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The King's Speech Soundtrack [ 2010 ]

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The Marriage of Figaro Overture

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

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Piano Concerto No.5 'Emperor' 2nd Movement

Ludwig Van Beethoven

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Johannes Brahms

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The King's Speech

Alexandre Desplat

Lionel and Bertie

My Kingdom, My Rules

Memories of Childhood

The King is Dead

King George VI

The Rehearsal

Queen Elizabeth

Fear and Suspiscion

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The Threat of War

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4 years ago

What was the final piece of music played during the credits of The Kings Speech?

6 years ago

I could've sworn that the music played as bertie walked to the Parliament, was from Beethoven's second piano concerto.

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The king's speech.

• Le nozze di Figaro Overture Written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart [During the first therapy session when King's voice is being recorded]
• Symphony No. 7 in A major Op. 92 II. Allegretto Written by Ludwig van Beethoven [Heard as George VI delivers his first wartime speech]
• Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major Op. 73 'Emperor' II. Adagio un poco mosso Written by Ludwig van Beethoven [Heard as George VI concludes his first wartime speech]
• Ein deutsches Requiem Op. 45 II. Denn alles Fleisch, es ist wie Gras Written by Johannes Brahms
• Clarinet Concerto in A major K. 622 I. Allegro Written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart [Heard during the montage of Lionel conducting lessons with Bertie]
• Who's Been Polishing the Sun? Music by Noel Gay Lyrics by Charles Gaynor Performed by Bert Ambrose and His Orchestra Vocals by Sam Browne and the Rhythm Sisters Published by Richard Armitage Ltd. Master courtesy of Decca Music Group Ltd. Under license from Universal Music Operations Ltd.
• Shout for Happiness Written by Jack Hart and Tom Blight Performed by Al Bowlly and the New Mayfair Dance Orchestra Conducted by Ray Noble (uncredited) Published by Campbell Connelly & Co Ltd. Master courtesy of Post Perfect Vintage Music, UK
• I Love You, Truly Written by Carrie Jacobs Bond and Irving King Performed by Al Bowlly with Ray Noble (uncredited) and His Orchestra Published by Campbell Connelly & Co Ltd. Master courtesy of Decca Music Group Ltd. Under license from Universal Music Operations Ltd.
• Swanee River (uncredited) Written by Stephen Foster Altered lyrics [Sung a cappella by Lionel ( Geoffrey Rush ) during an impromptu session]
• Camptown Races (uncredited) Written by Stephen Foster Altered lyrics [Sung a cappella by Lionel ( Geoffrey Rush ) and Albert ( Colin Firth ) during an impromptu session]

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The King's Speech (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

The King’s Speech, directed by Tom Hooper, portrays the relationship between Bertie, the future King George VI (Colin Firth), and the speech therapist Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush), who helps Bertie overcome his debilitating stammer. Composer Alexandre Desplat, one of the hardest working men in show business —The Ghost Writer and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows: Part 1 are just two of the other movies he scored in 2010 — provided the film’s music. You might think a movie that deals with royalty would feature bombastic accompaniment, but Desplat took a subtle approach to the project. He’s careful not to overpower the intimacy of the story of a man struggling to make meaningful sounds. Melodies are delicately etched on piano as strings often float in an almost ambient manner. (“The Rehearsal,” with its chugging rhythm and flute interjections, is probably the perkiest piece here.) The album also includes excerpts of Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony and the “Emperor” Concerto performed by the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Terry Davies, with Steven Osborne at the piano.

January 1, 2010 13 Songs, 41 minutes This Compilation ℗ 2010 Cutting Edge Music (Holdings) Limited, under exclusive license to Decca, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited

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The King's Speech (2010)

This image appears in the gallery: Alexandre Desplat: Ten Best Movie Soundtracks

6. The King's Speech (2010)

The 'speech' itself may be set to Beethoven, but Desplat’s Bafta-winning themes are surely his warmest and prettiest. They're beautifully played on the original soundtrack by the composer’s regular pianist, Dave Arch, with the gentlest of string and woodwind accompaniments. Brief but very classy.

See the full gallery : Alexandre Desplat: Ten Best Movie Soundtracks

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The King's Speech [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack]

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Exploring Theme in “The King’s Speech”

Scott Myers

Go Into The Story

In the Core VII: Theme online class I’m currently teaching, we’ve had some great discussions and analysis. One of the most vibrant involved The King’s Speech :

Let’s explore theme in The King’s Speech by comparing two scenes. “I’m Not a King” [click on the link]

“I Have a Voice” [click on the link]

These two scenes serve as crucial bookmarks in Bertie’s psychological journey and play directly to the central theme of the story.

We talked at length about the theme of Bertie, the reluctant king whose circumstance is made worse by the fact he has a stutter, finding his voice.

