There’s no denying the effect of a good score within a film – especially with the horror genre. The spine-tingling experience is closely tied to musical notes pumping through the picture while we watch horrifying things happening on screen. From the iconic striking strings of Psycho by Bernard Herrmann to the “dun-dun” music of Jaws by John Williams, we’ve been experiencing musical dread for decades. This is by no means a definitive list of horror film scores but merely my creative decisions on what scores for horror films made an impact on me and live with me to this day.
5) A CURE FOR WELLNESS by Benjamin Wallfisch
An utterly eerily movie with a seriously sedated “I Wanna Be Sedated” cover by Wallfisch featuring Mirel Wagner. Benjamin Wallfisch is no stranger to the horror genre with entries like It, Annabelle, and more, but I find his work on A Cure for Wellness – especially the “Hannah and Volmer” lullaby – gives me the spooks!
4) HEREDITARY by Colin Stetson
Truly one of the best modern horror films of all time, Hereditary owes a portion of its success to the unsettled performance of Colin Stetson through his wind instrument and voice mixed score. A professional saxophonist, Colin is at home with the wind and reed instruments but it’s his artistry in crafting everything together to form the incredible soundtrack to Hereditary. While “Reborn” is my favorite track, that one is more triumphant and less scary, while the track “Charlie” layers in so much weird sounds, you can’t help but feel the cringe.
3) HALLOWEEN (1978) by John Carpenter
An absolute classic. The piano intro for the Halloween main titles will forever be tied to the horror genre. It’s raw, simple, and evokes the memory of Mike Meyers no matter what hour of the day you hear it creep into your ears.
2) UNDER THE SKIN by Mica Levi
Not as baseline horror as Halloween, but it’s clear that Jonathan Galzer set out to scare people with his masterpiece Under the Skin. His work with Mica Levi has inspired generations of film composers trying to capture what she accomplished – mainly with this track “Love”. I’ve heard this piece performed live in an orchestral hall setting, and even amongst rich patrons and neck ties, you can’t help but feel a chill when listening to this track in any environment.
1) SUSPIRIA (1979) by Goblin
Suspiria’s soundtrack is by far my favorite horror film score. Those chimes and bells give you a sense that something medieval is about to unearth and terrorize the audience. One of the rare film score by the band Goblin, the soundtrack has stuck with me ever since I first heard it.
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