Please, Dr Mike, do the John Williams appreciation hour 🙏

I saw the original mission. The time delay on reentry was extremely tense and accurately portrayed. The whole world watched in silence.

John Williams Lost in Space theme the second being my favorite 7,6,5,4,3,2,1. (1965 show)

The best line in “The Last Starfighter”…. “I’ll have it all figured out by the time we reach the Frontier”. Beep Beep Beep. “What’s that?” “The Frontier”

👍 because I liked the video 👍 again for including Babylon 5 👍 yet again for "you can't not put Star Wars number 1!" 😀

Great list Michael. You had mentioned James Horner and I agree with ST:II. But you had to agree his theme for Cocoon is stunning.

I cannot agree more with your sentiment at the end about music appealing and resonating with something deep within our souls. I just got back from my kids middle/high school band concert and some of what they played really hit deep. Also the bits and pieces you were able to play here, lots of emotions and memories tied to them. Though Duel of the Fates is forever semi-ruined for me by Lego Star Wars with Darth Maul singing `I am awesome' to that tune. Thanks for these soundtrack videos. I have enjoyed them tremendously!

Ah, thanks for clarifying that you mean sci-fi *_movie_* soundtracks. Because when it comes to sci-fi soundtracks in general, the one from Mechwarrior 2 would absolutely be missing 😊

I love love love the Star Trek: TMP prelude music. Really beautiful stuff.

Horner's scores for Star Trek II and III is my absolute favorite Star Trek music. It's such a delight!

I have mixed thoughts about Tenet, but the score perfectly matches the vibe of the movie.

Whar Hiroshi Miyagawa Whar

Hi Michael, thank you for an interesting two-parter. I've quickly put together my own list - though I call this favourites, rather than 'best' because with so wide a-field nobody can judge even twenty bests from so many. I'd say this list of mine contains music that is among the best, but ordered as I roughly favour them this moment. In ten minutes time, I'll be kicking myself for leaving something out. 01 - Star Trek The Motion Picture - J. Goldsmith. 02 - The Day The Earth Stood Still - B. Herrmann. 03 - The Empire Strikes Back - J. Williams. 04 - Predator - A. Silvestri. 05 - Dune - Toto. 06 - The Boys from Brazil - J. Goldsmith. 07 - Dark City - T. Jones. 08 - The Terminator - B. Fiedel. 09 - Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan - J. Horner. 10 - Metropolis - G. Huppertz. 11 - Close Encounters of the Third Kind - J. Williams. 12 - Pi - C. Mansell. 13 - Ghost in the Shell - K. Kawai. 14 - The Fury - J. Williams. 15 - Journey to the Centre of the Earth - B. Herrmann. 16 - Planet of the Apes - J. Goldsmith. 17 - The Black Hole - J. Barry. 18 - Quatermass and the Pit - J. Bernard. 19 - Thunderbirds are Go - B. Grey. 20 - Things to Come - A. Bliss. Honourable mentions include, "Fahrenheit 451" - B. Herrmann. "The Secret of NIMH" - J. Goldsmith. "Capricorn One" - J. Goldsmith. And "Forbidden Planet" - B & L. Barron. "Back to the Future" - A. Silvestri.

I'm happy to see you put Daft Punk in there. After seeing the first Tron in Part 1 of your list I wasn't sure you'd highlight them. A soundtrack not mentioned on your list that I can recommend is from the 2012 movie "Dredd" by Paul Leonard-Morgan. Even though it is a very action focused movie it is still solid Science -Fiction. I also think you should give the tv show "Foundation" a try. I would very much like to hear your thoughts on the series.

Bear (gregg) McCreary's Battlestar Galactica soundtracks are the most amazing music u will ever hear. Foundation sucks ass by comparison, theres nothing memorable. whereas in bsg most of it is so epic it transcends the show and i hope will be looked upon among the greats of orchestra some day Travesty that he didn't even mention BSG, which can only lead me to believe he must not have heard or seen bsg. BSG makes star wars and trek sound campy af. BSG scores alone would reduce u to a blubbering mess, i dont know of anything from star wars that could invoke such emotion out of me. Rouge One suite is fire tho M83 did a good job on Oblivion soundtrack too.

You're the greatest, Mike! But I have to admit that back when Lynch's Dune came out and I heard that Toto was doing the score I immediately realized the film was going to have serious problems. Don't get me wrong, that movie really is visually like nothing else( of course; it's David Lynch doing "Dune"). But the way it butchers the story is unforgivable. And Toto's meat-headed use of electric guitar for some of the key scenes had me groaning even back then. Also, I would add Tangerine Dream's score for "The Keep" to this list somewhere; it's other-worldly.

another one that i think is fantastic is the score to, "Oblivion", by Anthony Gonzales and Joseph Trapaneze...

