Movies for the Ear – Episode 23
September 4th, 2009
“The ear is the road to the heart” reads the Hungarian proverb, and great (and even good) Movies rely on and are the source of so much excellent new music. Here Tomas takes a look at a few current favorites…
Tags: ennio morricone, fernando velazquez, film instrumentals, movie scores, rachel portman, soundtracks, the cider house rules, the orphanage, yo yo ma
Wow, some nice examples there.
Listening to them, the first thoughts that came to my head were of the gentler tracks of Tan Dun’s score for Hero (2002), which is quite different from your examples with its traditional Chinese influence but is in the same classical vein. It’s the kind of music I’d be tempted to apply a fancy word like ‘exquisite’ to, if that didn’t make me feel like a pompous ass. (http://bit.ly/yURkq)
A little more bombastic but not necessarily any worse for that is Howard Shore’s score to the Lord of the Rings films, though it does get a bit carried away at times. A track like The Bridge of Khazad Dum, from the first one, takes you right back to that scene whenever you listen to it. (http://bit.ly/jKchQ – listen beyond the first 20 seconds, which is just the main theme. Best stuff is from 1:06 onwards.)
And another completely different but very effective soundtrack is the one Michael Andrews did for Donnie Darko. It’s a film with a pretty weird plot, but it’s real strength is the mood it conveys, and most of that is provided by the score. It’s as much atmosphere and soundscape as it is music. (One of the more musical: http://bit.ly/B0a1S)
P.S. I’m also a big fan of John Powell and his score for the Bourne films. I know in a lot of ways it’s your typical fast-paced action film stuff, but he does it well–at least when he doesn’t overdo those weird pigeon sound effects. (http://bit.ly/49bl3F)
Thanks that was lovely to listen to. I’m a big fan of the sweeping movie themes like the one from Gladiator myself. Monday is a Holiday in the US so check in Tuesday.
After listening to all style of music, and to see all style of music in the cinema it arrives the conclusion that any more does not have fatal and shining that well touched simple notes but of piano. To the piano it does not have whereupon to give him.
I believe that really the films are few that make a good use of music. Quite often music like a curtain, a bottom is used, instead of to use it artistic like an audio-visual element but and to harness in this way the image. Also it happens that incredible soundtrack can “improve” the deficiencies that the image has of in case, but good soundtrack must be accompanied of a visual narration to the height. Music and image must be elaborated from the first moment, meetings of the hand. “Requiem for a dream” is the example of pure excellence in matter union image-music. The work of Clint Massell is hallucinating, leaves you out of breath but it goes accompanied of an excellent work of assembly of Darren Aronofsky. I love to this Darren, the Darren of the sequences of assembly, exploding the sensorial visual matter to the end, that must be the work of a director, the one not to put a chamber and to leave everything passes, that is not cinema.
“Match point” is shining, simple, also very simple but mortal, “Una furtiva lagrima” at the suitable moments puts of head the Earth feet to you and with this Woody Allen it says to you: “ey king, you are a mortal”.
The final take of “Irreversible” film of Gaspar Noé is my favorite take, this or, is perhaps cruel or easy to put Bethoveen, in musical matter Bethoveen is literally immortal, that man is not human, is of another planet. Profit to transform immortality music and the sense of this take of Gaspar Noé the result is truly wonderful and chilling.
Another film with soundtrack… to call it shining is little, is “Das parfum”… never I saw a soundtrack so shining, intense, fatal… the sequences with music of this film are of a perfection that almost clears the absolute thing, but as I said in some previous chapter, “Das parfum” to try to force a commercial humor at some moments falls and it disfigures and it stops being a good film.
I have the theory of which when we died, the second previous or shared between the life and the death unites music.
My ex- professor of sound at this moment if he will can could listen to my words he shot me a bullet in my head. My ex- professor of sound did tell that the sound go direct to the head and the music direct to the heart and that the perfect sound will it that one that could manage to penetrate in the heart of the spectator, a true challenge but is worth the pain to try it.
Despues de escuchar todo estilo de musica, y de ver todo tipo de musica en el cine llegue a la conclusion de que no hay nada mas fatal y brillante que unas notas sencillas pero bien tocadas de piano. Al piano no hay con que darle.
