Origins In 1968, the CBC commissioned McLaren Advertising to create a new promotional tune for
Hockey Night in Canada. McLaren contracted Dolores Claman, a classically trained composer who had produced a number of successful jingles, promotional songs and television theme music, to write the tune. Claman had never seen a
hockey game in person and wrote the tune imagining
Roman gladiators wearing skates. "It just arrived in my head", she recalled several decades later. Claman said she wrote it to reflect the narrative arc of a hockey game from the arrival on the rink, to the battle of the game, to the trip home, "plus a cold beer." But she says it took nearly a decade, when her son's friends from school came to her door to meet her, for the tune's popularity to fully sink in.
Arrangements The theme has been updated several times: • Mid-1980s—A
big-band version of the theme was used. •
1988—An updated "rock" version of the theme, the version most closely associated with the era when the program was titled
Molson Hockey Night in Canada on CBC and . • This version was edited in the early 1990s to remove the big-band interlude from the main-title theme. This version was used by the CBC for a few seasons, and by Radio-Canada until
La Soirée du hockey was discontinued in 2004. • In the mid-1990s, another edited version of the main theme was introduced, which replaced the sponsor beds with other music previously played over introductory highlights. This version, along with other musical cues introduced in 1988, were used by the CBC until the end of the Molson era in 1998. This cut of the main theme (but not the other cues) was reintroduced at the start of the
2004 playoffs and used until 2008. •
1998—After
Labatt's took over as title sponsor, a new, mostly synthesized version of the theme was introduced. This was used for two seasons. •
2000—Another "big-band"-style version, with a significantly different sound compared to previous versions, was introduced. It is believed that this version was dropped quickly due to complaints by Claman. •
2001—A new synthesized version was introduced. This version was used in the opening until spring 2004 (when the 1988 version was reintroduced), •
2009—
Neil Peart arranged and recorded a rendition that is used during NHL broadcasts on both TSN and RDS. In the spring of 2007, CBC introduced a new set of
musical cues for commercial-break
stings and other transitions based on the Claman theme. It is believed that CBC continues to own most or all of the above-noted recordings even though it no longer has rights to use the theme itself. CTV's Rick Brace said that a new arrangement will be prepared for TSN/RDS broadcasts. According to Brace the network, "will have to re-orchestrate it... It will still be the same music but it will be a different arrangement. It will be exactly the same tune."
Legal action In November 2004, Dolores Claman and her publisher initiated legal action against CBC for breach of copyright, alleging, among other things, that theme was used on other CBC programs, and on
HNIC rebroadcasts outside Canada, without consent.
2008 licence renewal negotiations with CBC CBC's most recent licence to use "The Hockey Theme" expired at the conclusion of the
2008 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Claman's publisher issued a statement on June 4, 2008, claiming that the CBC had informed them it would not be renewing its rights to the composition.
CBC Sports head
Scott Moore denied the reports, saying that CBC wanted to keep the tune and that negotiations on a new licence deal were still ongoing. However, Moore also suggested that the window to reach an agreement was closing, as the broadcaster would need time to find a replacement if negotiations fell through. Under CBC's backup plan, a nationwide contest for Canadian composers would be held to submit a new theme. Published reports indicate that the impasse was caused by CBC's offer to buy the theme outright for significantly less than Claman's representatives believe it to be worth, as well as the complications relating to the ongoing lawsuit. The publisher presented CBC with a number of solutions including a licence virtually identical to the one in place for the better part of the previous ten years. This calculated to between $400 and $500 per three-hour game. One exception was that "as a gesture of goodwill" the publisher and Claman were offering that there be no increase in fee for the first two years. The CBC had until the end of June 6, 2008, to accept this offer but, instead, announced their contest to find a new theme. While negotiations resumed late on June 5 and continued the following day, in the early evening of June 6, CBC announced it could not reach an acceptable agreement, and would proceed with a contest for a new theme in collaboration with music label
Nettwerk, with the winner receiving $100,000 and half of all lifetime royalties (CBC would presumably have full ownership of the theme thereafter). The CBC said it had offered nearly
$1 million for perpetual rights to the piece, but that Copyright Music was asking for $2.5 to $3 million for those rights. According to Claman, the CBC had offered her $850,000. The new theme was revealed at 7:00 EDT, on
Hockey Night in Canada, on October 11, 2008. The winner was
Alberta music teacher Colin Oberst with his song,
"Canadian Gold".
Acquisition by CTV On June 9, 2008, CBC offered to resume negotiations under mediator
Gord Kirke. "We feel this song is worth one last attempt to save. Canadians are passionate about its association with Hockey Night in Canada," said Moore. However, by mid-afternoon, Claman's representatives announced they had sold the broadcast rights in perpetuity to
CTV, to be used on
TSN,
RDS hockey broadcasts and possibly on CTV's coverage of
Olympic hockey at the 2010 Winter Olympics. Shortly after the announcement, the CBC filed applications to protect what appear to be three versions of "The Hockey Theme" as
sound trademarks. These applications were abandoned on December 30, 2009. CTV opted not to use the theme during the Olympics and instead used
I Believe, the theme song of the network's coverage. "The Hockey Theme" was played as part of the
2010 Winter Olympics closing ceremony; as the ceremonies were aired internationally, the composition received rare worldwide exposure. A new arrangement was used by CTVglobemedia at the 2008
MuchMusic Video Awards, with a rock arrangement which was played as
Jason Spezza of the
Ottawa Senators appeared on stage to help present the award for MuchVibe Best Rap Video Award. The new version of "The Hockey Theme" was recorded by members of the
Toronto Symphony Orchestra and leaked by
Canadian Press in a video first posted September 24, 2008. TSN and RDS lost the rights to the NHL's national broadcast package to
Rogers Media after the 2013–14 season. TSN issued a statement saying that the network "will continue to use 'The Hockey Theme' in our hockey broadcasts moving forward." TSN's regional broadcasts of the
Ottawa Senators,
Toronto Maple Leafs,
Winnipeg Jets, and RDS' French-language telecasts of the
Montreal Canadiens still continue to use "The Hockey Theme." After TSN assumed the rights for the English-language telecast of the Canadiens for the 2017–18 season, TSN also used "The Hockey Theme" for these broadcasts as well. ==See also==