Classical Music in Movies

20 Greatest Classical Music in Movies

Classical music forms the soundscape of many films. In this list, CMUSE chose twenty of the most unexpected and imaginative uses of classical music in the motion pictures.

1. Melancholia: Tristan und Isolde Prelude by Wagner

2. Black Swan – Swan Lake by Tchaikovsky

3. A Clockwork Orange: Symphony No. 9 ‘Ode to Joy’ by Beethoven

4. Apocalypse Now: ‘Ride of the Valkyries’ from Die Walküre by Wagner

5. 2001: A Space Odyssey: Also Sprach Zarathustra by Strauss

6. Pretty Woman: La traviata by Verdi

7. Platoon: Adagio for Strings by Barber

8. The Hunger: The Flower Duet’ from Lakmé by Delibes

9. Amadeus: Requiem by Mozart 

10. Truly, Madly, Deeply: Sonata for Viola da gamba and Keyboard No.3 in G minor, BWV 1029: Adagio by JS Bach

11. Chocolat: The Gnossiennes by Satie

12. Drowning by Numbers: Sinfonia Concertante: II. Andante by Mozart

13. Behind the Candelabra: Prelude in E minor, Op.28 No.4 by Chopin

14. Elvira Madigan: Piano Concerto No.21: Andante by Mozart

15. Eyes Wide Shut: Musica Ricercata: II. Mesto by Ligeti

16. Tree of Life: Má vlast by Smetana

17. Jean de Florette: Overture to La forza del destino by Verdi

18. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off: String Quintet in E, Op.11, No.5: Menuet Celebre by Boccherini

19. Bagdad Café: The Well-Tempered Clavier by JS Bach

20. Heaven: Spiegel im Spiegel by Arvo Pärt

and more from these links ... 

Biopics of Classical Composers, by ursulahemard. IMDb. Accessed September 11, 2015.
(Note from the creator: Biographical movies about the lives of composers of classical music. Research started in 2007. Work in progress. Any suggestions welcome.)

Classical Music on the Big Screen.  classicfm.com.  Accessed  March, 2019.



Resources:

20 Greatest Classical Music Moments in Movies. CMUSE.  Accessed September 11, 2015.

10 Most Famous Classical Music Pieces (Popular Classical Music Pieces). CMUSE. Accessed September 11, 2018.   



(c)  September 11, 2015.  Updated, September 28, 2018. Tel. Inspired Pen Web. All rights reserved.

Doctor Zhivago (Film) Soundtrack

Movie Sountrack / Film Music

The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1965) of the film Doctor Zhivago. Composed and Conducted by Maurice Jarre, performed by the MGM Studio Orchestra.

Movie information:  Based on the novel by Boris Pasternak. Producer: Carlo Ponti, Director: David Lean, Screenplay: Robert Bolt.  Starring:  Omar Sharif, Julie Christie, Geraldine Chaplin, Tom Courtenay, Alec Guinness, Siobhan McKenna, Ralph Richardson, Rod Steiger, Rita Tushingham




Video Credit:

Doctor Zhivago as played by The Metropolitan Pops Orchestra (1965). YouTube, uploaded by Soundtrack Fred. Accessed February 10, 2018.  Another link leading to all playlist tracks: Here.

Playlist:
1.  As played by The Metropolitan Pops Orchestra (1965)
2.  Main Title
3.  Komarovsky And Lara's Rendezvous
4.  The Funeral
5.  Lara's Theme
6.  Sventyski's Waltz
7.  Overture
8.  Lara's Theme (Waltz Version)
9.  At The Student Cafe
10. Tonya's Theme
11. March Theme-45rpm
12. March Theme-33rpm



Resource:

Doctor Zhivago (Film). en.wikipedia.org.


(c) 2018. Tel Asiado. Written for Inspired Pen Web. All rights reserved.

The Hours (Film) Soundtrack

Soundtrack / The Hours (Film)

The Hours is the original soundtrack album, on the Elektra/Nonesuch label, of the 2002 film of the same name, The Hours, starring Nicole Kidman, Meryl Streep and Julianne Moore. The original score was composed by Philip Glass.

Note: Not all of the music in the film was composed specifically for it: earlier music by Glass, including a theme from his opera Satyagraha, was also featured and credited separately at the end of the film.

