R&J Soundtrack Review Competition
Thank you everyone for participating in the ROMEO & JULIET Soundtrack Review Competition! Your response was more then I’d hoped for and the variety of view points and common themes was both humbling and enlightening. Without further ado, let me present the winners:
BEST PERSONAL R&J REVIEW: LEE IRWIN ALLEN.
BEST PROFESSIONAL R&J REVIEW: JON BROXTON
RUNNER-UP: KAROL KROK
Justification
It turned out to be extremely difficult to judge the Personal Category. After all, one’s ability to verbalize his or her personal feelings doesn’t make them more valid. But then, in Lee Irwin Allen’s review I found this one sentence that hit me:
“[…] just feels like it was written for me.”
You are so right Lee, this music wasn’t written for you to listen to it, it was written for YOU. You don’t just behold a painting in front of you. You need to take it in. You are the canvass, and it is your feeling beauty, sweetness, hope and sorrow.
For the Professional Category being a good word-smith really mattered. What was even more important then that, was the balance between the analytical and the holistic approach. A work of art, be it a painting, musical composition or a delectable chocolate cake, is much more then just a sum of its parts. Comparative analysis of music tends to focus on similarities with other works. As much as it can be fascinating to discover all the hidden connections, it can be also misleading when someone credits authorship of a commonly used element to a single composer. Regardless of the validity of the analysis, I believe it doesn’t tell the most important part of the story. What is its emotional core, its personality?
Did you know that humans share 98.5% of DNA with chimpanzees? Let it sink in for a moment… :)
Jon Broxton’s exquisite review combines great writing, both comparative and idiomatic analysis as well as deep emotional understanding of the score as a whole. Congratulations Jon!
Random Thoughts
Many of you pointed out that the last track, ETERNAL LOVE ends too soon.
I agree. There was no more footage to write music to and the end credits follow shortly. Having said that, the end credits in the film bring back JULIET’S DREAM. This is the song that walks you out of the theater and then… it welcomes you back when you start the album. This also means that the playlist can be played on repeat. You should try it.
Not every musical cue in film is equally important. There are the prominent scenes and the small ones with music buried in the background and purposefully tamed. On a soundtrack album though… it’s where every track is equal. That’s why I compose my albums from a purely musical perspective, reordering songs, and when necessary, combining them into longer suits. Also, I usually skip those that are too short or simply cannot stand on their own without picture.
For this reason, if you like to count how many times each theme or its variation appears in the score, you really need to reference the film itself.
Some of you expressed a notion that it would be unfair to draw any comparisons to Nino Rota’s famous work. Karol Krok was the only one who dared to make a connection, and I applaud him for giving a living composer a chance.
Personal Category
Lee Irwin Allen
Kimberly Callaghan
Maria Del Mar Gallardo
Ethan Revere Smith
Adrian Szczypiński
Bogdan Maxim
Doron Deutsch
Kate Wells
Michael Büser
Emma Huikari
Raja Ks
Phil Watkins
Lee Irwin Allen – WINNER
What I find fascinating about Abel Korzeniowski’s work, is the tragic tone it seems to radiate. Like he is pouring all of himself into every single note. His Violin and Piano pieces just sing to the lonely side of your heart. It makes you feel like the notes are only talking to you, and no one else. I know that when I listen to his music, I feel like I’m sitting alone in a Concert Hall, with my own personal Orchestra in front of me, playing my thoughts and feelings back to me, like it understands me. His music, and in this case, his Romeo and Juliet Score, just feels like it was written for me. This is in no way meant to appear as an arrogant statement, it merely showcases the incredible ability that the music has to reach me on a personal level. I was waiting for Romeo and Juliet with a lot of anticipation, both because it’s one of my favorite stories, and that it meant more music from Abel. When I first hit play, I actually started to tear up after no more than a few minutes of listening. It is what I wanted and more. The way the strings rise and fall with my breathing and my heartbeat, it just speaks to me more than ever. You are thrust immediately into a romantic, tragic, and emotional frame of mind. The Piano never stops in maintaining that sense of loneliness, and looking for that perfect person.
The voices are ethereal and make you feel like you’re flying. The music takes you on a journey of passion and discovery, just like the film itself, and I found myself smiling and crying at the same time, being somehow happy that I was sad. A feeling I have rarely felt before.
The special gift that this music possesses, is that you would have no idea it was written in 2013. If I were to hear it, with no knowledge of its purpose, I would have guessed it was hundreds of years old. It perfectly encapsulates the time in which the story is set, and yet still is as important today as it would have been if Composed centuries ago.
There are some Scores that increase and decrease in their brilliance, like for example; they would have best bits, or moments that could be arranged into a Suite, and the rest of the music wouldn’t be missed, but this Score just simply doesn’t have best bits, because all of it is the best bit. I cannot find one note that I would cut from a Suite, or one piece that I would commit to calling my favorite over the others. Once in a while a Score comes along that contains continual beauty, and Abel is the man responsible for it. Romeo and Juliet is a Score that you could put on, lay down, and just listen from beginning to end, as it flows together with the instruments acting as one, one voice, the voice of Abel Korzeniowski. Whether the piece is a slow, melancholy, heartbreaking one, or a dramatic, pulsating, eerie one, it is still filled with delicate beauty. And that is hard to find.
It would be a dream to hear this performed live, especially in a traditional, glorious Concert Hall, perhaps by the Orchestra of Verona, capturing the spirit and majesty of the music, as it is poured into our hearts for us to soak up and relish. Also, meeting the man responsible would be a pleasure that I could call a great moment, because to shake the hand of someone that has literally improved our world with his own talent, would be unmissable. So thank you Abel for your music, for your gift. I will be hugely anticipating your next work, while enjoying your previous ones.
