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Everything posted by Henry B
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So HFR 3D standard is the format in which The Hobbit was actually filmed, right, and the IMAX version is up-converted from that? Can anybody speak more to these formats, and which might be ideal?
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Sometimes I wish John were more...innovative....
Henry B replied to BLUMENKOHL's topic in JOHN WILLIAMS
Yep. I think his conservatism has to do with being so successful and staying in the same business for so long. I get the sense that his life is very orderly and repetitive. Don't get me wrong, he's the consummate musician and worker, but I think this is just something that tends to happen when someone lives a very fortunate life. Williams is wealthy, well liked, well connected, and generally just in a great place. The only tragedy in his life that seems to set him apart was the early death of his first wife, Barbara Ruick. But it's been many years since then. Williams today - well, I don't think it's that he's spoiled, exactly, as he worked very hard to get to where he is, but I think he's complacent. I don't think he worries about the future, or about the hardships of the world. Not too often, at least - but I did get a sense of it with A.I. That score makes me feel like Williams knows something profound, like he understands the ephemeral nature of life. It's been ten years since his music made me feel that way. What he writes now is technically excellent, but not thoughtful. It's simply a continuation of a tradition. -
Conan The Barbarian by Basil Poledouris (Intrada 3CD Complete)
Henry B replied to Jay's topic in General Discussion
That's Intrada's press release style. It's always rather annoying to read.- 47 replies
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Conan.
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Okay, but regardless of whatever the cinematic emphasis was, the Ring featured in the very title of the films and in all sorts of media.
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That's like saying "I don't want to see a movie about Darth Vader because he already died in Return of the Jedi." The Ring is one of the most recognizable images from LOTR, so they're throwing it in to get people's attention.
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"NO REASON" to use the Ring in marketing for this movie? Come on, surely you can think of one.
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1. A.I. Artificial Intelligence 2. Star Wars 3. The Empire Strikes Back 4. Raiders of the Lost Ark 5. Schindler's List 6. Hook 7. Return of the Jedi 8. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom 9. Memoirs of a Geisha 10. E.T. the Extra Terrestrial
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That moment when you're watching Lincoln...
Henry B replied to BLUMENKOHL's topic in General Discussion
Two grandsons of President John Tyler, who served 1841-1845 (twenty years before the Civil War), are alive today. -
As it should.
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That's a phrase of Giacchino's Star Trek theme in the usual "Enterprising Young Men" orchestration, so those hoping to see a few seconds of new music will be disappointed.
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Howard Shore's An Unexpected Journey (Hobbit Part 1)
Henry B replied to Jay's topic in Tolkien Central
At this point, digital sales will probably outnumber physical sales, so the number of discs is less important. People are also less likely to listen to the score in full and in order.- 4,548 replies
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Neither did I. This is just a clarification of what Plan 9 composed, since people have been crediting them with just the melody, meaning of course a single line of notes that can be sung by a single person. Since the dwarves do more than sing in unison, the melody-only credit isn't appropriate.
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I just mean that, with the "mm" vocals in the beginning and the notes sung under the main melody of the song, there are chords to the song. The chords/harmony inform the way Shore orchestrates the song, although he doesn't always stick to them.
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I think Plan 9 deserves a little more credit than just the melody of the song, because the piece is sung harmonically. There's at least one lower line, mostly in counterpoint to the melody at fifths and octaves, if you know music theory.
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Howard Shore's An Unexpected Journey (Hobbit Part 1)
Henry B replied to Jay's topic in Tolkien Central
Perhaps expanded albums will be released for all three films, followed by a Doug Adams book with a disc or two of the remaining material.- 4,548 replies
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There is no good reason to buy those.
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News on the recut.
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I would challenge this notion that Williams' music has become more harmonically complex. Certainly there are standout pieces, mostly action, which fit that bill. But on the whole I think the trend has been toward harmonic simplicity. If we go with the Revenge of the Sith example, there's the impossibly dense action music of "General Grievous," in which Williams got lost conducting. Yup, that's definitely complex, but look at pieces like "Anakin's Betrayal." The music is relentlessly diatonic, basically straightforward harmonically. We all know "Padme's Ruminations" takes some cues from modern film music. What about the second half of the piece? It's almost a twelve-tone composition, but the texture is very clear and monophonic. Everything is orchestrated in unisons. "Enter Lord Vader." Mostly diatonic writing, orchestral unisons, wall of sound stuff. "Palpatine's Teachings." A minute and a half of sound painting on a drone. "The Immolation Scene." A tonal, straightforward tragic piece. "Anakin's Dream." Kicks off with a nice, old fashioned violin solo, which I don't think has been heard in Star Wars since the concert arrangement of "Princess Leia." "Anakin vs. Obi-Wan." Certainly not dense and inaccessible, although the xylophones are there. Very emotionally honest music. I could go on to look at other scores, but I think Revenge of the Sith provides plenty of examples. The only problem, for me, is that while Williams is as emotional and dramatic as ever, I don't think he's... as good as he used to be. I feel that most of the old music actually offered more in compositional and orchestral subtleties. I suppose some stuff from War Horse comes close to the emotional heights of the 70s/80s music. But the dense, dissonant, inaccessible action writing, at this point, seems to be his strongest suit. And yes, I'm not using the complete score cue titles. I just want to make it more accessible for readers.