Monsters University (soundtrack)

Last updated

Monsters University (Original Soundtrack)
Monsters University (soundtrack).png
Soundtrack album by
Randy Newman
ReleasedJune 18, 2013
Recorded2012–2013
Studio
Genre Film soundtrack
Length55:11
Label Walt Disney
Producer
Randy Newman chronology
Toy Story 3
(2010)		Monsters University (Original Soundtrack)
(2013)		 Cars 3
(2017)
Pixar soundtrack chronology
Brave
(2012)		Monsters University
(2013)		 Inside Out
(2015)

Monsters University (Original Soundtrack) is the soundtrack to the 2013 film Monsters University directed by Dan Scanlon. The album accompanies 20 tracks featuring musical score composed by Randy Newman and the original song "Roar" performed by Axwell and Sebastian Ingrosso from the Swedish House Mafia. The soundtrack was released through Walt Disney Records on June 18, 2013.

Contents

Development

Monsters University featured music composed by longtime Pixar collaborator Randy Newman who scored Monsters, Inc. Scanlon felt that music was important to capture the "fun, freewheeling college atmosphere". The titular themes were recorded by the Pixar Canada studio team who were projected as the alma mater for the voices of the monster students. Newman used the clarinet for Mike's theme which changes as his character arc evolves, while the Oozma Kappa fraternity's music being represented with the accordion as a laidback shuffle to introduce Sulley. [1]

Newman collaborated with the Blue Devils Drum and Bugle Corps group Blue Devils Entertainment to incorporate the percussion music so that it makes up for a collegiate sound; the percussions were recorded at the Skywalker Ranch and were written by Blue Devils captain head Scott Johnson. [2] [3] Johannes Brahms' "Academic Festival Overture" is incorporated in the sequence when Mike is riding the pig. The 112-piece orchestra was recorded at the Sony Scoring Stage in Sony Pictures Studios and at the Eastwood Scoring Stage in Warner Bros. Studios. [1]

"It’s really a fun song. I remember watching the animator work on this scene. As he played back the song, the artist at the next desk—who wasn’t even working on the movie—couldn’t help moving his feet. Obviously, that guy had been hearing that song for days, but yet the second he heard it, he just had to move his feet."

— Dan Scanlon, on the song "Roar" [1]

Axwell and Sebastian Ingrosso from the electronic supergroup Swedish House Mafia wrote the original song "Roar", that was featured in a frat party dance sequence and was the first electronic dance number composed for a Pixar film. [4] According to Axwell, "We wanted to keep it funny, funky and at the same time a bit cool with a hint of monsters in it". [1]

Release

Walt Disney Records released the soundtrack on June 18, 2013, three days prior to the film's release. [5] [6] The song "Roar" was preceded as the single on June 4, that was accompanied with the remixes of the track by Style of Eye and Yogi. [1]

Critical reception

Filmtracks.com wrote "while it would have been nice to hear the Monsters, Inc. score extended and better defined in the prequel, it's clear that a completely new musical direction was intended for Monsters University. Unfortunately, while the overarching thematic continuity is improved, the general personality of the work fails to really grab you, much like the original." [7] Corey Hall of Metro Times wrote "the jubilant marching band-inspired soundtrack, are enough to keep kids enthralled and parents amused." [8] Martin Barratt of The Salvation Army wrote "The soundtrack from Oscar winner Randy Newman was especially enjoyable. The jazzed-up drumline marching band music has a wide range of emotions and really adds to the film." [9] Kimberley Jones of The Austin Chronicle summarized "composer Randy Newman keeps the energy level high with his drumline-heavy score." [10]

Track listing

All music is composed by Randy Newman, except where noted.

Monsters University (Original Soundtrack) track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Main Title"0:52
2."Young Michael"3:58
3."First Day at MU"4:32
4."Dean Hardscrabble"3:19
5."Sulley"0:48
6."Scare Pig"2:00
7."Wasted Potential"1:16
8."Oozma Kappa"3:16
9."Stinging Glow Urchin"2:34
10."Field Trip"3:57
11."Rise and Shine"3:00
12."The Library"3:44
13."Roar" (Axwell and Sebastian Ingrosso of Swedish House Mafia)2:55
14."The Scare Games"6:00
15."Did You Do This?"2:00
16."Human World"2:07
17."The Big Scare"3:02
18."Goodbyes"3:11
19."Mike and Sulley"1:12
20."Monsters University"1:34
Total length:55:15

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes. [11]

Orchestra

Instruments

Accolades

Accolades for Monsters University (Original Soundtrack)
AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryResult
Annie Awards [12] [13] February 1, 2014 Music in an Animated Feature Production Nominated

