Is there anything more thrilling than an iconic scene from a movie or TV programme, paired with that perfect piece of music?
Music has the power to transform a scene, elevating emotions, amplifying tension, and making moments unforgettable. From sweeping orchestral scores to perfectly placed pop songs, the right musical choice can define a film or TV show, leaving a lasting impact on audiences. Whether it’s an iconic theme that sets the tone for an entire series or a single song that turns an ordinary moment into pure cinematic magic, these 11 selections represent some of the greatest uses of music in TV and film history.
Of course this isn't a definitive list - more a starting point for discussion. See what you think of our list of 11 best uses of music in film and TV. What glorious musical screen moments have we missed?
The best music in film and TV history
1. Brief Encounter (1945)
The music: Rachmaninov, Piano Concerto No. 2
Launching our survey of the best uses of music in TV and film: it’s hard to think of David Lean’s beautiful 1945 film about an extramarital romance between a jaded housewife and a doctor without thinking of Rachmaninov’s ever popular Piano Concerto No. 2.
In particular, you’ll think of the film’s final scene: as you watch the couple sitting gloomily in the station cafe, the epic sweep of Rachmaninov’s music tells you all you need to know about their doomed relationship. It’s heady, over the top and completely out of touch with reality, which is why we love it. And I’ll leave you to come to your own moral position on whether or not it glamorises adultery.
Alan Bennett’s The History Boys does a pretty good send up of it too.
2. Bridget Jones's Diary (2001)
The music: 'All by Myself' (Celine Dion)
Talking of Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No.2, it provided the inspiration for Celine Dion’s power ballad (originally written by Eric Carmen in 1975), whose no-holds-barred, confessional quality have made it a classic.
This is a song that resonates with many of us, due to the directness with which it tackles themes of loneliness and longing for connection. That’s why it’s such a perfect fit for Bridget Jones - the world’s most famous, most relatable singleton - who many of us can still picture, at the beginning of the first Bridget Jones movie, rocking out to the song in her pyjamas. It may as well have been written specifically for her.
3. Manhattan (1979)
The music: George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue
George Gershwin described his Rhapsody in Blue as “a musical kaleidoscope of America, of our vast melting pot, our unduplicated national pep, our metropolitan madness.” It is exactly those qualities that make the piece such a good fit for Woody Allen’s 1979 film Manhattan, where it’s used in the opening montage as a cinematic love letter to the city.
From the iconic clarinet opening to its whimsical twists and turns and riotous blasts of colour, this piece captures the bustle of New York traffic and the sound of the streets. In fact Allen himself said that Gershwin’s music was the starting point for the film.
Incidentally, it’s also used in Sesame Street. And we named Rhapsody in Blue as one of the works that soundtracked the 20th century.
4. The Apprentice UK (2005-)
The music: 'Montagues and Capulets' from Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet
Continuing our list of music in TV and film: this dramatic and brooding piece of music by Sergei Prokofiev has been used as the theme tune for the UK version of The Apprentice since the first series arrived, suited and booted, back in 2005. And you can see why.
With its forceful brass punches, sawing strings, and military snare drum accents, 'Montagues and Capulets' creates a sense of tension and conflict that is perfect for such a competitive show, packed to the gunwales with ambitious, cut-throat contestants who would sell their own grandmother if it would keep them on the winning team.
The music also somehow captures the very essence of Alan Sugar, the show’s notoriously tough and uncompromising host. The musical excerpt we hear in the show is called 'Dance of the Knights', which is part of a larger musical passage called ‘Montagues and Capulets’.
5. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
The music: Also Sprach Zarathustra by Richard Strauss
Is there anybody on this planet who doesn’t know the opening to Richard Strauss’s Also Sprach Zarathustra? I’d love to say that’s due to the beauty music itself - and I’m sure it is, on some level. But it’s largely down to its appearance in Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, which turned this rousing, cosmic tone poem into a cultural symbol.
Apart from accompanying the initial visuals of the film, including the sun rising over the Earth and the moon, the iconic fanfare is used during the scene where the ape-men discover and use a tool, marking a pivotal moment in human evolution. With its awe-inspiring grandeur, Also Sprach Zarathustra perfectly encapsulates the film’s themes of evolution, cosmic mystery and the dawn of humanity.
6. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
The music: Beethoven's 'Ode to Joy'
Another brilliant Stanley Kubrick moment, this one involving a chilling hijacking of Ludwig van Beethoven’s Ode to Joy. Here, Alex the protagonist, is subjected to the Ludovico Technique, a brutal form of aversion therapy where he is forced to watch violent scenes while listening to Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, specifically the ‘Ode to Joy’, the aim being to create a powerful association between the music and the violence he is forced to endure. The symphony’s second movement is also used later in the film, to impel Alex to attempt suicide.
Like I said, a chilling use of one of music's most uplifting moments.
7. Pride and Prejudice (1995)
The music: Beethoven's Andante favori
Thirty years on, the 1995 BBC version of Pride and Prejudice remains (don’t try to argue) the definitive interpretation of Jane Austen's timeless classic. For many, the image of Mr Darcy emerging, wet-and-clingy-shirted, from his lake at Pemberley is a lasting and captivating memory.
But, for me, there is no TV moment more romantic than that scene, in episode 5, where the young Georgiana Darcy plays Beethoven’s Andante favori while Elizabeth Bennet and Darcy gaze at each other across the room. It’s a turning point in their relationship and all the more effective for being so understated, while the piano gently reinforces the undercurrents of controlled desire.
Watch it and look out for the moment (a couple of minutes into the YouTube clip below) when the melody passes seamlessly from the piano to the flute, as Elizabeth breaks into a barely perceptible smile - the little minx. It’s beautiful television.
8. The Cotton Club (1984)
The music: 'Mood Indigo' (Duke Ellington)
Composed for radio broadcast in October 1930, this iconic song has enjoyed a few big movie moments. But the biggest was its appearance in the The Cotton Club, the Richard Gere-starring 1984 film about the lives of the people who visited Harlem’s renowned night club, as well as the people who ran it. With its melancholic quality, the jazz ballad highlights the underlying sadness in a film that speaks of a very cynical time, along with racism, cruelty, betrayal and violence.
- Duke Ellington finished strongly in our list of the greatest jazz pianists of all time
9. Titanic (1997)
The music: 'My Heart Will Go On' (Celine Dion)
It might make you cry or want to vomit, depending on your schmaltz threshold, but you’d be hard pressed to deny that Celine Dion’s belter is inextricably tied up with the immense success of this 1997 film. Part of that is down to its sheer singability: it is, for better or worse, an extremely memorable tune. It does a great job of capturing the themes of love, tragedy and nostalgia that are so central to the narrative.
Plus, it's as epic as love ballads get. Admit it - as Kate Winslet spreads her arms at the very front of the doomed ocean liner Titanic and exclaims “I’m flying!”, it would be hard to imagine any other piece of music hitting the spot in quite the same way.
10. Shaun of the Dead (2004)
The music: 'Don't Stop Me Now' (Queen)
Queen’s high-octane power-pop number comes into its own in this famous 2004 zombie spoof, in which a downtrodden salesman is caught alongside his loved ones in a zombie apocalypse. After convincing his friends and family that his favourite pub is the safest spot in the city to avoid the zombie apocalypse, Shaun (Simon Pegg) encounters an onslaught of the undead that ends up crashing the party and spoiling their sanctuary.
What follows is a chaotic attempt to defeat the zombies as Queen's adrenaline-soaked classic blasts from the pub's jukebox - its absurdly joyful nature contrasting hilariously with the horror and carnage of the scene.
11. Ghost (1990)
The music: 'Unchained Melody' (The Righteous Brothers)
So we come to the last in our list of unforgettable music in TV and film. And it's an all-time classic.
The songwriter Alex North wrote 'Unchained Melody' as a theme for the prison film Unchained (1955), hence the song title. Most of us, however, are more familiar with it from the 1990 film Ghost, where it is used during the pivotal pottery scene, as Sam, in his ghostly form, gently guides Molly's hands on the spinning clay.
Apparently the pottery scene was meant to be a prelude to a much bigger explicit love scene in the bedroom. But, as the film’s director Jerry Zucker explained years after the movie's release, “The pottery scene proved to be so erotic that we didn’t need anything else.” With its hauntingly beautiful melody and romantic declaration of undying, everlasting love, this song sets the entire mood for this oh-so-memorable scene.
