King Richard (soundtrack)

Last updated

King Richard (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
King Richard (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack).jpg
Film score by
Kris Bowers
ReleasedNovember 12, 2021
Recorded2021
StudioEastwood Scoring Stage, Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank, California
Genre Film score
Length44:20
Label WaterTower Music
Producer Kris Bowers
Kris Bowers chronology
Respect
(2021)		King Richard
(2021)		 Bridgerton (season two)
(2022)

King Richard (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack to the 2021 film of the same name directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green and starred Will Smith. The film's original score composed by Kris Bowers, released on November 12, 2021 by WaterTower Music, with 18 tracks from the score and an original song "Be Alive" performed by Beyoncé. [1] It was also released as a single on the same date. [2] The song earned Beyoncé, her first Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song at the 94th edition of the ceremony held in March 2022, along with numerous accolades. [3] [4]

Contents

Development

For the film's score, Bowers used a prepared piano which was critical to emphasize familial warmth as well as driving it as a percussive vehicle to understand the sport of tennis, as well as how Serena and Venus changed the game. He intended to limit the sound palette in a somewhat literal way with strings and having felt on them, and a prepared piano was used into the score. He used putty, nails, ping-pong balls, clothespins, coins and pieces of paper to enhance the percussive sounds. [5] [6] Even though it diluted the string vibration, the sound resonated with piercing, unique power, which he admitted "In the beginning of the tennis match [in the film], we strip everything down just to prepared piano, so that it feels incredibly tense. And I wanted to create this rhythmic drive, so that the ball hitting felt like it was part of the music and the hits were almost punctuating parts of the score." [7]

The score was recorded during the COVID-19 pandemic, instead of supervising the scoring process at his home studio, Bowers instead preferred to record the picture to big screen, which intended to assemble a large orchestra at Eastwood Scoring Stage in Warner Bros. Studios. [6] Bowers wanted to steer clear of the motifs and themes heard in sporting films, to make the score unique as the film was put together in certain rhythm of mind. Apart from Green's direction, the film's editor Pamela Martin edited the matches to feel what the arc of the game was, resulting the film to be felt innovative. Rhythmically, he wanted the score to feel unpredictable as the game, hence he used several ambient and percussive sounds to immerse the viewers in the climax scenes. [8]

Richard's theme was the first of the cues Bowers scored for, which was a five-note theme. Explaining about the theme, Bowers said "I thought about a chord that could encompass both of those things. That incessant note starts on the first chord and it’s already a dissonance; it’s already a note that doesn’t really fit in that chord but still has a warmth to it." [6] He also admitted that there is a melody in that theme which felt interesting to do variations for all of the themes, during the competition scenes, and serves as an inspiration for Venus' cue, which started soft and timid and later grows and swells with the big orchestral score accompanies it. [9]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Kris Bowers, except where noted

No.TitleWriter(s)ArtistLength
1."Family Dinner"  2:00
2."The Plan"  3:12
3."Unexpected"  2:12
4."Hitting"  0:41
5."Practice"  2:18
6."First Match"  1:44
7."Carbon Mesa"  2:58
8."That's Our Job"  2:16
9."Fired"  1:18
10."So You Wanna Play?"  1:00
11."Court Day"  1:43
12."Stafford"  3:52
13."Both Girls"  2:22
14."Venus vs. Vicario"  2:30
15."First Set"  3:18
16."Vicario"  2:02
17."Match"  2:05
18."Family"  3:09
19."Be Alive"
Beyoncé3:40
Total length:44:20

Reception

Filmtracks.com wrote "Bowers achieves his purpose for King Richard and shows significant promise, but the work doesn't convince emotionally and stops well short of standing alongside the more inspirational sports scores of history." [10] Monica Castillo of TheWrap wrote "Composer Kris Bowers’ score is similarly rich and glowing, swelling the music just as Richard and the girls get their hard-won victories and touching moments." [11] Chris Tilly of IGN wrote "Kris Bowers’ music pays homage to Jerry Goldsmith’s Rocky score". [12]