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Randy Newman</span> American musician (born 1943)

Randall Stuart Newman is an American singer, songwriter, arranger, pianist, composer and conductor known for his non-rhotic Southern-accented singing style, early Americana-influenced songs, and various film scores. His hits as a recording artist include "Short People" (1977), "I Love L.A." (1983), and "You've Got a Friend in Me" (1995) with Lyle Lovett, while other artists have enjoyed success with cover versions of his "Mama Told Me Not to Come" (1966), "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" (1968) and "You Can Leave Your Hat On" (1972).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Giacchino</span> American music composer (born 1967)

Michael Giacchino is an American composer of music for film, television, and video games. He has received many accolades for his work, including an Oscar for Up (2009), an Emmy for Lost (2004), and three Grammy Awards.

<i>Cars</i> (soundtrack) Soundtrack album to the 2006 animated film

Cars (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album to the 2006 Disney/Pixar film of the same name. Released by Walt Disney Records on June 6, 2006, nine songs from the soundtrack are from popular and contemporary artists. The styles of these songs vary between pop, blues, country, heavy metal, and rock. The remaining eleven pieces are orchestral scores composed and conducted by Randy Newman. The soundtrack was released three days before the film's release into theaters. It was also the fifth Pixar film not to be scored by Michael Giacchino or Thomas Newman. On November 25, 2006, the soundtrack's position on the Billboard 200 shot up from #126 to #47, with a 209% sales increase of 25,000 units. This was most likely due to the holiday season and the fact that Cars was released on DVD. This was the first Pixar soundtrack to ever achieve Gold Certification in the United States. It is now Platinum in the U.S.

"If I Didn't Have You" is a song written by singer-songwriter Randy Newman, that appears during the end credits of the 2001 Disney·Pixar animated film, Monsters, Inc. Sung by John Goodman and Billy Crystal, the song won the 2001 Academy Award for Best Original Song. This was Newman's first Oscar. Previously, Newman had been nominated fifteen times in the Best Score and Best Song categories, but had never won. Arguably "the film's lone song", the tune serves as the major motif for the film.

<i>Finding Nemo</i> (soundtrack) 2003 film score by Thomas Newman

Finding Nemo (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack to the 2003 Disney/Pixar film of the same name. Featuring original score composed by Thomas Newman, the cousin of Randy Newman, who had collaborated with Pixar productions since Toy Story (1995), A Bug's Life (1998), Toy Story 2 (1999) and Monsters, Inc. (2001). The album consisted 39 instrumental tracks from Thomas' score and a cover of Bobby Darin's 1959 single "Beyond The Sea" (which is also a cover of the 1945 single "La Mer" by Charles Trenet) performed by Robbie Williams, released by Walt Disney Records on May 20, 2003.

<i>WALL-E</i> (soundtrack) 2008 soundtrack album by Thomas Newman

WALL·E is the soundtrack album to the 2008 Disney-Pixar film of the same name composed and conducted by Thomas Newman. WALL·E is the second Pixar film to be scored by Thomas Newman after Finding Nemo (2003). It was also the second Pixar film not to be scored by Randy Newman or Michael Giacchino. Released by Walt Disney Records on June 24, 2008, it was mainly composed by Thomas Newman and orchestration is credited to Carl Johnson, JAC Redford, Thomas Pasatieri, and Gary K. Thomas. Newman previously scored Finding Nemo and most of all other Pixar films have been scored by either Newman's cousin Randy, Michael Giacchino or Patrick Doyle.

<i>Toy Story</i> (soundtrack) 1995 soundtrack album by Randy Newman

Toy Story is the soundtrack album for the 1995 Disney/Pixar animated film Toy Story, with music composed, conducted, and performed by Randy Newman. The soundtrack includes the film score, as well as three original songs written and performed by Newman. It was released by Walt Disney Records on November 22, 1995, the week of the film's release, and the first soundtrack album from a Pixar film.

<i>A Bugs Life</i> (soundtrack) 1998 soundtrack album by Randy Newman

A Bug's Life: An Original Walt Disney Records Soundtrack is the soundtrack to the 1998 Disney/Pixar film A Bug's Life featuring original music composed by Randy Newman and released on October 27, 1998 by Walt Disney Records. Aside the instrumental cues accompanying the album, it also features an original song "The Time of Your Life" written and performed by Newman.

<i>Toy Story 2</i> (soundtrack) 1999 soundtrack album by Randy Newman

Toy Story 2: An Original Walt Disney Records Soundtrack is the soundtrack album to the 1999 Disney/Pixar film Toy Story 2. The score for the film is composed by Randy Newman, who previously composed for its predecessor, Toy Story. It was released by Walt Disney Records on November 9, 1999. Although out of print in the U.S., the CD is available in the U.S. as an import and all but one song is available digitally.

