An analytical study on the original scores in 『Journey Under Midnight Sun』 - Focusing on the Johann’s leitmotiv in and through the interview with composer Seok Seonghui -
This study analyses and , two Leitmotiv music pieces that was composed by Seok Seonghui which are included in the original soundtracks of movie 『Journey Under Midnight Sun(2009)』, by interviewing the composer himself and exploring the way he utilizes the music in the film. Both songs are composed in a form of solo piano music. The composer explained that he has chosen this form, because the unique tone of the instrument is suitable for displaying the emotions of the characters, and it is the best way to deliver the thematic melody with his full intention. Based on the score provided by the composer, analyzing the key, beats, rhythm, harmonies and the compositional patterns of and was used as a research method. the purpose of this research is to recognize the composer’s intention of what he wanted to express through music in the movie by observing the source based on the interview with him. As a result, I learned that the main characteristics of the light motif of 'Johann' are the repeated thematic melody and sound pattern. Also, I found out the music has been transformed and developed depending on the use of script or not, or it remained in its original form. This was effective on making the actor’s lines to be standing out without disturbing the flow of the film. In addition, I discovered that this effect can be utilized to support expressing the emotions of the characters in the movie and help the audience to immerse themselves in and to understand the movie. This study had a limitation on the researching process because of the absence of sheet music which led to explore only fractional music from the film and not as a whole. In order to help investigating the compositional technique of Korean film music and applying it in its field, it was suggested that all music in this movie were made into sheet music and a follow-up study was made.