Reinterpreting the Leittonwechsel’s Emotive Role in Film Music: Childlike Belief, Wonder, Nostalgia, Selfless Love, Empathy, & Christmas Magic by Scott Jonathan Dinsfriend A thesis accepted and approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Music Theory Thesis Committee: Dr. Jack Boss, Chair Dr. Robert Kyr, Member Dr. Timothy Pack, Member University of Oregon Spring 2025 2 © 2025 Scott Jonathan Dinsfriend This work is openly licensed via CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ 3 THESIS ABSTRACT Scott Jonathan Dinsfriend Master of Arts in Music Theory Title: Reinterpreting the Leittonwechsel’s Emotive Role in Film Music: Childlike Belief, Wonder, Nostalgia, Selfless Love, Empathy, & Christmas Magic This paper explores the emotive role of the Leittonwechsel transformation as a leitmotif in Hollywood film scores and television series from 1985 to 2024 and as an associative harmonic progression in popular songs from 1967 to 2010. The Leittonwechsel (L) transformation, or leading-tone exchange, is a neo-Riemannian term (and triadic-altering operation) that denotes two possible progressions. This paper will focus on the L-major transformation, such as C-major to E-minor (I-iii). Six specific emotional qualities consistently associated with the Leittonwechsel transformation (L-major) will be explored in eleven film scores, two television series, and eight songs. I will conduct a deeper investigation of the Leittonwechsel’s role as an effective harmonic leitmotif (or leitharmonie) in Danny Elfman’s Edward Scissorhands, Michael Giacchino’s Up, John Debney’s Elf, Alan Silvestri’s Polar Express, and Dave Grusin’s The Goonies. These scores rely on the Leittonwechsel as an associative harmonic theme in the large majority of cues, many of which express feelings of wonder, childlike belief, nostalgia, romantic love, and empathy. These associations are strengthened by other parameters as well, such as rhythm, orchestration, and timbre, as my examples (transcriptions) will show. I will also discuss how composers use specific leitmotivic processes to contribute to a cue’s emotional landscape, such as harmonic corruption, change of mode, associative transposition, and thematic fragmentation. This analysis will identify a repetitive pattern of predictable L-major undulations (I-iii-I-iii over 4 two measures) and accompanying L-major melodic formulas that occur frequently—sometimes verbatim—in other film scores as well. This undulating Leittonwechsel appears as a Christmastime, wonder-inducing schema that recurs across various film scores from 1990 to 2023. In Chapter II, I will offer a catalog of possible Leittonwechsel melodies based on this pattern. This analysis will also uncover other important recurring neo-Riemannian operations (such as SLIDE and ) that surround the Leittonwechsel and contextually illuminate its positively-valenced emotional associations. It will also reveal Elfman’s and Silvestri’s affinity for specific neo-Riemannian links ( and ) that generate chains of modulatory Leittonwechsel progressions. Lastly, I will discuss the Leittonwechsel’s remarkable versatility and ability to underscore complex emotional associations connected to the narrative and characters’ nuanced psychological developments, especially nostalgia, childlike wonder, belief, romance, self- sacrificial love, empathy, and Christmas magic. In the final section, I will invoke David Huron’s theory of binding tones to propose a homology that draws an organic connection between the musical structure of the Leittonwechsel and its positive emotional associations. 5 CURRICULUM VITAE NAME OF AUTHOR: Scott Jonathan Dinsfriend GRADUATE AND UNDERGRADUATE SCHOOLS ATTENDED: University of Oregon, Eugene Claremont Graduate University Azusa Pacific University University of Oregon, Eugene DEGREES AWARDED: Master of Arts, Music Theory, 2025, University of Oregon Master of Music, Composition, 2017, Azusa Pacific University Bachelor of Music, Composition, 2011, University of Oregon AREAS OF SPECIAL INTEREST: Neo-Riemannian Theory Film Music 20th Century Composition Techniques Music and Emotion PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: Graduate Teaching Fellow, Music Theory/Musicology, University of Oregon, 2019-2024 Graduate Teaching Assistant, Music Theory/Musicology, Azusa Pacific University, 2015-2017 Band and Orchestra Director, Christian Unified Schools of San Diego, 2024-2025 GRANTS, AWARDS, AND HONORS: Blaisdell Scholarship, Claremont Graduate University, 2018-2019 Magna Cum Laude, Bachelor of Music in Composition, University of Oregon, 2011 6 Ex Nihilo for Symphony, Azusa Pacific University Graduate Composition Competition, 2016 PUBLICATIONS: Dinsfriend, Scott Jonathan. 2020. Zelena for String Orchestra. WoldProjects.net. World Projects Corporation. https://www.world-projects.net/product/zelena-by-scott- jonathan-dinsfriend/ https://www.world-projects.net/product/zelena-by-scott- 7 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I wish to express sincere gratitude to my adviser Dr. Jack Boss for his expert guidance in the preparation of this manuscript, for his encouragement as a mentor, and his inspiration as a professor. In addition, special thanks are due to committee members Dr. Tim Pack and Dr. Robert Kyr, for their helpful insights and support as I finalized this thesis. I also wish to thank Dr. Zach Wallmark for encouraging me to develop this thesis, for offering valuable connections between film music and emotion, and for providing high-level feedback on the revision. 8 DEDICATION To my wife, Natalie Joy, my sons, Jonah, Jude, and Ezra, and my daughter, Azalea-Mae. Soli Deo Gloria. 9 TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page I. REFRAMING THE LEITTONWECHSEL’S ROLE IN FILM MUSIC ................... 13 1. Introduction ....................................................................................................... 13 2. Literature Survey ............................................................................................... 16 3. Reinterpreting Scott Murphy’s “Loss Gesture” ................................................ 19 II. L-MAJOR LOVE & EMPATHY IN EDWARD SCISSORHANDS & UP ............. 22 1. Edward Scissorhands Introduction & The L-major Melodic Catalog ............ 22 2. L-major in the Storytime Cue and The Sympathy Theme .............................. 27 3. Transformations as Linking Devices Between Leittonwechsels ........... 30 4. Leitmotivic Harmonic Corruption Applied to the Leittonwechsel .................. 36 5. Elfman SLIDING Between Leittonwechsels ................................................... 40 6. The Nostalgic Leittonwechsel in Up ............................................................... 42 III. THE LEITTONWECHSEL’S CONNECTION TO CHRISTMAS MAGIC ......... 49 1. Analysis of Elf: “You Sit on a Throne of Leittonwechsels” ............................ 49 2. The Congruence-Associationist Model: L Elicits Love & Empathy .............. 55 3. Belief- and Wonder-Inducing Leittonwechsel in Polar Express ..................... 58 4. Transformations as Linking Devices Between Leittonwechsels ........... 61 5. Christmas with the Kranks, Home Alone, and The Santa Clauses .................. 65 IV. L-MAJOR’S WONDER, AWE, & EMPATHY IN ADVENTURE FILMS ........ 68 1. The Leittonwechsel Awakes Wonder in Slumberland ..................................... 68 2. The Goonies L-major Arpeggio Theme .......................................................... 70 3. Dramatic Irony in Hook: Loss or Wondrous Reunion? ................................... 76 10 V. THE LEITTONWECHSEL ELICITS LOVE & ROMANCE ................................. 79 1. ABC’s The Bachelor and The Love-Inducing Leittonwechsel ........................ 79 2. Elfman Feeling the Romantic Leittonwechsel Again: Sommersby ................. 81 VI. POP GOES THE ‘WECHSEL: L-MAJOR IN POP & CLASSIC ROCK ............. 83 1. “Hey There Delilah” and “What a Wonderful World” .................................... 83 2. Kamakwiwo’ole’s “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” & “Space Oddity” ....... 86 3. “Penny Lane,” “Touch Me,” “Colour My World,” & “Count on Me” ........... 87 VII. HOMOLOGY OF UNION & RECAPITULATION .......................................... 90 1. Homology of Union: Can the L’s Intervals Contribute to Emotions? ............. 90 2. Recapitulation ................................................................................................. 97 BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................................................................................ 100 11 LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. Leittonwechsel, McDonald’s Commercial, “The Hashbrown” ............................. 13 2. Leittonwechsel Voice Leading .............................................................................. 15 3. Edward’s Theme [L-major transformation with leitmotif] ................................... 23 4. Catalog of Leittonwechsel Melodies ..................................................................... 24 5. Storytime Cue [Edward Scissorhands] ................................................................. 27 6. Storytime Cue Cont.: Hinting at Edward’s Theme ............................................... 28 7. Leittonwechsel in Sympathy Theme ..................................................................... 29 8. Edwards’ Theme [Transposed Theme] ................................................................. 30 9. Link to Edward’s Theme ............................................................................ 31 10. Edward Interviewed On TV; Romantic Leittonwechsel ....................................... 35 11. Climactic Goodbye with Leittonwechsel and Change of Mode ............................ 39 12. L-major and SLIDE with Kim’s Commentary ...................................................... 42 13. Debney’s Elf L-major Leitharmonie ...................................................................... 50 14. L-major Believe Theme in Silvestri’s Polar Express ............................................ 59 15. Octatonic Cycle .......................................................................................... 61 16. L-major Goonies Theme (Leittonwechsel Arpeggio) ........................................... 70 17. Modulating () Leittonwechsel Arpeggios .................................................. 71 18. The Bachelor Leittonwechsel Accompanies Moment of Falling in Love ............. 80 19. Interlocking Leittonwechsel, The Santa Clause Theme ........................................ 92 12 LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Leittonwechsel Associations in Four Pop/Rock Songs ......................................... 88 13 CHAPTER I: REFRAMING THE LEITTONWECHSEL’S ROLE IN FILM MUSIC 1. Introduction A shimmering A-major triad orchestrated for harps and strings seamlessly glides to a C#- minor triad, accompanying a saccharine scene of dating and kissing, highlighting two finalists falling in love on ABC’s The Bachelor (Season 28, Episode 9). A slow-motion panorama of a glowing, golden hash brown on a McDonald’s commercial features a bright F-major triad scored for soprano voices and strings, swaying to and from an A-minor triad. A majestic mountain backdrop with a serenely guided meditation is set to sixty seconds of undulation between a D- major triad and F#-minor triad.1 What do these diverse examples, including a reality television show, a fast-food commercial, and a meditation phone app, all have in common? They each utilize the emotive Leittonwechsel transformation, the harmonic progression from the tonic (I) to mediant (iii), to evoke awe, wonder, and romance. In Figure 1, McDonald’s Leittonwechsel, with wordless choir and orchestra, seeks to elicit majestic wonder surrounding the iconic Hashbrown. Figure 1: Leittonwechsel, McDonald’s Commercial, “The Hashbrown,” August 2023 1 John Eldredge’s “One Minute Pause” app, based on One Minute Pause practice from his book Get Your Life Back, (John Eldredge, Get Your Life Back: Everyday Practices for a World Gone Mad (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2020)). 