<i>Monsters University</i> 2013 film by Dan Scanlon

Monsters University is a 2013 American animated comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is the prequel to Monsters, Inc. (2001). It was directed by Dan Scanlon, produced by Kori Rae, and written by Scanlon and the writing team of Dan Gerson and Robert L. Baird. John Lasseter, Pete Docter, Andrew Stanton, and Lee Unkrich served as the film's executive producers. The music for the film was composed and conducted by Randy Newman, making it his seventh collaboration with Pixar. Monsters University tells the story of the main characters of Monsters, Inc., James P. "Sulley" Sullivan and Mike Wazowski, and their time in college where they start off as bitter rivals but slowly become best friends. They are paired in a series of competitive scare-oriented events with their fraternity, and Wazowski ultimately learns that some things cannot be taught. John Goodman, Billy Crystal, Steve Buscemi, Bob Peterson, and John Ratzenberger reprise their roles as James P. Sullivan, Mike Wazowski, Randall Boggs, Roz, and the Abominable Snowman, respectively, while the new cast were joined by Helen Mirren, Alfred Molina, Peter Sohn, Joel Murray, Sean Hayes, Dave Foley, Charlie Day, Nathan Fillion and Aubrey Plaza, while Bonnie Hunt, who voiced Ms. Flint in the original film, voices Mike's childhood teacher Mrs. Karen Graves.

<i>The Princess and the Frog</i> (soundtrack) 2009 soundtrack album by Various Artists

The Princess and the Frog (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack of the 2009 Disney animated film The Princess and the Frog. It was released by Walt Disney Records on November 23, 2009, just a day before the limited release of the film in New York City and Los Angeles. It contains ten original songs and seven score pieces, all but one of which were composed, arranged and conducted by composer Randy Newman, who previously worked with the film's executive producer John Lasseter on Pixar's films Toy Story, A Bug's Life, Toy Story 2, Monsters, Inc. and Cars. "Never Knew I Needed" was written and performed by Ne-Yo. The song had an accompanying music video which featured rotation on Disney Channel. The song was also sent to rhythmic radio on October 27, 2009. The songs are performed by various artists most of which lend their voices to characters in the film. The score features African-American-influenced styles including jazz, zydeco, blues and gospel.

<i>Toy Story 3</i> (soundtrack) 2010 soundtrack album by Randy Newman

Toy Story 3 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album to Disney/Pixar's 2010 film of the same name composed by Randy Newman. The score was composed by recurrent Pixar composer Randy Newman, who also scored for the previous instalments in the franchise. The score album, featuring an original song "We Belong Together" performed by Newman, and instrumental tracks were released on June 15, 2010 by Walt Disney Records. It was also the sixth Pixar film not to be scored by Michael Giacchino or Thomas Newman. The track "You've Got a Friend in Me" from the first instalment is also featured in the album, performed by The Gipsy Kings.

"When She Loved Me" is a song written by American musician Randy Newman and recorded by Canadian singer Sarah McLachlan for Pixar's animated film Toy Story 2 (1999). The song is sung from the perspective of character Jessie, a toy cowgirl, as she reveals her backstory by reflecting upon her defunct relationship with her original owner, by whom she was outgrown. Heard in the film during a flashback sequence, the filmmakers decided to incorporate a song into the montage during which Jessie details her backstory to Woody after multiple attempts to show the character relaying her experience verbally proved unsuccessful.

<i>Brave</i> (soundtrack) 2012 film score by Patrick Doyle

Brave is the soundtrack to the 2012 Disney-Pixar film of the same name composed by Patrick Doyle and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra. The soundtrack features Doyle's musical score and features two original songs performed by Scottish singer Julie Fowlis, and one original song performed by Birdy and Mumford & Sons. Walt Disney Records released the soundtrack on both CD album and digital download on June 19, 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ride (ZZ Ward song)</span> 2017 single by ZZ Ward featuring Gary Clark Jr.

"Ride" is an song by American singer-songwriter ZZ Ward featuring guitarist Gary Clark Jr. for the Disney/Pixar film Cars 3 and its soundtrack. The song, which plays during the film's end credits, was written by Ward, Evan Bogart and Dave Bassett, with the latter also producing, mixing, and recording it. It was released as a single on April 14, 2017.

