The Trouble with Harry: A Portrait of Hitch | Bernard Herrmann

Orchestration
3232/4000/timp/2hp/str
Duration8 min

CategoryLarge Orchestra
Topic

Composer
Bernard Herrmann

Performances
View Past Performances

Programme Note

Everyone must be aware that Alfred Hitchcock appears in all his films, if only momentarily, and his caricature of himself is well known. With this in mind, I was inspired to compose a musical portrait of Hitchcock. The music I wrote for ‘The Trouble with Harry’ furnished the ideal motifs and tunes for this piece. The film is in many ways the most personal and the most humorous of Hitchcock’s entire output. It is gay, funny, macabre, tender and with an abundance of his sardonic wit. I hope that my interpretation of these moods will in turn be transformed into a portrait of ‘Hitch’.

© Bernard Hermann