Beautiful recording and interpretation of Philip Glass's The Hours, arranged for piano solo by Michael Riesman and Nico Muhly.




The Tracks

1.  The Poet Acts
2.  Morning Passages
3.  Something She Has to Do
4.  I'm Going to Make a Cake
5.  An Unwelcome Friend
6.  Dead Things
7.  Why Does Someone Have to Die? 
8.  Tearing Herself Away 
9.  Escape! 
10. Choosing Life 
11. The Hours


Video Credit:

Philip Glass - Music from The Hours. YouTube, uploaded by coversart. Accessed January 31, 2018. 



(c) 2018.  Tel Asiado.  Inspired Pen Web.  All rights reserved. 

The Windmills of Your Mind (Song)

Song / Down Memory Lane

"The Windmills of Your Mind" is a song with music by Michel Legrand, one of my favourite French composers of film and television scores. The English lyrics of this piece is written by Americans Alan and Marilyn Bergman. The melody was inspired by the theme of Wolfgang A. Mozart's Sinfonia Concertante second movement. The French lyrics (under the title "Les Moulins de mon cœur") was written by Eddy Marnay. The song (with the English lyrics) was introduced in the film The Thomas Crown Affair (1968), starring Steve McQueen and Faye Funaway. It was sung by Noel Harrison, and the film won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in the same year.





In 2004, "The Windmills of Your Mind" was ranked 57 in AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Songs survey of top songs in American cinema.  Above, is a recording of Noel Harrison singing this haunting and moving Oscar winning classic song from the Thomas Crown Affair film.


Video Credit:

The Windmills of Your Mind - Noel Harrison. Youtube, uploaded by John1948JohnD. Accessed January 13, 2018.


Resource:

The Windmills of Your Mind (Song).  en.wikipedia.org.  Accessed JAnuary 13, 2018.



(c)  Tel Asiado.  Inspired Pen Web.  All rights reserved.

Moment to Moment (Song)

Song (Soundtrack) / Down Memory Lane


"Moment to Moment" title tune was written by Henry Mancini and Johnny Mercer. 

Moment to Moment is a 1966 American psychological thriller film directed by Mervyn LeRoy starring Jean Seberg, Honor Blackman, Arthur Hill, Sean Garrison, and Peter Robbins. Jean Seberg is a married woman who has an affair which leads to murder. The movie is LeRoy's 75th and final one. 





Video Credit:

Henry Mancini MOMENT TO MOMENT  (Uploaded by Felixbautista. Sound contents solely and rightfully belongs to, owned and administered by SME - not intended for copyright infringement and exclusively for audio and visual entertainment.  Accessed November 28, 2016.)


Resource:

Moment to Moment Film. en.wikipedia.org.  Accessed November 28, 2018.

Moment to Moment. IMDb. Accessed November 28, 2018.

Mikis Theodorakis

Brief Biography / Film Music Composers

 

Mikis Theodorakis was a legendary Greek composer and political activist best known for writing the iconic, buoyant theme music for the 1964 film Zorba the Greek and for his lifelong struggle against totalitarianism in Greece. 

Michael "Mikis" Theodorakis, Greek songwriter and composer, was a legendary Greek composer and pollitical activist best known fo writing the iconic theme music for the 1964 film Zorba the Greek and for his lifelong struggle against totalitarianism in Greece. He wrote over 1000 songs. He was born on the Greek island of Chios, July 29, 1925 but spent his childhood years in various provincial Greek cities. His father, a lawyer and a civil servant, was from the small village in Crete and his mother, Aspasia Poulakis, was from an ethnically Greek family in what today is Turkey.  He was raised with Greek folk music and was influenced by Byzantine liturgy.

Theodorakis's fascination with music began in early childhood. He taught himself to write his first songs without access to musical instruments. In Patras and Pyrgos he took his first music lessons, and in Tripoli, Peloponnese, he gave his first concert aged 17. He went to Athens in 1943, and became a member of a Reserve Unit, and led a troop in the fight against the British and the Greek right. During the Greek Civil War he was arrested, sent into exile on the island of Icaria then deported to the island of Makronisos, where he was tortured and twice buried alive.

Apology: The video originally shared (Best Melodies, 1975) is no longer available.  Below, some listening pleasures:

Mikis Theodorakis - Strose to stroma sou & Zorba (live,2005). Accessed July 29, 2024.

