Hi seri,

I guess I'm one of the very few, who are not mad about Morricone. To me, he is mostly
repetitive - the McDonalds of film music.

I appreciate some of his scores though, but these were composed for french crime movies,
like "La Casse" or "Le Ruffian". But I have to add, that his latest scores, like "La Sconosciuta"
and "Tutte Le Donne Della Mia Vita" are strikingly beautiful and completely different from his
previous lounge trash.

Just my two cents... ;-)

David

coma, September 8, 2007; 7:53 PM

Ouch! :- )

Good enough!

serifiot, September 8, 2007; 8:21 PM

Hello serifiot,

Great Question, Morricone is a bit of an enigma to me, He has such a big repertoire of film music it seems so overwhelming. I only own about 30 of his scores even though I know he is a icon of film music. With his scores I either seem to love the score or not care for it at all. I know I have a very limited knowledge of his work and should look into his music alittle deeper, But I guess I have so many other composers I like it's hard to keep up with them as it is. My favorite Morricone scores I own are the following.

"Guns for San Sebastian"
"Tepepa... Viva La Revolucion"
"1900"
"Marco Polo"
"Once Upon a Time in America"
"Red Sonja"
"Nuovo Cinema Paradiso"
"Nostromo"
"Malena"
"72 Metra"

Best Regards,
David Phoenix, AZ.


deg63iami, September 9, 2007; 2:09 AM

I'm not a completist by any stretch, but the scores that EM did that I like... I REALLY like. I probably have about 80-100 or so official releases and another 20-30 unreleased
I believe I have all of his westerns, and a good many of his crime scores.
I'm not too enthused over the horror material as a listen, but they do serve the films.

In my mind, many of his scores have one or two tracks that are standouts, head and shoulders above his contemporaries, and that leads and lends itself to seeking out his compilations.
I'm sure if I dubbed the "best" (the cues I seek out) off many of the full scores I have, I could cut my collection in half.

Full scores of his I love and listen to often(in fact 2 are in my cd player now)?
GUNS FOR SAN SEBASTIAN
a classic Morricone western score that has sweeping themes both elegant and action filled with full vocal range but with little of the quirks of the Leone style orchestrations(bells and whistles so to speak).
THE SICILIAN CLAN
MALENA
SACCO AND VANZETTI
DEATH RIDES A HORSE(sort of like Gregorians writing a rock opera)
GIU LA TESTA(bells and whistles but ... it works for me)



fswric, September 9, 2007; 9:15 AM

Morricone l´uomo, il musicista, the genius. It´s difficulto to try but maybe (the first ones that came in my mind):

ITALIAN WESTERN

-THE GOD, THE BAG, THE UGLY
-ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST
-DEATH RIDES A HORSE
-LA RESA DEI CONTI

EROTIC
-VERUSHKA
-MADDALENNA
-BUTTERFLY

COMEDY
-ATAME!
-SAI FACEVA STALIEN ALLE DONNE

THRILLER
-THE UNTOUCHABLES
-COMMANDAMENTI PER UN GANGSTER
-CITTA VIOLENTA
-THE SICLIAN CLAN
-REVOLVER

GIALLO
-LA LUCERTOLLA CON LA PELLE DI DONNA
-LA SINDROME DI STHENDAL

DRAMA
-LA VENEXIANA
-QUESTA SPECIE D´AMORE
-INCONTRO

HORROR
-EXORCIST 2
-ORCA THE KILLER WHALE
-THE THING

HISTORIC
-QUEIMADA
-EL GRECO
-THE MISSION
-MARCO POLO
-MOSSES

byronger, September 9, 2007; 1:20 PM

"Lolita" is a very fine score of his. The fault with the CD is the way Morricone's music is interupted by songs of the 1940's such as Louis Prima and Ella Fitzgerald. I like Louis and Ella but it doesn't belong between the tracks of the score.

So I bookmark over the songs and enjoy the score quite a bit. A good film too which makes it all the better.

Many great Morricone scores out there. The guy is amazing eh?

I don't really care for the concert recordings although Santa Sicilia is great!

I'm surprised Sijold Tonkens doesn't get in on this thread. He's the guy around these parts when it comes to Morricone music.

"Il Gatto" is another great listening experience. I love the track when Mariangelo Melato moans.

"Nana" is another of his beautiful erotic scores. Love the track "Nana In The Saddle".

"Battle Of Algiers" and "Burn" have been two of my favorites for quite awhile.

How many do I own? Off hand I'm guessing around 175.

victoravalentine, September 9, 2007; 4:41 PM

Hi serifiot,

First & foremost: John Barry; second, but perhaps a difficult choice it's Elmer Bernstein but knocking at the door it's Ennio Morricone. I generally like Mr. Bernstein's scores more but the variety and extent of Maestro Morricone cannot be ignored.

