In the 1950s, Hammer Film Productions, a small British filmmaking
company, introduced the world to a new genre of motion picture. Referred
to by some as "horror," by others as "fantasy," Hammer films had a
unique look and feel that many other studios would later attempt-and
fail-to capture. Hammer films also had a unique sound. For although the
studio was small and the budgets limited, those involved in making the
Hammer films recognized that the musical score was just as important as
the set, the actors, and the script in telling the story. Consequently,
Hammer Films Productions recruited the best musical talent to make its
films come alive. Those artists and the work they did are chronicled
here in careful detail by Randall D. Larson. From the studio's fledging
days, through its great successes of the 60s and early 70s, Music from
the House of Hammer offers an inside look at how the "Hammer sound" was
developed and nurtured.