# "Citizen Kane" scores big

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/composers-datebook-550176/citizen-kane-scores-big
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/composers-datebook-550176/citizen-kane-scores-big.md
Podcast: [Composers Datebook](https://stenobird.com/podcast/composers-datebook-550176)
Published: 2026-05-01T05:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/mgln.ai/e/5/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/play.publicradio.org/podcast/o/composers_datebook/2026/05/01/datebook_20260501_128.mp3
Audio file: https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/mgln.ai/e/5/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/play.publicradio.org/podcast/o/composers_datebook/2026/05/01/datebook_20260501_128.mp3
Processing state: not_requested
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/composers-datebook-550176/episodes/citizen-kane-scores-big
Duration seconds: 120

## Resource

Synopsis For American conductor and composer Bernard Herrmann, 1940 was a busy year. On the East Coast, he had been appointed chief conductor of the CBS Radio Symphony; on the West Coast, he was busy in Hollywood, scoring Citizen Kane for director Orson Welles. Herrmann was 30 at the time and recalled: “I was given twelve weeks to do my job. I worked on the film reel by reel, as it was being shot and cut. This way I had a sense of the picture being built and of my own music being a part of that building. Many sequences were actually tailored to match the music.” The finished product was released to the public on today’s date in 1941, and was an instant success, with The New York Times review noting “the stunning manner in which the music of Bernard Herrmann has been used.” Although nominated for Best Picture and Best Musical Score, the film didn’t win either Oscar in 1941. No matter — for many film makers, film critics, and film fans, Citizen Kane rates No. 1 among the greatest films ever made. Music Played in Today's Program Bernard Herrmann (1911-1975): Citizen Kane film score (opening); National Philharmonic; Charles Gerhardt, conductor; RCA CD 707

## Actions

- request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/composers-datebook-550176/episodes/citizen-kane-scores-big/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
- read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/composers-datebook-550176/citizen-kane-scores-big.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed.

## Transcript

Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.