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R.I.P. Michael Kamen


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Film composer Michael Kamen has passed away at the age of 55.

You can read about it here.

He will be missed. I think I'll listen to Robin Hood - Prince of Theives and the Die Hard scores now.

Neil

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Shame. I liked Band of Brothers and the often-criticized X-Men scores. I still need to hear Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, but I hear it is very good.

All in all, Rest In Peace, Mr. Kamen. I am sure you will be missed by more than a few.

- Marc, sad to hear such news.

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Too bad.

As for his work, I can think of nothing of his that I have, at least nothing memorable.

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I haven't collected his music, but his score for 'The Iron Giant' touched me. His quiet battle with multiple sclerosis was one of those acts of human fortitude that we all too often overlook until they have their term.

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Oh no! His music was wonderful - and especially meaningful to me. In middle school, it wasn't until we played a (rather silly) watered-down version of Robin Hood that I really fell for the (French) horn and realized that's what I really wanted to do. :-(

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:cry:

I am saddened to hear of his death and at such a young age too. I am now listening to Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and will listen to Band of Brothers next in his honor.

Kathy

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This is a sad day for film music and dare I say, music in general. Mr. Kamen was such a versatil composer, and did such a great work... I loved his two Concertos (for Saxophone and for Electric Guitar and rock Band) and hisn Symphony, as well as many of his film scores. I will never forget the first time i listened to Robin Hood, thinking that one day, when John Williams wouldn't be here anymore, this guy would be able to fill in for this kind of brassy, bigger than life kind of thing. It's particular sad that this never came to hapen.

My thoughts are with his surviving family -- wife, two daughters and father.

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It is indeed a sad day for film music. While I recently became a fan. His work has always been there, I just never noticed before two or three years ago. May he rest in peace, knowing that he has given something to the film score community that will live on for ever more. His memory never will die.

Respectfully,

Jerome

I too think I am going to go and listen to one of his scores, I think I will listen to American Symphony, in his memory. :cry:

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I think he's the first top film composer to die since I can remember, at least from the time I've been a fan of film music, although Miklós Rósza died in 1995, I did not know him at the time, and I don't know if he was stiff an active composer, at least in cinema. So, I guess Michael Kamen is the first one, for me at least. Again, this is so sad. I wonder what were his current projects.

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I very much enjoyed the work that he did in the HBO series From the Earth to the Moon. I wish that had been given a score release instead of a cd of songs.

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That really is just too sad. My favorite of Kamen's is Mr. Holland's Opus.

Whenever we lose a composer of any worth, it's always a big loss. In the past decade we had lost, Mancini, Delerue, now, Kamen.

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Kamen did some great work a few years back on the Band of Brother's score.

I was not the biggest fan of his work, but I did respect him and his music.

What really makes this sad is the fact he died relatively young.

RI.P. Mr. Kamen!

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Very sad news. :|

One obscure piece of music of Kamen's that I found really amusing was for the prelude to Jerry Seinfeld's I'm Telling You For the Last Time where Jerry holds a funeral for all of his jokes before he delivers them for the last time on stage. Thought I should mention that, since, to me, that piece and scene was quite memorable.

I admit, I was never a huge fan of his, but I always respected his work and knew I was going to hear something good when I saw his name in an Opening Titles for a film or TV show. This is also the first death of an active composer passing away abruptly in the time that I knew of them.

R.I.P. Michael Kamen.

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This news is quite shocking. His scores for Robin Hood, Leathel Weapon, Band of Brothers, and The Iron Giant are great. One of the finest film score writers in the bussiness.

To Mr. Kamen. :|

Justin -Glad now that Kamen was able to do Open Range.

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Sad news indeed. Never bought any of his albums, but have listened to many of his themes from interenet radio. Too young to die. Makes you appreciate what you have even more.

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Have I come here to only spot this sad news? Oh dear! :(

Well, death and its ultimateness is the saddest thing about living. Although I have only heard the most well-known stuff from Michael Kamen, some dozen scores incl. the Band of Brothers and Robin Hood, I will miss his input to the world of muses very much. The world of modern film scoring will feel one big shard more incomplete without him. I mean my words; and if I live long enough to see some other big names passing away, I'll miss them too, regardless of whether they were my favorites or not, because this world is better with them in it.

I'll listen to the Band of Brothers score tonight; what an irony that I bought the score only last month...

Mr. Kamen, hope you've left for a better place.

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Now here was one of the top few guys who you would see their name on the movie poster and decide it would at least be worth it to see how the music sounds. There are only a few guys I can say that about, so he must have done something right!

I remember especially his asian/action music for Lethal Weapon 4. And Open Range, though my girlfriend rolled her eyes at the heart on the sleeve-ness, stayed with me. I found myself remembering the theme only yesterday, having not heard it since the premeir.

If anyone missed Baron Munchhausen, listen and be amused and impressed. Some great action music and baroque songs.