<i>Toy Story 4</i> (soundtrack) 2019 soundtrack album by Randy Newman

Toy Story 4 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album for the 2019 film Toy Story 4, the fourth instalment in the Toy Story franchise, created by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Randy Newman, who composed for the previous installments returned to score the film. Unlike the previous installments, the score was recorded at The Newman Scoring Stage, Twentieth Century Fox Studios. The soundtrack featured Newman's score along with three original songs, which released on June 21, 2019, with the film. In addition to the English-language, the soundtrack album was released in Spanish (Castilian), Spanish (Neutral), Italian, Portuguese, Vietnamese, Mandarin, Korean, Japanese, Russian and Polish languages.

<i>The Good Dinosaur</i> (soundtrack) 2015 film score by Mychael and Jeff Danna

The Good Dinosaur (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the score album to the 2015 Disney/Pixar animated film of the same name. The film score is composed by Mychael Danna and his brother Jeff Danna, thus becoming the first Pixar film to be scored by two composers. The score was recorded during April and October 2015, and various instruments were used, including pre-Columbian instruments, to reflect the landscape around the characters, which was an important part of the storytelling. Walt Disney Records released the soundtrack on November 20, 2015.

Cars 3 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album for the 2017 American computer-animated sports comedy-adventure film Cars 3 that features compilation of incorporated and original songs. The album was released by Walt Disney Records on June 16, 2017, coinciding with the film's theatrical release. A separate film score album, Cars 3 (Original Score), composed by Randy Newman, was also released by Walt Disney Records on the same date, also coinciding with the film's theatrical release. The film, directed by Brian Fee and produced by Pixar Animation Studios and Walt Disney Pictures, is the third installment of the Cars film series and the sequel to Cars 2 (2011). In May 2017, Walt Disney Records officially announced the release of two soundtracks: separately for the songs and score, unlike for the previous films, where both the songs and original scores by Newman and Michael Giacchino, had compiled into a single album. Fee said that both the score and the soundtrack "really help support the story we are telling".

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

Lightyear (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album to the 2022 Disney/Pixar film of the same name. The score is composed by Michael Giacchino, in his eighth Pixar film as well as his 50th film as a film score composer. Giacchino stated that the score is a blend of several works based on space opera in various formats, and he experienced in his childhood period. The scoring was held remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic at the Eastwood Scoring Stage and Newman Scoring Stage in Los Angeles for 15 days which required a 39-member choir and 89-member orchestra.

<i>Monsters, Inc.</i> (soundtrack) 2001 soundtrack album by Randy Newman

Monsters, Inc. is the soundtrack to the 2001 Disney/Pixar film of the same name. The original score is composed by Randy Newman, marking his fourth collaboration with Pixar following Toy Story (1995), A Bug's Life (1998), and Toy Story 2 (1999). Along with Newman's score, the album features an original song, "If I Didn't Have You," sung by John Goodman and Billy Crystal. It was released on October 23, 2001, by Walt Disney Records.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Wolfe, Jennifer (May 23, 2013). "Soundtrack Announced for Pixar's 'Monsters University'". Animation World Network. Archived from the original on July 7, 2024. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  2. ↑ "Blue Devils Press Release". Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Blue Devils Staff Page". Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  4. ↑ Mellor, Louisa (July 10, 2013). "34 geeky things you didn't know about Monsters University". Den of Geek. Archived from the original on July 7, 2024. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  5. ↑ "Walt Disney Records to Release Soundtracks for 'The Lone Ranger' and 'Monsters University'". Film Music Reporter. March 20, 2013. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved April 22, 2013.
  6. ↑ "Monsters University [CD + Weblink]: Music". Amazon.com. February 6, 2013. Archived from the original on May 17, 2015. Retrieved May 30, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Monsters University (Randy Newman)". Filmtracks.com. Archived from the original on July 7, 2024. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  8. ↑ Hall, Corey. "Film Review: Monsters University". Metro Times. Archived from the original on July 7, 2024. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  9. ↑ Barratt, Martin (July 15, 2013). "Film review – Monsters University". The Salvation Army. Archived from the original on July 7, 2024. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  10. ↑ Jones, Kimberley (June 21, 2013). "Movie Review: Monsters University". The Austin Chronicle. Archived from the original on July 7, 2024. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  11. ↑ Randy Newman. Monsters University (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (Media notes). Walt Disney Records.
  12. ↑ Jagernauth, Kevin (December 2, 2013). "'Frozen' & 'Monsters University' Dominate Annie Awards Nominations With 10 Each". Indiewire. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved December 2, 2013.
  13. ↑ Derks, David (December 2, 2013). "41st #AnnieAwards Nominations Announced". ASIFA-Hollywood. Archived from the original on December 5, 2013. Retrieved December 2, 2013.
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.