High Noon

Andy Trudeau on how the music of 'High Noon' changed movie soundtracks.

Best Score (Part II)

Liane Hansen and Andy Trudeau continue their rundown of the music nominated for Best Score. This week they listen to the scores for "The Good German" by Thomas Newman, who "has created a 1940s soundtrack filled with grand gestures of a golden age to go along with it," and "Pan's Labyrinth" by Javier Navarette, which is "centered on a little girl's daydreams, by putting a lullaby at the heart of a lullaby at the heart of the score."

Last week Liane and Andy reviewed the scores for "Babel" and "The Queen", next week it's "Notes on a Scandal" by Philip Glass.

So far, the score for "The Good German" is my favorite. Thomas Newman pays homage to his father Alfred in a score which is classical and layered and not at all the superficial 'movie' melodies that so typically nudge our emotions in the desired direction -- Newman's score stands on its own. Nice listening for a Sunday.

Best Score

Every year Andy Trudeau and Liane Hansen review the music nominated for Best Score. This series is always enjoyable. Trudeau knows his stuff and you can tell Liane looks forward to doing this coverage.

This year's nominated scores are for "Babel" by Gustavo Santaolalla (who won last year for "Brokeback Mountain"), "The Queen" by Alexandre Desplat, "The Good German" by Thomas Newman, "Notes on a Scandal" by Philip Glass, and "Pan's Labyrinth" by Javier Navarette. On this week's show Liane and Andy talk about the scores for "Babel" and "The Queen". (14 min)

The Three Types Of Bond Theme Song

Weekend Edition Sunday talks with Andy Trudeau about theme songs for Bond movies.

What is the difference between the 'Story Song', the 'James Bond' song, and the 'Nonsense Song'? What is the only Bond theme song in which the name James Bond is sung?

Learn the answers to these and other burning James-Bond-theme-song-related questions at NPR.