By finding his voice, Bertie does so quite literally — in making the Big Speech at the end — but also symbolically and psychologically. It brings to mind the Carl Jung quote about the process of individuation which, generally speaking, is an active approach to engaging our Self (the totality of our psychological being) in an effort to move toward what he call ‘wholeness’ (in my writing, I call it Unity). His catch phrase: “Become who you are.” From a writing standpoint, this speaks to that part of a character’s psychological nature we can call by any number of names: True Nature, Authentic Self, Core Essence. It’s already there. The character just hasn’t claimed it yet and used it to redefine their Self. In The King’s Speech , this is what Lionel understands about his work. He didn’t need a Ph.D., rather he learned it through his experiences in WWI and working with actual human beings, boots on the ground so to speak. The words are there, the ability to speak is there, the essence of the individual is there. They just have to break through whatever sort of psychological and habitual blockage keeping them tongue-tied. Remember this scene from The Silence of the Lambs ? Compare that to this scene in The King’s Speech . Same exact function for both Protagonists: A ‘confession’ of sorts about some deeply traumatic events in their past, both of which are tied to the blockage both characters have.

Clarice is a capable law enforcement agent. Bertie is a capable King. Both need to move from their Disunity toward Unity… become who they are. And this is the essence of what we know in movie storytelling as transformation… metamorphosis. Most often a Positive change. So those two scenes cited above in The King’s Speech demonstrate how Lionel came to understand Bertie. That third scene — Bertie’s ‘confession’ — is a bridge for Lionel in understanding Bertie psychologically, then knowing how to push Bertie’s buttons. Sitting in the throne is his way of demystifying MONARCHY for Bertie, bring down that Monstrous Concept to a human level: It’s just a chair. You can sit in it. Which is to say one way to look at screenwriting is to think of everything that happens in the plot somehow services the psychological journey of the characters… and ultimately their transformation.

Working with themes is one of the most powerful writing tools we have. In discovering a story’s Central Theme, we give the narrative a clear focus, a touchstone we have at hand when crafting every single scene. In surfacing Sub-Themes, we can expand a story’s breadth of meaning, particularly in how different characters impact the narrative and the Protagonist’s journey in their own distinctive ways.

For more of my analysis of The King’s Speech , check out these blog posts:

Screenwriting Lessons: “The King’s Speech” — Sympathetic Protagonist

Screenwriting Lessons: “The King’s Speech” —Metamorphosis

Screenwriting Lessons: “The King’s Speech” — Talismans

Screenwriting Lessons: “The King’s Speech” — Shadow

What are your thoughts on The King’s Speech ? The subject of ‘theme’ in writing? I invite you to share your comments. And if you like this post, please recommend to the Medium community. Thanks!

Written by Scott Myers

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Text to speech

Beethoven's music in 'The King's Speech' a magical match

• Updated: Jan. 17, 2011, 7:20 p.m. |
• Published: Jan. 17, 2011, 6:20 p.m.
• David Stabler | Special to The Oregonian/OregonLive

There's a moment in the film

that absolutely soars. It comes near the end when poor Bertie has been crowned as

after his brother abdicated to marry Wallis Simpson.

Superbly played by

, Bertie (his family nickname) dreaded public speaking because of a speech impediment. He was horrified when he had to ascend the throne in 1937 because he knew what the job entailed. Two years later, he gave a major speech that BBC Radio broadcast throughout the empire, announcing Britain's entry into World War II. The speech serves as the climax of the film. We've seen him humiliate himself on a number of previous occasions, unable to get the words out.

The film lets time drag as we see Bertie struggle with clicks and stutters to form the words. It's excruciating and I found myself tensing up each time.

But now he's the king and after working intensely with Lionel Logue, an Australian speech therapist, beautifully underplayed by Geoffrey Rush, Bertie is about to give the speech of his life. The stakes couldn't be higher. Britain needs a leader to take it to war.

The buildup begins as he and Logue walk Buckingham Palace's endless corridors toward the broadcast room, passing dozens of broadcasters who wish him well. At last, they enter the room with the microphone. They're alone. Logue throws open the window -- he believes fresh air helps -- as Bertie tries to compose himself.

The countdown begins -- four blinks of a red light followed by steady red. Bertie's fear is agonizing to watch.

And then this: As Firth struggles at first, we hear the ominous chugging of musical chords. Moments later, the calm, gentle Allegretto of Beethoven's Seventh Symphony spreads over the pulsing rhythm. The melody is smooth, unruffled, an aural metaphor for Bertie's aspirations.

With Logue silently prompting him through the difficult spots, the sweet, melancholic music unfolds, building in intensity, then subsiding, lasting exactly as long as the speech.

Nevermind the irony of hearing German music during a speech about going to war with Hitler. The scene brims with feeling between patient and therapist, who went on to became lifelong friends. It's a magnificent moment. If ever music and intention matched, this is it.

Moments later, at the movie's coda, we hear more Beethoven: the ethereal slow movement of the "Emperor" Piano Concerto. It too, is a perfect fit.

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The King's Speech

56 pages • 1 hour read

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Speech—in the abstract sense—is an important theme throughout the book. Communication between people, the performance inherent in delivering a speech, and the ability for loved ones to connect are all frequently addressed; all share speech in common. Characters share their thoughts, feelings, and emotions via speech and their ability to do so typically dictates their success.

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