Michael Beek selects the highlights of recent film and television music releases
April round-up
A notable entry in the annals of European film music history is Finnish composer Armas Järnefelt’s original score for the silent romp Song of the Scarlet Flower (1919). This resplendent recording by Jaako Kuusisto and the Gävle Symphony Orchestra is a faithful restoration of the work, based on the composer’s original manuscripts. Though at the time the technicalities of synching the music to the picture caused Järnefelt a headache, his music manages to go beyond mere musical decoration – so often the case with silent scores. This is lushly orchestrated music with dramatic flourishes that occasionally paint quite an emotional picture. (Ondine ODE 1328-2D ★★★★★)
The sound of silents continues in Chaplin’s Smile, a celebration of Charlie Chaplin the composer in what is his 130th birthday year. These beautiful violin transcriptions, performed by Philippe Quint, cover over four decades of the iconic artist’s screen capers – from The Kid (1921) to A Countess from Hong Kong (1967). That he himself composed the original music for his films – either at the time of production or by returning to the early silent classics and re-scoring them – is testament to his singular artistic vision. Like the ubiquitous ‘Smile’, this is sweetly lyrical music that wears its heart on its occasionally tattered sleeve. (Warner Classics 9362490180 ★★★★★)
While perhaps more frill than thrill, director Josie Rourke’s opulent Mary Queen of Scots was crowned with a score by Max Richter. It’s a rich palette – strings, percussion, harp, cor anglais, glass armonica, choir – but the music is never over-embellished. The propulsive rhythm of the main theme (introduced in ‘The Shores of Scotland’) leads you to expect something akin to a coronation anthem, but what materialises is a slightly humbler tune for solo cor anglais. Besides Celtic harp and some martial percussion, Richter steers clear of a particularly period sound, but delivers a robust and well-considered dramatic score that manages to feel both classic and contemporary. (DG 483 6039 ★★★★)
Worlds collide, too, in Benji Merrison and Will Slater’s music for Dynasties, the BBC’S most recent blockbuster natural history series. As is the trend, this natural drama is imbued with all the hallmarks of big screen peril, humour and heartache, which the composers achieve with aplomb. Each animal family has its own story and thus inspires its own score, and Merrison and Slater go at them with a large toolbox of musical ideas that bring together orchestral forces, instrumentalists, vocalists and an array of synthetic rhythms and hues. This is small-screen music at its bigbudget best, generously served in an attractive two-disc presentation. (Silva Screen SILCD1589 ★★★★)
There’s nothing small about Varèse Sarabande, a US label that has been at the forefront of film soundtracks for four decades. To mark its recent 40th anniversary it put out a two-disc celebration set (40 Years of Film Music, 19782018) charting some of its very best releases. They could easily have filled four discs – one per decade – such are the treasures in the vast catalogue, but this remains a magnificent snapshot. It’s a dazzling who’s who of composers and films, taking you from golden age heroes like Korngold, Alex North and Bernard ★errmann right through to modern masters such as Michael Giacchino and John Powell. (Varèse Sarabande VSD00008 ★★★★)