when I'm not wrong then:
it's music that was not done by the underscore composer.
for example in some parts of Indiana Jones you can hear arabian or some german music which is not apart of Williams works.
Or when you hear some famouse works of Mozart for a short time in any movie, this is also a source music.

well. maybe there is someone out there who can give another explanation for this. :)
but that's what I understand as source music.

1701, December 13, 2005; 9:22 AM

Source music is often heard on screen as if it was coming from a radio or a hifi (on screen)or if you see an orchestra playing some classical in a concert hall.Maybe there's a scene in a film at a disco or a wedding and there is some music going on in the background-this is also usually classed as source music.

Damjamcar, December 13, 2005; 12:52 PM

There's no connection between 'source' music and the composer - many times a source music is also composed by the movie's composer and is an original music.
(see John Barry's Monte Walsh, "source music suite" takes almost half of the album, all composed by JB)

If I understand it right.

42zaphod, December 13, 2005; 4:17 PM

From what I understand source music would be music playing from a radio, orchestra, jukebox, phonograph etc. Most of the time it is a standard song but it could be composed by the soundtrack composer himself. Henry Mancini for one use to write his own source music. Max Steiner usually didn't.

tlkiefner, December 13, 2005; 11:36 PM

Good replies....Source music is not always NOT composed by the film's composer. As already stated, it's music which is heard comping from a "source" in a scene, such as a radio, television, music box, orchestra in a background, a record player, etc.....in other words, music which is not part of the background score of a film.

kriegerg69, December 14, 2005; 6:37 AM

One of the - in my opinion - nicest examples: The song "Wednesday's Child", sung by Matt Monro and composed by John Barry for THE QUILLER MEMORANDUM. Though it is somewhat the "heart" of the soundtrack LP and CD, the only time you hear it (as the song version, i.e. VOCAL) in the movie is from a radio at the reception of Quiller's hotel in Berlin. As non-source music, it is only used in instrumental variations.

Urs

handstand, December 14, 2005; 2:08 PM

Source music is music that is coming from a 'source' within the film's environment; music that can be heard by the characters in the film as well as by the viewer.

American.Nightmare, December 14, 2005; 5:29 PM

One of my favorite examples of "source" music: is in the film "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?" where Frank DeVol composed a "twist" instrumental tune inspired by the film's title. You can hear it playing on the Hudson's neighbor's radio and later at the beach from another radio.

filmfactsman, December 17, 2005; 1:26 AM