Music of Hans Zimmer at MSO

If you’ve been to the cinema at any point in the past 30 years, you have more than likely encountered Han Zimmer’s deep rumbling film scores. From the powerful closing moments in The Lion King to Jack Sparrow’s iconic first scene in The Pirates of the Caribbean, Han Zimmer’s imprint on cinema and television is undeniable. Whether you know him by name or not, his musical influence on cinema today has more than likely seeped into your subconscious over the years.

After celebrating fellow film composer John Williams in 2022, the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra recently dedicated two nights to pay tribute to the great Hans Zimmer. For an alarming 2.5 hour run time, we were nervous we were in it for the long haul. But this was not the MSO’s first rodeo. Hosts Andrew Pogson and Dan Golding broke the show up with little tidbits and easter eggs for each score’s introduction, sharing intimate details of how specific scores were born, as well as sharing some delightful, comedic chemistry with the orchestra’s conductor, Nicholas Buc. The evening was an equal share of enthralling musical performances, quick-wit comedy and an insight into the life of one of cinema’s all time greats.

The night opened with the extravagant Discombobulate from Sherlock Holmes. While it may have been a track less familiar than Zimmer’s others, it was the perfect way to warm the audience up for what was to come. From here, Pogson and Golding took us on an journey through Zimmer’s early career - from an appearance in the music video for ‘Video Killed the Radio Star’ and his early orchestral work in Driving Miss Daisy, it came as a surprise to most that Zimmer’s early days were much lighter than what we have come to know of him now. And we were not wrong, with Andrew Pogson gleefully warning us that these pieces were the last of the happy music for the rest of the evening. It was all thunderous doom and gloom from here on out.

What followed was two and a half hours of what could only be called an experience rather than a performance. With Buc at the helm of a 80-piece orchestra that never faltered, the night was an endless rush of strands of hair standing razor sharp to the ceiling. Zimmer’s Inception Suite, a personal favourite simply due to its arrangement of Édith Piaf’s ‘Non, je ne regrette rien’ took me back to the first screening back in 2010. Not only did it tickle some nostalgia, the MSO broke it down several times to showcase how Zimmer transitioned Piaf’s classic into the unrecognisable and iconic score that is still so memorable today. Another worthy mention is the The Lion King Orchestra Suite, which dare I say didn’t leave a dry eye in the house.

The MSO covered a lot more ground. With scores from The Thin Red Line, Kung Fu Panda, The Da Vinci Code, The Dark Knight, The Holiday (that one surprised me too), and then crescendoed and closed the night with Interstellar and of course, Gladiator. Despite being a film I had not seen in years, Zimmer’s score - peppered with the outstanding vocals from Australian soprano Ali McGregor - immediately took me back to the crushing final moments of the film.

The MSO do regular film screenings throughout the year, which is another delight to experience. Be sure to grab tickets if you can, and if you ever have the opportunity to experience Han Zimmer himself in concert, do not pass it up.

Melbourne Symphony Orchestra
Music of Hans Zimmer
May 4-5 at Art Centre Melbourne