Themes, Motifs, and Leitmotifs

Author's Note: Rather far behind on the weekly or so posts... I'll try to get back on task. I started this post almost a month ago, then came back and finished it long after I should have. I'm working on a few composition projects at the moment, hence a loss in spare time. 

Before I delve into deeply into another score, I think it's imperative that I explain these three terms. Themes, Motifs, and Leitmotifs are essentially the foundation of music, and if used correctly, the combination of the three can tell a story. Leitmotifs are especially important in telling a story; I don't personally think that any full length studio film shouldn't have them.


Themes
Themes are the simplest to explain. Themes are the underlying idea in the entire movie or piece of music. "Superman" by John Williams is a good example when explaining themes. Throughout the entire movie, the same theme plays, sometimes without rhyme or reason. We see a similar idea in Indiana Jones, also by John Williams. The theme isn't a symbol for what's happening at that moment in time, and doesn't have to be. In the case of both Superman and Indiana Jones, the theme is almost a musical definition of the entire movie. But it's not that case for other movies either.

Without the fluff, the theme is a repetitive part of the soundtrack that doesn't always represent something in the movie, but can.

Motifs
Motifs are in my opinion the least important on this list. Motifs tend to be short, and don't represent anything in the story, and never will. Motifs are the building blocks of leitmotifs and themes. The best example that comes to mind is in Jaws, and I hope you're not getting tired of John Williams yet. The first two notes that make up the music that we hear that tells us that the shark is coming is a motif. Those two notes repeat themselves over and over again to create one of the most iconic musical pieces.

Put shortly, motifs are short building blocks of themes and leitmotifs, but they never hold their own meaning.

Leitmotifs
Leitmotifs are the most important (and my favorite) thing on this post. If used right, which many composers do, leitmotifs can change a way a movie is told. Leitmotifs are somewhat of a combination of a theme and motifs. A leitmotif is a theme that always represents something in a movie. The majority of Pixar directors and composers are very good at using leitmotifs. A common example is the piano solo in Up. It plays by itself three times throughout the movie, and symbolizes something we can all relate too. It represents the connection between Carl and Ellie. We first hear it when they meet the first time, again during her funeral, and finally when Carl gives Russel the "Ellie badge". Leitmotifs like this are used in many of the great Pixar movies, and without knowing it, your brain is connecting that music to the story it represents.

I recently watched Pixar's Finding Dory for the first time, and I paid more attention to the music than anything else. Thomas Newman is one of my favorite film composers, and the Finding Nemo score was inspiring. While watching the movie, there was one thing that struck me in the music more than anything has before. As Marlin recounted some of his journeys with Dory and Nemo, the leitmotif from the first movie that represented the relation between Nemo and Marlin played. This incredible recall showed me just how significant a leitmotif can be. In my opinion, it changed the scene entirely. There was more emotion packed into that one scene that most of the rest of the movie, all thanks to an old piece of music that Mr. Newman brought back to life.

In case you zoned out somewhere in there, I'll put it simply. Leitmotifs always represent something in the movie, and generally play more than once.