Accolades

AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryRecipient(s)ResultRef.
Academy Awards March 27, 2022 Best Original Song DIXSON and Beyoncé Knowles-Carter for "Be Alive"Nominated [13]
Black Reel Awards February 27, 2022 Outstanding Original Song "Be Alive" (Beyoncé and DIXSON)Nominated [14]
Critics' Choice Movie Awards March 13, 2022 Best Song "Be Alive"Nominated [15]
Gold Derby Film Awards February 27, 2022Best Original Song"Be Alive" (Beyoncé and DIXSON)Nominated [16]
Golden Globe Awards January 9, 2022 Best Original Song "Be Alive" (Beyoncé and DIXSON)Nominated [17]
Hollywood Critics Association Awards February 28, 2022 [18] Best Original Song"Be Alive" (Beyoncé and DIXSON)Won [19]
Hollywood Music in Media Awards November 17, 2021 Best Original Score in a Feature Film Kris Bowers Nominated [20] [21]
Best Original Song in a Feature Film "Be Alive" (Beyoncé and DIXSON)Nominated
Houston Film Critics Society February 19, 2022 Best Picture King RichardNominated [22]
Best Actor Will Smith Nominated
Best Supporting Actress Aunjanue Ellis Nominated
NAACP Image Awards February 26, 2022 Outstanding Soul/R&B Song"Be Alive" (Beyoncé and DIXSON)Nominated [23]
Satellite Awards April 2, 2022 Best Original Song "Be Alive" (Beyoncé and DIXSON)Nominated [24]

Credits

Album credits
Performer credits

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Williams</span> American composer and conductor (born 1932)

John Towner Williams is an American composer and conductor. In a career that has spanned seven decades, he has composed some of the most popular, recognizable and critically acclaimed film scores in cinema history. Williams has won 25 Grammy Awards, five Academy Awards, seven British Academy Film Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards. With 53 Academy Award nominations, he is the second-most nominated person, after Walt Disney, and is the oldest Oscar nominee in any category, at 90 years old. His compositions are often considered the epitome of orchestral film music and he is considered among the greatest composers in the history of cinema. Williams is known for his collaborations with Steven Spielberg and George Lucas, and has worked with such diverse directors as Alfred Hitchcock, Brian De Palma, Robert Altman, Chris Columbus, Oliver Stone, Richard Donner, Irvin Kershner, Sydney Pollack, Mark Rydell, Mark Robson, Jean-Jacques Annaud, and J. J. Abrams. He has a very distinct sound that mixes romanticism, impressionism and atonal music with complex orchestration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hans Zimmer</span> German film composer (born 1957)

Hans Florian Zimmer is a German film score composer and music producer. He has won two Oscars and four Grammys, and has been nominated for three Emmys and a Tony. Zimmer was also named on the list of Top 100 Living Geniuses, published by The Daily Telegraph in 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jerry Goldsmith</span> American film composer (1929–2004)

Jerrald King Goldsmith was an American composer known for his work in film and television scoring. He composed scores for five films in the Star Trek franchise and three in the Rambo franchise, as well as for films including Logan's Run, Planet of the Apes, Tora! Tora! Tora!, Patton, Papillon, Chinatown, The Omen, Alien, Poltergeist, The Secret of NIMH, Medicine Man, Gremlins, Hoosiers, Total Recall, Basic Instinct, Air Force One, L.A. Confidential, Mulan, and The Mummy. He also composed the fanfares accompanying the production logos used by multiple major film studios, and music for the Disney attraction Soarin'.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patrick Doyle</span> Scottish film composer (born 1953)

Patrick Doyle is a Scottish composer and occasional actor best known for his film scores. During his 50-year career in film, television and theatre, he has composed the scores for over 60 feature films. A longtime collaborator of actor-director Kenneth Branagh, Doyle is known for his work on films such as Henry V, Sense and Sensibility, Hamlet, Carlito's Way, and Gosford Park, as well as Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Thor, Brave, Cinderella,Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile.

