The film music I've tried them with has been deemed (implicitly only) politically incorrect!

Any hint of patriotism is frowned upon. Walton's Spitfire Prelude And Fugue, or Goldsmith's Air Force One may be accepted, but only with a huge pinch of salt. Heart on sleeve emotional scores only reinforce conservative values. Rio Conchos is sort of OK but it "sounds like a western." Ben Hur?, well, it's a bit of a laugh. Religion!

The recipients of my compilations are true friends, sensitive, intelligent people (with a cynical edge), and... I don't know what to do.

with friends like these, who taunt you with pop music, you must reciprocate with pop oriented scores. Never give up!

I'm talking about something like Pi, from Clint Mansell. The actual original score is only about 10 minutes, with a bunch of electronica groups like Orbital contributing songs to the soundtrack. The score by Mansell is pretty pulse pounding stuff, and they just may like it.

JNH's Grand Canyon also comes to mind for some reason.

or you might try something pretty recognizable, like Dances With Wolves.

BTW -- why are they picking on your music as politically incorrect? Ben-Hur is religious?

what do they say about Handel's Messiah for God's sake!!?

I don't think it's impossible to find film music these guys might like, but I don't believe in pushing water where it won't naturally flow.

My guess is that the more modern or stranger sounding it is, the more they might get into it, so no Steiner or Korngold but The Day the Earth Stood Still and Beneath the Planet of the Apes. Nothing with a tune, nothing uplifting or noble, just noise, the moodier, the noiseier, the weirder the better.

And if that's not the stuff you like or want to send off to represent film music, then send them gift certificates so they can buy more of the same crap they like to listen to and be done with it.

I think where they're coming from is that they don't equate entertainment with Art. They can have novels by Dostoievsky on there shelves but no John Grisham. I believe that Grisham for them is the literary equivalent of all film music.

But pop music is OK when it's indie, because it's not corporate culture.

A work's title or origin shouldn't change how you respond to it if you like it. I mean I can see eating chocolate covered ants and balking after learning what they were, but if they were good, I'd soon again have them on the menu.

Your drinking buddies are obviously prejudiced against anything called film music (or most kinds of pop culture it seems) no matter what it is and how much they might enjoy it if they gave it the chance.

I have political opinions [I'm for a single world government run by a dictator with absolute power who just so happens to be me, Lou Goldberg. When I think about it, every other political solution just falls short. Lou-ism is the only ism I can enthusiastically and whole-heartedly get behind.], but life is too brief to let politics get in the way of having a good time. Your friends are taking everything WAY too seriously. And if they were in power, we'd all be digging ditches for the common good rather than enjoying ourselves. The next time you're all drunk, sit them down in front of Keaton or the Marx Brothers (if you can) and give these guys a good laugh--they could use it.

Now getting away from these specific guys to the topic in general, when dealing with normal joes who don't like films or are unfamiliar with film music, I suggest the Gerhardt series and the Herrmann Phase 4 albums--they helped me get into film music as music and have converted many others. They're still the quintessential work horses IMHO.

NP: Princess Mononoke (Joe Hisaishi)

After all, Mozart and Hayden wrote music to accompany court festivities, Stravinsky and Handel composed music to accompany boat rides and fireworks. Why should music written to accompany a movie have to be of a lesser quality than that written to enhance a dinner?

NP: Patrick Doyle: Mary Shelley's Frankenstein
(Epic)