Franz Waxman : The Bride of Frankenstein, Music for the film (1935)

This recording is one of the first full scores written to a horror film by Franz Waxman. The beginning is the 'Main Title' of the score starts with strings and woodwinds and to add to the dramatic introduction of the monster we can hear horns, then strings again to lighten the mood and then another catharsis at the end of it. The following themes are equally suited to the scenes they accompany.
The score was written using the whole tone scale, that adds a sense of restlessness to the music. Waxman used a technique to add both the grotesque and the comedy feel to the score. Each theme has a well composed piece that sets the mood of the scene very well. The following themes are highlights of the score in my opinion:
'“Dance Macabre” offers a wondrous score highlight, with some of Waxman’s finest writing. Pretorius and the monster meet in a graveyard crypt, converse and agree to pursue a shared goal – the creation of a mate for the monster. Waxman speaks to this unholy communion with organ attended by pizzicato strings, which offers a diabolical rendering of Pretorius’ Theme as a danza macabre. At 1:07 an ascent by flute and oboes take up the melodic line as the Monster and Pretorius bond. At 1:21 celli emote the Bride Theme, which joins with a contrapuntal twisted comedic rendering of the Pretorius Theme by bassoon with xylophone adornment. Yet there is more, as the Bride Theme shifts to strings languidi and muted trumpets emote a contrapuntal Monster Theme. We conclude with a final reprise of the Bride Theme, replete with harp glissandi. The conception of this music offers a testament to Waxman’s genius. [...}
“The Tower Explodes And Finale” reveals the Monster unable to bear this final rejection. He goes berserk intent on destroying everything. The Agitation Theme carries his fury, yet when Elizabeth arrives, he relents and allows Henry to escape with her. We build on an ascending crescendo feroce empowered by fierce repeating declarations of the Monster Theme with counters of the Bride Theme. The Monster pulls the power overload lever that initiates a cascade of violent explosions, which destroy the laboratory tower. A series of violent orchestral descents support the crumbling descent of the tower. At 1:52, as Henry and Elizabeth watch the tower collapse from an adjoining hill a refulgent rendering of the Bride’s Theme supports their embrace and the close of the film. At 2:17 we flow into the End Credits atop a final reprise of the dreamy Bride’s Theme. We conclude with a dramatic reprise of the Vision Theme as the cast credits display, and a Bride’s Theme coda, which ends in a glorious flourish.' (MOVIE MUSIC UK, 2020)
This score was the first full score written to horror film. Waxman composed for an orchestra and used an organ to double up on some of the sounds. The instruments used in each theme represent the characters and the events really well. After the previous practice of using existing music for films it was a brilliant innovation to have music composed specifically to film and it started a new era of film music.