Get acquainted with classical music through your favorite movies!
Each link takes you to a clip of the film segment. Some scenes may not be suitable for children.
Fanny and Alexander (1982) – see Schumann, below
Bach, Johann Sebastian
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003), Cello Suite #1 in G major, BWV 1007 (I)
Schindler’s List (1993), English Suite #2 in A minor, BWV 807 (I)
Silence of the Lambs (1991), Aria from Goldberg Variations, BWV 988
Slaughterhouse-Five (1972), Keyboard Concerto #3 in D major, BWV 1054 (III)
Barber, Samuel
Platoon (1986), Adagio for Strings, String Quartet in B minor, Op. 11 (II), arrangement for string orchestra
Bartók, Béla
Being John Malkovich (1999), Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta, Sz. 106, BB 114 (II)
Beethoven, Ludwig van
A Clockwork Orange (1971), Symphony #9 in D minor, Op. 125 (II)
The King’s Speech (2010), Symphony #7 in A major, Op. 92 (II)
The Longest Day (1962), Symphony #5 in C minor, Op. 67 (I)
The Man Who Wasn’t There (2001), Piano Sonata in E major, Op, 109 (III)
Boccherini, Luigi
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003), String Quintet in C major, Op. 30 #6 (V)
Britten, Benjamin
Moonrise Kingdom (2012), “Cuckoo!” from Friday Afternoons, Op. 7
Chopin, Frédéric
The Others (2001), Waltz #9 in A-flat major, Op. 69 #1
Copland, Aaron
He Got Game (1998), Lincoln Portrait
Debussy, Claude
Ocean’s Eleven (2001), “Clair de lune” from Suite Bergamasque, orchestral arrangement
Handel, George Frideric
Dangerous Liaisons (1988), “Ombra mai fu” from Xerxes, HWV 40
Khachaturian, Aram
War and Peace (2007) TV miniseries, Waltz from Masquerade
Mendelssohn, Felix
Red Dragon (2002), Scherzo from A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Op. 61
Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus
Ace Ventura, Pet Detective (1994), Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, Serende in G major, K. 525 (I)
Eyes Wide Shut (1999), “Rex tremendae” from Requiem Mass in D minor, K. 626
Shawshank Redemption (1994), “Sull’aria” from Marriage of Figaro, K. 492
The Spy who Loved Me, James Bond (1977), Piano Concerto #21 in C major, K. 467 (II)
The Truman Show (1998), Piano Sonata in A major, K. 331 (III)
Offenbach, Jacques
Life is Beautiful (1997), “Belle nuit, ô nuit d’amour,” also known as “Barcarolle,” from The Tales of Hoffmann
Rachmaninoff, Sergei
Birdman (2014), Symphony #2 in E minor, Op. 27 (II)
Satie, Erik
The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), Gymnopédie No. 1
Schubert, Franz
In Bruges (2008), “Der Leiermann” from Winterreise song cycle, D. 911
Minority Report (2002), Symphony #8 in B minor, D. 759 “Unfinished” (I)
Schumann, Robert
Fanny and Alexander (1982), Piano Quintet in E-flat major, Op. 44 (II)
Verdi, Giuseppe
Pretty Woman (1990), “Amami, Alfredo” from La Traviata