The very best of Mikis Theodorakis. Accessed July 29, 2024.  

Songs of Struggle by Mikis Theodorakis. July 29, 2024.

Mahler Adagietto from Symphony No. 5 - Soundtrack of Death in Venice (Film)

Classical Music / Movement from a Symphony 


Adagietto, the fourth movement of Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 5 in C# minor, which lasts about 10 minutes, is often considered his most famous composition and is frequently performed of his works. Its orchestration is scored only for strings and harp. It was likely a declaration of Mahler's undying love for his wife Alma, that instead of a letter, the composer expressed it in this movement without a word of explanation. Aside from Leonard Bernstein's beautiful interpretation (Sorry, video is no longer available), other favourite performances include one conducted by Herbert von Karajan (Mahler's "Adagietto")

In the simmering tumult of the Fifth Symphony, the fourth movement, Adagietto ("little Adagio"), is calm, with its gentle sound and restrained mood of sustained string notes and a bit of harp. It has full of longing - beginning quietly with graceful melody before it gradually rises to a soaring climax, then ends peacefully. Likely so, Adagietto is featured in the film Death in Venice, in 1971. In this French-Italian film adaptation of Thomas Mann's novel of the same name directed by Luchino Visconti, Dirk Bogarde stars as avant-garde composer Gustave Aschenbach (loosely based on Gustav Mahler), travels to a Venetian seaside resort in search of repose after a period of artistic and personal stress. Instead of finding peace there, he soon develops a troubling attraction to an adolescent boy, Tadzio (Björn Andrésen), on vacation with his family. The boy embodies an ideal of beauty that Gustave has long sought and he becomes infatuated. However, the onset of a deadly pestilence endangers them both physically and represents the corruption that signifies threats and destruction to all ideals.





Some people have labelled this film as a gay movie. I think it is not. It's a film about an artist who is convinced that beauty does not exist in nature but is created by man. The film exquisitely demonstrates the nature of beauty and not the nature of sexuality. The artist, as he is dying, recognizes beauty in nature in the form of a beautiful teenage boy.  The conflict in the artist is perfectly represented by Gustav Mahler's music in the soundtrack. Beautiful! 


Mahler's Symphony No. 5 


One problem for Mahler's early audiences lies in his long symphonies, scored for huge orchestra. Mahler composed his Fifth Symphony during the summers of 1901 and 1902, spent at his new summer-house in central Austria. At its premiere in Cologne in 1904, the symphony was a complete failure with an audience unprepared for its dramatic power and scope. Yet a century later, the Fifth has become one of Mahler's most popular symphonies.

Mahler's "Adagietto" for Choir:

Mahler's "Adagietto" for Choir.  Arranged by Gerard Pesson. Accentus Chamber Choir. Conducted by Laurence Equilbey.  So beautiful!  Accessed May 10, 2018.



Video Credit:

Death in Venice - G Mahler, Adagietto from Symphony No. 5. YouTube, uploaded by Thomai Pavlidou. Accessed July 7, 2017.

Luchino Visconti Morte a Venecia 1971. (Death in Venice). YouTube, uploaded by Slava Batareykin. Accessed 7 July 2017.

Gustav Mahler-Film "Mort a Venise"-"Morte a Venezia"-"Death in Venice"-Luchino Visconti-(1971).  Youtube, uploaded by bilitis131313. Accessed 7 July 2017.


Resources:

Symphony No 5.  www.laphil.com.  Accessed July 7, 2017.

Symphony No. 5 Mahler.  en.wikipedia.org.  Accessed July 7, 2017.


(c) July 2010. Updated July 7, 2017.  Tel. Inspired Pen Web.  All rights reserved.

On the Waterfront (Film Music)

Film Music / Leonard Bernstein's Symphonic Suite for 'On the Waterfront'

The music score of the multi-Oscar winning film On the Waterfront (starring Marlon Brando), was composed by Leonard Bernstein. It's his only original film score not adapted from a stage production with songs. Bernstein's "Symphonic Suite" is splendidly done with his music representing various themes in the film covering different emotions: violence, love theme, and pained resolution.   

