Thin Red Line ...original motion picture soundtrack..music composed by Hans Zimmer

 

Hans Zimmer, trying to avoid war-movie clichés, accompanies the dramatized carnage at Guadalcanal with a weepy and wistful score. Like the Terrence Malick film, the music, with its sad violins and underscored orchestra, invokes a war that is more introspective, a fitting backdrop to the often purple poeticisms in the voice-over narrations. Zimmer provides occasional adaptations to the American folk hymn "Christian Race," but his overall effect is much more otherworldly. Instead of the earthier martial themes associated with warlords or heroes, this is the soundtrack to a melancholy Valhalla, a story seemingly told by battlefield casualties who are already angels. Less predictable is a brief closing track (written by Francesco Lupica) strangely titled "Sit Back & Relax" that sends out a surreal "cosmic beam." --Joseph Lanza (Amazon review)

Hans Zimmer's soundtrack for "Thin Red Line" reminds one of his later work for the movie "Gladiator". At once forboding and ethereal, this soundtrack captures the essence of the island-to-island fighting that characterized the Pacific Theatre of WW2. One never knows what danger lurks behind an innocent palm or in the verdant jungles. In the midst of this are the innocent sounds of Guadacanal's residents singing and the strains of the American folk hymn "Christian Race" that causes one to think of what thoughts the soldiers of both sides might have had about the homes they were so far away from. Hans Zimmer's music creates the mood in the film, and carries it on it's own as a soundtrack. Truly inspired and beautiful.

Thin Red Line

 

Master and Commander - The Far Side of the World...music from the motion picture...by Iva Davies, Christopher Gordon and Richard Tognetti

 

A trio of noted Australian musicians--Iva Davies, Richard Tognetti and Christopher Gordon--composed the film's score. They previously collaborated on "The Ghost of Time," a piece commissioned for the Millennium celebrations in Sydney, which came to the attention of Peter Weir. The director was so impressed, he played the piece on the Master And Commander set throughout production, and he asked its creators to write the music for his movie. 

The score interweaves "Old World" and "New World" music, reflecting the talents and backgrounds of its composers. Iva Davies hails from both pop and classical traditions; Richard Tognetti, one of the world's great violin virtuosos, taught Russell Crowe the ins and outs of the instrument; and film/television composer Christopher Gordon brought orchestral texture to the project. 

Given the period, it comes as no surprise that the score is infused with source music from Bach (Cello Suite) and Mozart, among other great classical composers. Percussion dominates portions of the score. "Drums signal the forward movement of the ship," says Davies, "that it's on a mission. It brings you back into the action." The score's biggest surprise comes with its use of synthesizers. "Peter doesn't make films in the expected way," says Davies, "and for that reason we wanted the score to be not what everyone expected. Peter wanted some scenes to have what I call a kind of 'futuristic' sense"--conveying the idea that these 19th century sailors were cutting-edge explorers. 

 Tracklist:
1     The Far Side Of The World    
2     Into The Fog    
3     Violin Concerto No. 3 "Strassburg" K.216, 3rd Movement    
4     The Cuckold Comes Out Of The Amery    
5     Smoke N'Oakum    
6     Fantasia On A Theme By Thomas Tallis    
7     Adagio From Concerto Grosso Op. 6, No.8 In G Minor, Christmas Concerto    
8     The Doldrums    
9     Prelude (From The Unaccompanied Cello Suite No.1 In G Major    
10     The Galapagos    
11     Folk Medley    
11.a     O'Sullivan's March    
11.b     The Cuckold Comes Out Of The Amery    
11.c     Mother Hen    
11.d     Mary Scott    
11.e     Nancy Dawson    
12     The Phasmid    
13     The Battle    
14     La Musica Notturna Delle Strade Di Madrid (No 6, Op. 30)    
15     Full Circle

                                        Master and Commander

 

Shakespeare In Love: music from the motion picture....composed and orchestrated by Stephen Warbeck

 

Perhaps best known for his soundtrack to Mrs. Brown, Stephen Warbeck's score for Shakespeare in Love follows a similar pattern: Elizabethan themes and light string melodies work together to span a spectrum of moods. An excellent accompaniment to the movie: joyous, lyrical, sweeping, with a nice balance of theme music and incidental music. The same vibrant energy as the movie: throbbing cellos, dancing piccolos, violins by turns weeping and soaring. It stands alone as a 'concert piece' as well as being evocative of an outstanding movie.

Shakespeare In Love