14 Whether in films, TV shows, songs, apps, or commercials, the Leittonwechsel is frequently associated with blossoming romance, selfless love, awe-inducing wonder, childlike belief, nostalgia, Christmas magic, and empathy. Each of these six categories represent positively- valenced emotions and all six of these affective associations share commonalities. For instance, childlike belief, Christmas magic, nostalgia, and wonder are often bundled in the same movie and elicited by the same Leittonwechsel theme. Similarly, selfless love, blossoming romance, and empathy are often paired together in films and television (such as in Edward Scissorhands, Sommersby, The Bachelor, Elf, Christmas with the Kranks, Up, and The Goonies). This paper explores the emotive role of the Leittonwechsel transformation as a leitmotif in Hollywood film scores and television series from 1985 to 2024 and as an associative harmonic progression in popular songs from 1967 to 2010.2 The Leittonwechsel (L) transformation, or leading-tone exchange, is a neo-Riemannian term (and triadic-altering operation) that denotes two possible progressions. This paper will focus on the L-major transformation (not L-minor).3 In an L-major transformation starting on C+ (C-major), [0,4,7] for example, the major triad’s minor-third dyad—[4,7]—is retained, while the root shifts down by one semitone (0 to 11), thereby resulting in a minor triad, E- (E-minor). Figure 2 below depicts the “leading-tone exchange” from C to B (shown with lines connecting the two pitches, C to B), and it illustrates the two most common voice-leading scenarios for the L-major progressions that appear within this study’s film scores, television series, and pop songs: 2 Scott Murphy also chose 1985 for the starting point of his study (“Scoring Loss in Some Recent Popular Film and Television,” Music Theory Spectrum 36, 2 (2014): 295-314), but I have extended it by ten years (to 2024). I selected The Goonies (1985) because it represents one of the earliest examples of a positively-valenced Leittonwechsel theme (leitharmonie) in Hollywood film music. 3 L-minor (E-minor to C-major, e.g.) is not nearly as common as L-major in film. One reason is that most of the film scores in this study emphasize a major key, featuring L-major (I-iii-I-iii) and contributing to positive associations. 15 Figure 2: Leittonwechsel Voice Leading Six specific emotional qualities consistently associated with the Leittonwechsel transformation (L-major) will be explored in the following eleven film scores, two television series, and eight songs: “Penny Lane” by The Beatles (1967), “Touch Me” by The Doors (1969), “Colour My World” by Chicago (1970), The Goonies (1985), “What a Wonderful World” in Good Morning Vietnam (1987), Home Alone (1990), Edward Scissorhands (1990), Hook (1991), “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” by Israel Kamakwiwo’ole (1993), Sommersby (1993), The Santa Clause (1994), Elf (2003), Polar Express (2004), Christmas with the Kranks (2004), “Hey There Delilah” (2006), Up (2009), “Count On Me” by Bruno Mars (2010), “Space Oddity” in Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013), The Santa Clauses (2022), Slumberland (2022), and The Bachelor: American Season 28 (2024). I will conduct a deeper investigation of the Leittonwechsel’s role as an effective harmonic leitmotif (or leitharmonie) in Elfman’s Edward Scissorhands, Giacchino’s Up, Debney’s Elf, Silvestri’s Polar Express, and Grusin’s The Goonies. These scores rely on the Leittonwechsel as an associative harmonic theme in the large majority of cues, many of which express feelings of wonder, childlike belief, nostalgia, romantic love, and empathy. These associations are strengthened by other parameters as well, such as rhythm, orchestration, and timbre, as my examples (transcriptions) will show. I will also discuss how composers use specific leitmotivic processes to contribute to a cue’s emotional landscape, such as harmonic corruption, change of mode, associative transposition, and thematic 16 fragmentation.4 This analysis will identify a repetitive pattern of predictable L-major undulations (I-iii-I-iii over two measures) and accompanying L-major melodic formulas that occur frequently—sometimes verbatim—in other film scores as well. This undulating Leittonwechsel appears as a Christmastime, wonder-inducing schema that recurs across various film scores from 1990 to 2023. In Chapter II, I will offer a catalog of possible Leittonwechsel melodies based on this pattern. This analysis will also uncover other important recurring neo-Riemannian operations (such as SLIDE and ) that surround the Leittonwechsel and contextually illuminate its positively-valenced emotional associations. It will also reveal Elfman’s and Silvestri’s affinity for specific neo-Riemannian links that generate chains of Leittonwechsel progressions. Lastly, I will discuss the Leittonwechsel’s remarkable versatility and ability to underscore complex emotional associations connected to the narrative and characters’ nuanced psychological developments, especially nostalgia, childlike wonder, belief, romance, self-sacrificial love, empathy, and Christmas magic. In the final section, I will invoke David Huron’s theory of binding tones to propose a homology that draws an organic connection between the musical structure of the Leittonwechsel and its positive emotional associations. 2. Literature Survey Scott Murphy’s (2014) article, “Scoring Loss in Some Recent Popular Film and Television,” provides the foundation for this thesis, which is a critique of his interpretation of the L-major transformation (Leittonwechsel) as a “loss gesture” in Hollywood film music. I use several of Murphy’s examples of this loss gesture, alongside dozens of new examples, and reinterpret the 4 Matthew Bribitzer-Stull claims that “associative theme” may be more accurate than “leitmotif” in some cases. I have chosen to use “associative harmonic theme” and “leitharmonie” interchangeably for this current study. (Understanding the Leitmotif: From Wagner to Hollywood (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015) 258). 17 filmic Leittonwechsel as a transformation that is consistently associated with wonder, empathy, love, belief, and Christmas magic. I will discuss Murphy’s argument that a homology of loss (the tonic being lost to the leading tone) might explain the Leittonwechsel's association with loss, and I will then propose a new homology of union, arguing that the Leittonwechsel’s maximally- smooth intervallic attributes might account for the progression’s common association with love, nostalgia, and wonder. Frank Lehman’s (2018) book Hollywood Harmony is also crucial to this thesis, as a rich resource including examples of Neo-Riemannian transformations and absolute progressions in film music. His application of these transformations (such as SLIDE) to emotion in film music are featured prominently in my thesis and serve to support my examples of the Leittonwechsel as an associative absolute progression in each of the films I survey. I incorporate Lehman’s writings on the Leittonwechsel’s ability to induce awe in The Matrix and Alien as a way to support my interpretation of the wonder-inducing Leittonwechsel in Edward Scissorhands. A third important resource for me was David Huron’s (2006) book Sweet Anticipation, which provides significant research that proposes a connection between the experience of human emotion and the structure of melodic intervals. Huron’s theory of binding tones will set the framework for developing what I will call the homology of union, a metaphorical way of relating the musical structure of the Leittonwechsel (I – iii progression) with its positively-valenced emotional associations. I also build on his theory of the prediction effect and misattribution theory in my interpretation of Giacchino’s use of the Leittonwechsel in Disney’s Up. Among the other important sources for this thesis was Richard Cohn’s (1996) foundational Neo-Riemannian article, “Maximally Smooth Cycles, Hexatonic Systems, and the Analysis of Late-Romantic Triadic Progressions.” Cohn describes a “maximally-smooth voice leading” that 18 can occur in certain transformations. In my thesis, I apply Cohn’s research to the Leittonwechsel’s role in film music and propose that the L-major progression’s maximally- smooth voice leading might relate to its positive narrative states and emotive associations. Additionally, David Lewin’s (1987) book Generalized Musical Intervals and Transformations provides labels, graphs, and definitions of neo-Riemannian transformations that play an important role in my analysis of film score leitharmonies. He gives examples of the leading-tone exchange (Leittonwechsel) as well as the SLIDE, which he instituted (“we can define the operation SLIDE that preserves the third of a triad while changing its mode”).5 I will show how these two specific operations (LT and SLIDE) work together to highlight the positive emotions associated with the L-major leitharmonie in both Danny Elfman’s and Alan Silvestri’s film scores. Matthew Bribitzer-Stull's (2015) book Understanding the Leitmotif offers valuable insight into the ways associative harmonies and leitmotifs connect with characters or recurring themes, in music from Wagner to Hollywood films. His explanation of leitmotivic change of texture and associative transposition—and how these can signify a shift in a character’s psyche—will be especially pertinent to my discussion of John Debney’s development of the leitmotivic Leittonwechsel in Elf and Danny Elfman’s Edward Scissorhands. Before commencing the analyses, I will provide a new perspective on a prominent film- music scholar’s publication about the Leittonwechsel (Murphy 2014), and will furthermore propose a new framework for reinterpreting the emotional associativity of the Leittonwechsel in film music. 5 David Lewin, Generalized Musical Intervals and Transformations (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1987), 178. 19 3. Reinterpreting Scott Murphy’s “Loss Gesture” In his article, “Scoring Loss in Some Recent Popular Film and Television,” Scott Murphy (2014) provides a brilliant discussion of and hypothesis on the Leittonwechsel’s (I-iii) emotion- inducing role in film scores. He elucidates the association of loss, sadness, and sorrow commonly attached to this highly emotive harmonic progression, almost always within the functional context of major tonic moving to minor mediant. Murphy claims that this progression (the neo-Riemannian transformation of L-major, often in the form of I moving to iii) is consistently employed by composers to connote “the contemplation of a loss-generated sorrow in popular film and television from 1985 to 2012.”6 He therefore refers to the Leittonwechsel transformation in film music as the “Loss Gesture.” Murphy concedes that “there are undoubtedly countless instances that break this associative rule,” such as “when a loss gesture on the soundtrack has little or nothing to do with a sorrowful loss.”7 However, after stating that he has written notes on harmonic language in over three hundred films, he makes the following bold proposal: “I have found in this genre no other musical utterance defined as precisely, or more precisely, than the loss gesture that is as consistently associated with sorrow; nor have I found another narrative state defined as precisely, or more precisely, than sorrow that is as consistently associated with the loss gesture.”8 In addressing the former claim, the intention of this paper is not to argue that I have found a different harmonic gesture that captures sorrow (or loss) more precisely than the Leittonwechsel (though perhaps there exists a harmony in film music that is in fact more isomorphic in its association with sorrow). However, to address Murphy’s latter claim, 6 Murphy, “Scoring Loss in Some Recent Popular Film and Television,” 298. 