For about 30 years I had about ten or a dozen scores by EM (mostly Westerns) and another seven or eight compilation albums. Then in late 2003 I decided to try a few more scores; early 2004 I discovered internet buying and then came eBay! Now, some 3 years or so later I have about 320 CD/CDRs of Ennio Morricone's movie music and still I look to buy new ones.

His scores fall into various categories: the Westerns and the Crime Thrillers are the most obvious but as byronger has shown there are others and whilst personal tastes may lead you into one rather than another I have found all categories have worthwhile entries. Although I started on the iconic Westerns scores, these days I'm more inclined to reach for one of his dramatic or thriller scores. Even his Giallo scores which can be a bit difficult are rewarding if you persist.

I know that a lot of his music from the late 60s/early 70s is derided as lounge music (David refers to it as "previous lounge trash") but for me, it's top quality lounge music ... there's a whole lot worse - give me EM any day compared with the typical US equivalent.

Anyway, a few suggested scores which are some of my favourites not listed by you (incidentally, you refer to "Imputazione Di Omicidio Per Uno Studente" but this is one of my least favourites - I must play it again to see if my view has changed).

No particular order and I will have omitted some other favourites:
La Donna Invisible
Ecce Homo (weird but wonderful if played in Surround Sound)
Cosa Avete Fatto A Solange?
D'Amore Si Muore
C'Era Una Volta Il West (Once Upon A Time In The West)
Incontro
Menage All'Italiana
Il Pentito
Cinema Paradiso
The Red Tent (La Tenda Rossa)
Tre Colonne In Cronaca
Sostiene Pereira
Svegliati E Uccidi
Metti Una Sera A Cena
Lucia
Gente Di Rispetto

... but there are many others.

A couple of points: whilst "greatest hits" compilations are good starting points, I've found that the full scores are invariably better. Also, the CD labels keep re-issuing scores with additional tracks. These are usually better but more imprtantly, have better sound. However, it does mean that trying to collect the works of EM is a life-long - and probably impossible - task.

If you do not know of it, I can wholly recommend the site: www. chimai.com - a true treasure trove for investigating, checking and generally cross-referencing his many works for the cinema/television.

And to close: if in doubt, buy it ... you won't be disappointed.

Mitch, September 9, 2007; 7:11 PM

Morricone scores i'd recommend:

Il mio nome 'e nessuno (!)
C'era una volta il west
La Sindrome Di Stendhal
The Good, The Bad and the Ugly
Ripley's Game

philkws, September 10, 2007; 9:18 AM

Two more... "A Lizard In A Womans Skin" (Love that title) and "Cold Eyes Of Fear".

Some people have a problem listening to the Il Gruppo scores. I love it! As a matter of fact they often become a favorite.

victoravalentine, September 10, 2007; 10:49 AM

First of all... thanks for the informative responses!

It's amazing how many more I have to look into.

It seems so true to what Mitch has suggested.

One needs a lifetime to collect, listen and appreciate Morricone.

This man is truly amazing in his ability to conjure up music!...

The Muses are in his favor I must add.

As far as my latest acquisition of "Imputazione...'', I wouldn't go as far as to say that it is a favorite Morricone but excluding the songs, being in the right mindset... it has its moments of appreciation.

Cheers!

serifiot, September 10, 2007; 3:00 PM

Hi Serifiot,

Morricone is a genius. A wizzard with notes. He is not only composer, he also orchestrates all the music he wrote. Sometimes a tune or melody is simple, but the orchestration makes it a little masterpiece. 3 notes by Morricone and you hear it is him. I once talked with Armando Trovajoli, another Italian great composer. He said Morricone made one genius piece of music. It is Metti una sera a cena. The theme is a 3 notes only. and repeated 17 times in row in the same order. That is a genius composition that not even Mozart could have done better.
I am collecting Morricone all my life. I takes a lifetime indeed. But the good news is that I am complete. It is a matter of keep up with the re-issues with extra tracks and to buy the new ones since the Maestro is still active at the age of 78.

This week I saw in the cinema La sconosciuta, the latest Tornatore film. The music is great with the film. The film has about 80% score. Morricone locked himself up in his study for 4 months to write the score. He said, writing music is a lonely profession.
I understand the score better now I saw the film. But of course, the music was made to fit the film. The soundtracks cds are only a souvenir from the film. The film has one of the most beautiful themes he ever wrote.
My favorites?

- some of them are:

- 1900
- La Venexiana
- The legend of 1900
- Mosca addio
- Nostromo
- the westerns
- la piovra
- Red tent
- La califfa
- Karol , both scores
- Giordano Bruno
too many to name, but buy what you find, you never go wrong.

