Morricone Conducts Morricone in DTS

By: Randall D. Larson
Date: Thursday, April 20, 2006

EuroArts, distributed in the US by Naxos, has released an impressive Ennio Morricone concert DVD in all-region NTSC, playable on any DVD player worldwide. Featuring 16x9 widescreen and DTS 5.1 surround sound (also in Dolby 5.1 and PCM Stereo), Morricone Conducts Morricone was filmed at a 2004 concert of the composer's film music held in Munich, Germany. The repertoire includes material from ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST, THE UNTOUCHABLES, 1900, THE GOOD THE BAD & THE UGLY, A FISTFUL OF DYNAMITE, ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA, THE MISSION, as well as perhaps lesser-known films such as THE SICILIAN CLAN, LOVE CIRCLE, MADDALENA, and H2S.

An entire segment devoted to Sergio Leone's films is especially of note; the performance of the panflute player in "Cockey's Song" from ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA is amazing to watch. Soprano Susanna Rigacci isn't an Edda Dell'orso (Susanna is a little lower in register) and she's a little stiff in appearance, but her full-blooded renditions of the main themes from ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST and A FISTFUL OF DYNAMITE, which segues into an incredible arrangement of GOOD, BAD & UGLY'S "The Ecstasy of Gold," are nonetheless quite remarkable.

Another segment featuring music from political thrillers is especially intriguing to watch, especially the harsh and angular theme from WORKING CLASS GOES TO HEAVEN, with its strident synth notation and severe rhythm; the transition from that piece into the sonorous lyricism of de Palma's CASUALTIES OF WAR is quite striking.

The music is more or less faithful to its original usage in the films, with some new arrangements, such as the marvelous theme from MADDALENA which has become a little more electrified and expansive with the use of choir instead of a soloist on the voices; and the Main Theme from THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY has been transposed for symphony orchestra, sans choir, instead of the wild and eclectic orchestration it had in the film, but in this guise it carries an elegance and resonance that is quite compelling and impressive.

Seeing the music from these films, much of which have been legendary elements of contemporary and "silver age" film music both in Europe and America, is an amazing experience. As a conductor, Morricone is intense and focused, achieving a formal performance from the Müncher Rundfunkorchester supported by a large choir.

A couple of segments include brief, random video clips from the films that were projected during the concert, although these are not necessarily in sync with what the music is playing at those moments.

An array of camera angles brings the viewer into the midst of the orchestra, allowing to listener to observe the performers and instruments as they create the music and really focus on understanding and appreciating the music for what it evokes as music (as opposed to as cinematic support). We're better able to see and detect the music's various nuances and flavorings, while audio options including PCM, Dolby 5.1, and DTS 5.1 really serves the music well, giving it spacial dimension and a broad sonority.

The DVD booklet includes a notable tribute to Morricone, aptly titled "The Picasso of Film Music," which also briefly describes the creation of the concert.