7 Ibid., 300. 8 Ibid. 20 I have found that more positively-valenced “narrative states,” especially romance, empathy, nostalgia, reclamation of childlike belief and wonder, and Christmas magic, are equally—if not more consistently—associated with the Leittonwechsel in film music. In addition, it is critical to note that multi-dimensional expressions of sorrow and sadness exist on a sophisticated spectrum, ranging from extreme grief or depressingly bleak feelings to the more positively-valenced forms of sublime sorrow, sweet sorrow, or comforting sorrow.9 Again, rather than arguing for a more precise harmony that induces or represents one- dimensional sorrow in film, my intention is to reframe our understanding of the associativity of the Leittonwechsel through a more nuanced angle that emphasizes the Leittonwechsel’s emotive versatility in film scores. I propose that the Leittonwechsel’s versatile associativity—specifically its ability to elicit multi-dimensional feelings of joyful wonder, nostalgia, restoration of childlike belief, selfless love, and empathy—occurs no less consistently than the harmony’s association with loss or sorrow. The L-major transformation consistently (and precisely) evokes or accompanies these six positively-valenced cinematic feelings and these specific associations are consistently found during the same time frame of popular film music studied in Murphy’s article (not to mention similar emotional associativity in pop/rock music during the same decades). Throughout this study, I will align the Leittonwechsel with its specific visual-musical contexts in film and thus draw out more comprehensive emotional dimensions that reveal this popular harmonic progression as a versatile leitharmonie (associative harmonic theme). This contextualization will demonstrate that the Leittonwechsel’s affective associativity is as variegated as the characters’ complex development of emotions and the plots’ intricately interweaving twists and turns. In my process of reframing the Leittonwechsel’s emotive role in 9 Oliver Herdson, Tuomas Eerola, Amir-Homayoun Javadi, “Analysis and Classification of Music-Induced States of Sadness,” Emotion Review 15, 2 (2023). 21 film music, I will start by addressing an example in Giacchino’s score to Up and two examples from Elfman’s score to Edward Scissorhands, specifically the ones that Murphy listed as loss gestures (sorrow-inducing gestures). Without examining the cue’s full visual-musical context, it is tempting to interpret these Leittonwechsel examples as primarily sorrow-inducing gestures. However, the following analyses will argue that labeling the progression as a sadness-inducing loss gesture does not account for its more nuanced emotional associativity. Additionally, although Murphy claims that the narrative state of sorrow in film is most consistently associated with the Leittonwechsel harmony, this does not necessarily indicate that the Leittonwechsel is most consistently associated with sadness or loss. My research offers a perspective that highlights more positive emotional associations with the Leittonwechsel and offers evidence to support this theory: my musical-emotional analysis of the Leittonwechsel in film scores from 1985 to 2024 (adding twelve years to Murphy’s study) will offer examples of the L-major transformation’s consistent appearance in Christmas films and its leitmotivic signification of the restoration of childlike belief, wonder, and Christmas magic (Polar Express, Elf, The Santa Clause, The Santa Clauses, Hook, Home Alone, Edward Scissorhands, Christmas with the Kranks, etc.). The Leittonwechsel’s remarkably consistent association with romantic and self-sacrificial love (as opposed to mere ‘loss’) also occurs as a powerful leitharmonie throughout Giacchino’s Up and in Elfman’s Edward Scissorhands and Sommersby. In these three films, the Leittonwechsel more commonly symbolizes selfless love, empathy, or deepening romantic love, arguably more than it symbolizes mere loss or sorrow. And its association with deep empathy (in addition to Christmas magic, nostalgia, and restoration of belief) will be analyzed in each of the twelve films, especially in Debney’s two popular Christmas scores for Elf (2003) and Christmas with the Kranks (2004). 22 Chapter II: L-MAJOR LOVE & EMPATHY IN EDWARD SCISSORHANDS & UP 1. Edward Scissorhands Introduction and The L-major Melodic Catalog This first analysis examines several cues from Danny Elfman’s iconic score for Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands (1990). Two of the cues will directly challenge Murphy’s interpretation of Elfman’s use of the L-major theme. Elfman’s score is saturated with the Leittonwechsel leitharmonie, and this L-major harmony appears even amidst more chromatic transformations (such as when he uses the neo-Riemannian SLIDE to connect two or more leitharmonic L-major progressions). In Edward Scissorhands, Elfman demonstrates leitmotivic treatment of the L-major theme with both harmonic corruption and thematic fragmentation to mirror the characters’ emotional states as well as the narrative’s drama. In Scoring the Screen: The Secret Language of Film Music, Andy Hill discusses the nature of Elfman’s compositional style as it relates to the protagonist’s characteristics and narrative in Edward Scissorhands: “Some of the compositional elements—the strictly parallel keyboard and vocal counterpoint, for example—are still a bit naïve, but seem completely appropriate for this film and its guileless protagonist. Edward Scissorhands remains in many ways the definitive Elfman score.”10 Edward’s “guileless” characteristic is developed primarily through the leitmotivic L- major theme. In Elfman’s commentary for the ten-year anniversary DVD release, he associates the Leittonwechsel leitmotif with “the innocent heart of Edward,” or “Edward’s innocent theme…His theme of the heart.”11 This type of language from the composer reveals an 10 Andy Hill, Scoring the Screen: The Secret Language of Film Music (Milwaukee: Hal Leonard Books, 2017), 200. 11 Danny Elfman, “Commentaries,” Edward Scissorhands: 10th anniversary ed., directed by Tim Burton (Beverly Hills, CA: 20th Century Fox, 2000), DVD Video. 23 intentional associative, leitmotivic way of thinking.12 In fact, Elfman uses the term “leitmotif” several times in his commentary throughout the film. For the first appearance of Edward on camera (and the first entrance of the Leittonwechsel Edward Theme), Elfman defines the progression as Edward’s “emotional theme…which is really the theme that represents the heart of the character” (2000). Later in this analysis, we will discover that Edward’s “emotional theme” (which I will refer to as Edward’s Theme, see Figure 3 below) is harmonized by the score’s famous Leittonwechsel transformation (I-iii-I-iii): Figure 3: Edward’s Theme [L-major transformation with leitmotif] In order to facilitate the comparison and discussion of Edward’s Theme and additional Leittonwechsel themes in this section, I will provide a categorization and nomenclature for available L-major melodies that occur above the L-major transformation. In both Edward Scissorhands and Polar Express, the Leittonwechsel associative harmonic theme occurs most commonly in four-measure units, typically with two half notes above the major triad and two half notes above the subsequent minor triad (articulated as “I-iii-I-iii” with one triad per measure, if associated key or tonal center is in play). Observe this harmonic rhythm in Figure 4 below. Figure 4: Catalog of Leittonwechsel Melodies 12 Bribitzer-Stull calls this analytical approach “poietic” (Understanding the Leitmotif, 279). 24 The catalog of possible L-major melodies serves two main functions: First, it offers composers and theorists a thorough list of available themes that are useful in the context of creating or analyzing film-scores that depend on the Leittonwechsel progression. Second, the catalog of melodies assists the analyst or listener in understanding how a composer might 25 truncate a melody, embellish it, or perhaps use motivic fragments of the melody in other cues (or use the entire melody over an alternate chord progression or simply a divergent harmonization; leitmotivic change of mode and harmonic corruption will be discussed later on). For instance, in Edward Scissorhands, Elfman sometimes uses fragments of the primary L-major theme (Edward’s Theme) as a countermelody in an entirely different context (instead of being paired with the L-major undulation, the thematic fragment shows up contrapuntally in a minor mode and therefore serves a different associative role in the narrative). In order to create this catalog, I abided by intentional limitations that would facilitate the analysis and comply with the majority of Hollywood leitmotifs: (1) I only include melodies without repeated consecutive pitches. Repeated pitches are allowed (such as the Elf/Polar Express theme Do <+7,-8,+8>), as long as they do not occur one after the other; this guideline makes for a more interesting theme and, probably for the same reason, reflects the fact that these types of themes more commonly appear in film scores; (2) Within each four-note melody, the pitch intervals never exceed a major-sixth. Many filmic themes remain within a more parsimonious, compact contour. One reason for this range limitation is that the melody obtains a more memorable and singable shape. Bribitzer-Stull confirms the importance of composing a memorable, recognizable theme in film music: “Leitmotif also handed composers a ready-made, concise, and easily recognizable nugget of form, tonality, and thematic content; its ability to unite these things made it invaluable as a tool for reinforcing narrative across disjunct scenic cuts in space and time.”13 With this in mind, the use of disjunct melodic octave displacements would not serve to reinforce the narrative as effectively as an easily recognizable leitmotif that recurs from cue to cue. Lastly, the nomenclature (or taxonomic identification) I chose for these L-major 13 Bribitzer-Stull, Understanding the Leitmotif: From Wagner to Hollywood Film Music, 267. 26 melodies is based on the first solfege syllable of the triad (Do, Mi, or Sol) and the ordered pitch intervals that follow. For example, the thematic Leittonwechsel melody from Edward Scissorhands, Sol-Do-Ti-Sol, is labeled: Sol <+5, -1, -4>. The decision to use ordered pitch- interval classification for my catalog of L-major melodies allows for immediate comparison of motivic similarities (regardless of key/tonality), as well as immediate comparison of inversions and other recurring motivic fragments within the theme. For instance, the melody Do <+4,-9,+4> clearly bares a recurring ascending major-third fragment (+4). Lastly, for the scope of this thesis, I limited the catalog examples to (1) melodies that only start on Sol or Do and (2) melodies that begin with an ascending interval. The repeat sign for each Leittonwechsel transformation indicates the fact that these progressions commonly occur in four-measure undulations (the L-major transformation happens twice). This four-measure pattern is exactly how Elfman and Silvestri employ the L-major associative theme in Edward Scissorhands and Polar Express (as well as in many of the other film scores in this study). This repetition (undulation) of back-to-back Leittonwechsel transformations emphasizes the L-major transformation as a harmonic leitmotif. Bribitzer-Stull describes how a repetitive filmic chord progression can become an “associative harmonic progression” and explains how these repetitive associative progressions gain “the ability…to accrue extra-musical significance.”14 As an example from opera, he explains how Wagner’s “Tarnhelm music…thematicizes the progression.”15 He also claims that, “in Danny Elfman’s scores to Beetlejuice…and The Nightmare Before Christmas, the ‘Tarnhelm’ progression 14 Bribitzer-Stull, Understanding the Leitmotif, 267. 