Leonard Bernstein (August 25, 1918 -- October 14, 1990), was an American conductor, composer, author, music lecturer and pianist. The tremendous success of "West Side Story" remained unequaled by his other compositions.  As a composer, he was prolific, writing symphonies, ballet music, chamber music, operas, other orchestral and choral works, chamber music, and incidental music. According to The New York Times, he was "one of the most prodigiously talented and successful musicians in American history."



Film Score Review:

On the Waterfront - Leonard Bernstein.  Movie Music UK. Accessed 17 May 2017.


Trivia (Added 12 May 2018): 

To commemorate the centenary celebration of Leonard Bernstein's birthday, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) presented a 3-day performance, "The Bernstein Songbook: A Musical Theatre Celebration", May 10-12, Sydney Opera House Concert Hall.  'On the Waterfront' "Symphonic Suite" was done at the end of Act I,  just before the Interval.  " Magnificent performance capturing the varied emotions of this multi-awarded film. Artists: John Wilson, Conductor. Lorina Gore, soprano. Kim Criswell, mezzo-soprano, Julian Ovenden, tenor. Sydney Philharmonia Choirs. Mitchell Butel, director.   



Video Credit:

Bernstein, L - Symphonic Suite from 'On the Waterfront'.  YouTube, uploaded by Sonny Beech. Accessed 17 May 2017.  (From the album "New York! New York! Symphonic Dances and Overtures from Musicals".  Performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Conducted by Carl Davis. (c) Royal Philharmonic Masterworks)

Resources:

Leonard Bernstein: On the Waterfront, Film Score. AllMusic.  Accessed 17 May 2017. 
On the Waterfront (Film). en.wikipedia.org. Accessed 17 May 2017.
On the Waterfront. Intrada Label. Accessed 17 May 2017. 
On the Waterfront soundtrack back in contention. BBC Arts  Accessed 17 May 2017.  




(c) 2017.  Tel Asiado.  Inspired Pen Web.  All rights reserved.

Frida (Film) Soundtrack

Soundtrack  of Frida (Film)

Frida is the original soundtrack album, on the Universal label of the 2002 Academy Award and Golden Globe Award - winning film Frida,  starring Salma Hayek, Alfred Molina, Mia Maestro and Ashley Judd. The original music score was composed by Elliot Goldenthal.  The soundtrack features songs by various artists. 

 

Link to:     Frida Kahlo - Soundtrack

Note:  There are 12 videos; wait few seconds for the next one to play.

 

 

 

About Frida (The Film)

Frida is a 2002 American biopic drama film that depicts the professional and private life of the surrealist Mexican painter Frida Kahlo (July 6, 1907 – July 13, 1954). She painted many portraits including self-portraits, and works inspired by the nature and artifacts of Mexico. Inspired by her country's popular culture, she employed a naive folk art style to explore questions of identity, postcolonialism, gender, class, and race in Mexican society. Her works embody the pride of Mexico's national patriotic movement, called Mexicanidad, that pulsed throughout the country following the Mexican Revolution of the early 20th century. Often, her paintings had strong autobiographical elements and mixed realism with fantasy. In addition to belonging to the post-revolutionary Mexicayotl movement, which sought to define a Mexican identity, Frida Kahlo has been described as a surrealist or magical realist. (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frida_Kahlo)

Known as the 'master of self-portraits', her self-portraits often include interpretations of physical and psychological wounds. They are considered among the finest ever created. Most famous self-portrait is perhaps Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird. 

 

The film, directed by Julie Taymor, stars Salma Hayek in her Academy Award-nominated portrayal as Kahlo and Alfred Molina as her husband, Diego Rivera. The movie was adapted from the book Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo by Hayden Herrera. The film generally received  positive reviews from critics, and won two Academy Awards for Best Original Score and Best Makeup among six nominations. (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frida)



Video Credit:

Frida Kahlo (Film) Soundtrack.  YouTube, uploaded by Jaz Ponce. Accessed 11 September 2016.

Film Soundtrack Resource:

Frida (Soundtrack). en.wikipedia.org. 



Photo Credit:

Cover of Frida (Film) Soundtrack.  en.wikipedia.org / Fair Use.  File: Elliot Goldenthal. Accessed 11 September 2016.

(c) 2016.  Tel Asiado.  Inspired Pen Web.  All rights reserved.