<i>How to Train Your Dragon</i> (soundtrack) 2010 soundtrack album by John Powell

How to Train Your Dragon: Music from the Motion Picture is a soundtrack album composed by John Powell for the film of the same name and released by Varèse Sarabande on March 23, 2010. The score earned Powell his first Academy Award nomination and his third BAFTA nomination, which he lost to The Social Network and The King's Speech, respectively. The score also won the International Film Music Critics Association 2011 Awards for Best Original Score for an Animated Feature and Film Score of the Year, and was nominated twice for Film Music Composition of the Year for the tracks "Forbidden Friendship" and "Test Drive". The soundtrack received wide acclaim from professional music critics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kris Bowers</span> American composer and pianist

Kristopher Bowers is an American composer and pianist. He has composed scores for films, including Green Book, King Richard, and television series, among them Bridgerton, Mrs. America, Dear White People, and When They See Us.

<i>King Richard</i> (film) 2021 sports drama film by Reinaldo Marcus Green

King Richard is a 2021 American biographical sports drama film directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green and written by Zach Baylin. The film stars Will Smith as Richard Williams, the father and coach of famed tennis players Venus and Serena Williams, with Aunjanue Ellis, Saniyya Sidney, Demi Singleton, Tony Goldwyn, and Jon Bernthal in supporting roles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Be Alive</span> 2021 single by Beyoncé

"Be Alive" is a song by American singer and songwriter Beyoncé. It was written and produced by Beyoncé and DIXSON for the 2021 biographical drama film King Richard. It was released on November 12, 2021, through Parkwood Entertainment.

<i>The Batman</i> (soundtrack) 2022 soundtrack album by Michael Giacchino

The Batman (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the film score to the film of the same name composed by Michael Giacchino. The soundtrack was released by WaterTower Music on February 25, 2022, a week ahead of the release of the film.

<i>The United States vs. Billie Holiday</i> (soundtrack) 2021 soundtrack album

The United States vs. Billie Holiday is the soundtrack album to the 2021 film of the same name, released on February 19, 2021 by Warner Records. The film is based on the life of singer Billie Holiday, and also from the book Chasing the Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs by Johann Hari. Directed by Lee Daniels, it features Andra Day performing the titular character. The soundtrack featured several compilation of songs composed and performed by Day. She also wrote the original song "Tigress & Tweed" and had co-produced the album with Salaam Remi, and Raphael Saadiq and Warren Felder. Lynn Fainchtein and Daniels were the music supervisors.

<i>Hidden Figures</i> (score) 2017 film score by Hans Zimmer, Pharrell Williams and Benjamin Wallfisch

Hidden Figures (Original Score) is the score album jointly composed by Hans Zimmer, Pharrell Williams and Benjamin Wallfisch for the 2016 American biographical drama film Hidden Figures. It was released on January 9, 2017, by Sony Masterworks. The score consists of gospel music blended with acoustic and electronic music, to provide computer-like textures. It additionally featured African-American female vocalists performing the background score, and had featured several musical artists, including Herbie Hancock to work on the score.

<i>The Shape of Water</i> (soundtrack) 2017 soundtrack album by Alexandre Desplat

The Shape of Water (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album to the Academy Award-winning film of the same name. It featured 26 tracks — most of the tracks were from the original score composed by Alexandre Desplat and some tracks are incorporated songs, being originated from the 1940s and 1960s as the film is set during the Cold War period. The film, directed by Guillermo del Toro, who also co-wrote the script with Vanessa Taylor, stars Sally Hawkins, Michael Shannon, Richard Jenkins, Doug Jones, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Octavia Spencer.

<i>Respect</i> (soundtrack) 2021 soundtrack albums

Respect: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack album to the 2021 American film Respect, released coinciding with the film's theatrical release on August 13, 2021, by Epic Records and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Music. Based on the life of American singer Aretha Franklin, the film directed by Liesl Tommy, featured singer-actor Jennifer Hudson portraying Franklin. Hudson performed most of the tracks in the album. The soundtrack featured covers of Franklin's songs, and an original song "Here I Am " witten by Hudson, Carole King, and Jamie Hartman and produced by will.i.am and Johnny Goldstein. It was released as a single on June 18, 2021, and had peaked at number 21 on the Billboard Adult R&B Songs chart. The soundtrack debuted at number 6 on Billboard Top Soundtracks chart. Respect: Original Motion Picture Score, the score album composed by Kris Bowers released on the same date as the film's soundtrack, by Milan Records.