15 Ibid., 140. 27 appears in enough separate moments to justify calling it a motive.”16 Bribitzer-Stull’s statement about Elfman’s associative progression applies clearly to Elfman’s utilization of the L-major associative harmonic theme in Edward Scissorhands as well. 2. L-major in the Storytime Cue and The Sympathy Theme The first arrival of the L-major associative harmonic theme (leitharmonie) occurs in the ‘Storytime’ cue, where an old woman (Kim) tells her granddaughter about Edward (see Figure 5 below). The arpeggiation and harmonic rhythm derive from the film’s Main Title (Storybook Theme), thereby creating textural coherence between the themes. Figure 5: Storytime Cue [Edward Scissorhands] The Roman-numeral analysis in Figure 5 reveals the film’s first iteration of the Leittonwechsel associative progression. However, the leitmotivic Edward Theme, the melody attached to the Leittonwechsel progression, does not occur until Kim says, “His name was Edward,” establishing this particular L-major melody as a leitmotif. Even before this, Elfman hints at Edward’s Theme with a short-lived version of the Leittonwechsel (an obscured version of the harmonic theme). The leitharmonic Leittonwechsel, D-major—F#-minor, betokens Edward’s Theme, evident in the transcription below, Figure 6 (L-major: D-major—F#-minor, mm. 20-21): 16 Bribitzer-Stull, Understanding the Leitmotif, 152. 28 Figure 6: Storytime Cue Cont.: Hinting at Edward’s Theme (mm. 20-21) The Sympathy Theme occurs next, eight measures after Elfman augurs Edward’s Theme with the L-major progression (mm. 20-21). The Sympathy Theme is another leitmotif paired with a recurring L-major associative harmonic theme, and it very often occurs alongside Edward’s Theme. The main difference between the Sympathy Theme and Edward’s Theme is that the former only uses one L-major transformation whereas Edward’s Theme repeats the Leittonwechsel transformation twice (oscillating back-to-back) over the course of four measures (similar to Silvestri’s Polar Express and modeled in the L-major melodic catalog). The other significant difference is the Sympathy Theme’s melody , 29 etc., which occurs above the L-major progression (Do <+4,+3, X> in the melodic catalog).17 The grandmother continues, “The inventor was very old. He died before he was able to finish the man he invented. So the man was left by himself, incomplete and all alone.” The emotional reaction to her description, “left by himself, incomplete, and all alone” is intended to be one of deep sympathy and compassion, and the Sympathy Theme accomplishes this empathetic associative response with the L-major transformation (m. 26) as well as the emotive “borrowed” iv chord (Bm, m. 28), evident in Figure 7 below. Figure 7: Leittonwechsel (F#-major—A#-minor) in Sympathy Theme The coupling of grandmother Kim’s compassionate inflection on the words “all alone” and the emotional quality associated with the Leittonwechsel transformation create an undeniable feeling of sympathy for (and empathy toward) Edward. Referring to associative harmonic themes (such as the Leittonwechsel), Scott Murphy explains that “both film composers and moviegoers, whether consciously or not, are undoubtedly acquainted with many, if not all, of these associations through repeated exposure.”18 The Sympathy Theme includes another harmony that seems to emit a common emotional reaction of sympathy as well: the emotive borrowed iv chord. Directly after this sympathy-inducing iv chord, a secondary dominant (V/vi) transitions— 17 Do <+4,+3, X>: The “X” indicates that this particular L-major melody only has three pitches. The “X” also indicates that this melody could be completed by several different pitches/results from melodic catalog. 18 Scott Murphy, “Transformational Theory and the Analysis of Film Music,” In The Oxford Handbook of Film Music Studies, (Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2014), 488. 30 as the new dominant—to the key of Eb major (VI), marking the first entrance of Edward’s Theme (another Leittonwechsel). As mentioned earlier, Edward’s Theme begins only milliseconds after the grandmother says, “His name was Edward,” highlighting its leitmotivic role. Edward’s Theme consists of the L-major associative harmonic theme (leitharmonie) as well as two accompanying L-major melodies: (1) Sol <+5,-1,X>, mm. 30-31 and (2) Sol <+9,-5, -4>, mm. 32-33. In Figure 8 below, the last two measures include a transposed version of the first three pitches, Sol <+5,-1,X> (Eb-Ab-G). This motive can be found in the L-major melodic catalog, although it does not occur over an L-major progression. Figure 8: Edward’s Theme [Transposed Theme over the IV6/4—iii6/4] 3. Transformations As Linking Devices Between Leittonwechsels Thus far, within the span of one cue, Elfman presented the Leittonwechsel associative harmonic theme in three different key areas: C-major, F#-major, and Eb-major. The last key (Eb+, Edward’s Theme) relates to the first key (C+) by the binary-generated transformation. The second key (F#+, Sympathy Theme) relates to the last key also by a transformation. The first (C+) and last (Eb+) keys are likewise related by the octatonic cycle (). Elfman therefore uses transformations consistently as linking devices to 31 connect modulatory chains of L-major associative progressions. This neo-Riemannian “Associative Transposition” serves as one way to signify a change in the narrative or shift in the emotional landscape while using the same Leittonwechsel leitmotif.19 It also represents a brilliant neo-Riemannian compositional technique that causes a repetitive leitmotivic Leittonwechsel transformation to retain freshness and unpredictability within a film score that relies on it so frequently. Murphy calls this a “recombinant” approach, when a composer strings together a “relatively novel sequence of well-worn” triadic progressions.20 Another example of Elfman’s ability to string together novel sequences of TTPCs is when we see a flashback of the very moment when the Inventor conceived of the idea to create Edward. The Inventor holds a sugar cookie in the shape of a heart and places it slowly on the chest of a lifeless robot. A solo oboe begins playing the Storybook Theme (in the key of D- minor), but instead of resolving from the dominant (V) back to D-minor (as was expected from the Main Title), Elfman writes a deceptive cadence to Bb-major. Immediately after the deceptive cadence, an intimate wordless choir emerges in the key of G, singing Edward’s Theme. Figure 9 below depicts the important transformation (from Bb-major to G-major): Figure 9: Link to Edward’s Theme Dm (i)—AM (V)—BbM (VI), link to [Edward’s Theme]→ GM—Bm—GM—Bm—DM This is an example of thematic truncation, as we only hear seven of the twelve pitches from the Leittonwechsel melody, .21 There are two significant 19 Bribitzer-Stull, Understanding the Leitmotif, 291. 20 Murphy, “Transformational Theory and the Analysis of Film Music,” 492. 21 Bribitzer-Stull explains that “Truncation stands as one of the most common Wagnerian thematic techniques used by film composers” (2015, 289). 32 compositional elements in this cue: (1) Elfman seamlessly links the Storybook Theme to the L- major Edward Theme with yet another octatonic binary-generator, Bb+ to G+ (compare this to the previous transformations that linked together a chain of L-major themes), and (2) The Leittonwechsel theme (Edward’s associative L-major theme) signifies the sentimental moment when the Inventor first thought of creating Edward. The Leittonwechsel very effectively evokes the emotional attachment to Edward in this moment and also creates a deep sense of nostalgia and compassion: The camera captures the expressive look of longing from the Inventor as he imagines creating his beloved Edward. In Hollywood Harmony, Frank Lehman describes a very similar cinematic compositional tool in The Song of Bernadette (1943). Referring to Alfred Newman’s cue that depicts Bernadette’s supernatural vision of the Virgin Mary, Lehman points out that, “Almost entirely free of dialogue, the scene relies on Jennifer Jones’s expressive face and the exceptionally foregrounded score for its wow-factor.”22 Just as Edward’s Theme boldly frames the Inventor’s wonderment-saturated face as he conceives of the invention of Edward, so too in “The Vision” scene, the “camera’s fixation on Bernadette’s wordless face strengthens the out-of-time quality already implied by Newman’s meandering, tonally uninhibited unendliche Melodie.”23 Although their techniques are quite different, both of these scenes (by Elfman and Newman) rely on chromatic triadicism—such as Newman’s major tritone progression from F-major to B-major, —and both exemplify the ability of neo-Riemannian transformations to signify the character’s moment of epiphany, even in a context void of words. 22 Frank Lehman, Hollywood Harmony: Musical Wonder and the Sound of Cinema (New York: Oxford University Press), 228. 23 Lehman, Hollywood Harmony, 233. 33 Another example of the leitharmonic Leittonwechsel progression (Edward’s Theme) is when Edward sees a photo of Kim for the first time. It is noteworthy that Kim does not receive her own theme. Edward’s Theme is projected over Kim and it represents the moment Edward experiences romantic love (or affection) for the first time. The L-major leitharmonie here emphasizes the versatility of the Leittonwechsel transformation and its unique ability to emanate a variety of emotional associations, such as romantic love, sympathy and compassion, or nostalgia and wonder. Elfman elaborates on the L-major Edward Theme, calling it “Edward’s emotional center.”24 He admits that “Edward’s music would even play over Kim,” and that, “as a character…she wasn’t going to get her own theme.”25 Explaining his reason for this, Elfman states, “I like following the emotions, not the characters. I’ve always felt that way, and that carried into the score as well.”26 Bribitzer-Stull reveals a very similar compositional approach when discussing Arnold Schoenberg’s film-score approach to Pearl Buck’s The Good Earth: “Rather than associating themes simply with characters or things, Schoenberg’s titles suggest that he – like Wagner – imagined concepts and emotions lying at the heart of themes’ projected semantic functions.”27 So too does Elfman employ the L-major associative harmonic theme (Edward’s Theme) as the emotional underpinning in multiple cues throughout the narrative, rather than limiting it to one character or idea. Edward’s Theme here represents both his blossoming love for Kim (the wonder of an inventor’s creation learning about love) as well as his purity and innocence. The emotional quality associated with the Leittonwechsel effectively 24 Elfman, “Commentaries,” Edward Scissorhands: 10th anniversary ed. (2000). 25 Ibid. 26 Ibid. 27 Bribitzer-Stull, Understanding the Leitmotif, 270. 34 creates the nostalgic feeling of falling in love that Burton and Elfman sought to capture in this scene. Elfman emphasized that the Edward Theme (with its Leittonwechsel harmony) succeeded the most in capturing the innocent heart of Edward.28 Yet another instance of the associative, leitharmonic Leittonwechsel (Edward’s Theme) appears in a particularly poignant moment in the film, when Edward is interviewed on TV and asked, “Is there some special lady in your life?” The camera focuses in on Edward’s eyes, and then cuts to Kim’s face, zooming in to her eyes as well. During this silent, salient moment (Edward does not give a verbal answer), Edward’s Theme is all that we hear. It is as if the Leittonwechsel and its melody are speaking for Edward. That is, Edward’s Theme is answering the question, giving the viewer the emotional signification that Edward has indeed fallen in love. Elfman subtly brings in the violins, piccolo, and harp to signify this intimate revelation. In Figure 10 below, the harp arpeggiation and piccolo line play fragments of the Edward Theme above the progression: 28 Elfman, “Commentaries,” Edward Scissorhands: 10th anniversary ed. (2000). 