Who sang that again? What movie is it from?

Allow me to introduce myself; my name is Diana and I am the Media Relations Intern here at Wolf Trap. Graham has asked me to be his "guest blogger" for the week if you will.

While pondering on a topic to write about, I thought about my music and arts interests and what might be of interest to Graham’s readers…

Then it hit me: write about the combination of music and movies, two of my favorite topics. I began to think about the array of artists who perform at The Barns every week and how they might connect to the movies I watch and love. Now, I consider myself quite the movie buff, but could I have previously named who sang the theme from The Poseidon Adventure? Definitely not.

Connecting artists to movies is a new section of trivia that has piqued my interest, especially with the consideration that movies and performing/recording artists are in a symbiotic relationship of mutualism; each furthering the other's career.It comes as no surprise that movies and music are inextricably related to one another; movies would in theory lose meaning without the addition of the tunes that make them what they are. Think back: you knew the man-eating great-white in Jaws was approaching because of the daunting beat that he apparently swam around with. We all knew offers were made that could not be refused in The Godfather when the soft yet eerie instrumental began to play. How could we forget the Norman Bates slasher song from Psycho? Since the art of motion picture began music has warned, warmed, and whisked us away. Music, of course, stands on its own as well. Whether it is radio, CDs, records, or live concerts, music is a part of the lives of millions of people everyday. Along with countless other reasons music is played to console, to cheer, and to complete any mood. Celebrated are the scores that have been created (think John Williams and Star Wars); but what about the individual artists who contribute to the music that sets the tone for the silver screen classics? Rarely do we connect the two; artist to movie, movie to artist. I decided to take a mini-tour on the artists who have visited/will be visiting The Barns at Wolf Trap this year… and discuss their contributions to some Hollywood favorites.

Let us begin with Edwin McCain and his knack for writing catchy ballads. Hitting it big with the Top 10 recording "I'll Be," McCain quickly earned his place as a romantic rocker. His next album provided another popular love song with "I Could Not Ask for More." Now, some of you may remember the 1999 Kevin Costner flick Message in a Bottle, but did you recall that McCain's ballad was one of the contributing songs?

Next we turn to singer/songwriter Melissa Manchester who has had two movie theme songs nominated for Academy Awards. Both "Through the Eyes of Love" from the 1978 ice skating drama Ice Castles and "I'll Never Say Goodbye" from the romantic drama The Promise. Though Manchester's performing career was proving to be very successful on her own, it is hard to deny the world-wide recognition she received from those nominations.

Maureen McGovern has been a significant contributor to many successful soundtracks; and her credits include Oscar-winning "The Morning After" from the blockbuster The Poseidon Adventure. A second Oscar win came for McGovern with "We May Never Love Like This Again" from The Towering Inferno. In 1975 music and movie history was made when McGovern became the first singer to have two songs nominated for an Oscar with "We May Never Love Like This Again" and "Wherever Love Takes Me" from Gold. McGovern has undoubtedly made a mark on audiences across the nation and world, but did any of us remember that she was such a great contributor to the magic of Hollywood?

At the end of March, The Barns is hosting one of my personal favorite folksters, Jonathan Edwards. Many of you will surely remember Edwards' anthem for independence and protest "Sunshine."

…You know, "Sunshine go away today, I don't feel much like dancin'..."

What many of you will most likely not remember is that this tune was one of many oldies that had its play time in the Will Ferrell comedy Anchorman. Now in this case, it is obvious that Anchorman did not launch Edwards' career, but how many of us were watching the movie and suddenly went "hey! I know that song!" The truth is, we usually watch movies to “watch a movie.” The music is there, we take note that it is setting the mood, but how many viewers go "wow, good call on Jonathan Edwards, I have his CD."So my proposition to you is to see a movie this weekend and think to yourself "Have any of the artists I'm hearing been to the Wolf Trap lately?" The answer just may be "yes!"

Have a great week!

-Diana