THE ZIMMER EFFECT
Play a little word association with composers associated with figure skating music, and you’ll find yourself in a game brimming with options. Say Tchaikovsky, and the powerful-yet-delicate Swan Lake flutters to mind. Say Bizet, and a thousand fierce red-and-black Carmen dresses fire up the brain.
But what happens if you say Zimmer?
The easy answer might be films, for Zimmer– Hans Zimmer, that is– has been a part of countless skating programs by way of his prolific career in film scoring. He rose to fame composing the score for Rain Man, won an Oscar for his contributions to 1994’s The Lion King, bridged the centuries with Gladiator in 2000, and soared to new sonic heights in the decades to follow with the Batman, Sherlock Holmes, and the majority of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchises, among other films.
(And if you’ve followed the past decade of skating at all, you know the Pirates franchise all by itself has become a soundtrack staple for competitive programs, including Mirai Nagasu’s Olympic debut in 2010…)
As well as the debut Olympic FS for Javier Fernandez; in fact, his “Pirate” stayed on board for the 2010-11 season too.
Chinese ice dancers Wang/Liu even skated a “Pirates” tango in 2018-19.
Born in (West) Germany and schooled in Switzerland and England, Zimmer is a mostly self-taught musician who cites Ennio Morricone– another favorite in the skating world– as a major influencer in his drive to be a film composer. At the same time, he’s a “child of the 20th century” (in his words) who embraced computers early on, and never tires of experimenting with how they can enhance music.
In the 70s and early 80s, Zimmer’s prowess on keyboards and synthesizers was showcased in several new-wave bands. The most noteworthy of those bands– The Buggles, whose song “Video Killed the Radio Star” was the first video ever shown on MTV– features Zimmer on keyboards during the iconic clip.
He found his way to the world of film scores by partnering with English composer Stanley Myers; together, they honed an integration of orchestral and electronic music as they scored a steady stream of British films through the 80s. By 1987 he’d served as score producer on the Academy Award-winning epic The Last Emperor; his score for Rain Man came a year later.
With multiple Grammys, Golden Globes, and Academy Awards to his name, Zimmer’s place in film score history is solidified. But what makes his music appealing enough for world-class skaters to turn to them year-in, year-out… especially now that music with vocals is permitted? Obviously his penchant for classical/contemporary fusion factors in heavily. But consider this striking quote about Zimmer from filmmaker and frequent collaborator Sir Ridley Scott:
"I listen to [Zimmer's] music and I don't even have to shut my eyes. I can see the pictures. And that's why, in many respects, I know I can talk pictures with Hans. He responds to pictures."
From the late 80s on into the 90s, the TV “picture” for which Zimmer’s music was best known was the theme song for the popular British game show Going For Gold (which he says “paid his rent” for many years).
But since 2000 or so, skating events have proven among the most reliable places to find his music on the smaller screen. Alexei Yagudin’s Gladiator FS cast the first great impression…
A decade or so later, Zimmer’s soundtracks to Pearl Harbor and Angels and Demons proved very successful vehicles for pairs teams Volosozhar/Morozov and Savchenko/Szolkowy, respectively.
And Adam Rippon had music from Zimmer’s Mission Impossible 2 supporting his Top 10 Worlds finish in the 2014-15 season:
And in more recent years, Kaori Sakamoto brought Gladiator to her all-important Olympic season (2021-22), coming away with an Olympic Bronze Medal and her first World Championship.
In the 2023-24 figure skating season, plenty of Zimmer-touched scores are alive and well… including:
Top Gun: Maverick, used for the FS of pairs team Plazas/Fernandez
Gladiator, used for the FS of Pairs team Pereira/Michaud
And Sherlock Holmes, used for the SP of Tomoki Hiwatashi
With Dune netting Zimmer his most recent Oscar win… and Dune: Part 2 releasing in 2024… the next additions to skating music history can’t be far away.