35 Figure 10: Edward Interviewed on TV; Romantic Leittonwechsel The emotional association with the Leittonwechsel in this case is one of deep longing, romantic love, and an epiphany on Kim’s end. This is similar to the use of the Leittonwechsel in Elf’s narrative, when Buddy’s Father has a complete change of heart, a revelation that he loves his son. Similarly, Kim begins to experience reciprocal feelings of love toward Edward in this scene, and her awakening of love is illustrated by the sentimental L-major progression and fragments of the melody from Edward’s Theme. Bribitzer-Stull elucidates how, in The Ring, Wagner “used Thematic Fragmentation to capture the sense of emotion associated with the emergence or departure of an important dramatic element.”29 In this case, the fragment of Edward’s Theme 29 Bribitzer-Stull, Understanding the Leitmotif, 289. 36 captures the sense of emotion that is associated with the emergence of Kim’s love toward Edward. 4. Leitmotivic Harmonic Corruption Applied to the Leittonwechsel Bribitzer-Stull also discusses how film scores incorporate the leitmotivic compositional technique of “Harmonic Corruption.”30 A strong example of harmonic corruption in Edward Scissorhands occurs when Edward has a heart-wrenching flashback: Edward’s Inventor is about to give him his new pair of hands (to replace his scissor-hands), but he dies right in front of Edward before he is able to assemble his new hands. At the very moment the Inventor dies, Elfman captures the psychological terror and devastation that Edward and the viewers experience by ceasing the Leittonwechsel progression and replacing it for the first time with a horrifying transformation (Bb-minor to D-minor). Edward’s melodic Leittonwechsel Theme (S<+5,- 1,X>), as if to symbolize the ghost of the Inventor, is eerily still heard above the new transformation. None of the pitches (chord-tones) need to be altered to fit this new minor tonic (Bb-minor). This shift from the Leittonwechsel to the more chromatic can be understood as neo-Riemannian harmonic corruption, demonstrating the “dramatic and emotional power of associative themes” in their ability to augment “images and myriad aspects of the drama, including those unseen, like the psychological aspects of a character’s state of mind.”31 Edward’s innocent L-major Theme suddenly falls prey to the psychological shock of the death of his creator, and the once-tranquil Leittonwechsel passes away from the listener as fast as the Inventor passes away in front of Edward. Murphy listed this scene as one that exemplifies the 30 Bribitzer-Stull, Understanding the Leitmotif, 285. 31 Ibid., 255-256. 37 Leittonwechsel as a loss gesture, but I contend that loss and sorrow in this scene are actually depicted by Elfman’s harmonically corrupted Leittonwechsel, the transformation (the startling chromatic mediant). More accurately, the Leittonwechsel depicted their love for one another, whereas the transformation depicted the moment Edward lost his creator. Elfman’s score exhibits another leitmotivic device, change of mode, which also occurs in the context of Edward’s Theme. During one of the final scenes, Kim comes to Edward’s rescue, declares her love to him and kisses him for the first (and last) time. As stated earlier, just as Buddy’s Leittonwechsel Theme occurs right when the father says, “I love you,” so too the downbeat of the Sympathy (Leittonwechsel) Theme is perfectly synchronized with Kim’s statement, “I love you.” The oboe (an instrument commonly associated with Edward’s Theme throughout) plays variations on Edward’s Theme, and only subtly presents fragments of the original L-major melody. However, the emotional association with Edward’s love for Kim—and now Kim’s love for Edward—is still powerfully evoked through the Leittonwechsel transformation that remains underneath the melodic variations. But this enchanting moment of romantic love (articulated by Edward’s Theme and the Sympathy Theme) is coupled with the impending reality that they will never be able to see each other again (Edward says “Goodbye” before they kiss). This is why Murphy also includes this scene as an example of the L-major progression signifying loss and sorrow. However, the overall emotional expression from the Leittonwechsel in this scene is one of deep romantic love and selflessness. Elfman not only uses the Leittonwechsel to induce feelings of nostalgia, blossoming romance, and innocence; he also uses the L-major transformation’s unique ability to capture the bittersweet emotional association of self-sacrificial love, agápe: a form of love that selflessly endures pain for the sake of love; an unconditional love that will, in extreme circumstances, cause one to sacrifice even his/her own 38 life to protect the other. Lehman also references the unique associative power of L-major when he explains “the undulation between DM and F#m in…Alien draws on L(M)’s bittersweet disposition, with Goldenthal’s music providing a preemptive elegy for Ripley as she prepares to sacrifice herself.”32 This self-sacrificial love is what Elfman attempts to illustrate with the Leittonwechsel here, since Kim must choose to permanently separate from Edward in order to protect his life. The change of mode in measure 13 (D-minor, iv) in the middle of the L-major Sympathy Theme also captures the emotional turmoil and devastation that both characters are facing. The change of mode occurs at the exact moment that Kim runs away, denoting the last time she and Edward will see each other. This unexpected transformation, m1m or , interrupts the Sympathy Theme and effectively depicts the sorrow associated with the fact that Edward and Kim must tragically separate forever. Much like the previous scene, it is usually a more chromatic gesture (such as the , the iv D-minor chord in Figure 11 below) that depicts loss or sorrow, not the Leittonwechsel. 32 Lehman, Hollywood Harmony, 100. 39 Figure 11: Climactic Goodbye with Leittonwechsel and Change of Mode 40 In Figure 11, the change of key between Edward’s Leittonwechsel Theme (C+) and the Sympathy Leittonwechsel Theme (A+) is another example of Elfman’s affinity for the neo- Riemannian octatonic-cycle: he uses an transformation as a linking device between L- major progressions or key areas. In this case, the represents the overarching key area relationship (since there are triads/pivot chords—m5M—that occur between the C+ and A+ key areas). In the case of the Inventor conceiving of the idea to create Edward, the transformation occurred immediately between two triads/themes (Bb+ to G+). The correlation between these two transformations creates a coherent harmonic arch and may very well have overarching associations as well: The first link to the L-major Edward Theme occurs when we witness the initial conception of Edward’s existence, and the last link from the Edward Theme to the Sympathy Theme occurs when we witness the bittersweet ending of Edward and Kim’s relationship. 5. Elfman SLIDING Between Leittonwechsels During the last scene of the film, Elfman uses a different type of neo-Riemannian link to connect iterations of the Leittonwechsel Edward Theme. Two instances of the SLIDE transformation (Bb-minor to A-major, where the perfect-fifth dyad slides down by a semitone) are used to depict the irrevocable separation between Kim and Edward. However, the fact that the SLIDE links two Leittonwechsel Themes together symbolizes the love between Edward and Kim that is still very much alive. The SLIDE educes the association of a bittersweet connection between Edward and Kim. In “Transformational Analysis and the Representation of Genius in Film Music,” Frank Lehman explains the “SLIDE’s unique ability to connote extreme tonal 41 distance while maintaining extreme pitch proximity.”33 It is this paradox of extreme tonal distance and extreme pitch proximity that parallels the narrative’s irony here: Kim and Edward are extremely close to each other’s hearts (embodied perhaps by the enharmonic Db and C#), but physically (and dimensionally) separated by an insurmountable distance. The end of the film shows Edward, who has not aged, still creating ice sculptures of Kim as a teenager, as he remembers her. In this final cue, Edward’s Theme returns as well. In the middle of Edward’s Theme (after the Leittonwechsel four-measure undulation), the SLIDE occurs right as Kim says “I’d rather him remember me the way I was.” The SLIDE captures Kim’s internal coping mechanism (sweet sorrow) with its ability to convey a psychological shift (just as Lehman indicated). The SLIDE also incarnates the juxtaposition of Kim’s current age (an aging grandmother) and Edward’s eternal youth. The nature of the static third—the enharmonic Db/C# that never moves—perhaps parallels Edward, who never ages or leaves his castle, and the perfect fifth which slides down a half step (Bb—F to A—E) perhaps represents Kim’s humanity, as she is subject to time (and change). Before the second SLIDE, the granddaughter asks Kim, “How do you know he’s still alive?” In response, Kim says, “I don’t know…not for sure, but I believe he is.” This shift from doubt (“how do you know he’s still alive”) to childlike faith (“I believe he is”) is depicted by the SLIDE as well. Also, the final statement of belief is depicted by the return of Edward’s Theme (The associative Leittonwechsel progression and melody). The feelings of nostalgia, wonder, love, and hope (belief) associated with the Leittonwechsel leitmotif are substantiated by Kim’s final words to her granddaughter: “Sometimes you can still catch me dancing in it,” referring to the magical snowfall that Edward still creates through ice sculpting. This of course recalls when 33 Lehman, Hollywood Harmony, 6. 42 Kim, as a teenager, danced underneath the snowflakes that fell while Edward was creating an angelic ice sculpture of her. The viewer subconsciously associates this magical moment with the Leittonwechsel Edward Theme, which saturated the cue with L-major transformations and symbolized their climactic moment of love and wonder. Figure 12 below depicts the SLIDE and Leittonwechsel transformations in the context of Kim’s important conversation with her granddaughter: Figure 12: L-major and SLIDE with Kim’s Commentary [Edward’s Theme/Leittonwechsel]: Gb—Bbm—Gb—Bbm—[SLIDE] “I would rather him remember me the way I was”—[Edward’s Theme/L] A—C#m—A—C#m—Bm—D—E7— [Sympathy Theme Truncated/Leittonwechsel]: A—C#m—F#m—D#half-dim— “How do you know he’s still alive?” [Edward’s Theme/L]: Gb—Bbm—Gb—Bbm—[SLIDE] “I believe he is.” [Edward’s Theme/L]—A—C#m—A—C#m—Bm—D—C#m—D—Db—D—A/E—E7— “Sometimes you can still catch me dancing in it”: [Edward’s Theme/L] A—C#m—A— C#m—Bm—D—E, [Sympathy Theme/L]- A—C#m—F#m—C#m—D—Dm—C#7—F#m— B—Db—[Edward’s Theme/L]- Gb—Bbm—Gb—Bbm—Gb—Bbm—Gb—Bbm 6. The Nostalgic Leittonwechsel in Up Disney/Pixar’s Up (2009), directed by Pete Docter and composed by Michael Giacchino, is a movie that carries a profound ability to evoke deeply nostalgic feelings. The film is about an old man (Carl) who goes on an adventure while processing the loss of his wife and developing a new friendship with a young boy. In rediscovering the spirit of adventure, wonder, and love for life that he had cultivated with his wife, he in turn rediscovers childlike joy, hope, and a restored 43 sense of purpose in life. In the scene that Murphy correlates with the loss gesture and sorrow, Carl is reminiscing as he looks through an old photobook of memories of him and Ellie. In every picture, Carl and Ellie are smiling, laughing, and enjoying life together. The composer (Giacchino), referring to the Leittonwechsel (“Married Life”) leitmotif, explains, “Even though she [Ellie] passes away, she needs to stay with Carl through the rest of the film, and the way we do that is through her theme.”34 The composer is implying that, instead of acting primarily as a sadness/loss gesture, the Leittonwechsel theme acts as a leitmotivic reminder that Ellie is always with Carl. In the composer’s view, the Leittonwechsel is not a loss gesture but is in fact a harmonic signification that Ellie will never leave Carl. This is substantiated by the visual stimuli as well: Carl actually ends up smiling with gratitude and tears of joy when we hear the Leittonwechsel undulating in this moment. He is not focused on the loss, but the sweet appreciation of memories and vicarious joy of viewing photos of him and his bride enjoying life together. This is an emotionally complex process of initial grief, followed by a tender recollection of happy memories, and ultimately a nostalgic healing that acts as a backdoor to joy. In “The Analysis and Classification of Music-Induced States of Sadness,” Herdson et. al. describe an ironic “comforting sadness” as including “feelings of comfort, tenderness, and peacefulness.”35 Nostalgia can be experienced as a bittersweet joy of reminiscing and finding “comforting sorrow” or “sweet sorrow” in this process of wistful remembrance.36 If anything, it might make more sense to call the Leittonwechsel a nostalgia-gesture here, or perhaps an empathy-gesture. This would also account for the paradoxical nature of emotions that are stirred 34 Douglas Hyde, “CNN: ‘Up’ composer, Michael Giacchino’s big year,” YouTube video, 0:51, March 2, 2010, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5HvU_tpIKs. 