This is the first really big composer of the 80's 90's composer generation to pass, and I do feel that the shockwaves indicate just how strong and important a thing film music is to listeners, even though film music is sometimes seen a lower art form. I think we can guage that all that is in the past now that we realize the effect the loss of one Kamen has on the world. Let's not take it for granted anymore. That's a lost message in these parts, because I'm sure none of us do, but there are many out there who need a wake up call.

And I can't help but feel in a way that the art of symphonic scoring, across the board, has lost because of this. There are so few left who have "it" the way the top 5 guys do. "It" isn't anything that can be cloned or replicated like a Britney Spears. "It" is a very precious substance and to see Kamen go makes me even more determined to keep toward the goal in acheiving his ideals. His talent surely came from his warm spirit, and that is the true rarity.

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Another great movie Kamen did was "Splitting Heirs" with Eric Idol, John Cleese and Rick Moranis. Very comedic score. A score that makes you laugh. Especially when Moranis is rollerskating theough a bank. Great "sexual farce" music as well. A modern cousin to Marriage of Figaro.

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I'm very shocked indeed. I certainly did'nt expect to read that when i visited the site today. Although, the only work of his that i owned on disc was his wonderful Highlander score from the mid 1980's (eventually released in the mid 1990's after such an extremely frustrating long time). It was only because of the other 2 crappy movies, that some of it was eventually released onto a CD. The wonderful sequence of scenes where McCleod and Ramirez are running on the beach and they end up going full pelt along the beach and then the ariel shots of them swordfighting on the cliff edge. It was a score i loved when i was teen because Highlander was a movie i watched a lot. Everyone has to go sometime. But at least he's done a lot of worthwhile things with his life when he was here :(

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:cry: Honestly, I can say that I do not have any of his music, but I have seen the movies that he wrote the music for, such as X-Men and he did a great job. Life is a precious gift and music is even more precious. I feel very sad for the music world today. He was right up thier with Williams, Shore, Horner, Zimmer, on my list he would be five. Well he is in a better place now and maybe he is writing music up thier. You never really know. It is sad that the world has lost another great composer, was just thinking about how I would feel if Williams passed so abruptly. My prayers and thoughts are with his family and friends.

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It is sad that the world has lost another great composer

Well i'm sure they also said that when Mozart died. But there is always fresh talent just on their heels. Fear not. New talent steps forward.

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I've been visiting this board for some time now and have just joined to express my sincere sadness to hearing the news of Michael Kamen's untimely death. I loved Mr Holland's Opus. It has the most wonderful exhilarating music. The kind of stuff that really gets you inspired. Michael, you will be missed.

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Very sad news indeed. My thoughts are certainly with his family.

My only Kamen score is 'Licence To Kill' but have you heard his orchestration of the 'Gun Barrel' music for the film's opening? I believe it's the BEST any Bond composer has produced for this signature moment in the films. Brilliant.

A composer who will be dearly missed.

Thank you, Michael.

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Tragic news. Michael Kamen brought a wonderfully classical air to many of his works, which do rank as some of the best of the last two decades. He was a true Rennaisance man.

Robin Hood was my first exposure (consciously, at least) to his works, followed by another period score that was nearly as good: The Three Musketeers. The second piece on that album--I think it's entitled "D'Artagnan"--is a magnificent example of both the classical feel and the kinetic power he brought to his music. I don't know of any other composer in the ranks right now who could present the precise millieu he was able to accomplish.

We'll miss you, friend.... :(

- Uni

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Michael Kamen was one of the first composers that I really "dug into", Williams and Goldsmith I always regarded as you know, the holy grail of composers. Kamen was to me, a young (I never knew he was 55 which I have kicked myself for, I just viewed him as a young composer with a very bright future ahead of him) I never really thought of him as a really popular and widely known composer(which he evidently was) except for the fact that I saw him a composer for lots of movies albeit not necessarily good movies but movies nonetheless. I believe that X-Men was my first non-Williams soundtrack that I bought, which I enjoyed very much. He brought a very defined style to the music which suited him well. Later I found out he was chosen by Spielberg to score Band of Brothers which I have only seen one episode of but one was enough to hear his outstanding opening titles theme. Watching the opening credits you could hear me scream "MICHAEL KAMEN?!?!?!?!" and that was that.

It saddens me greatly that he is dead (I never knew he died until I read this post) along with the fact that I never really read up on him as I have done with other composers. He will reside now as one of the greatest (and one of my favorite) film composers of our time. May he rest in piece.

If nothing else, seek out Death Camp from the X-Men score, it seems suited for this.

:( Band of Brothers theme

-Max-

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This is really shocking news. Though never a personal favourite, I always felt that Michael Kamen was a composer of true merit, someone capable of consistently producing worthy scores. This is a tragic development and I'm sure his presence in the world of film music will be missed :(.

CYPHER

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