If someone were to force me to describe Romeo and Juliet by Abel Korzeniowski in only one word, it would have to be… Elegance.
Kimberly Callaghan
Review:
Simple, yet complex.
Filled with what ‘everything that should be said without words’ would sound like.
Pure. Divine.
Completely enthralling.
What a soul should hear every moment.
Bliss.
Maria Del Mar Gallardo
After the wonderful, nostalgic and touching music from ‘A single man’ and the beautifully moving soundtrack from ‘W.E.’, I find ‘Romeo & Juliet’ to be even more complete, delicate and utterly romantic. With every note, every theme and every piece you’ve managed to transport me into a time of innocence, young and powerful love and powerful tragedy. It’s been proved once again your delicate and strong talent when composing for violins and piano. In your hands, this two instruments really get into the soul of everyone who listens to them. Though very difficult to choose between all the themes, the in crescendos used in pieces like “A thousand times goodnight” or “Forbidden Love” have to be noted as some of the best moments of all the soundtrack, as well as the rhythm and strength of “Trooping with crows” and the beautiful chants in “Wedding Vows”. After listening again and again to all your soundtracks, I can say I really love your particular, recognizable and personal style. I am no expert, I just love soundtracks, and the ones I love the most are those that really have the capacity of creating an emotional response in me, like making me cry or daydream, among others. ‘Romeo & Juliet’ is certainly one of them, and that is why this review is so favorable -no exaggeration in any of my praises-. I really want to thank you for this gift to our ears. Congratulations!
Ethan Revere Smith
Just put on the CD for the first time. It’s my favorite score of the entire year so far out of the 30 or so that I own. Time to go back and visit all of your other scores- I heard some buzz about them, but I never got around to it till now. Thank you so much for this beautiful music.
Adrian Szczypiński
Shortest review – ABEL is ABLE
Bogdan Maxim
you made my life impossible! I don`t know anymore which soundtrack I love more: A Single Man ?… Or W.E. ?… Or R&J ?… And talking about R&J, I can`t say which track I love the most, I`m driping from one to another: Juliet’s Dream, Forbidden Love, The Cheek of Night, Trooping With Crows etc. And I`m madly in love with your orchestrations for Kaas Chante Piaf, I even went to the tour concert from Iasi, Romania. I`m telling you all this not for the sake of the contest, but because I really love your works. Thank you for the good music, I`m wishing you all the best!
Doron Deutsch
I listen to R&J a lot the past few day, especially before bedtime, but I don’t analyze it just yet – it’s so good, melodic atmospheric and emotional, that I just enjoy it for now. Definitely the best soundtrack I’ve heard (along with your other soundtracks) in years. I mean about Fifteen years. the last thing I remember having such an impact on me was Moonraker (John Barry). Do more Science fiction, please.
Kate Wells
Your Romeo and Juliet score makes fantastic writing music. Thank you, Sir.
Michael Büser
From the very first note on i was captured in the romantic mood, which dominates your new work “Romeo & Juliet”. Abel, with every tone you write, you create infinite loveliness. I like the musical arrangement in the song “First kiss”, the unbelievable string parts in “A thousand times good night” and the simplicity of the piano melody in “Juliet`s dream”. Your music in “Copernicus star”, “A single man” and “W.E.” was fantastic. But the music to “Romeo and Juliet” from now on will accompany me in my life every day, i`m sure. Thanks for that, Abel!
Emma Huikari
Since Abel Korzeniowski’s earlier work for the scores of ”A Single Man” and ”W.E.” have been brilliant, visionary and adding match for the beautiful movies they were made for, I found myself slightly hesitant to listen to Korzeniowski’s work for ”Romeo and Juliet”. I found myself asking: ”What if his work is not great anymore, what if it is only good?” What I found out listening to it then: Korzeniowski still does terribly skillful work in transforming the emotions from screen to music. I can tell that without having even seen the movie yet.
As a whole the soundtrack is a solid piece. It has its unique style and tone although it sounds like a more traditional movie soundtrack than Korzeniowski’s earlier works for more indie type movies.
Being the crybaby I am, opening track ”Juliet’s Dream” made me immediately shed some tears. After ”Juliet’s Dream”, ”Forbidden Love” came forcefully, sounding more like a traditional movie track, making it clear that the soundtrack and the movie are about strong feelings.
”Queen Mab” following, I felt fleeting peace since it is a slightly lighter track, remaining me of Yann Tiersen’s work for Amélie. ”First Kiss”, ”Come, Gentle Night” and ”Death is my Heir” are also some of the lighter piano-based songs of the score. At a first listen, I immediately liked ”First Kiss”, which could be my favorite track of the score. It is like a peaceful moment in the middle of the storm.
While continuing to listen the soundtrack I dare to say that ”The Cheek of Night” shows Abel Korzeniowski at his best and showcases his skills as an orchestra composer. The separate string instruments and their features come delicately to surface and yet the composition is impressive in its entirety. ”Trooping with Crows” belongs to the same category for me; it is a composer’s masterpiece.
”Wedding Vows” is again one of those tracks that makes you shiver. I could only imagine how it would feel like to be Romeo or Juliet. And actually I’m not sure whether or not I would ever like to feel something that strong in my personal life.