<i>Nightmare Alley</i> (soundtrack) 2021 film score by Nathan Johnson

Nightmare Alley: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack album to the 2021 film of the same name directed by Guillermo del Toro. The film's music was initially set to be composed by Alexandre Desplat, but was replaced by Nathan Johnson, after Desplat exited the film due to scheduling conflicts. Johnson completed the film's score within six weeks, where the score was recorded at the Newman Scoring Stage in 20th Century Studios and was released by Hollywood Records digitally on December 17, 2021 and a physical release on December 31, 2021.

<i>Green Book</i> (soundtrack) 2018 soundtrack album by Kris Bowers

Green Book (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album to the 2018 film of the same name, released digitally on November 16, 2018, and via CD on November 30, by Milan Records. For the film's soundtrack, director Peter Farrelly incorporated an original score by composer Kris Bowers and one of Don Shirley's own recordings. The soundtrack also includes rarities from 1950s and 1960s American music recommended to him by fellow singer Robert Plant. According to the label, it was streamed approximately 10,000 times per day during January 2019. This rate doubled the next month as the album surpassed one million streams worldwide and became the highest-streamed jazz soundtrack in Milan's history.

<i>How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World</i> (soundtrack) 2019 film score by John Powell

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is the score album to the 2019 film How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, the sequel to How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014) and the third and final installment in the How to Train Your Dragon trilogy. Recurring DreamWorks composer John Powell who scored for the previous two instalments in the franchise, returned to the third film. The album features an original song "Together From Afar" performed by Jónsi, released as a single on January 31, 2019. The album was released on February 1, by Back Lot Music and received positive critical response from music critics.

<i>The Imitation Game</i> (soundtrack) 2014 film score by Alexandre Desplat

The Imitation Game (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the score album to the 2014 film of the same name. The film is scored by Alexandre Desplat who replaced the original composer Clint Mansell before the film's production commenced. The London Symphony Orchestra performed the original score that featured various instruments such as keyboards, clarinets, strings, arpeggio and bombe. The album was released on November 7, 2014 by Sony Music Entertainment. The album received critical acclaim and was nominated for several awards, including the Academy Award for Best Original Score but lost to The Grand Budapest Hotel, also composed by Desplat.

<i>Dont Look Up</i> (soundtrack) 2021 soundtrack album by Nicholas Britell

Don't Look Up (Soundtrack from the Netflix Film) is the soundtrack to the 2021 film Don't Look Up directed by Adam McKay. The film's original score is composed by Nicholas Britell in his fourth collaboration with McKay, following The Big Short (2015), Vice (2018) and the HBO television series Succession (2019–2022), where McKay was the executive producer. Britell's score consisted of widest range of instrumentation used in the film, that produces multiple genres and musical styles, ranging from big-band jazz, traditional orchestral sounds and electronics and offbeat music. The album was led by the promotional single "Just Look Up" performed by Ariana Grande and Kid Cudi. that was described as a "love song for the end of the world". The song was issued on December 3, 2021 for streaming and digital download. The album featuring Britell's original score and an original song titled "Second Nature" by Bon Iver, was released on December 10, by Republic Records. The musical score received critical acclaim and led him receiving several nominations, including the Academy Award for Best Original Score, his third Academy Award nomination, following Moonlight (2016) and If Beale Street Could Talk (2018).

The music for the historical fiction-romance streaming television series Bridgerton, on the novel series of the same name by Julia Quinn, features an orchestral and classical score composed and produced by Kris Bowers and orchestral covers of contemporary popular music, performed by Vitamin String Quartet, Dunno and Bowers himself. Both the soundtrack and covers were released in the course of the series' premiere, with the first season's album being distributed by Lakeshore Records and the second season, by Capitol Records. The music received critical acclaim.