Written on the Wind (Song)

Songs / Down Memory Lane


The song Written on the Wind is written by Sammy Cahn and Victor Young. It was sung by The Four Aces during the opening credits of the 1956 American drama film of the same title, directed by Douglas Sirk, starring Rock Hudson, Lauren Bacall, Robert Stack and Dorothy Malone.  The film's score was composed by Frank Skinner. 





Video Credits:

Main Titile - Written on the Wind (Original Soundtrack). Youtube, downloaded by Classic Soundtrack Collector. Accessed September 11, 2016. 


The Four Aces - Written on the Wind (1956). Youtube, uploaded by Catspyjamas1. Accessed July 17, 2017.

"Written on the Wind" Film Opening (Directed by Douglas Sirk). Youtube, uploaded by impuritylevels. Accessed September 11, 2016.  



(c) 2007-2017. Tel Asiado. Written for Inspired Pen Web. All rights reserved.

Carol Film Soundtrack

Soundtrack / Carol  (Film)

Note: Sorry the video with the original sound track (OST) that I posted four years ago, 15th May, 2016, has been deleted.  Below is another video with the opening theme.



Video Credit:

Carter Burwell - CAROL (Opening Theme). YouTube, uploaded by MissBelivet Quirks. Accessed July 28, 2020. 



(c) 2016.  Updated July 29, 2020.  Tel.  Inspired Pen Web.  All rights reserved. 

Cinema Paradiso (Film) Soundtrack

Soundtrack / Music Score of Cinema Paradiso

Composer Ennio Morricone is rightly considered one of the world's greatest living film composers, multi-awarded for musical film scores.


Cinema Paradiso (Italian: Nuovo Cinema Paradiso, for "New Paradise Cinema"), is a 1988 Italian drama film written and directed by Giuseppe Tornatore. The film stars Jacques Perrin, Philippe Noiret, Leopoldo Trieste and Marco Leonardi, produced by Franco Cristaldi and Giovanna Romagnoli. The music score was composed by Ennio Morricone along with his son, Andrea.




 "Nuovo Cinema Paradiso" (The Complete Edition) 1988. 

Tracklist:

1. Cinema Paradiso - Main Theme
2. Maturity - Maturità
3. Love Theme - Tema d'Amore
4. Childhood and Manhood - Infanzie e Maturità
5. While Thinking About Her - Ripensandola
6. Cinema on Fire - Cinema in Fiamme [Extended Version]
7. Love Theme - Tema d'Amore [Version 2]
8. Totò and Alfredo - Totò e Alfredo
9. After the Destruction - Dopo il Crollo [Extended Version]
10. Love Theme for Nata - Tema D'amore per Nata
11. Visito to the Cinema - Visita al Cinema
12. First Youth - Prima Gioventù
13. Four Interludes - Quattro Interludi
14. Runaway, Search and Rescue - Fuga, Ricerca e Ritorno
15. From American Sex Appeal to the First Fellini
16. Love Theme - Tema d'Amore [Version 3]
17. Projection for Two - Proiezione a Due
18. Totò and Alfredo - Totò e Alfredo [Version 2]
19. Bicycle Theme - Tema della Bicicletta
20. Visito to the Cinema - Visita al Cinema [Version 2]
21. Maturity - Maturità [Version 2]
22. For Elena - Per Elena
23. Cinema Paradiso [Final] 



Video Credit:

Ennio Morricone ● Nuovo Cinema Paradiso (Full Album) ● [HQ Audio]. YouTube, Uploaded by Cinema Hotel. Accessed  May 15, 2016.


Resource:

Cinema Paradiso (Film). en.wikipedia.org.  Accessed April 22, 2016.



(c) 2016. Tel Asiado.  Inspired Pen Web.  All rights reserved.   

Barry Lyndon Film Soundtrack

Movie Soundtrack

Barry Lyndon is a 1975 British-American period drama film. It's written, produced, and directed by Stanley Kubrick, based on the 1844 novel The Luck of Barry Lyndon by  William Makepeace Thackeray.  The movie recounts the exploits of a fictional 18th-century Irish adventurer.

It stars Ryan O'Neal, Marisa Berenson, Patrick Magee, and Hardy Kruger.  Exteriors of the film  were shot on location in Ireland, England and Germany.