35 Herdson et. al., “The Analysis and Classification of Music-Induced States of Sadness,” 102. 36 Ibid. 44 through the associativity of the Leittonwechsel in film music. This Leittonwechsel theme is associated with deep love and nostalgia in this scene, even more so than loss or sadness. To support this point, note how the scene ends with a glimmer of restored wonder as Carl reads Ellie’s final note to him: “Thanks for the adventure. Now go have a new one! -Love, Ellie.” The sentimental Leittonwechsel recurs at the climax of the film, during “The Ellie Badge” scene. The animation “camera” zooms out, and we continue hearing the Leittonwechsel as the scene reveals their old house miraculously sitting on top of Paradise Falls, precisely where Ellie had dreamt of moving it (the last time we saw this house in the film was when Carl was required to release his attachment to it as he watched it disappear into the clouds, also accompanied by the Leittonwechsel). During this final scene, the Leittonwechsel assists us in marveling at the beautiful dramatic irony of the house ending up in Paradise Falls while Carl is unaware, but sitting with perfect contentment and newfound happiness. It seems miraculous that the house landed there safely, beckoning the viewer to question what this might represent. Does it signify the eternality of love between Carl and Ellie, embodied by the house’s resilience and by its ability to withstand being destroyed or lost? The Leittonwechsel perhaps symbolizes an eternal, unbreakable love that can even outlast death itself. This is represented by the seemingly eternal loop between the I and iii in the repetitive Leittonwechsel undulation. This metaphor is also implied by the cinematographic choice to slowly zoom out, further and further from the house, not dissimilar to the way an album fades out and represents the possibility of a song that never truly ceases. The Leittonwechsel theme indeed represents Carl and Ellie’s “song,” and it successfully embodies their undying love. We have explored thus far how Michael Giacchino relies on the undulating L-major theme to capture Carl’s deep love for his wife, renewed wonder, belief, and sweet nostalgia as he 45 rehearses their memories of love, romance, and adventure. Another instance of the Leittonwechsel’s associative versatility occurs when Carl suddenly realizes he has found “Paradise.” The clouds dissipate and the Leittonwechsel transformation accompanies the look of wonderment on his face and, for the listener, induces the feelings of awe and wonder that Carl is apparently experiencing. The Leittonwechsel can be understood as a physical (sound) manifestation (or representation) of wonderment that then aligns the listener’s emotions onto the same emotions that the character in the film is supposed to be experiencing. Since Carl is not actually hearing the underscored (non-diegetic) music, it can be deduced that our minds are misattributing the pleasure that we feel from the music and mapping it (superimposing it) onto the emotions of the animated character on the film. A similar phenomenon occurs in David Huron’s theory of “misattribution” that occurs in our minds during the “prediction effect,” his reframing of the “exposure effect,” which essentially states that the more we are exposed to something, the more we will prefer it.37 He posits that, when our brain processes the successful prediction of a musical event, we end up feeling positive emotions because we misattribute the feelings of pleasure onto the music itself—the stimulus—rather than orienting our pleasure toward the brain’s remarkable ability to predict something accurately—the thing that perhaps deserves the praise or celebration.38 In a similar way, I propose that (1) we subconsciously misattribute our associative emotional reactions to the Leittonwechsel (rather than our brains), then (2) superimpose these feelings onto the character’s psychological state or onto the emotional landscape of the contextual scene in the movie, and (3) finally, we “experience” these superimposed feelings that we placed upon the actors and “mirror” them back onto ourselves, 37 David Huron, Sweet Anticipation: Music and the Psychology of Expectation. (Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press, 2006) 131. 38 Ibid., 138. 46 creating a simulation in which we are mimetically, vicariously feeling parallel emotions with the actors or visual cues.39 Some philosophical frameworks hold that the Leittonwechsel never had the intrinsic ability to induce this or to start this chain of events. They claim that it was our initial emotional reaction to the combination of both the visual stimulus and the association that we perceived coming from the Leittonwechsel. The simulation I described represents just one model for explaining how we experience emotions through music in film while accounting for the philosophical stance that “only sentient creatures can express emotions.”40 Regardless of the harmony’s ability to induce emotion, we at least know that a human’s reaction to the music creates genuine emotions or feeling-states. This brings up another philosophical debate: The ‘emotivists’ believe genuine emotions can be experienced through music while the ‘cognitivists’ believe that music-induced emotions are not genuine because of their lack of real-life consequences.41 I propose that emotional-musical analyses of film scores can side more with the ‘emotivist’ camp, since film music is contextualized with real actors (or voices) on screen, or various visual referents that embody the emotions that are expressed or induced by the music. Music in film has an even greater potential for creating ‘real’ emotions in listeners (inducing deeply felt emotions), because the visual scenes and characters amplify one’s experience of “vicarious” emotions, just as we react with empathy and feelings of nostalgia that align with Carl’s emotional processes in Up. Although some scholars (cognitivists) have argued that these emotions are “non-genuine,” I contend that film music (and music in general) can induce genuine emotions. One does not need a real-life consequence to experience real sadness 39 Vittorio Gallese and Michele Guerra, The Empathic Screen: Cinema and Neuroscience (Oxford: Oxford University Press 2019). 40 Stephen Davies, 2010, Handbook of Music and Emotion: Theory, Research, Applications, Eds. Juslin & Sloboda, 29. 41 Herdson et. al., “The Analysis and Classification of Music-Induced States of Sadness,” 99. 47 or joy (or myriad other emotions). One’s imagination can just as easily experience or induce real emotions, just as one can dream of crying over something sorrowful and feel genuine sadness upon waking. Consider also the fact that one can experience general moods (or mood swings) without pinpointing any specific reason behind the induction of these flippant moods (there are often no pressing ecological consequences connected to them). To close this analysis of Up, let us return to Herdson, Eerola, and Javadi’s recent article (2022), “Analysis and Classification of Music-Induced States of Sadness.” I have shown how Giacchino uses the Leittonwechsel as a musical signification that points to the filmic ‘referent’ of Ellie’s eternal place in Carl’s spirit (heart). However, though I have supported this with the composer’s own words, with the specific contextual physical gestures (smiles) of the characters, and other corroborating examples of the Leittonwechsel’s positive associations throughout the film, it is pertinent to reinterpret Murphy’s loss gesture with another piece of evidence. Herdson et. al. define various states of sadness and contend that scholarship surrounding sad emotions has displayed reductionistic descriptions of sorrow. They define “Sweet Sorrow” as being “associated with positively psychological outcomes,…self-reflection, and adaptive coping mechanisms.”42 This state of “sweet sorrow” is developed in tandem with the Leittonwechsel’s swinging oscillation, which accompanies Carl’s self-reflective coping mechanism of reminiscence as he leafs through the photobook of memories with Ellie. In the same way that Herdson et. al. argue that nuances of sad states are often overgeneralized, I would argue that Murphy’s claim about the Leittonwechsel being most consistently a sadness-inducing loss gesture is reductionistic. Even in the scenes that elicit a certain amount of sadness or loss, the music is often doing the opposite emotionally: The Leittonwechsel is the balm of healing, the 42 Herdson et. al., “The Analysis and Classification of Music-Induced States of Sadness,” 102. 48 comforting empathy, the musical medicine that sooths the soul with its sweet sorrow marked by a lulling undulation from major I to minor iii. Andrew Powell (2018) confirms that the Leittonwechsel is more nuanced in its emotional expressiveness, and describes its associativity as a “Love-Loss” duality.43 In his discussion of Elfman’s Edward Scissorhands score, Powell ends up calling the Leittonwechsel the “Love” theme, supported by the overarching narrative and emotional landscape that traces Edward’s efflorescing love for Kim and Kim’s awakened love for Edward at the close of the film (I will analyze this cue in depth later on). Additionally, Powell emphasizes Elfman’s use of this Love- Loss duality with the Leittonwechsel in Elfman’s score to Frankenweenie, as the L-major theme depicts Victor Frankenstein’s affection and love for his dog, Sparky. Similar to these examples by Elfman and Giacchino, the following analysis of John Debney’s score to Elf exemplifies the Leittonwechsel’s strong association with empathy, love, and belief. 43 Powell, 2018, “A Composite Theory of Transformations and Narrativity for the Music of Danny Elfman in the Films of Tim Burton,” PhD diss., (University of Kansas), 133. 