15 replies to this topic

[DamnCoffee]

I remember a while ago, Arnold stated that he introduced his own theme for Quantum, but I don't think he told us what or where it was. Plus, Quantum of Solace has quite a few recurring themes throughout the soundtrack, does anyone know what exactly is the 'Quantum' theme.

[Mr_Wint]

I guess it's the theme heard during the opera scene, "Night At The Opera".

[Matt_13]

And when Greene says, "A desert," in Port Au Prince.

[DamnCoffee]

Hmmm. Now you see, I always thought it was the cue when Bond enters London, but since I watched it on Saturday, hearing all of the other themes, I'm not too sure.

[Ernst Stavro Blofeld Jr.]

Hmmm. Now you see, I always thought it was the cue when Bond enters London, but since I watched it on Saturday, hearing all of the other themes, I'm not too sure.

No, I'm sure the Quantum scene is the one heard in night at the opera. It makes more sense than Bond going to London(and subsequently Russia) as that seems more as a secondary Bond/MI6 theme more than anything else. The theme from Night at the Opera plays during scenes with Quantum members or when their plans are being discussed.

[MajorB]

And the theme heard during the London-arrival scene is also heard near the end of the film as Bond and Camille part, which wouldn't relate to Quantum at all.

I'm sure the "Opera" theme is it. I had assumed it was Greene's theme, but it makes more sense if it's for Quantum. Which means we may hear it again in the next film, which would suit me fine. It's a really haunting theme, and "Night at the Opera" is my favorite music in the movie--possibly my favorite piece of Arnold/Bond music, period.

[Professor Dent]

In the Greene & Camille cue, it starts playing at 1:20 & you can hear it begin to ramp up at 1:24. It is prominently played in Night At The Opera as you might guess. I remember it in a few other places but the instruments Arnold uses are different than the two cues & mentioned.

The theme heard in Inside Man & The Dead Don't Care About Vengeance is referred to as the "revenge" theme.

[level007]

Hey everyone,

for a very detailed review of the QOS score i urge you to go read this review over at Filmtracks.com:
http://filmtracks.co...tum_solace.html

the reviewer analyse in detail when you can listen to the different theme, and the quantum is in a lot of track. but appears with various tempo.
I would advice you to liten to the score while reading the review.

it's a great read :-)

[DamnCoffee]

That is a brilliant read!

I like Arnolds use of electronics to convey Bond's anger level, too.

[The Shark]

The Quantum theme is made of 3 different incomplete phrases.

The first is a melody played on harp and flute - in D minor it's A C D E E D, then G A Bb D F D or G A Bb C D C, in different variations.

Then next phrase is played on violins. It goes - A to G (up by a minor 7th, not down by a major second/whole) then - E G F D. Then final version of this phrase is A - G F G A.

The last melody is played by French horns, and functions as the main motif for Quantum. It's A - E (up by a 5th) D, E F - Bb (down by a 5th). This melody can be transposed to any key, as long as this tonal structure is kept.

There are some waxing and waning synthesizer effects in "Night at the Opera", including a bass drone on A. There's also a rhythmic phrase of A Bb A A Bb embellished by strings.

[level007]

I wish i coudl understand what you said The Shark :-)

i like music but not i'm not ax expert when it comes to describe technically the music.

[marktmurphy]

Hey everyone,

for a very detailed review of the QOS score i urge you to go read this review over at Filmtracks.com:
http://filmtracks.co...tum_solace.html

Odd that he keeps insisting that the theme song is hip-hop, though. A bit worrying that a music journalist can't distinguish one style of music from another.

[sharpshooter]

A bit worrying that a music journalist can't distinguish one style of music from another.

Quite.

[The Shark]

It's not that great a review, in fact it's pretty poor. Not once does it provide any concrete examples, doesn't mention any chord progressions, and using music theory very sparsely.
He frequently brings up the "revenge theme", but the variations he states that occur within the different tracks, are often hard to recognize, especially when he doesn't provide the notes - E5 D6 E6 G6 E6 (the numbers after the pitches indicate the octave, meaning C4 would be an octave above C3) if we're talking about the Inside Man/Dead Don't Care About Vengeance theme or it's variations, or Roman Numerals I - V - vii - iii - I. There's the contracted variation at the end of Port Au Prince which is - F# A B D B.

He also mentions the title theme - recurring throughout the score, sure elements of AWTD feature, but I'm certain he's referring to Arnold's "QOS theme", not AWTD. This a simple phrase that recurs throughout the score, in C minor it's - C D D# B D C, a six note motif.

There's also the last "Quantum" theme that I forgot about, which he often confuses for the revenge theme, or equates them to the same thing. This theme frequently occurs throughout action sequences, and is heard in Time to get Out, The Palio, Somebody Wants to Kill you, Target Terminated and Perla De Las Dunas. Here are the notes:

Brass: G up to D - down to - G# up to E - down to C - up to G# G F#

Strings: G minor chord F minor major 7th chord C minor C dim

After the F# the brass descends a whole tone to E then up to C, leading to the next passage of Arnoldisms.

I hope that helps.

P.S. If you want to learn any of the Bond themes, melodies, or recognize instruments, call me.

The Shark.

Edited by The Shark, 19 June 2009 - 07:23 PM.

[The Shark]

I guess the true answer to the question is the main theme for Quantum - out of the other 4. Is:

A E D E F Bb

Played on French Horns.

[level007]

You may find it poor because it never mention any concrete examples, but this sites is targeted to the general publics and score fan. i'm not able to understand you concrete example, even if would like to.
Last thing, you should read other reviews of the QOS soundtrack on th eweb, you'll see that this one is really not that poor.