References

  1. ↑ Whipp, Glenn (September 3, 2021). "Will Smith just stole the Telluride Film Festival. And he could bring Beyoncé to the Oscars". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 23, 2021. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
  2. ↑ Zemler, Emily (September 6, 2021). "New Beyoncé Song to Appear in Will Smith's 'King Richard'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 20, 2022. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
  3. ↑ Bahr, Sarah (February 8, 2022). "Beyoncé Scores Her First Oscar Nomination". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 3, 2022. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  4. ↑ Hipes, Patrick (February 8, 2022). "Oscar Nominations: 'The Power Of The Dog', 'Dune' Top List; 'Drive My Car' Among Big Surprises". Deadline Hollywood . Archived from the original on March 25, 2022. Retrieved February 8, 2022.
  5. ↑ "'King Richard' Composer Kris Bowers Has Something to Say". Vanity Fair. January 11, 2022. Archived from the original on January 24, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 Tangcay, Jazz (November 20, 2021). "Kris Bowers on How the Prepared Piano Helped Him Ace the 'King Richard' Score". Variety. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
  7. ↑ "How King Richard Composer Synced a Piano Note With a Tennis Shot". TheWrap. November 23, 2021. Archived from the original on November 24, 2021. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
  8. ↑ Licuria, Rob (November 12, 2021). "Kris Bowers' innovative rhythmic score for 'King Richard' feels 'as unpredictable as the game is when you watch it play' [EXCLUSIVE VIDEO INTERVIEW]". GoldDerby. Archived from the original on November 12, 2021. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
  9. ↑ Greiving, Tim (February 9, 2022). "How 'King Richard's' Kris Bowers became one of Hollywood's most in-demand composers". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on February 14, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
  10. ↑ "Filmtracks: King Richard (Kris Bowers)". Filmtracks.com. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
  11. ↑ "'King Richard' Film Review: Will Smith's Turn as Venus and Serena Williams' Dad Anchors Unconventional Sports Biopic". TheWrap. November 18, 2021. Archived from the original on October 1, 2021. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
  12. ↑ Tilly, Chris (October 22, 2021). "King Richard Review". IGN. Archived from the original on November 3, 2021. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
  13. ↑ Nordyke, Kimberly; Lewis, Hilary (February 8, 2022). "Oscars: Full List of Nominations". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on February 14, 2022. Retrieved February 8, 2022.
  14. ↑ "The 2021 Black Reel Awards (BRAs) Nominations". Next Best Picture. Archived from the original on May 12, 2022. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
  15. ↑ "Film Nominations Announced for the 27th Annual Critics Choice Awards". criticschoice.com. December 13, 2021. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
  16. ↑ Daniel, Montgomery (January 27, 2022). "2022 Gold Derby Film Awards nominations: 'Dune' leads with 11; 'The Power of the Dog,' 'West Side Story' at 10 each". Gold Derby. Archived from the original on March 30, 2022. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
  17. ↑ Lattanzio, Ryan (December 13, 2021). "2022 Golden Globe Nominations: 'Licorice Pizza,' 'Squid Game,' 'West Side Story,' and More". IndieWire. Archived from the original on June 5, 2023. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
  18. ↑ "The 5th Annual HCA Film Awards Ceremony Moves to Monday, February 28, 2022, Due to Rising COVID Concerns". Hollywood Critics Association. Archived from the original on January 19, 2022. Retrieved January 19, 2022.
  19. ↑ "The 5th Annual HCA Awards". Awardsdaily. December 2, 2021. Archived from the original on January 24, 2022. Retrieved December 2, 2021.
  20. ↑ Tangcay, Jazz (November 4, 2021). "Beyonce, Van Morrison, Hans Zimmer Receive Hollywood Music in Media Awards Nominations". Variety. Archived from the original on November 13, 2021. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
  21. ↑ Grein, Paul (November 4, 2021). "Ariana Grande, Beyonce & More Vie for Hollywood Music in Media Awards: Complete Film Nominations List". Billboard . Archived from the original on November 5, 2021. Retrieved November 4, 2021.
  22. ↑ Darling, Cary (January 3, 2022). "'The Power of the Dog' takes a bite out of Houston Film Critics Society's nominations". Houston Chronicle . Archived from the original on January 24, 2022. Retrieved January 3, 2022.
  23. ↑ Lewis, Hilary (January 18, 2022). "NAACP Image Awards: 'Harder They Fall,' 'Insecure' Lead Nominations". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on January 19, 2022. Retrieved January 18, 2022.
  24. ↑ "Power of the Dog, Belfast Lead Nominations for IPA Satellite Awards". TheWrap. December 2, 2021. Archived from the original on January 18, 2022. Retrieved December 2, 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.