49 CHAPTER III: THE LEITTONWECHSEL’S CONNECTION TO CHRISTMAS MAGIC 1. Analysis of Elf: “You Sit on a Throne of Leittonwechsels” In Figure 12 below, I have transcribed the main theme from the Christmas hit, Elf (2003), directed by Jon Favreau and composed by John Debney. The illustration (Figure 12) depicts the L-major associative harmonic theme when it first occurs, in the Main Title. Notice, in the first two measures, how the melodic theme ascends by a perfect fifth (Db—Ab), descends by a minor-sixth (with the passing tone), and reascends to the Ab (C—Ab) while traversing the Leittonwechsel transformation (Db+ to F-). It is also significant to note the parsimonious, “maximally smooth” voice-leading in the bass line (the F and Ab remain while the Db descends by a half-step). This bass line reinforces the melody’s parallel motion down to C as well. In Richard Cohn’s neo-Riemannian article, “Maximally Smooth Cycles, Hexatonic Systems, and the Analysis of Late-Romantic Triadic Progressions,” he explicates that “all transitions between adjacent chords are maximally smooth” if “only one voice moves, and that motion is by semitone.”44 This symmetrical difference—a member of [0,1]—is especially evident in Debney’s Leittonwechsel theme, since both the melody and bass line exemplify the parsimonious voice leading of a descending half-step, as in Figure 13 below. In the final chapter of this thesis, I will develop a homology that draws a metaphorical connection between the Leittonwechsel’s maximally-smooth voice leading and the nature of its most consistent emotional associations. 44 Richard Cohn, “Maximally Smooth Cycles, Hexatonic Systems, and the Analysis of Late-Romantic Triadic Progressions,” Music Analysis 15, 1 (1996): 9. 50 Figure 13: Debney’s Elf L-major Leitharmonie After invoking Peter Kivy’s “physiognomy of musical expression,” concepts of contour theory, mimetic theory, and Zbikowski’s cross-domain mapping of image schemata (especially ‘verticality’), Scott Murphy considers the homological interpretation that the Leittonwechsel’s voice-leading motion of a descending semitone might represent the descending contour of sadness that can be physically felt or shaped by a sorrowful frown on the human face.45 However, my research on the Leittonwechsel’s consistent association with Christmas magic and belief does not find congruence with this contour-theory homology of sadness symbolized by descent. Ultimately, Murphy agrees that this homology falls short and points out that the Leittonwechsel does not always contain descending gestures in its voice-leading motion (the melodic Do can leap up a seventh to Ti, for instance, or the two chords can be in root position and the bass can rise by a major third). He therefore concedes that “the expressiveness of musical 45 Murphy, “Scoring Loss,” 310. 51 utterances that are defined solely in pitch-class space…cannot be satisfactorily explained by using contour theory.”46 To exemplify his point, Debney’s Elf theme ascends by a fifth, descends by a fifth, reaches down to a half-step, and then ascends even higher (up a minor-sixth): A contrasting homology or contour metaphor at play here that connects with the narrative state of Christmas belief is that the largest interval in the theme—a rising sixth—might suggest a cross- domain mapped ‘feeling’ of spatial ascent, which could mimetically induce the joyful feeling or image of the rising nature of a smile.47 Or, borrowing from a more abstract domain, it could connote the ‘rising’ nature of Christmas spirit, wonder, and childlike belief in magic. I am not contending that Debney’s use of the Leittonwechsel somehow embodies this sense of ascending joy. Additionally, even if the ascending contour plays a role in inducing joy, it does not necessarily explain why the Leittonwechsel harmony induces positively-valenced emotions. Regardless of our inability to pinpoint exactly how the Christmas magic emanates from the Leittonwechsel’s musical structure (I will save this for Chapter VII), it is important now to simply note that giving the Leittonwechsel a name like “loss gesture” does not leave room for the harmony’s other consistent and numerous associations in film, such as Christmas magic, wonder, and nostalgic joy. It will be beneficial to summarize some aspects of the narrative in Elf so that the emotional association with this L-major theme can be analyzed in later cues. The main character, Buddy the Elf, undergoes intense psychological stress as he begins to realize that he, as a human, does not fit in at the North Pole. He starts feeling like an outsider, illegitimate, alone, and completely disconnected from his elf family. He finds out that he was adopted, leaves his elf 46 Murphy, “Scoring Loss,” 311. 47 Zbikowski, “Conceptualizing Music: Cognitive Structure, Theory, and Analysis,” (NY: Oxford University Press, 2002), 68. 52 community, and seeks to reunite with his biological father, a children’s book editor, in New York City. He soon finds out the devastating reality that his father is not interested in reuniting and worse yet, that his father does not believe in Santa Claus. Debney’s associative Leittonwechsel theme appears in various cues and in different tempos throughout the film, such as when the camera zooms in on Buddy during his long trek through the mountains on his way to New York City. However, when it accompanies this joyful trek, the Leittonwechsel theme is truncated and orchestrated less prominently (we encounter leitmotivic thematic truncation in Elfman’s Edward Scissorhands and Silvestri’s Polar Express as well). Later in the film, during one of the most emotive presentations of the L-major theme, we audibly hear Buddy’s internal voice as he is writing a heart-wrenching letter to his biological father: “I’ve ruined your life…I don’t belong here, I don’t belong anywhere. I’ll never forget you. Love, Buddy.” In this case, the theme is set to a much slower tempo and is orchestrated much more poignantly, with an intimate clarinet solo accompanied by soft, high-register violins and a gentle solo piano texture (the non-Leittonwechsel features). Bribitzer-Stull discusses how leitmotivic “change of texture” appears in opera, and also “remains a common technique for modifying thematic association in film music.”48 He explains how change of texture “is most often used to show a change in character,” which is exemplified here when both the protagonist and his father experience a notable psychological character development.49 Under the L-major theme’s change of texture, Buddy, who previously demonstrated exuberant optimism through the entire film, finally gives in to hopelessness, while Buddy’s father, a man who seemed incapable of empathy, finally begins developing a softness of heart toward his eccentric son. For this 48 Bribitzer-Stull, Understanding the Leitmotif, 293. 49 Ibid. 53 change of texture, the associative L-major progression is still paired with the identical leitmotivic melody from the Main Title (Buddy’s Theme), transposed to G-major. The triadic voice leading is still maximally smooth, evident in the bass line. The cue’s Roman numeral analysis—I— iii6/4—IV—V6/4—V5/3—demonstrates how the Leittonwechsel transformation works smoothly within the phrase’s functional tonal progression.50 During the cues with the L-major associative theme, Debney usually avoids more chromatic neo-Riemannian progressions, whereas Elfman and Silvestri gravitate toward them (the SLIDE transformation, , and operations are used as linking devices in Edward Scissorhands and Polar Express).51 Right as Buddy says, “I’ll never forget you,” the scene cuts to Buddy’s father reading over the letter with a look of profound sorrow and regret. The Leittonwechsel here is highly effective in producing the reaction of empathy (Elfman’s L-major theme also depicts strong empathy in Edward Scissorhands). Debney’s L-major theme also portrays Walter’s painful epiphany: the feeling that he should have chosen selfless love, to welcome Buddy into his family instead of rejecting his own son. This moment may seem to align with Murphy’s “loss gesture” theory and terminology. However, I maintain that the Leittonwechsel is not overarchingly an associative “loss gesture,” but is chameleon-like in its ability to match the various hues of the characters’ shifting emotions and unfolding drama on the screen. Yet another nuanced angle here is that, although the characters are experiencing temporary loss and sadness, the viewer may be experiencing a different emotion altogether, such as empathy or nostalgia, or hope that Walter and Buddy will reconcile. In fact, Herdson et. al. suggest “that sad music does not elicit basic emotions, such as sadness, but creates feelings of 50 This is different than the Leittonwechsel’s role as an absolute progression, which simply oscillates back and forth. 51 One notable exception in Elf is at the final scene: when Santa flies over Central Park, Debney presents the L- major theme first in C+, followed by a hexatonic LP-link, resulting in the second iteration of L-major theme in E+. 54 ‘being moved’…and ‘aesthetic awe.’”52 To address an even more complex side of interpreting this filmic moment of sadness, Herdson et. al. reveal the fact that “there currently lacks a comprehensive understanding of why sadness associated with music can attenuate both positive and negative moods.”53 I contend that the reason we lack a comprehensive understanding in this area is because music has the unique ability to fluctuate in its associativity and metaphorical meaning depending on variables such as enculturation, individual mood, memories, proclivity to visual imagery, or individual acquisition of musical schemata. In the same way, fluctuating film scenes exhibit the ability to influence and activate any number of emotional reactions from a wide spectrum, even when the same leitharmonic progression is employed (such as the versatile Leittonwechsel). With this in mind, it might be better to regard music that has a particular flavor for inducing sadness as “sentimental” music, not “sad” music. Additionally, consider a situation where one listens to Murphy’s “loss gesture” and feels ecstatic joy and magical wonder (which is indeed what happens consistently in each of the Christmas and adventure film examples in this study). This listener’s reaction may not have even touched upon the more positively-valenced “sad” emotions such as sublime sorrow.54 Instead, they were being more influenced by wonder- inducing visual stimuli, awe-inspiring narrative developments and other positive associations with Christmas magic, love, or childlike belief. 52 Herdson et. al., “The Analysis and Classification of Music-Induced States of Sadness,” 100. 53 Ibid. 54 Herdson et. al. (2022) reveal that sublime sorrow includes experiencing emotions of transcendence, wonder, satisfaction, and joy (“The Analysis and Classification of Music-Induced States of Sadness,” 102). 55 2. The Congruence-Associationist Model: The Leittonwechsel Elicits Love and Empathy In Theorizing the Moving Image, Noël Carroll explains how film music “is a highly expressive symbol system” and provides “more direct access to the emotive realm than any other symbol system.”55 Just as the associative Leittonwechsel theme in Elf evokes deep empathy toward Buddy’s feelings of rejection and alienation, Carroll reveals how the “music tells us something, of an emotive significance, about what a scene is about; the music supplies us with…a description…of the emotive properties the film attaches to the referents of the scene.”56 One might build upon Carroll’s theory to interpret the emotive properties as being attached to the L-major progression itself. In “Tonal Design and Narrative in Film Music: Bernard Herrmann’s A Portrait of Hitch and The Trouble with Harry,” David Neumeyer discusses the validity of Gorbman’s “thematic score” film theory, especially in scores that make use of associative themes: [W]hen musical pertinence coincides with cinematic pertinence, the image is often marked as significant. Thus, it is not just the image that marks music as significant, but also the musical theme that marks visual objects as especially significant.57 Both Carroll and Neumeyer underscore the way in which a theme (or leitmotif) can viscerally draw out the emotional reaction that the director wishes to associate with the actions (or visual referents) on the screen. This sonic-visual phenomenon is just as powerful and convincing with the employment of leitharmonies (or associative harmonic themes), such as the Leittonwechsel. In the next scene, the Leittonwechsel theme’s emotive association is seamlessly transformed from empathy and sorrow into depth of love and acceptance when the father repents 55 Noël Carroll, Theorizing the Moving Image (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996), 142. 