”Fortune’s Fool”, ”From Ancient Grudge” and ”Tempt Not a Desperate Man” could as well be included in a war movie soundtrack, they are that forceful tracks.
”The Crypt” clearly shows how Korzeniowski picks and brings atmosphere from the movie screen to music. Without even having seen the film yet, in this track you can hear the sorrow of losing someone you hold the dearest.
And in the end comes ”Eternal Love”, and tears are shed again. The only downside of the track is that it is far too short. There you are, alone in the autumn evening, feeling as if your Romeo had just left.
Raja Ks
i heard ROMEO & JULIET Soundtrack. its reassembles W.E movie tracks,not all some tracks only, hmm my favorite tracks is “Juliet’s Dream”.
Phil Watkins
Abel Korzeniowski…. Romeo and Juliet score is an absolute treasure. Your music just gets better and better with every note you write! A score in the vein of the golden age and easily up there with the Korngold, Newman, Rozsa, Tiomkin era!
The excitement we feel as a child opening of every new present on a birthday is the best way to sum up how I feel every time a new Abel Korzeniowski score is released to the public. There is no composer in the industry at present who has the unique power to melt your heart with every note played. Your music goes from strength to strength and it is an honor following your progress and rise to the top of the field. From the opening piano through to the deep eloquent cello and perfectly pitch vocals the Romeo and Juliet score transports you into the greatest love story every told…
The light fanciful piano makes you feel the giddy love shared between the two characters, the cello the heartbreak and the voice the stars above for the ill-fated lovers.. all nicely backed with the brass of the two families roaring away behind the main elements of the score.
Abel… if music be the food of love then please play on!
Professional Category
Jon Broxton
Karol Krok
Charlie Brigden
Edmund Meinerts
Kevin Xinkai Sun
Pete Simons
Demetris C Christodoulides
Jon Broxton – WINNER
Since the very first years of cinema Romeo & Juliet, William Shakespeare’s timeless story of passionate doomed love, has been a well of inspiration for filmmakers, ranging from George Cukor’s 1936 film starring Norma Shearer, the classic Franco Zeffirelli version from 1968, and Baz Luhrmann’s revisionist interpretation from 1996, as well as the popular musical West Side Story, which replaces Montagues and Capulets with Sharks and Jets, and moves the story from Verona to New York City. Director Carlo Carlei’s new version was written by Oscar-winning screenwriter Julian Fellowes and is a comparatively straightforward re-telling of the story, with Hailee Steinfeld and Douglas Booth in the lead roles as the star cross’d lovers, and a supporting cast that includes Damian Lewis, Paul Giamatti, Stellan Skarsgård, Ed Westwick and Kodi Smit-McPhee. The film is visually sumptuous, with opulent production design and costumes, and features an equally sumptuous and opulent score by Polish composer Abel Korzeniowski.
Korzeniowski was a fairly late replacement for the film’s original composer, James Horner, who had written and recorded his entire score several months previously; the exact reasons for Horner’s music being rejected are as yet unclear, but whatever the case may be, Korzeniowski was brought in just weeks before the film was due to be released. In these circumstances, scores often go one of two ways: either the new score is rushed and perfunctory, a testament to the short timescale given to the composer, or the new score is absolutely inspired, with the composer seizing his opportunity with both hands and excelling under pressure. Thankfully, Korzeniowski’s Romeo & Juliet is the latter – a sweeping, soaring, romantic masterpiece that is easily one of 2013’s finest musical achievements.
Korzeniowski already has the brilliant Escape from Tomorrow in the can from earlier this year – itself one of 2013’s best scores – but Romeo & Juliet may just top it in terms of sheer thematic beauty and orchestral excellence. The score is large, lush, and exquisitely gorgeous; it features some of the best performances I have ever heard from the Hollywood Studio Symphony, and gives special emphasis to strings, rhapsodic pianos, and a haunting solo female vocalist that adds an angelic, ethereal quality to the lovers’ tale. It’s almost as though Korzeniowski was asked to write the ultimate romantic score for the ultimate romantic story, to accentuate every emotion to its highest point, and to capture the depth of overwhelming feeling experienced by the two young protagonists, and he succeeded in doing just that.
The opening “Juliet’s Dream” is pretty and delicate, and introduces one of the score’s defining features – the strong rhythmic scales which run through almost the entire score and which remind me a little of Michael Nyman or Philip Glass in their precise structure. The second cue, “Forbidden Love”, introduces the staggeringly beautiful love theme, the first of several performances during the score which simply take your breath away. As he did with his previous work on films like W.E., Copernicus Star and the slightly more restrained A Single Man, Korzeniowski has yet again managed to write a central romantic theme of such grace and elegance, passion and emotion; virtually no-one working in film music today is writing music like this, and it’s to the enduring credit of the people who hire him that they allow him to write this type of score in today’s anonymous, emotionless mainstream film music world.
“The Cheek of Night” introduces a flighty, fluttery solo vocal effect performed by Los Angeles Master Chorale and Los Angeles Chamber Singers soprano Tamara Bevard, dancing on a bed of fluid string and piano lines. “First Kiss” offers a powerful but intimate solo piano performance which is quite lovely, and which swells in the throws of romantic ecstasy when the strings enter half way through the cue. Later, the more classically-inclined “Come, Gentle Night” enhances the syncopated piano line with twittering flutes and shimmering harp glissandi to give it a magical touch, while “Wedding Vows” blends a velvety solo cello with more of Bevard’s sublimely angelic vocals.
