He conducted the orchestra in the famous scene at Albert Hall, during which an assassination is attempted at the moment when the cymbals crash. How effective this ensemble could be in the hands of a master can be heard in the following sequences. In the first one, which was a favorite of Benny's, there is a typical way in which he was able to evoke tension with the simplest of means. This is a page from the orchestra score for Psycho . By repeating this simple rhythmic pattern together with a melodic line in synchronization with the windshield wipers of Janet Leigh's automobile, Herrmann is able to maintain the tension at a frantic pitch.
Clip continues to the murder on the stairway.
A few years after composing this remarkable score, Herrmann left Hollywood. Disillusioned and unable to find work, he went to live in England for which he always had an affinity. Benny's kind of symphonic film music had been superseded by the commercial song, and pop music was being used in place of traditional film scoring. Francois Truffaut, because of his familiarity with the films of Alfred Hitchcock, knew and admired Benny's music. He became the first of the new generation of filmmakers to seek Herrmann out, and he was rewarded with two brilliant scores, Fahrenheit 451 and The Bride Wore Black .