Where would films be without soundtracks? As we all know, the choice of music has a huge impact on how we react to what we are seeing on screen from the swelling sounds that help bring tears to the eye, even when you know you’re being emotionally manipulated, to the creepy strains that raise the hair on the back of your neck in horror films.

In its latest concert Music from the Movies, Sydney Philharmonia Choirs put together a program of choral music from films, ranging from existing classical masterworks like Mozart’s Requiem used in Amadeus, to specially composed soundtracks such as Ennio Morricone’s famous score from The Mission. Some of the pieces are exceptionally well-known, others were much less familiar, particularly when performed in concert without the accompanying film, but it all came together in a well-considered program.

The 400 choristers ready for the start of Music at the Movies. Photo courtesy of Sydney Philharmonia Choirs

Featuring 400 voices from the Festival Chorus and the young adult ensemble VOX, together with the Sydney Philharmonia Orchestra, it proved an uplifting evening, with conductor Elizabeth Scott an elegant presence on the podium, encouraging the massed forces...