James Bernard, Composer to Count Dracula: A Critical Biography

by David Huckvale

Overview

Composers give a unique and powerful voice to stories on the big screen. Those who work principally with one genre may leave a unique imprint. James Bernard was one such composer. From 1952 to the late 1990s, he was one of horror's definitive and distinctive voices, scoring many of Hammer's best-known films, including Dracula.

This is a critical biography of James Bernard. It is also a thorough and meticulous examination of his music, including its intricate mechanisms and the many sources of Bernard's inspiration. Movie scores examined include The Quatermass Experiment, Quatermass 2, X—The Unknown, The Curse of Frankenstein, Dracula, The Hound of the Baskervilles, The Kiss of the Vampire, She, and many others. A foreword by Ingrid Pitt, a glossary, a filmography, notes, bibliography and index complete the work.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780786466139
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Publication date:	11/03/2011
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	311
Product dimensions:	6.90(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.80(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

David Huckvale has worked as a researcher, writer and presenter for BBC Radio and as a lecturer for various universities in England. He lives in rural Bedfordshire.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments     
Foreword by Ingrid Pitt     
Preface     

1. The Long Shadow of Castle Bernard     
2. “Virtutis Fortuna Comes”     
3. Amanuensis in Aldeburgh     
4. Trilogy of Terror     
5. Things Rank and Gross     
6. Hounded     
7. Serial Killers     
8. Virtue and Danger     
9. Femmes Fatales     
10. Back from the Dead     
11. Black and White Music     
12. Assorted Aristocrats     
13. Kapellmeister to Count Dracula     
14. Sunset in the East     
15. Danger in Paradise     
16. Resurrection     

In Memoriam: A Personal Postscript by the Author     
Glossary of Musical Terms     
James Bernard Filmography     
Notes     
Select Bibliography     
Index     

Editorial Reviews

valuable...thoroughly researched”—Little Shoppe of Horrors; “McFarland scores another winner with this tribute to the man who created so many memorable scores for the Hammer classics...well-deserved...A ‘must’”—Cinema Retro; “outstanding...fascinating...thorough...detailed”—Journal of British Cinema and Television; “one of the best in recent years...critical”—Mania.com; “this is clearly the book of the year for students of film scoring”—Video Watchdog.

From the Publisher

outstanding...fascinating...thorough...detailed

Journal of British Cinema and Television

McFarland scores another winner with this tribute to the man who created so many memorable scores for the Hammer classics...well-deserved...A 'must'

Cinema Retro

valuable...thoroughly researched

Little Shoppe of Horrors