56 Ibid. 57 David Neumeyer, “Tonal Design and Narrative in Film Music: Bernard Herrmann’s A Portrait of Hitch and The Trouble with Harry,” Indiana Theory Review, 19 (Spring/Fall 1998): 100. 56 and reunites with Buddy. Walter says to his son, “Buddy…I didn’t mean anything I said back there. Not a word…I don’t want you to leave. You’re my son and I love you.” To augment the importance of the first time the father says “I love you” to his son, Debney turns to the leitharmonic L-major progression and theme. An interesting connection between Elf and Edward Scissorhands is that Danny Elfman also uses his leitharmonic Leittonwechsel to accompany the very first (and only) time Kim says, “I love you” to Edward. Additionally, in Elf, the associative L-major leitharmonie returns in full force when the father, previously one of the most callous characters, experiences childlike belief in Santa Claus. In this case, the leitmotivic, chameleonic Leittonwechsel is associated with a character’s psychological transformation from selfishness and cynicism to childlike joy, selfless love, and magical wonder. The L-major leitmotif serves various functions in the film’s narrative, and Debney uses its associative, emotive versatility to trace the father’s complex psychological processes: the Leittonwechsel theme contextualizes his severe remorse and evolving empathy, his softened heart, his declaration of love for Buddy and his restoration of childlike innocence and belief (when he sees Santa). According to the congruence-associationist model developed by Marshall and Cohen (1988), when we are “watching a movie, our attention will be drawn to the cross-modal congruence between the music and the moving image.”58 When we see Buddy’s father with his hands woefully pressing against his shameful face during the L-major theme, we experience this cross-modal phenomenon, where the filmmaker intentionally “directs the eye to visual parts that are structurally congruent with the music.”59 In his dissertation, A Perspective Theory of Music 58 Björn Vickhoff, “A Perspective Theory of Music Perception and Emotion,” (PhD diss., University of Gothenburg, Sweden, 2008), 176. 59 Ibid., 179. 57 Perception and Emotion, Björn Vickhoff elaborates on this congruence-associationist (c-a m) model: When we hear a salient sound, the eyes will search for the cause of the sound. Attention is brought to the source. We need to select the right object out of a spectrum of objects on the scene. For this reason sounds must create expectancies of what we are about to see. And…the eye is looking for synchronization between the sound and the object.60 In relation to Vickhoff’s description of the congruence-associationist model, the L-major progression consistently displays its ability to assist the viewers in selecting the right objects in the scene, and subsequently, to assist the viewers in feeling what the characters are feeling. In Understanding the Leitmotif, Matthew Bribitzer-Stull corroborates this particular feature of associative themes, as he accentuates the “multiplicity of connections between harmonic progressions and the textual, programmatic, visual, narrative, and dramatic components of the works in which they appear.”61 In the case of Elf, it is clear that the Leittonwechsel can effectively serve as an absolute progression even in a more docile diatonic context. Furthermore, Frank Lehman explains how absolute progressions are not always chromatic, and that “diatonic progressions can be used to this effect as well.”62 An absolute progression, which appear more clearly in the following Polar Express analysis, is the repetitious juxtaposition of two triads (major or minor) that acquires an associative characteristic in and of itself (typically without any connection to a larger tonal or harmonic progression). 60 Vickhoff, “A Perspective Theory of Music Perception and Emotion,” 179. 61 Bribitzer-Stull, Understanding the Leitmotif, 152. 62 Lehman, Hollywood Harmony, 76. 58 3. Analysis of the Belief- and Wonder-Inducing Leittonwechsel in Polar Express Only one year after Elf, the groundbreaking animated Christmas movie Polar Express was released (2004). I have selected this film score by Alan Silvestri for comparison because (1) Silvestri’s chromatic triadicism is particularly apt for applying neo-Riemannian chromatic- harmonic analysis to the rich emotional development of characters and plot (consider his major tritone progression that evokes time travel in Back to the Future); (2) He likewise incorporates the nostalgic L-major associative theme to conjure the wonder of Christmas magic and childlike belief; and (3) His L-major associative melody (Do-Sol-Ti-Sol) is virtually identical to the melody used in the L-major leitmotif from Debney’s Elf. The main difference is that Silvestri incorporates what Frank Lehman refers to as “chordal oscillation,” wherein the two triads derived from the Leittonwechsel transformation “swing back and forth.”63 Polar Express, directed by Robert Zemeckis and composed by Alan Silvestri, is an animated Christmas adventure film about a boy who is battling an internal, overwhelming temptation of disbelief in the magic of Christmas and Santa Claus. The narrative traces this boy’s psychological journey from doubt and disappointment to the restoration of belief and wonder. Silvestri captures this boy’s inspiring transformation with the same associative Leittonwechsel progression that Debney used in Elf, and more astoundingly, with the same melody. The eight- bar phrase with the Believe Theme is transcribed in Figure 14 below. 63 Lehman, Hollywood Harmony, 76. 59 Figure 14: L-major Believe Theme in Silvestri’s Polar Express Though the first two measures in Figure 14 reveal the same melody as Debney’s Christmas Leittonwechsel in Elf, one of the primary differences is the immediate repetition of the two- measure L-major transformation. Scott Murphy claims that the repetition (or undulation) of a harmonic progression creates an even stronger association by “pointing toward itself,” such that the harmonic theme may even obtain status as a filmic character in and of itself: The immediate juxtaposition of two major or minor triads can fit this bill well, particularly when the juxtaposition…avoids participating in a larger harmonic trajectory but instead self- encapsulates somehow, often through undulation, pointing toward itself, creating what the early twentieth-century music theorist Ernst Kurth called an “absolute progression.” Like distinctive timbres, the distinctive triadic successions that pervade this style of music can serve as a medium for communication even more expeditious than an associative theme. As musicologist Carl Dahlhaus has observed…, ‘unusual progressions may even acquire a characteristic identity comparable to that of a Leitmotiv.’”64 64 Murphy, “Transformational Theory and the Analysis of Film Music,” 484. 60 The back-to-back repetition of the L-major progression also allows for an extension of the leitmotivic melody that is attached to this associative harmonic theme. The phenomenon of this thematic Leittonwechsel oscillation that points to itself can be understood and illuminated in the context of Huron's theory of surprise as well as the “prediction effect.”65 The more we hear this thematic chordal oscillation (swinging back and forth between I and iii), the more we feel a sense of (repetitive) connection and familiarity with not only the theme, but also with the associated cue (scene) and its characters or events. Silvestri will use this familiarity (via prediction) later on when he captures our attention through a surprise harmonic shift in the context of this theme. In other words, the surprise chromatic modulation that comes in the climax of the film would not carry as much dramatic weight if we had not been previously exposed (conditioned repetitively) in a way that strategically set us up to continuously expect the same progression (I-iii-I-iii-I) to be presented in the same way. Although Silvestri uses virtually the same L-major melody as Debney, he takes a different harmonic approach for the remainder of his “Believe Theme.” As noted in the transcription (Figure 14), the neo-Riemannian transformation of A-minor to F#-major represents a PR-generated transformation, (mm. 39-41). These PR- or RP-generated transformations derive from the octatonic cycle, as represented in the diagram (Figure 15) below.66 65 Huron, Sweet Anticipation, 131. 66 Laura Mason, “Essential Neo-Riemannian Theory for Today's Musician,” (Master's Thesis, University of Tennessee, 2013), 45. 61 Figure 15: Octatonic Cycle (Laura Mason) 4. Transformations as Linking Devices Between Leittonwechsels Other PR-generated transformations occur alongside L-major associative harmonic themes in Elfman’s scores as well (Sommersby and Edward Scissorhands), usually serving as links to L- major transformations in new keys. In Silvestri’s score for Polar Express, the ternary- generated transformation and its inverse are not used as links. However, Silvestri relies on the binary-generator as a linking device between the Leittonwechsel associative themes. For instance, in this particular cue, a strong half-cadence (V) chord—F#+—resolves unexpectedly to the L-major theme in D-major (F#+ to D+ is a transformation). Using the transformation as a link allows Silvestri to create new key areas that illuminate an emotional shift, character development, or other critical aspects in the narrative. For instance, the aforementioned transition to a new iteration (and key area) of the Leittonwechsel theme occurs when Santa Claus turns to one of the boys (Billy) who struggled with depression and unbelief through the entire film. The link to the new key area for the L-major theme (D+) symbolizes and parallels two important aspects here: (1) The boy has a revelation that Santa Claus is real and acquires belief (this magical belief is heightened by the associative Leittonwechsel transformation), and (2) The return of the benevolent Leittonwechsel leitmotif reveals that doubting Billy will not be punished for his lack of belief. It is also important to note here that the audience (viewers/listeners) is awakened through a chromatic-mediant modulation that shocks the system into hearing the Leittonwechsel theme 62 from a different harmonic direction and thus from a new perspective. Huron discusses the nature of these transformations and explains how “chromatic mediant chords...have a low probability of occurrence and so tend to evoke a sense of surprise, novelty, or unusualness.”67 He also reveals that “major chromatic chords tend to sound more distinctly ‘major,’ and so are somehow ‘brighter’ or more ‘positive’ than major chords within the key.”68 For these two reasons—the sense of surprise as well as the bright, positive connotations—it is clear how Silvestri’s modulation to the chromatic mediant (F#-major to D-major) indeed evokes a level of musical surprise that might parallel Billy’s surprise upon realizing Santa Claus exists. Further building on Huron’s theory, this harmonic choice also might heighten the sense of brightness and positivity that accrued when we heard the magical ringing of the bells shortly before this transformation, signifying the restoration of childlike belief for multiple characters in this climactic cue. This segment of analysis demonstrates how the emotions of Christmas magic, belief, and wonder associated with the Leittonwechsel are enhanced by other harmonic gestures of surprise that contextually surround this leitharmonie. In Polar Express, the acts as a link to multiple Leittonw