About

Our Philosophy

Understand

We believe that deep understanding of film music is one of the best ways to develop your abilities in writing, performing, and hearing this music. That’s why we’ve put a great deal of effort into our courses, providing you with the highest quality concepts, teaching, and feedback we can.

Engage

It is also our belief that the deepest understanding includes directly engaging with music without computer-aided technology. That means connecting your mind and body to music: playing music, singing music, listening to music, and hearing music in your mind.

Persevere

Finally, we believe that deep understanding is best achieved by continually working at it throughout one’s life. Regularly putting in the time to learn concepts, make connections between them, and work with them is essential in attaining higher levels of understanding.

🍁 Mark Richards, PhD

Founder and Author
Film Music Notes

How It All Began

I originally started Film Music Notes in 2012 as a blog aimed at the general public on detailed analysis of all kinds of film scores. I then began studying film music as a professor in the following years and, a few years after leaving academia, began creating online courses on film music on this same site. My curiosity about music always leads me to look for aspects that have had little or nothing said about them before. So you could say I’m a perpetual student! But since I will always be a teacher at heart, I love to share my findings with my fellow film music enthusiasts in the form of these online courses. In terms of my musical training, my three main areas are as follows:

Music Theorist

I am a Canadian who has worked as a Professor of Music Theory for several years in universities, specializing in film music and Beethoven. I have published articles on film music and contributed chapters on John Williams to books on film music. Now my focus is on creating online courses on all aspects of music theory in film, right here on Film Music Notes!

Composer

I am also a composer with a classical background, having written dozens of compositions performed on the concert stage. These include two full-length operas, a symphony, art songs, solo piano pieces, and many chamber works. Both operas received a workshop with a full cast of singers and were performed for public audiences.

Pianist / Piano Teacher

I am an accomplished pianist, having obtained the Performer’s and Teacher’s Piano Diplomas from the Royal Conservatory of Music. I have performed several of my own compositions in concerts and continue to play for my own enjoyment. I taught piano lessons to all ages and at various levels and also wrote a series of piano beginner books for children.