The Coens films are well known for integrating interesting and unusual music – where does your inspiration come from and how involved are the Coens in the musical process?
The Coens’ involvement in the music varies from film to film. Sometimes they have very clear ideas about what they want (the extreme example being O Brother Where Art Thou? which is assembled from pre-existing songs and has no score per se), and sometimes they have no idea (Barton Fink or Fargo). I, of course, prefer the instances when they have no idea. In trying to create a unique musical world for each film there is usually a combination of research, free association, and hybridization. For instance there’s no particular reason why Fargo had to have a Scandinavian theme, but that was an association that came out of the landscape and the names of the characters. This resulted in some study of Scandinavian folk tunes and instrumental styles – the hardanger fiddle in particular. Then I hybridized a Norwegian folk melody called “The Lost Sheep” with the orchestrations of film noir to create a blend of fragility and bombast. Hopefully this process ultimately gives the film a distinctive
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