice looking sheet music to start a signed collection. More specifically, I'm looking to buy nice looking film scores in hopes of having it signed by the original composer.

I know where to find sheet music online but ideally I'd like either:

-Actual music used during scoring
OR
-Original composition not arranged by anyone else

I'm looking for classic/contemporary film scores so there really isn't any limit to what I'm interested in. Anyone know of any place where you can buy the actual sheet music used in scoring sessions? Any suggestions on finding the original arrangement and not a middle school band version?

(this is my first question btw, so I'm sorry if I jump around a bit.)

posted by eric-neg to Media & Arts (2 answers total)

You may have a tough time with this if you're limiting it to film music (and obviously, you're limiting it to living composers, so you can't go for most traditional concert music that also got used in a film).

There are rarely published / publicly available scores for film and other commercial music, because there aren't usually structures in place for repeating the performances. In other words, because film music is almost always just recorded once and not made available to orchestras/groups for future performances, it's not usually considered to be worth anyone's time to prep an edition for publication.

In the rare case of a film composer who gets live orchestral performances (e.g., John Williams, Tan Dun), there's a chance of finding commercial editions. Other than that, have you considered just contacting film composers you like through their web sites and offering to buy a "signed edition" of their most recent score? Some will probably be happy to sell you a signed/bound printout of a score. Be aware they may need you to specify you're just a collector and you're not asking for performance rights or planning a performance of any kind... and for the same reasons (performance rights) some may not be able to send a score to a stranger. But try this out with up & coming composers you admire, and who knows what kind of future-collector's-items you might accumulate.
posted by allterrainbrain at 3:52 PM on January 11, 2007

And if you're asking for the ACTUAL physical score & parts used by the conductor & players in the studio sessions, most are probably either carefully snatched up by the composer (I know I always get very useful info from seeing how my players marked up their parts) or destroyed according to contract agreements. So, again, go straight to the composer for your best chance of getting the actual marked-up parts.
posted by allterrainbrain at 3:53 PM on January 11, 2007