Creo que realmente son pocas las peliculas que hacen un buen uso de la musica. Muy a menudo se utiliza la musica como una cortina, un fondo, en vez de emplearla artisticamente como un elemento audiovisual mas y potenciar con ello la imagen. Tambien ocurre que un increible soundtrack puede “mejorar” las carencias que tiene la imagen de por si, pero un buen soundtrack debe estar acompañado de una narracion visual a la altura. Musica e imagen deben ser elaboradas desde el primer momento, juntas de la mano.
“Requiem for a dream” es el ejemplo de excelencia pura en materia union imagen-musica. El trabajo de Clint Massell es alucinante, te deja sin aliento pero va acompañado de un excelente trabajo de montaje de Darren Aronofsky. Amo a este Darren, el Darren de las secuencias de montaje, explotando la materia visual sensorial al extremo, ese debe ser el trabajo de un director, no el de poner una camara y dejar que todo transcurra, eso no es cine.
“Match point” es brillante tambien, sencilla, muy sencilla pero mortal, “Una furtiva lagrima” en los momentos adecuados te pone de cabeza los pies en la tierra y con esto Woody Allen te dice: ey rey, sos un mortal.
La toma final de la pelicula “Irreversible” de Gaspar Noe continua siendo mi toma favorita, esta bien, tal vez es cruel o facil ponerte un Bethoveen, en materia musical Bethoveen es literalmente inmortal, ese hombre no es humano, es de otro planeta. Logro transformar la inmortalidad en musica y en el sentido de esta toma de Gaspar Noe el resultado es verdaderamente maravilloso y escalofriante.
Otra pelicula con un soundtrack… llamarlo brillante es poco, es “Das parfum”… nunca vi un soundtrack tan brillante, intenso, fatal… las secuencias con musica de este film son de una perfeccion que casi roza lo absoluto, pero como dije en algun capitulo anterior, “Das parfum” por intentar forzar un humor comercial en algunos momentos cae y se desfigura y deja de ser una buena pelicula.
Tengo la teoria de que cuando morimos , el segundo previo o compartido entre la vida y la muerte lo une la musica.
Mi ex profesor de sonido en este momento si pudiera escuchar mis palabras me pegaria un balazo en la cabeza. Mi profesor de sonido decia que el sonido iba directo a la cabeza y la musica directo al corazon y que el sonido perfecto seria aquel que pudiera lograr penetrar en el corazon del espectador, un verdadero desafio pero vale la pena intentarlo.
“She comforts me when
The candles blow out
The cake has grown mold
But the memories are sweet
The laughter’s all gone
But the memories are mine
The mexican princess
Is out of my life” S.W.
Que bajon…
One of the best yet, Tomas. Looking forward to even more score-themed videos.
‘La Califfa’ has to be some of Morricone’s best work.
This from the same score is especially striking with the piano http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2Ai1EDm61o
I think the chaps hitting all the right notes have to be the likes of James Newton Howard, Alexandre Desplat and Thomas Newman. I don’t think I’ve ever skipped a track on their scores.
Always just as powerful out of the context of the movie.
I’m sure you’ll agree but I’m looking forward to the day Rob scores a movie.
@CJ If you like John Powell, do try to find his epic ‘The Final Race’ from the film Endurance.
Perfect running, strolling in the dark soundtrack
wow!! really impressive theme and well done on that!
i am not into classic music!! well but i can choose if i like or dislike! and i like…
another proof of you being very many-sided!!
keep it up!
Thanks guys for the encouraging feedback! Also, I will check out your recommendations since this was the pilot eps for soundtracks. Let’s see if we can create the best archive in the world together.
If you’re making a series of these, an audio-only podcast version would be pretty cool. I’d say you could put it up on iTunes too, but I don’t know about copyrights.
@Michael Thanks, I’ll be sure to check it out!
Oh hey, you already use iTunes. Way ahead of me! Oh well. Good show.
I love Ennio Morricone and this piece is so moving. I could sit here and listen to it all night.
Thanks Tomas, another brilliant episode!