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Scenes About Music 10/4/06

I'm writing a screenplay that combines two different types of music — country and alternative. I'm not musical in any way, though. I don't play an instrument, and I sure don't sing. I know that in my script there are going to be musical beats and tempos, but I'm not sure how to describe them on paper. The character who acts as the lead singer specializes in alternative music, and this character's band plays country music. This has stumped me for over six months, and I can't finish my script without finding a way to write these key scenes.

Where can I go to find examples of different types of music being combined in a script? Once I read an example of this in a script, I can vary it in my own way to fit my needs. I have looked everywhere I can think of online and offline, and I have asked what few musician friends I have.

As I said, I can't finish without these key scenes. This whole project has now taken me over two years, and this is this major problem I'm having right now.

—Cristy Lawler
    Tennessee

Glenn Bossik, Scriptologist.com Editor-in-Chief:
When describing the creative process of a musician, focus on how life experiences helped shape his or her music. The most important thing for you to do is to give people insight into the musical influences of your protagonist.

Start by studying films like The Doors , which shows how musicians combine different types of music in unique ways. Jim Morrison, the lead singer of the rock group, The Doors, wrote poetic lyrics, and his band mates mixed different musical styles.

One of the best screenplays about musicians and the ways in which they create music is Peter Shaffer's masterpiece, Amadeus. In it, we learn how the legendary composer, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, created his famous musical compositions.

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