Tracks:

1. Sarabande Main Title (Georg Friedrich Handel) (0:00)
2. Women of Ireland (Sean O'Riada) (2:40)
3. Piper's Maggot Jig (Traditional) (6:53)
4. The Sea Maidens (Traditional) (8:37)
5. Tin Whistles (Sean O'Riada) (10:44)
6. British Grenadiers, Fife and Drums (Traditional) (14:28)
7. Hohenfriederberger March (Frederick the Great) (16:43)
8. Liliburlero, Fife and Drums (Traditional) (18:00)
9. Women of Ireland, Harp (Traditional) (19:08)
10. March from Idomeneo (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) (20:04)
11. Sarabande Duel (Georg Friedrich Handel) (21:37)
12. Lilliburlero (Traditional) (24:52)
13. German Dance No.1 In C-Major (Franz Schubert) (25:47)
14. Sarabande Duel (Georg Friedrich Handel) (28:05)
15. The Cantina from Il Barbiere Di Saviglia, Film Adaptation (Giovanni Paisiello) (28:56)
16. Cello Concerto E-Minor, Third Movement (Antonio Vivaldi) (33:28)
17. Adagio from Concerto for Two Harpsichords And Orchestra in C-Minor (Johann Sebastian Bach) (37:21)
18. Piano Trio in E-Flat, Film Adaptation of the Opus 100 2nd Movement (Franz Schubert) (42:38)
19. Sarabande End Titles (Goerg Friedrich Handel) (46:56)



The film won four Oscars in production categories at the 1975 Academy Awards. Although having had a modest commercial success and a mixed reception from critics on release, Barry Lyndon is today regarded as one of Kubrick's finest films.


Video Credit:

Barry Lyndon - Sountrack. YouTube, uploaded by Igor Peixoto.  Accessed March 15, 2016.



Resource: 

Barry Lyndon. en.wikipedia.org.


(c)  March 2016.  Tel. Inspired Pen Web. All rights reserved.

And This is My Beloved (Song)

Song / Down Memory Lane 

This lovely favourite song "And This is My Beloved" was in the 1953 musical Kismet. It is credited to Robert Wright, composer-lyricist, and George Forrest, writer of music and lyrics for musical theatre. Like all the music in that show, the melody was based on music composed by Russian composer & chemist Alexander Borodin, String Quartet in D. (Here, performed by Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. YouTube, accessed September 11, 2018.) 


 

Vic Damone and Ann Blyth beautifully sang "And This is my Beloved" in the 1955 Hollywood classic film two years after it was first staged as a musical of the same title, Kismet (Fate). The movie clip / music belongs to MGM.  Kismet (1955) is an American musical film released by Metro-Golwyn-Mayer.  It is the fourth movie version of Kismet—the first was released in 1920 and the second in 1930 by Warner Brothers - and the second released by MGM. This 1955 film is based on the successful 1953 musical Kismet, while the three earlier versions are based on the original 1911 play by Edward Knoblock.  This film stars Ann Blyth, Howard Keel, Vic Damone, and Dolores Gray, and directed by Vincente Minelli.  (Sorry, the video of Ann Blyth and Vic Damone became unavailable, 9 Dec 2020. Instead, here's another one: Mario Lanza sings "And This Is My Beloved", with Jess Alexander Choir - here.) 

Before and after 1953, the same melody had been used  for a song and recorded by other producers. In 1946, "And This is My Beloved" was used for a song credited to William Egvick, Bert Reisfelt and Alec Wilder entitled "Spring Magic."  This was recorded by Charlie Spvak and his Orchestra.  In 1956, a version by the great tenor Mario Lanza became popular.  In 1962, Sergio Franchi sang it when he discovered Norman Luboff singing on Sunday Night at the London Palladium.  A favorite guest of Ed Sullivan, Franchi sang it on the February 4, 1968, which was broadcast by CBS, and recorded on his 1964 RCA Victor album as The Exciting Voice of Sergio Franchi.   

Lyrics:  "And This is My Beloved"

Dawn's promising skies
Petals on a pool drifting
Imagine these in one pair of eyes
And this is my beloved.

 

Strange spice from the south
Honey through the comb sifting
Imagine these on one eager mouth
And this is my beloved.

 

And when he speaks, and when he talks to me
Music! Mystery!
And when he moves, and when he walks with me
Paradise comes suddenly near.

 

All that can stir, all that can stun
All that's for the heart's lifting
Imagine these in one perfect one
And this is my beloved!
And this is my beloved!

