The Theme Of Eerie Music In The Film Psycho

The 1960 movie Psycho includes some eerie music in order to accurately relay the theme of the movie to the audience. Even though a similar melody can be heard throughout the movie, Hermann does an excellent job of incorporating the music at the appropriate time. Throughout the film, Hermann solely utilizes a stringed orchestra. Although a mixture of instruments may have benefited the movie even more. As the opening credits scroll on the screen, the violins in the orchestra play an anticipatory mood. Almost like a chase is occurring. This music sets the scene for the rest of the movie and the horror that will ensue. The same melody is continued into the first scene just at a slower speed. When Marion Crane and Sam Loomis are in the hotel room

Crane is contemplating whether she should take the money that is laying on the bed and get out of town. The money was supposed to be put in a safe in the bank, but Crane has another idea of how to use it. The music represents the implied voices telling her to take the money. As she thinks more and more about it, the music crescendos, which the audience can interpret as the voices getting louder. Then, a similar melody as some of the earlier scenes is heard when Crane sees her boss as she is stopped at the stoplight on her way out of town. Her boss perceives she is home with a headache. When Crane realizes the man is her boss, the music speeds up and becomes extremely loud. This continues as she proceeds to head out of town. Soon after, Crane is found asleep in her car by a police officer. He questions what she is doing out in the middle of nowhere sleeping in her car. She skillfully avoids answering most of the questions and seems to persuade the officer that she had just gotten very tired in the middle of the night. As she drives away from him, the non-diegetic music plays with a similar melody as before. However, this time it has a few slight deviations including sharp, short notes from a

They pretend they are a couple and rent a cabin; however, once Bates is gone, they go searching through the other cabins. The melody of the music is similar if not the same as earlier in the movie. The rhythm is slow and rather quiet. Soon after, Bates realizes what is happening and the music changes once again. It becomes much quicker but still with the same melody. Lila is searching through Bates’s house when she find the corpse of his mother. She begins to scream and the person with the knife appears, but this time it is apparent to the audience that it is actually just Bates dressed as his mother. The music changes to the sharp notes that had played during the murders of Crane and Arbogast. Loomis tackles Bates from behind and makes him drop the knife. The music is slightly altered from the previous melody and has somewhat of a whirl wind effect as Bates drops to the ground knowing he has been