Of course, as the story demands, there is action music too; “Trooping With Crows” offers a more strident, surging string pattern overlaid with a rhapsodic contrapuntal piano part and an occasional vocal interlude; later, both “Fortune’s Fool” and “From Ancient Grudge” are especially effusive pieces with an increased choral, percussion and brass presence, thundering boldly and dramatically, while the unusual textures that appear during the former cue’s middle section adds a sense of confusion and anguish to the violence’s aftermath. Both cues have a notable hint of Shakespearean Patrick Doyle about them, especially the sword fighting music from the finale of his Hamlet.
The highlights of the score, however, are the seven-minute “A Thousand Times Good Night”, and the 15-minute finale, during which Korzeniowski wrings every last drop of emotion from his orchestra, resulting in some of the most moving and affecting music heard anywhere this year. “A Thousand Times Good Night” begins softly, with the solo piano taking center stage, and gradually builds through the addition of warm strings, feather-light woodwind accents and iridescent percussion into several rapturous re-statements of the love theme.
The finale, which comprises “Tempt Not a Desperate Man”, the two “Crypt” cues and the conclusive “Eternal Love”, is magnificent. “Tempt Not a Desperate Man” is mysterious and insistent, and has an almost Desplat-like feel, especially with the way high-register glockenspiels and light percussion items counterbalance the bolder, darker strokes of the orchestra. “The Crypt, Part 1” begins with a funereal solemnity, and is given a heightened sense of religious loss via the softly cooing chorus, parts of which remind me of the more spiritual parts of Braveheart (a temp track holdover from Horner’s original score, perhaps?), while “The Crypt, Part 2” musically explores the great disaster of poor timing inherent in Shakespeare’s devastating finale. The cello, so rich and mournful, is especially impressive here, and the conclusive performance of the love theme, slowed down and accentuated with timpani rolls, is about as heartfelt and tragic as film music gets. Everything concludes with the truly lovely “Eternal Love”, which again uses the voice/cello combination to superb effect, adding a religioso touch and confirming beyond doubt that there never was a story of more woe than this of Juliet and her Romeo.
Anyone with a penchant for strongly thematic, purely orchestral, emotionally direct, beautifully composed film music will find much to enjoy here. Abel Korzeniowski is a composer who is not afraid to bring out the deeper sentiments in a film through his music, and it’s so refreshing to hear music from a man who so clearly understands what good film music can achieve, and how much music like this can elevate a film, and – most importantly – works with people who understand this too. Comparisons with the great R&J scores by Nino Rota and Prokofiev are, of course, unfair, but taken on its own terms Korzeniowski’s entry into this pantheon of great music comes unreservedly recommended by me as one of the best scores of 2013.
Karol Krok – RUNNER-UP
Finally got a chance to give an in-depth listen to Abel’s latest work. There were plenty of opportunities to check it out earlier, of course, as the album got an early iTunes release several weeks ago. But it’s almost impossible for me to digest music properly and fully until the actual physical CD arrives in my player. Old fashioned, I know. What immediately struck me is that, while much more modern and embracing the musical legacy of both Philip Glass or Alexandre Desplat, the music actually very close at heart to Nino Rota’s masterpiece of the same title from 1968. Not necessarily in style, but in a way it uses contemporary musical language to create this, very appropriate, musical setting for a period drama. And while the characters would be completely perplexed when listening to this in a Renaissance era, it’s not hard to suspend your disbelief and imagine that maybe they could. Even after so many years the story inspires the same kind of passion that is simply timeless. In fact I would say that in this respect this score exceeds Korzeniowski’s own work for Madonna’s W.E. from last year. In a more contemporary scene of watered-down Hollywood sound design-y music, that this music exist is somewhat of a miracle. Unabashedly melodic and passionate, yet completely modern and contemporary – it’s not exactly easy to successfully merge those two worlds. That shows us that it’s “how”, not “what”, that matters the most when marrying moving pictures and notes and that it is possible to have a properly written music in modern cinema directed at younger audiences. It is also a treat for fans of Slavonic sound, mostly in string and soprano writing – a distinguishing feature of a true Polish composers such like Wojciech Kilar, Jan A.P. Kaczmarek and Zbigniew Preisner. Trooping with Crows is a quintessential example of this. Tasteful and classy, the CD will sit comfortably next to Rota’s classic on my shelf.
Charlie Brigden
The great joy of listening to new music – especially film scores, where similarity is often inherent – is finding something you truly adore from the first bars. JOHN CARTER is perhaps the score where this previously happened the most profoundly, with the gorgeous statement of Carter’s theme along with the otherworldly vocal instantly making me fall in love. You can add Abel Korzeniowski’s ROMEO & JULIET to this.
So, Willy Shakespeare has struck again and his famous play of star-crossed lovers has yet again been made into a movie. By all accounts, it’s a terrible movie and I admit I’m not going to bother even watching it. But then, all versions really suffer compared to Franco Zefferelli’s excellent 1968 version, which coincidentally had one of the greatest romantic scores ever created in Nino Rota’s. So, a bit of a hard act to follow.
Now at first I wasn’t going to even try and compare it to the Rota score, not only because it’s a bit stupid but also because that score has a special place in my heart that would place unfair expectations on Korzeniowski. But still, wow. So while I’m still not going to compare it to Rota, I will say it is a brilliant successor to that score, both spiritually and in terms of quality. Now let us not speaketh of Rota again, or at least until I’ve finished this review.
