Which Soundtrack Tracks Feature In The We Ll Always Have Paris Scene?

I geek out over classic movie music and that whole 'we'll always have Paris' moment in 'Casablanca' is basically a two-track show: the song 'As Time Goes By' (Herman Hupfeld) as played and sung by Sam, and the film’s orchestral underscore by Max Steiner. Sam’s piano is diegetic—you can see him play it—so that intimate, raw piano-and-voice version is what gives the memory its warmth. Then Steiner’s arrangements take that melody and spread it across strings and soft horns to make the scene feel larger and wistful, shifting the emotion from a private moment to something cinematic.

People sometimes forget that earlier in the film other pieces like 'La Marseillaise' appear, but for the Paris memory it’s definitely the 'As Time Goes By' melody and the score’s subtle reprises that do the heavy lifting. I still hum that piano line on rainy days.

My inner composer gets delighted every time the 'we'll always have Paris' exchange plays out because it's a textbook example of leitmotif work. The primary musical element is 'As Time Goes By'—Herman Hupfeld’s melody—which functions both diegetically (Sam at the piano) and non-diegetically (Steiner’s orchestral treatment). In practical terms the scene transitions from intimate piano voicings—sparse left-hand bass, a simple right-hand melody—to a warmer string pad and gentle woodwind countermelody that underline nostalgia.

Steiner often reharmonizes the song for film scoring purposes: he’ll add richer chromatic inner voices, slow the harmonic rhythm, and spread the melody across violins and clarinets to heighten the bittersweet mood. That technique lets the same tune carry multiple narrative roles—memory, regret, and tenderness—without introducing new thematic material. So if you’re listening closely, you’re really hearing two “tracks”: Sam’s piano/vocal performance of 'As Time Goes By' and the orchestral reprise/underscore derived from that same theme. For me, it’s a masterclass in saying so much with so little, and it still gives me chills.

Simple and heartfelt: the scene lives and breathes on 'As Time Goes By' plus the orchestral score that lifts the song into memory. Dooley Wilson's Sam plays the tune on piano in the cafe moments that define Rick and Ilsa’s past, and Max Steiner’s score later transforms that melody into warm strings and soft textures to match the emotional shift when they revisit Paris in conversation. You might also notice small score motifs—soft woodwinds or a muted horn—that echo the main theme, but there aren’t any competing songs during that exchange.

If you grab most soundtrack editions of 'Casablanca' you’ll find Sam’s takes and several Steiner cues listed separately, which shows how the filmmakers reused the same musical idea to tell both present and remembered moments. Personally, it’s the simplest musical choice done absolutely right, and it always makes me smile.

That Paris line always hits me—musically and emotionally it's all about 'As Time Goes By' and the way Max Steiner frames it. In the little Paris flashback montage and in the later airport scene the song—written by Herman Hupfeld—is the dominant thread: you hear Sam (Dooley Wilson) playing it on piano in the cafe and then an orchestral variant carries the memory when Rick and Ilsa talk about Paris.

Beyond that central tune, there's the subtle Max Steiner underscore: gentle strings and soft woodwinds that weave motifs of longing under the vocals. The film score isn't cluttered with pop tunes; instead Steiner uses little instrumental cues to color the mood, so when the dialogue says 'we'll always have Paris' the music shifts from diegetic piano to non-diegetic orchestral memory. For context, the soundtrack releases typically list both Sam’s piano/vocal takes of 'As Time Goes By' and several Steiner cues that are basically variations on that theme. It always makes me a little teary—and oddly grateful for how a single song can anchor an entire relationship on film.

The short, practical list: the scene is dominated by 'As Time Goes By' — sung by Sam (Dooley Wilson) with a piano accompaniment — and it's supported by Max Steiner’s orchestral score cues. In other words, you hear the diegetic piano/vocal performance of 'As Time Goes By' as the centerpiece, and then Steiner’s non-diegetic underscore (small string and horn motifs, brief score cues) adding emotional color under and around the song.

Soundtrack releases of 'Casablanca' typically credit the vocal track as the main piece connected with the scene and then include a handful of brief orchestral tracks or "cues" that correspond to the film’s dramatic beats in the same sequence. So if you want the exact tracks on an album, look for Dooley Wilson’s 'As Time Goes By' plus any Steiner cues titled as love theme, reprise, or similar short score entries — those are the bits you hear during the 'we’ll always have Paris' moment. Personally, I still get a little misty when that piano starts up.

If you’re thinking of the famous "we’ll always have Paris" moment in 'Casablanca', the music that anchors that entire emotional beat is basically built around one song: 'As Time Goes By'. In that scene the tune functions both diegetically (Sam is at the piano, the song is being played and sung in the world of the characters) and thematically (it’s the musical memory that ties Rick and Ilsa’s relationship together). Dooley Wilson’s voice is what you hear in the film — his performance is what emotional weight the scene rests on — and the arrangement is intentionally spare: piano-led, intimate, and drenched in nostalgia. Herman Hupfeld wrote the song back in 1931, but the way the film uses it turns it into a motif that reappears in different guises throughout the picture.

Beyond the vocal piano performance, there’s also Max Steiner’s orchestral underscore weaving under certain beats of the scene. It's not a separate pop song so much as cinematic underscoring: lush strings and subtle horn lines that push the emotional arc without stepping on Sam’s rendition. On most soundtrack releases you’ll find the Dooley Wilson vocal track listed as the principal item connected to this scene, and then one or more instrumental cues that correspond to the flashback or the swelling emotional moments — those are Steiner’s work. Sometimes soundtrack albums will label them generically (little cues, reprises, love theme, etc.), so if you look at a track list for 'Casablanca' it will often show 'As Time Goes By' alongside several short orchestral cues that are the score fragments you hear around the song.

If you dig into soundtrack variations, you’ll notice that later recordings and re-releases sometimes include alternate takes, piano-only mixes, or orchestral-only versions of the same theme. Film lovers often quarrel about which version is "the" one, but for the 'we’ll always have Paris' beat, it’s always Sam’s piano-and-voice version plus Steiner’s underscoring in the background that make the moment timeless. I love how that simple combination can still give me goosebumps whenever I watch it.