Interesting fact: Gene Roddenberry wanted Jerry Goldsmith to compose the theme music for the original Star Trek series, but scheduling conflicts prohibited him, so Alexander Courage was hired to compose it. Over a decade later, Goldsmith was available for Star Trek: The Motion Picture, and of course Roddenberry hired him immediately. Sometimes patience pays off huge dividends.

What about "Silent Running"? Like nails on a chalkboard.... I'm just not a Joan Baez fan, I guess.

I think that at least honorable mentions should be included for: Bernhard Herrmann's score for The Day the Earth Stood Still, and Max Steiner's score for King Kong. Is King Kong science fiction? I think so. If Mary Shelly's Frankenstein is the first "modern science fiction" novel, then King Kong definitely qualifies.

Gottfried Huppertz's original orchestral score for Metropolis is fantastic. It's well worth checking out the film for that alone, and it's a great silent film.

I'm not a huge fan of Zimmer's more recent works. That low "BRAAAAAH" synth hit that he too often goes to is kind of painful and just takes me out of the film.

Technically, a major third increases the frequency 25% (ish), not 20%. 20% would be a minor third. In equal temperament, think P*2^(4/12) for a major third compared to P*2^(3/12) for a minor third.

Circular breathing is kind of mis-labelled. It's not breathing in and out at the same time. It's a sequence of filling the mouth/cheeks with air, then seamlessly starting to push that pocketed air out while breathing in through the nose. It's not easy to do (requires practice and physical coordination) but it's one of those things where once you get the "feel" of it, it becomes much easier. Also assuming there are no physical handicaps (obstructed sinuses, etc.). I think that circular breathing on a digeridoo is particularly tough because the instrument consumes air very quickly, meaning that there is only really time to do very short, aggressive "puffs". I can do it on my trombone in the mid-range, not too loud, without problems.

Yes! Great choice with Dune. The extended version is not a Directors cut. It's the reedited version created by the studio for TV release. The driector David Lynch (i.e. Alan Smithee) had nothing to do with the extended version. That said, I like it and totally agree that it it does a great job of explaining the background of what's going on with the Duneiverse.

What, no mention of one of the epic composers, Basil Poledouris, with Starship Troopers or Robocop? Or Brad Fiedel's two Terminator soundtracks (talking about minimalistic)?

Although not original music. Zarathustra from 2001 is one of my best. Also The Blue Danube with the shuttle docking and moon landing is superb.I do prefer diractors cuts of extended films. Dune(1984) and Star Trek:The motion Picture come to mind. All good with your picks for originals. Thanks for posting.

Absolutely agree on the Black Hole soundtrack. I originally saw the movie on TV shortly after the original release and had forgotten how cheesey the movie overall was, but since then I've rewatched the movie more than once just because of the soundtrack. Good job not mentionning The Madalorian again... when you mentionned it again...

IMO the Interstellar soundtrack is Hans Zimmer's best SciFi work, because which other soundtrack uses mainly a organ? And speaking of organ music and mathematics, Johan Sebastian Bach was the ultimate master of harmonies, which are totally based on mathematics.

I love the soundtrack to Dune. Toto did great work, and the prophecy theme by Brian Eno is also great. Vangelis's music complements Blade Runner so perfectly. I was fortunate to watch the "original" Metropolis; I wasn't even aware of the pop-music version. The soundtracks to both Tron films are really great. And you're right about the second one. The Star Trek soundtrack is great, but I would have put Total Recall for Jerry Goldsmith. What an iconic soundscape. The only other soundtrack that comes close to Star Wars is Lord of the Rings.

Back to the Future, the soundtrack I recognised quite some time before the poster. No wonder; I have seen it many, many times. It's one movie in three parts. 🙂

Brilliant list, very eclectic! Also love how it works as a Best science fiction films list too! :)

Great list and videos, sir, glad you got them out and thanks for sharing with us. Here's to a better 2025! For my How-Dare-You-not-Mention-This-Movie movie, I'll go with a (now) unconventional, retro, classic (to me) ... Forbidden Planet. Love the old shool electronica. ALso mentions to Terminator 2 and Bladerunner 2049. And a big agree on TRON: Legacy. Love that movie!

As for dune, I think sci-fi channels dune was way better.