Like I mentioned earlier, ROMEO & JULIET draws you in from the beginning, with delicate piano mingling with swirling strings in ‘Juliet’s Dream’. There’s an immediate sense of tradition here, setting the scene for what is a very classical score, appropriately given the film’s attempt to shy away from the more contemporary form Baz Lurhmann’s version. But this is certainly one of the score’s strengths, it’s absolutely honest from the first note about what kind of score it is. You have to accept it for what it is.
And what it is, well, is incredible. What’s great about Korzeniowski’s music is how narratively-focused it is, how well it tells a story musically. Even given the mostly-thematic nature of contemporary film scores, it’s not easy to listen to a score and think “yeah, I know what’s happening here”, even with a well-trod story like R&J. The first half is all sunshine and puppies, with some terrific piano and string work such as ‘Forbidden Love’, which has a wonderful soaring string melody that gives way to an even more wonderful soaring string melody, the love motif.
‘Trooping With Crows’ is a great waltz, while ‘First Kiss’ is a great musical illustration of young love, with delicate and touching piano. It’s almost awkward, but it slowly swells into a beautiful romantic movement, with a slight tinge of darkness, a hint of the tragedy to come. It starts getting darker still with ‘Wedding Vows’, where an amazing solo voice segues to foreboding strings, and this follows with the tense and urgent ”Fortune’s Fool’, where a more serious female chorus recalls Danny Elfman’s BATMAN.
More tension is clear in ‘From Ancient Grudge’, where virtuoso strings and sobering brass give a sense of serious movement, or as my notes state, ‘bad shit’s going down’. ‘Death Is My Heir’ has a beautiful piano segue to a big string swell, while ‘Tempt Not A Desperate Man’ uses frenetic strings and powerful brass to build towards a fatal end, leading to the centrepiece of the score, ‘The Crypt Parts 1 and 2’. Running over nine minutes in total, these two cues are utterly representative of how great this score is in both emotional and musical quality.
Part 1 starts with uncomfortably long strings and sparse piano, leading to a sense of discovery underscored with a beautiful female chorus. It’s very tender, and the tragedy is almost understated at first, as it moves into a high string movement before stepping back slightly to lead to Part 2’s reflective low strings, only to segue into the love motif. It’s a great moment, foreshadowing with brief quotes in the lower registers before opening up into a wonderfully searching rendition of the motif for its finale.
‘Eternal Love’ acts as a coda for the score, returning to the solo female voice and finishing with a final statement of the love motif on a slightly unresolved note, although no less satisfying for that. But it’s a wonderful wrap-up to what really is an incredible score. I absolutely cannot praise Korzeniowski’s music enough, to the point where I’m trying not to gush. But it’s a beautiful work, infused with as much passion and emotion that you could expect from the greatest love story ever written.
I’ll shut up now, just buy it.
5/5
Due to a technical error, Charlie Brigden’s review was not under consideration.
Edmund Meinerts
The first major screen adaptation of William Shakespeare’s classic tragedy ROMEO AND JULIET since Baz Luhrman’s popular 1996 modernization, Carlo Carlei’s 2013 retelling returns the action to Renaissance Verona (literally…much of the film was shot there – well, modern Verona; I’m not saying they had a time machine – oh, never mind). The script is by DOWNTOWN ABBEY creator Julian Fellowes, and before you say “wait a minute, what script,” don’t worry, others have been saying that too, criticizing Fellowes for altering or “dumbing down” many of the Bard’s lines while still writing in a pseudo-Shakespearian mold in order to “fool” the audience into thinking they’re hearing the real deal (predictably, reviews have been less than favorable). The film has been pushed back a few times, and as I discussed in my ENDER’S GAME review recently, one of the most common side effects of a troubled production is a rejected score. Once again, that’s the case here, and once again, it’s JAMES HORNER who’s on the receiving end of it. Somewhere, GABRIEL YARED is having a quiet chuckle to himself.
Unlike ENDER’S GAME, HORNER did manage to compose and even record a full score as early as December 2012 (perhaps the film was recut to such a degree since then that it required an entirely new score). Whether it ever sees the light of day is something only the future can say (let’s hope so), but until then, we can enjoy the replacement, provided by none other than promising up-and-comer ABEL KORZENIOWSKI. The talented Polish composer has proven himself in the historical romance genre with Madonna’s ill-advised directorial debut W.E., rising above the material (and Madonna’s stubborn refusal to allow his themes to be developed) to provide a strong, romantic score with hints of minimalism in its structures. And for fans of that score, your Christmas has come early, because ROMEO AND JULIET is very similar.
The other influence apparent in this score – as, indeed, it already was in W.E., but here to an even greater extent – is that of ALEXANDRE DESPLAT; the precise sense of pacing and orchestration heard in the Frenchman’s music is also present in much of this score, especially its piano-dominated first half. In fact, for those listeners who appreciate DESPLAT’s music for its technical structures but find themselves left emotionally distant by it (and this seems to be quite a common phenomenon), the more openly passionate, expressive take by KORZENIOWSKI may be just what the doctor ordered.
The DESPLAT similarity is at its most worrying in the opening cue, “Juliet’s Dream,” which sounds for all the world as though you’ve accidentally put on his score to NEW MOON. Fortunately, it’s a one-off other than a reprise of the chord progression over a waltz rhythm in “The Cheek of Night.” And as disconcerting as it may be to have anything from TWILIGHT become associated with a story as classic as ROMEO AND JULIET, just keep in mind that Shakespeare’s play is actually a deconstruction, rather than a celebration, of teenage “love at first sight” and how it can drive them to do the most rash and stupid things…suddenly the connection starts to make a bit more sense, no?
