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| CD Reviews: Bad Education and The Unsaid |
| Posted By: David Coscina, Steven A. Kennedy on March 15, 2005 - 10:00 PM |
CD Reviews: Bad Education and The Unsaid
La Mala Educación (Bad
Education) ****
ALBERTO IGLESIAS
Sony SK 93551
26 tracks - 59:20
In his latest film, Pedro Almodóvar explores the taboo subject
of sexual abuse of young boys by priests. Almodóvar is one of
the few directors who invites you into the worlds of bizarre people who
end up being transformed in unique ways. The director makes you
uncomfortable, but has such a visual flair that you are drawn in to his
characters. His composers have the difficult job of trying to soften or
bridge the gap between his vision and the viewer.
Alberto Iglesias has been Almodóvar's composer of choice for his
last five films. The opening titles of Bad Education (21 score tracks -
46:07) have Iglesias recreating the sound of Herrmann from North By Northwest mixed in with a
little Psycho. There's more
interesting material in one minute of this piece than one often finds
in an entire score. The string writing in "Cine Olimpo" may remind you
of Franz Waxman, before it moves into a soaring melody that's pure
Iglesias. He has a way of writing wonderfully compact melodic ideas
filled with an intensity unequaled by many of his contemporaries.
"Noche Oscura" is another example of a small amount of material being
stretched into something emotionally tense. This building and release
of tension is trademark Iglesias and here it again takes on more of a
Herrmann-esque quality.
There are several sources pieces appearing in the film that also make
the disc. One is the 1963 recording of "Quizás, Quizás,
Quizás" by Sara Montiel that has to be one of the most sultry
recordings this famous little Fares song has ever had. She is also
heard in another song recorded that year, "Maniquí Parisien." A
gorgeous newly-recorded performance of a Rossini "Kyrie" gives a little
contextual music and it does not feel at all out of place in its
positioning on the disc. Also appearing is a little 1967 pop rock
number, "Cuore Matto," sung by Little Tony. Finally, there's an
unusually poignant performance of Mancini's "Moon River" (in Spanish)
with a young boy, Pedro Martínez, singing with guitar
accompaniment.
Iglesias was nominated at 2004's World Soundtrack Awards for the
"Soundtrack Composer of the Year," and his score was nominated in the
Best Composer category. There is a lot to admire on this album, and if
you are attracted to noir-ish film music this is worth your
attention. -- Steven A. Kennedy
The Unsaid ****
DON DAVIS
Prometheus PCD-156
19 tracks - 53:33
For fans of Davis' seminal Matrix
scores, the music for this 2003 Andy Garcia thriller will be a bit of a
surprise, and a pleasant one at that. Unlike the muscular action
writing found in the aforementioned trilogy, or the eerie avant garde
textures contained in the composer's horror fare, The Unsaid is a dramatic, emotive
score.
"Main Title" introduces the prominent thematic material that Davis will
vary throughout the course of this beautiful work. The melody brings to
mind the folk harmonies found in much of Thomas Newman's scores. But
make no mistake; this is not second-generation film music. Davis has
his own compositional technique and this comes through in the score.
Much of the music centers on piano and string orchestra, the latter
playing sordino in the opening tracks, lending a soft, ethereal tone.
Standout tracks include "The Opening," with its plaintive oboe
presentation of the main theme, and "Kyle Denial" containing expansive
block string/piano chords, a technique found in 20th century Polish
composers' works such as those of Kilar and Gorecki.
Speaking of which, "Tommy Turbulance" and "Harry's Little Secret" do
have some unsettling string parts that suggesting that all is not well
in this story. The latter of the two contains effective lower string
writing that recalls Ennio Morricone's classic The Thing. This serves as a nice
contrast to the abundant lyricism on a majority of the tracks.
There is one minor issue I have with the score. "Kyle's Little Secret"
sounds as though the director fell in love with The Shawshank Redemption. A
foreboding four-note alternating motif in the bass/celli accompanied by
a bi-tonal violin/piano line gets a little too close for comfort. While
this motif does show up in other tracks on the disc, it is presented in
a way that is fortunately much less evocative of Newman's theme. And
knowing that most composers have to deal with the "temp score" hurtle,
it doesn't completely mar the overall enjoyment and originality of
Davis' work.
I always find that the best film scores are the ones that have their
own narrative logic, such that they invite the listener into the world
they've been written to accompany. To Davis' credit, his score summons
up enough images that one who hasn't seen the film can still appreciate
the dramatic arc of the music on this soundtrack. By the time the
listener gets to "Tommy and Mommy," Davis has built things to a fever
pitch with a thunderous variation of the main theme that shows off the
composer's orchestration prowess.
The soundtrack presentation by Prometheus is first rate. Great sound,
an excellent performance by the Utah Symphony Orchestra, generous
running time, and most of all, an opportunity to hear Davis' full
compositional range. -- David Coscina
MailBag@filmscoremonthly.com
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Today in Film Score History:
October 14 |
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| Benh Zeitlin born (1982) |
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| Bill Justis born (1926) |
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| Jay Chattaway records his score for the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode “Cardassians” (1993) |
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| Jerry Goldsmith begins recording his score for Star Trek: First Contact (1996) |
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| Leonard Bernstein died (1990) |
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| Recording sessions begin for Bronislau Kaper's score for Two Loves (1960) |
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| Richard Markowitz’s score for The Wild Wild West episode “The Night of the Glowing Corpse” is recorded (1965) |
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| Thomas Dolby born (1958) |
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