I was so happy to see Toto's Dune on this list. I love some of the tritone jumps the main theme does like going from D to Ab. Sounds really great. I probably would have put Goldsmith higher. His score to the original Alien is really something. Not just the main theme with the iconic Alien Chord and the tritones and flirting with atonality etc., just works so great and then finishing with the time motif. Great. As for your pick, OK, TMP is fine but I would rather go with First Contact. I LOVE the main theme for that movie and that French horn solo really pulls on your heart strings. So, if we talk minimalism I think we could also put the score for 1984' 2010 directed by Peter Hyams. Sure, Also sprach Zarathustra returns, but the synth score through the movie is really great. TV series: No Stargate? :O Joel Goldsmith was amazing on all three shows. The Military science fiction music for SG-1 the more mysterious Atlantis and then the retro synth surely Vangelis inspired music for Universe. Oh, and there is the Apple+ show Silo with music by Atli Örvarsson. He is knocking it out of the park with that show. I am sure I could have written a lot more but it would probably also overlap with part 1 so I will stop here for now. Happy New Year, and all the best to you and yours in 2025.

Great list, Michael. My honorable mentions would include the Cowboy Bebop anime and the first 20-30min of Wall-E. Both use music in a special way to set the tone of their respective worlds that I've grown to appreciate. Also, Richard Gibbs and Bear McCreary's work in Battlestar Galatica is exceptional.

"Music lives with us. Always there to remind us of the people, places and events of our times. An essence of what we once were and what we'll always be." This phrase was on a mural in one of my high school stairways. Its simple phrase that has a deep meaning. And the older I get the more it comes true. I recently asked my niece to take a picture of it as I cant remember who is quoted and no amount of googling over the last 25 years has found the answer. But alas the mural is no longer there. On another note, Im about to finish Blake's 7 for the first time since you gave me the recommendation a while ago. And would love to hear your full thoughts on the show. Was going to ask for another show to watch but I think im going to do Babylon 5 because of this video.

You seem to have overlooked John Murphy's work for "Sunshine." 🙃 It's ok, I forgive you.

Nevermind the music. Fury Road?...Really? It's oh kay. Not great. It would have been much better as an Old Man Max movie. Hell he wasn't the protagonist in his own movie. Anyway, good video. Look forward to more. Later.

Great two part video. I'm also a musician, and amateur musicologist, among a number of things, and really enjoyed the two videos. I appreciate that you did mention Christopher Franke's work on Babylon 5, where he mixed his background of electronic music with symphonic orchestration. I love playing the first soundtrack album from B5 while driving at night on the highway. There is so much music from the series! Another SF TV series that I really enjoy the music from is Space 1999 Series 1 by Barry Gray, especially the opening and closing themes. But I do have one minor gripe with you...your pronunciation of Vangelis. I pronounced his name wrong for most of my life, having been a fan of his music since the 1970s with albums like Spiral and Heaven & Hell, parts of which were used in Carl Sagan's TV series Cosmos. I had my pronunciation corrected by someone who had interviewed Jon Anderson of both Yes and Jon & Vangelis. Here is a link to a short video on how to pronounce Vangelis correctly: kzbin.info/www/bejne/laeQfHuafNNoh5Ysi=SrOFpBu73OnMl6ZH

not the full soundtrack but british scifi had some great theme tunes in the 70's Gerry Anderson's Space 1999 in particular some great funky guitars :)

for me Murray Gold's work on the episode Heaven Sent is the best music in all of dr who

i think you would like the work of Michael Nyman a British modern Composer

my favourite soundtrack for Metropolis is the one from Giorgio Moroder release. which was the first version of the movie i saw. to be fair i haven't seen a cur with this version of the soundtrack yet

Another movie, not a great movie, that has a great score: Steve Jablonski's score for the first Michael Bay Transformers. Meh movie, great score.

no i agree with lynch over the directors cut of the 80's movie

On TV shows with excellent scores, Chris Westlake's scores for "Star Trek: Lower Decks". The show itself is a wonderful love letter to all things Star Trek, and the score is that too. During an episode specifically aiming at the movies, Westlake takes his Lower Deck's theme and does it in the Horner style. It's amazing.

When I first heard that Toto would do the soundtrack for "Dune," I was aggravated. A rock band composing the score to "Dune"? Outrageous! It deserves a classic composer with a full orchestra! Then I saw the film. Turned out the only good things about the movie were Toto's score---and the cool design of the sand worms.

While not sci-fi, my favorite score last year was Sonya Belousova’s score for Netflix’s One Piece. It’s vibrant, soaring and joyous.

6:49 OMG I remember the re-release of Metropolis!!! I could not believe the musical artists they put into the „new“ soundtrack. I was also lucky enough to go to a screening of Metropolis at the Castro theater with the Club Foot Orchestra playing the soundtrack. As always, love your videos (regardless of the topic) but a special thanks for waking this memory!!!