After that somewhat odd opener, things pick up considerably in “Forbidden Love”, where KORZENIOWSKI introduces his ravishing main theme at the one-minute mark. It’s a little underused – and, let’s face it, it was never going to compete with NINO ROTA – but its appearances mark the highlights of the score, especially in the lush and gorgeous seven-minute centerpiece, “A Thousand Times Good Night” and with dramatic soprano and choral accompaniment in “Wedding Vows” and “Eternal Love.” The score’s subthemes are a little harder to pinpoint, mostly because they simply don’t occur often enough (the closest is a dramatically descending melody heard in “Come, Gentle Night”). The very consistent melancholic mood and orchestration helps compensate for the lack of memorable subthemes, however.
The second half of the score – the tragic portion – is more varied, but also a less pleasantly smooth listening experience on album. The first half of “Fortune’s Fool” is a fast-paced, somewhat stop-start action cue that even goes so far as to include some choral outbursts; “From Ancient Grudge” is similarly frantic. “Tempt Not a Desperate Man” includes some powerful brass writing unlike anything else in the score, and the pair of “Crypt” cues is about as cheerful as you’d expect, but does feature some gorgeous choral work and anguished renditions of the main theme. The final cue, with its increased choral element, is almost the grand conclusion this story deserves, but it ends on a frustratingly unresolved note, robbing the listener of a satisfying ending.
Perhaps the most appealing thing about KORZENIOWSKI’s work here is its keen sense of forward movement. An odd thing to say about a dramatic score, but there is a propulsive energy here that drives the music along the well-worn story to its inevitable conclusion, thanks in part to those echoes of minimalism that I mentioned earlier. In other words, the fifty-minute album never drags. It may not be the most stunningly original of scores, but then again, it’s an old and familiar story, told well here by the Polish composer, and is among the best dramatic scores of the year.
Final Rating: 8/10
Kevin Xinkai Sun
Abel Korzeniowski’ “Romeo & Juliet”
The score of the new interpretation of “Romeo & Juliet” was originally assigned to James Horner, yet it was rejected later for some reasons. Polish composer Abel Korzeniowski, who has composed for “A Single Man” and “W.E”, took the mission. With limited time given, Korzeniowski managed to present a score that is absolutely soothing and stunning. Amongst countless precedent works on the story, Prokofiev’s Balled might be the most popular one. It might be a tribute that the most used keys in Korzeniowski’s score are B flat and D, which are also often used in Prokofiev’s “Romeo & Juliet”.
“Juliet’s Dream” is an exquisite opening. It starts with a piano solo, which is joined by rapid strings during the second repeat. The restless strings contrasts the steadiness of the piano, as if a leaf is floating on the pouring emotional flows. Later on a neat 4/4 phrase with 4 notes equally distributed follows, placing a hold. This full melody is repeated three times. On the third repeat, the small climax of this beautiful piece is emphasized by merely an accompaniment of flute on strings session. As repetitive as it is, “Juliet’s Dream” is quite an example of Korzeniowski’s unique minimalism stylish approach.
It is hard to pin down characters’ themes without watching the film; therefore it is merely a presumption that Romeo and Juliet’s theme are first presented in “Forbidden Love”. Violins first deliver a melody composed with a 4-note segment of ascending scale, which can be deduced as Juliet’s theme, since the tenderness within. This melody resembles baroque style, delicate and precise, and can be played as a seamless loop. After that, a violin solo, delivers a passionate theme of Romeo, with a touch of sorrow in it. Unlike Juliet’s theme, which has the quiet calmness and circular character, Romeo’s theme is more changeable and linear. It is also the most often heard and surely the most beautiful theme from the score. Two themes combine soon after. They linger and embrace with each other, marking their epic love. It is also interesting that Korzeniowski approaches this moment without a sense of determinism, given that the inevitable tragic ending is well known.
“Queen Mab” opens with a quite simplistic cue on the combination of harp & piano. In the second half, piano offers a variation of Juliet’s theme with the ascending scale as motif. The use of celesta has a rich vibration with innocent tone. 4-pace rhythm also delivers a vibes of folk dance, Gavotte perhaps. The following 3/4 piece “The cheek of Night” also delivers resembles folk dance, but it is waltz this time. Waltz has always been Korzeniowski’s favorite: in his scores, characters often have their own waltz. There is a dramatic quality within the use of waltz, the pace is less straight forward, but with a spinning and circling rhythm, as if life is a stage, characters are dancers. A variation of Juliet’s theme sung by a soprano, draws out a playful mood accompanied by the waltz beat.
“First Kiss” offers a vivid scene in which the conflict of two households starts to blend in. A 3-note-ascending-scale cue that act as a motif (of love?) in some way can be heard throughout the music. There are several uprise of ominous strings that full of agony, indicate the conflict between Capulets and Montagues as an obstruction between their love. Yet the sudden breakthrough of the 3-note cue terminates these sorrowful strings, announcing the great love. The 3-note cue is also taking turns ascending and descending, as if lovers kissing and kissing back.
“Trooping with Crows” has the same structure with “Juliet’s Dream”: two phrases of melodies form a unit, and the unit is repeated 3 times. Given that it is a repetitive cue, a climax is naturally relied on orchestration arrangement, but what is more in this track, is the modulation of keys. The keys are changed by a minor third with every repetition: starts with B flat, changes to D flat then ends with E. It forms an ascending staircase that lifts the emotion with every repetition.
