# What is the best Bernard Herrmann film score?

> Bernard Herrmann's string glissandos defined Hitchcock's greatest films, and his other scores span from Citizen Kane to Taxi Driver. Which score stands as his defining achievement?

*By YPB Team · Published June 4, 2026 · https://youpick.best/ranking/what-is-the-best-bernard-herrmann-film-score*

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## Current results (1 vote)

1. **Psycho** — score 1000/1000
   The 1960 Hitchcock thriller score famous for the shrieking strings of the shower scene.
2. **Vertigo** — score 779/1000
   The 1958 romantic thriller score using the habanera and spiral motifs to convey obsession.
3. **Citizen Kane** — score 419/1000
   The 1941 Orson Welles masterpiece score, one of the most influential in cinema history.
4. **Taxi Driver** — score 326/1000
   The 1976 Martin Scorsese score mixing bebop jazz with brooding, desolate urban soundscapes.
5. **The Day the Earth Stood Still** — score 326/1000
   The 1951 sci-fi score pioneering the use of theremins and electronic instruments in film.
6. **Fahrenheit 451** — score 326/1000
   The 1966 Truffaut dystopian score using lyrical strings to mourn the loss of literature.
7. **Mysterious Island** — score 326/1000
   The 1961 adventure film score with lush romantic themes and exotic orchestral color.
8. **The Man Who Knew Too Much** — score 300/1000
   The 1956 Hitchcock thriller score featuring the Oscar-winning song and tense orchestral passages.
9. **Obsession** — score 210/1000
   The 1976 Brian De Palma romantic thriller score heavily influenced by Vertigo's style.
10. **Cape Fear** — score 210/1000
   The 1962 psychological thriller score of relentless menace, later reused by Scorsese.
11. **Journey to the Center of the Earth** — score 210/1000
   The 1959 adventure score using organ and exotic instruments to evoke subterranean wonder.
12. **North by Northwest** — score 1/1000
   The 1959 Hitchcock chase thriller score driven by a propulsive fandango-inspired main theme.

Tags: film score, movie music, soundtracks, bernard herrmann