How often do you look for the music credit line in a movie you're watching or want to see? Probably not often if ever, unless the composer is one of the big names. That means, in all likelihood, names such as John Williams (essentially retired) or Hans Zimmer. Throw in a few other names you might recognize, such as Howard Shore (The Lord of the Rings), the late Jerry Goldsmith (Alien, Tora, Tora, Tora, and countless others), and the also late James Horner (best known for Titanic but that's only one of his many memorable scores).

While movies and other categories of (primarily) non-musical programming dominate what we hear and see in our home theaters, it's a good bet that if you've been into this hobby for more than a few years it all began with music. But there's more to music than simply listening to it with no images involved apart from those in our head. How those artists not only sing but also act out a song can be a critical part of the overall experience.

Since the early days of primitive computing, humanity has pondered the possibilities of advanced computers ultimately taking over and rendering their creators irrelevant. Most of you will recognize the quote in the headline as originally spoken in the 1968 film, 2001: A Space Odyssey. It seems more relevant today than ever.

I've commented before on finding interesting posts on YouTube. Though marred by incessant commercial interruptions (I keep my TV's remote close enough to exit the promotions as soon as possible) that service's offerings cover endless topics: sports, history, current events, music, and much more...Several recent British documentaries, for example, covered the hazards found in English homes of different eras...I recently discovered another far more serious entry. Running for 86 minutes, The Maestro and the Cellist of Auschwitz (a German production with subtitles and translations where needed) covers the very different stories of two musicians during World War II...The maestro of the title here was Germany's Willhelm Furtwangler, arguably one of the most storied and feted symphonic and opera conductors of the 20th Century.