“A Thousand Times Good Night” is a reprise of the two lovers’ themes. The music starts with a minimal piano solo which first heard in “Queen Mab”; Romeo’s theme comes on flute gently, with the same beginning but variation later on. It appears on violin after that for a short while, then followed by Juliet’s scale-patterned theme. After two themes has presented separately, they start off at the same time, two beautiful melodies lingering together harmonically is no doubt a candy to the ear.
“Come, Gentle Night” can no doubt be the most amazing piano track in the score. Korzeniowski is known as a minimalism composer, yet that’s arguably true. The melody plays by piano in this track can well be said a “minimalism” work, which has a vibes of Philip Grass and Ludovico Einaudi, yet it is the composition structure that is minimal, the musical techniques are relatively complex. This is also sort of a Korzeniowski’s trademark: a “complex minimalism”.
“Wedding Vows” is similar to “First Kiss” in a way: they are both talking about young love fighting against obstruction. Ominous tunes and bright tunes take turns appear, it might be featuring a montage scene.
Action music finally appears in “Fortune’s Fool”. Hollywood composers favor rapid strings nowadays, so do Korzeniowski. It is safe to say this action track has a great influence from Alexandre Desplat. After a forceful strings section, the use of brass attack and rapid strings with percussions are extremely Desplat-like. “From Ancient Grudge” is a less interesting action cue, which is an dark toned orchestral variation of the piano cue at the beginning of “Queen Mab”.
“Death Is My Heir” is a reprise of a variation of Juliet’s theme from the second half of “Queen Mab”. On the first count of every bar, a single drumbeat replaces the original use of pizzicato cello. With the use of drum, the innocent music is clothed with a funeral March tone, which draws out the contrast between death and beauty. It is the music of a withering flower.
“Tempt Not a Desperate Man” again, is an orchestral variation of the piano cue from “Queen Mab” with new strings patterns. There is a strong sense of despair and anger in this music.
For those who know the story well enough, it is not difficult to understand the agony in the crypt. Romeo’s theme stirs slowly in “The Crypt, Pt.1”, expressing the painful sorrow after seeing beloved Juliet’s “corpse”; “The Crypt, Pt.2” has the same approach, it delivers Juliet’s heartbreaking moment after seeing Romeo died right next to her by slowly playing her theme tragically.
“Eternal Love” offers an epic finale to this love story. The presence of soprano vocal delivers a heavenly atmosphere, as the two lovers reunited in the other side, marking their eternal love in the stars. It is a pity and even frustrating that this track ends in a sudden, leaving the music unfinished, without pushing the theme further both emotionally and musically, yet it might due to adjustment to the cinematic editing.
If presumption of themes is correct, then Romeo’s theme appears more often then Juliet’s, making the equal musical characters slightly unbalanced. Nevertheless, these themes are well composed with strong characteristics. The whole score is a journey of abundant emotion flow in delicate piano and melting strings arrangement. It is both simple and complex. The obvious simplicity of the melodies stimulates one’s emotions directly like none other, and the less obvious complexity of musical techniques and arrangements provides enormously rich esthetics resonation to Shakespeare’s work. Korzeniowski’s “Romeo & Juliet” is no doubt one of the finest film scores in 2013.
Pete Simons
What is it?
“For never was a story of more woe than this of Juliet and her Romeo.” Well… a certain composer might disagree, but I digress.
Directed by Carlo Carlei “Romeo & Juliet” stars Douglas Booth and Hailee Seinfeld in this, yet another, retelling of the classic love story by the British bard William Shakespeare. The screenplay is by Julian Fellowes of “Downtown Abbey” fame. The film’s release was marred by issues and, so far, reviews of it have not been great. One victim of those issues is composer James Horner, whose fully recorded score ended up being rejected. Abel Korzeniowski (“Copernicus’ Star”, “Escape from Tomorrow”) was brought in at the eleventh hour (hey, what else is new) to write the replacement. Whilst it must be a nightmare-scenario for a composer to come in at such a late stage, with pressure having mounted to intolerable heights, it has frequently spurred composers on to produce some of their finest works. Horner’s own “Aliens” and Elliot Goldenthal’s “Interview with the Vampire” are but two examples that come to mind. Oh… and Korzeniowski’s “Romeo & Juliet”!
What does it sound like?
I already indicated that “Romeo & Juliet” is a classic tale that has been told many times before, in many different guises. There is the Franco Zeffirelli film from 1968, with a score by Nino Rota; the modernised Baz Luhrman version from 1996, which saw Craig Armstrong write one of his finest (and one of my personal favorite) cues: “Balcony Scene”. Not to mention Sergei Prokofiev’s ballet. Each of those composers took their own approach to the subject; and rightfully so! Korzeniowski seems allowed to do just that. The Polish-born composer is known for a lush, yet minimal style and he employs it to great effect in this score.
Opening with “Juliet’s Dream”, the album clearly carries its heart on its sleeve. A staccato string pattern accompanies a beautiful, wavering melody for piano (the triplets being a genius touch). It’s a little more modern than one might expect. There is a sense of Phillip Glass or Michael Nyman about the straightforwardness of the composition. The modulating nature of the strings is mesmerizing; if not hypnotizing,
“Forbidden Love” continues the see-sawing movements and overlays them with a lusher, more traditional theme for strings; emphasizing solo violin (and possibly viola). Brass- and percussive swells add a sense of drama and urgency. “Queen Mab” opens with a variation on the piano play from “Juliet’s Dream”. The performance is so delicate, as if fingers are barely touching the keys. It vaguely recalled memories of Danny Elfman’s “Corpse Bride”. About half way in, Korzeniowski switches to an alternate theme; one ever so delicate and full of beauty – I could listen to this forever on repeat!
