Mark Isham

Even by his prolific standards -- nearly a hundred film scores in the last two decades -- this has been a busy season for Mark Isham, who wrote the music for four high-profile fall releases: Terry George's "Reservation Road," Frank Darabont's "The Mist," "In the Valley of Elah" (his second collaboration, after "Crash," with his old friend Paul Haggis) and "Lions for Lambs" (his third time composing for Robert Redford).

Isham conjures a mood of restrained mournfulness for "Reservation Road" and "Elah," both of which deal with parental grief.

"At first, I thought the scores would end up similar," Isham said. But the films, in both form and content, suggested different approaches.

For "Reservation Road," which opens with its catalyzing tragedy, "the story is one of healing and aftermath," he said.

"It's easy to know where to start; the question was where we end up. The storytelling is quite traditional, so it's a more traditional score, with themes for particular relationships and emotions, whereas in 'Elah,' the themes are more general, almost philosophical."

For Haggis' film, he said, "A big decision was to keep the music organic, with very few electronic elements." The emotional moments are often quiet, even wordless, he noted, and "the score has to let them resonate."

"The key was to understand Paul's decision to move to a more intimate style," Isham said.

"In 'Crash,' the emotions are so thrashing and violent that the score had to almost float above the film. Here the score has to pull you in so that you're right next to the characters. It was an interesting balance: intense emotions done in a minimalist way."

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