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Hans Zimmer writes a new piece, donates earnings to a fund for the Aurora victims


Matt C

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Zimmer wrote and recorded a song called "Aurora" in dedication to the victims, families and friends of the tragic shooting.

https://watertowermusic.moontoast.com/estore/embed/1336

All proceeds go directly to the victims, you can donate as little as 10 cents or as much as $25.

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Well, it's largely just some of the melody from "A Dark Knight" from the TDK soundtrack, just slowed down on synth choir. It appears in TDKR, but it doesn't originate from TDKR. I appreciate the cause, but this isn't really good music.

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The reason probably being that Williams doesn't consider two notes a theme.

Au contraries my dear. Jaws. ;)

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Well, Williams' "Elegy for Cello and Piano" (later "Elegy for Cello & Orchestra") was written as a token of empathy for the funeral of one of the Hollywood Recording Arts Orchestra's violinists' two children. But I think this is a tremendously dignified gesture of Zimmer, and one that shows great heart and compassion.

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Williams' theme to Schinder's List & Hymn to the Fallen > Zimmer's Aurora.

Well that's obvious!

As for this piece, you can listen to it here:

[media=]

I found it strange he chose to use Bane's material (especially considering he's the terrorist villain of this film) for his tribute. I wish he composed something original for them instead of just reworking his Batman material for the choir. It comes off as a bit lazy, if you know what I mean. But I must admit, the choral rendition is rather nice with some pleasant work with the boy soprano. And it is a very nice gesture. It just would have been far better had he written an original piece for them. But as it is, it's probably the best piece of music to have come out of all of Zimmer's contributions to the Batman trilogy.

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Williams' theme to Schinder's List & Hymn to the Fallen > Zimmer's Aurora.

Well that's obvious!

As for this piece, you can listen to it here:

[media=]

I found it strange he chose to use Bane's material (especially considering he's the terrorist villain of this film) for his tribute. I wish he composed something original for them instead of just reworking his Batman material for the choir. It comes off as a bit lazy, if you know what I mean. But I must admit, the choral rendition is rather nice with some pleasant work with the boy soprano. And it is a very nice gesture. It just would have been far better had he written an original piece for them. But as it is, it's probably the best piece of music to have come out of all of Zimmer's contributions to the Batman trilogy.

Nag nag, whine whine bitch bitch!

Urgh.... You really are the worst Kanadian so far!

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I know, I know. I just thought it was a fun moment to point out a retort of that nature. ;)

Nice gesture. Hans is a good bloke.

Karol

I've always known that. Hans is a great guy with a wonderful personality.

Nag nag, whine whine bitch bitch!

Urgh.... You really are the worst Kanadian so far!

Hey, as I said before, I really appreciated the gesture. And its a wonderful thing to do. But I just thought it would have been really nice to hear Zimmer flesh out a nice new piece for the incident. That's all.

I enjoyed the piece though.

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Bought the track. Off iTunes, because the Watertower version is of lower quality (quite strange). Not that there is anything special (it's OK) about the music, but I just support that kind of initiative.

Karol

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You are aware that it was conceived and recorded within days? It took John Williams few weeks to compose something as "simple" as his NBC theme (the football one, anyway). Writing is a much more complicated process than we can imagine. That Zimmer did something like this and even went to London to specifically record it is quite admirable, I think.

As to the content, yes it is based on TDK material. But those films are, unfortunately, connected to this tragedy. Whether what's tasteless or not, it's up for debate. Besides, remember that Williams Elegy for Cello and Orchestra is based on theme from Seven Years in Tibet as well. These sort of things happen all the time. I don't see anything wrong with that.

Karol

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The two notes are a character motive. Not the theme

And even taking just the ostinato, there's a third note in it. Otherwise, it would be a direct ripoff of Schifrin's Sol Madrid, incidentally.

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A few days short of Goldsmith's Air Force One turnaround.

Which reminds me of another great JG quote: 'And hey; I ran into Randy after Air Force One. But with Randy, I could say, ‘Randy, I’m sorry about that Air Force One. It’s not you; it’s that Nazi prick.’ But Randy never should have done that picture. It was dumb casting on their part, but Randy wanted to try something different. What’s next?'

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You are aware that it was conceived and recorded within days? It took John Williams few weeks to compose something as "simple" as his NBC theme (the football one, anyway). Writing is a much more complicated process than we can imagine. That Zimmer did something like this and even went to London to specifically record it is quite admirable, I think.

Let's face it: even if he had had more days to compose that cue, the final piece would have been quite similar to what we have.

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This is one of the reasons why I will never get the tone of the JWFAN board....even a topic like this is filled with what I consider 'smart-ass' and inappropriate comments. There, I said it. Feel free to add another smart-ass response to that as well.

In any case, while it's a nice gesture by Mr. Zimmer, donation is not really in the 'cultural sentiment' of people here in Norway when it comes to tragedies like this. It's more a matter of volunteering for things and to express one's symbolic solidarity through various arrangements, as exemplified through the traumatic shootings we had here last year and everything that followed in its wake.

The piece itself is wonderful. Someone mentioned Arvo Pärt; I think that's a good comparison (the Berliner Messe, for example).

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Relax Thor, it's just throwaway banter. There's no ill will or mean spirited feeling towards Zimmer in this thread. You prefer the straightforward no nonsense talk on other message boards, good for you. This is JWFan, it's different here. Quit complaining about the tone and personality of this place or just don't post here full stop, it's your choice. Roll with JWFan or return to FSM, where life is CHEAP!

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Relax Thor, it's just throwaway banter. There's no ill will or mean spirited feeling towards Zimmer in this thread. You prefer the straightforward no nonsense talk on other message boards, good for you. This is JWFan, it's different here. Quit complaining about the tone and personality of this place or just don't post here full stop, it's your choice. Roll with JWFan or return to FSM, where life is CHEAP!

If I want banter, I don't go to FSM. I may get some of that at maintitles, however, which isn't quite so un-PC. Reacting to such things when I see it is a gut reaction; can't help it. But you're right, it's a dilemma -- this is the only Williams board on the net, which makes it a must-visit place for me; on the other hand, I've never quite felt home with the atmosphere, which is a reason to leave. Oh, the dilemmas!

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Nice gesture indeed, but the music isn't very interesting. It's a vocal soundscape rather than music. Not a very big accomplishment for an accomplished composer.

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The piece itself is wonderful. Someone mentioned Arvo Pärt; I think that's a good comparison (the Berliner Messe, for example).

No it is not wonderful. Someone has mentioned Mozart with zimmer.

This must be zimmeriner mess, for example.

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