“The Cheek of Night” starts with a modulating cello pattern – it is clear by now that most (if not all) of the score will be carried by this type of writing. Soon a female soprano comes in to perform a brief staccato motif. A comparison to James Horner’s “A Beautiful Mind” is virtually unavoidable (…see, unavoidable). The track continues in a quasi classical fashion (reminding me a little of Francis Lai), with a triplet for strings seemingly mirroring the piano writing of “Juliet’s Dream”.
We’ll all remember the rush we felt during our first kiss and “First Kiss” seems to emulate that by ever-so-slightly playing with the tempo. It caught me off-guard at first, but it’s a neat little trick. “Trooping with Crows” sees strings and piano move through various chords, almost as if it’s a musical exercise. Triplets again livening up the proceedings. “A Thousand Times Good Night” repeats the opening from “Queen Mab”, albeit in a different, slightly more subdued key. The “Forbidden Love”-theme also returns; first on flute over tremolo strings, then on solo viola (sounding a little more mournful than a violin would’ve done) over a bed of slow chords. The cue livens up a little towards the end. This is the stuff that goosebumps are made from!
“Come, Gentle Night” feels a little more urgent with its virtuoso piano play, similar to the instrument’s use in Korzeniowski’s “Escape from Tomorrow”. Piano and glockenspiel create a suitably ‘twinkly’ atmosphere in “Wedding Vows”. When the soprano returns to sing the “Forbidden Love” theme, and the strings and brass swell, this is a jubilant as the score gets. Dark, menacing chords interrupt the romance, telling us that not all is well though. “Fortune’s Fool” continues with menacing ‘action’ music, before turning sorrowful. “From Ancient Grudge” once more picks up the pace with racing strings and piano, accompanied by brass crescendos.
The second half of “Queen Mab” is one of my favorite parts of the score so far, and it’s repeated in “Death is my Heir”. For me it rivals Craig Armstrong’s “Balcony Scene”… and that is no small feat! “Tempt not a Desperate Man” combines fast, almost playful, strings and glockenspiel with dramatic writing for horns. Again, it’s a track of two halves, with the second being slower and considerably more sinister than the first.
“The Crypt”, both parts, are utterly moving; conveying a sense of loss and love. Interestingly, the composer chooses not to (or barely) use the piano in these cues. It’s a clever move! With the piano dominating the score up to this point, its sudden absence packs quite a dramatic punch. Slow strings, solo violin and choir come together to perform a heartbreaking rendition of the “Forbidden Love” theme. These two cue form the absolute highlight of the score. Now, I don’t’t want to compare this score to ‘what James Horner might have done’, because it’d be unfair and mostly pointless as Korzeniowski writes in a very different style. Having said that, and with all due respect, these two cues (and the next) are probably as close to ‘wJHmhd’ as it gets.
The album concludes with “Eternal Love” for orchestra, piano, soprano and choir. Did I mention goosebumps? This cue proves that, when used sparingly, a choir is still a massively powerful instrument. My sole contend being the slightly abrupt ending. And I wouldn’t have minded hearing a reprise of “Juliet’s Dream” to round off the album.
Is it any good?
It’s worth baring in mind that Korzeniowski is – at the risk of using the phrase incorrectly – quite a minimal composer. His strength lies in minimalistic movements, sparse orchestrations; whilst relying on the themes to carry the emotion. In that sense I think he resembles the aforementioned Michael Nyman. I have seen a few (though, very few) disappointed reactions to this score and I can only imagine that those people were expecting a grander, more stately affair.
There is a certain directness about this score, with its moderate orchestrations and uncomplicated themes, that aims straight for the heart. There is beauty in (and through) modesty. Admittedly though, on a few occasions I too wished that the score would take off a little more than it does; or that the orchestrations were a tad more varied. For me, it stops just short of being a masterpiece. Having said that, without even having to resort to using the ‘difficult scoring situation’ as an excuse, Korzeniowski has delivered a richly melodic work full of romance, pathos and sorrow. Certainly one of this year’s very best, incidentally alongside “Escape from Tomorrow” by Abel Korzeniowski. Coincidence? I think not.
Rating [4/5]
Demetris C Christodoulides
Stunning, heartbreakingly beautiful, with lyrical violin soli, constantly moving and ever-flowing piano arpeggiated basis, full of emotions and sweeping melodies; the trademarked landscape of Abel Korzeniowski’s compositions, one whom film music is very lucky to be gifted with. The cue A Thousand Times Good Night from the original score to ROMEO AND JULIET is a clear stunner in this year’s best single film music compositions.
Do yourself a favor, don’t miss this one! iTunes link
October 2013
Comments
3 Responses to R&J Soundtrack Review Competition
Reply
Twit this!
on Facebook
i love the way you work with color and your illustration. i’m tainkg fashion illustration this year and i love it…i just have to experiment more with the media + you are a great inspiration!! ps: great song!! ^^,
Oh I played hide and seek about a week ago with an auitstic boy I teach, it took me a while to work out what he was asking to do but it reminded me how much fun that game was.If you ever get a chance i’d love it if you would check out some of my work, i’m trying to find as many artists on here as I can but you are probably the best!Nice work and use of colour, I feel that’s something I lack! How to use colour better.Anyways! Very cool stuff :)
Thanks dear Abel! Pleasure is all ours! Congrats to those who made it to the final cut and also congrats to the winner: Jon!