 

 

Resources:

And This is My Beloved (Song). en.wikipedia.org. Accessed Sept 26, 2014.

Kismet (1955 film). en.wikipedia.org.



(c) September 2014. Updated September 11, 2018. Tel. Inspired Pen Web.  All rights reserved.  

Mozart Music in Movies and TV (Earlier Post)

Films featuring the music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

The list of Mozart music in films shared here is not exhaustive. Our aim is to impart awareness especially of those music you've heard unaware it's Mozart's.  The popular "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik" appears in more than one film, so does Clarinet Concerto, an all-time favourite.


Adagio of Gran Partita, Piano Concerto No. 20 (2^nd movement), Requiem, and 1^st movement of both Symphonies Nos. 25 and 29.

After Peter Shaffer's 1984 film Amadeus, directed by Milos Forman, many people who aren't into classical music "turned on" to Mozart. To Mozartians and Mozart admirers, the general initial reaction about the movie was one of disgust since it was not historically accurate, but that's Hollywood. On the other hand, the good side is that some people who didn't know much about him were so taken by Amadeus the film enough to pursue more information about this child prodigy and his music. Mozart's music in the film Amadeus include Adagio of Gran Partita, Piano Concerto No. 20 (2^nd movement), Requiem, and 1^st movement of both Symphonies Nos. 25 and 29.

Here's a great website to the various music in the film, Amadeus. 

Film:  Amadeus

Man, Woman and Child (Film) Soundtrack

Soundtrack / Man, Woman and Child (Film)


Man, Woman and Child is a 1983 American drama film directed by Dick Richards and written by Erich Segal and David Z. Goodman. The soundtrack is composed by George Delerue. It is based on Erich Segal's book of the same name. The film stars Martin Sheen (Profesor Robert Beckwith, Blythe Danner (Sheila Beckwith). The film was released by Paramount Pictures on April 1, 1983.

The film's  Main Theme / Plaisir d'Amour - Here.

The Plot.  Professor Robert Beckwith (M. Sheen), the man - a sensitive, intelligent family man who, in one brief and innocent affair long past (10 years ago), fathered a child he never knew but whose sudden appearance threatens his happy family life. Blythe Danner is Sheila, the woman - a strong loving wife and mother whose deep love and commitment are stretched to the breaking point by the unexpected arrival of her husband's illegitimate son. Crafted in the tender tradition of "Love Story," what follows is an evocative, emotionally-charged movie about a typical American family whose deep love is shaken, tested and ultimately reaffirmed.


Man, Woman, Child (1983) - Ending Scene. (Sorry, I had to delete the complete film video, it became unavailable for copyright reason.) Uploaded by Pedro Carrasco. Accessed March 12, 2020.



Georges Delerue (12 March 1925 – 20 March 1992) was a French composer who composed over 350 music scores for cinema and television. He won numerous important film music awards, including an Academy Award for A Little Romance (1980), three Cesar Awards, an numerous more, including four additional Academy Awards for Anne of theThousand Days (1969), The Day of the Dolphin (1973), Julia (1977), and Agnes of God (1985). The French newspaper Le Figaro named him "the Mozart of cinema" ... the first composer to win three consecutive Cesar Awards. Georges Delerue was named Commander of Arts and Letters, one of France's highest honours. 


Video Credit:

Music from "Man, Woman and Child (film) - Soundtrack by Georges Delerue.  YouTube, uploaded by soundtracks2007. Accessed July 21, 2018.  (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Suite composed, orchestrated and conducted by Georges Delerue, 1983)

Resources:

Georges Delerue. en.wikipedia.org. Accessed July 21, 2010

Man, Woman and Child (Film). en.wikipedia.org.  Accessed July 21, 2010.  



(c)  July 2010.  Tel.  Inspired Pen Web.  All rights reserved. 

The Piano (Film) Soundtrack

Soundtrack / The Piano (Film)

 

Screenwriter: Jane Campion 

Composer: Michael Nyman 

 

Beautiful music! I'm in awe of the melody. 

