“An American Dream” (ABC News Theme)

This orchestral rendition of the ABC News theme has been used by the network on some very sad occasions. It was used on GMA and World News Tonight the day after lead anchor Peter Jennings died in 2005. It was also used on the 9/11 anniversary coverage in 2002 and 2003. While the emotionally moving music was appropriate for these occasions, it wasn’t intended to be used on air. It is an expanded version of the ABC World News theme played by a concert orchestra. Gary Anderson of Score Productions arranged and orchestrated the work. He also conducted the Nashville orchestra playing the music. It was recorded in 2001. In an interview with BMI, Score Productions president Bob Israel said that the suite, “has a very strong American identity: it’s modal, neither major nor minor in origin, and lends itself perfectly to an American aesthetic known in concert circles through the music of Aaron Copeland and Roy Harris, which conjures up images of broad vistas of the American landscape. Even in its original form, it is a purely American sound. It’s not atonal or abstract, but emotional.”

Score Productions – An American Dream

Courtesy of the Museum of Television Production Music.

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