Mute pianist, Ada arrives in 19th Century New Zealand, with her daughter and beloved piano, as the reluctant participant in an arranged marriage. Of all her belongings her husband abandons only the piano, selling it to his illiterate neighbour, Baines. Unable to bear its certain destruction, Ada strikes a bargain to earn back her piano despite the unusual conditions attached. A tour de force in filmmaking, The Piano received three Academy Awards including Best Actress (Holly Hunter), Best Supporting Actress (Anna Paquin) and Best Original Screenplay (Director Jane Campion). It stars Holly Hunter, Harvey Kietel, Sam Neill,  and then 11-year old Anna Paquin in her first starring role.

The original soundtrack is on the Virgin Records label, of the 1993 Academy Award-winning film The Piano. The original score was composed by Michael Nyman. The main theme is based on a traditional Scottish melody titled "Gloomy Winter's Noo Awa."  Despite being called a "soundtrack", this is a partial score re-recording, as Nyman himself also performs the piano on the album, whereas the film version is performed by lead actress Holly Hunter. The music is performed by the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Nyman with Michael Nyman Band members.







Video Credit:

Music from The Piano (film) - Soundtrack by Michael Nyman.  YouTube, uploaded by liebedian. Accessed  September 24, 2009.

The track listing (20 titles):

1.  To the Edge of the Earth
2.  Big My Secret
3.  A Wild and Distant Shore
4.  The Heart Asks Pleasure First
5.  Here to There
6.  The Promise
7.  A Bed of Ferns
8.  The Fling
9.  The Scent of Love
10. Deep into the Forest
11. The Mood That Passes Through You
12. Lost and Found
13. The Embrace
14. Little Impulse
15. The Sacrifice
16. I Clipped Your Wing
17. The Wounded
18.  All Imperfect Things
19. Dreams of a Journey
20. The Heart Asks Pleasure First/The Promise

Resources:

The Piano (Film). en.wikipedia.org.  Accessed September 24, 2009. 


The Piano (sountrack). en..wikipedia.org.  Accessed September 24, 2009. 




(c)  2009.  Tel Asiado.  Inspired Pen Web.  All rights reserved. 

The Impossible Dream (Song)

Song / Down Memory Lane

"The Impossible Dream" - from the film Man of La Mancha

"The Impossible Dream (The Quest)" is a popular song composed by Mitch Leigh, with lyrics by Joe Darion. It is the most popular song from the 1965 Broadway musical Man of La Mancha and is featured in the 1972 film of the same name starring Peter O'Toole, Sophia Loren, and James Coco. (refer video below). 

The song, which is awarded the Contemporary Classics Award from the Songwriter's Hall of Fame, is first sung by Don Quixote as he stands vigil over his armor, in response to Aldonza (Dulcinea)'s question about what he means by "following the quest."  It is reprised partially three more times – the last by prisoners in a dungeon as Miguel de Cervantes and his manservant mount the drawbridge-like prison staircase to face trial by the Spanish Inquisition.

Tchaikovsky's None but the Lonely Heart

Tchaikovsky Music / Song 


In late 1869, Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky composed a set of six romances for voice and piano, Six Romances, Op. 6.  The last of these songs, TH93:6, is one of his best-loved songs, the melancholy "None but the Lonely Heart." It is a setting of Lev Mei's poem "The Harpist's Song," which in turn was translated from Johann Goethe's Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship.   

Tchaikovsky dedicated "None but the Lonely Heart" to Alina Khvostova. The song was first performed by Yelizaveta Lavrovskaya, a Russian mezzo-soprano, in Moscow, 1870, following it with its St. Petersburg premiere the following year during an all-Tchaikovsky concert hosted by Nikolai Rubinstein.

The music is used in the film of the same name, starring Cary Grant and Ethel Barrymore, directed by Clifford Odets.   

This loved composer experienced a significant inner conflict in his personal life. The story of his desperate letter, in which he wrote that he would never compose another symphony, has become a symbol of Tchaikovsky's internal struggle, but then after writing these words, he went on to compose this poignant and successful Symphony No. 6 (Pathétique), considered one of his greatest works. This illustrates the composer's emotional instability and the conflict between his intense love for music and the struggles in his personal life. Perhaps, it is this undeniable deep emotions and contradictions that helped him create musical masterpieces full of emotion and introspection.  

 

Here's  Tchaikovsky's "None but the Lonely Heart", interpreted by the late violinist Isaac Stern. Uploaded by DaMenke. Accessed February 14, 2014.




Here's another link of "None but the Lonely Heart", interpreted by violinist Daniel Lozakovich (arranged by Elman).