Greetings from Holland,

Sijbold



s.tonkens, September 13, 2007; 7:08 AM

Hello serifiot

I came across this while on a google search, and although your questions were posed
some time back, I thought I should offer any help I could. I say 'help' because you
were asking (and I'm sure I understood correctly)-:

1. "How many???" and
2. What was essential to the newcomer?

The first question is easy to answer: 292 different Original Soundtrack CDs (plus
10 other Morricone-related issues) ~ I think that ought to give me some kind of
'credibility', non é vero?

I enjoyed reading (nearly) all the posts and with interest, but many people listed
FAVOURITES, which is not quite what you wanted, is it? (And that is why I wanted to
pause a while, and 'help', if that doesn't sound too patronising.)

byronger was particularly good, because there you have recommendations by genre...
but for me, Sijbold Tonkens said the most important thing: Morricone orchestrates all
his own music – not sitting at a piano, no Midi interface, he writes every note directly
onto a full score – and that alone makes him the greatest film composer in the world.

He is SO INCREDIBLE he doesn't even need to see a film. Sometimes, as with Leone
and Tornatore, the film is actually shot to what he has already composed and recorded!

But I need to make a slight correction ~ you write: "This ... composer has written so
much ... , probably even more so than Jerry Goldsmith..." -ehm..... Called by Quincy
Jones "Grande Maestro", meaning "Great Master", our ENNIO MORRICONE has written
nearly as much as the late, great Jerry... & John Williams & John Barry – COMBINED!

More than 425 scores. And did I mention the 100+ pieces for the concert hall?...
challenging works which Morricone calls his "absolute music"? (The film stuff is the
vaster part of what he calls his "applied music".)

THE RANGE of his "musiche" [moo-zee-kay] defies belief and eventually gets beyond
comprehension – the things this Composer has done, just with the human voice...

He is undoubtedly that one most admired by composers, musicians and performers in
all genres, all over the world. Big fans do include other film composers (especially Hans
Zimmer and Michael Nyman) but also bands that include Metallica and Muse. Morricone,
though, has his own 'tribute band'.

A (now former) Prime Minister of Japan put out a CD of some of his favourite Morricone.
Although given great honours in his native Italy (with France being another example) ~
it surely said something that, when a new Secretary-General of the United Nations was
appointed (this being Ban Ki-moon)... out of all the global possibilities, it was M° Ennio
Morricone they invited to extend a musical welcome.

-•-•-•–•-

Now, this I am doing for the fan of film music who maybe is intimidated by the large
quantity of Morricone on CD (where to start?) AND that person who perhaps is slightly
tired now of film scores pretending to be symphonies.

FIRST IMPORTANT POINT: Morricone NEVER starts with The Form (now usually the
similar-sounding bish-bash symphony orchestra) ~ he ALWAYS starts with The Idea
(which MIGHT require but rarely does need: A Symphony Orchestra). He rather prefers
the much less grandiose 'sinfonietta' which matches his unmerited modesty.

SECOND IMPORTANT POINT: Not all ideas work!

A finer point is that THE Maestro (as he is rightfully called) writes ENTIRELY in support
of the director and his movie with seemingly no consideration given to the soundtrack
CD ~ which is why he isn't mentioned much by Film Music Critics on Websites... because
they are judging by what they hear from a disc (as if the music was written for that
purpose!) NO! It is music to accompany moving pictures and 'Film Music' can only
properly be assessed in that manner. Capisce?

What can all that mean? Well... 'Morricone' which doesn't sound much on a disc, when
married with the visuals! ~ can become magical. IN ALL HONESTY ~ if you are to enter
the Higher Plateaus of Ennio Morricone, there will be DISAPPOINTMENT. There will be
BEWILDERMENT ~ not just from disc to disc, but even from one track to another. YES!
You will waste money ~ BUT ~ somewhere among his very, very many "pezzi" or "pieces"
–your very Soul will be enriched...

... by the one I call Ennio Amadeus Morricone


::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::......................

HIS ESSENTIAL FILM & TV SCORES MUST INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:
-={any 1 or any number will enhance anyone's collection}=-


'THE MISSION' [CD/SACD]

~and on CD~

'IL BUONO, IL BRUTTO, IL CATTIVO' / 'THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE UGLY' [expanded]

'NUOVO CINEMA PARADISO' / 'CINEMA PARADISO' [expanded]

'C'ERA UNA VOLTA IN AMERICA' / 'ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA' [special edition]

'LA LEGGENDA DEL PIANISTA SULL'OCEANO' / 'THE LEGEND OF 1900' [Italian edition]

'C'ERA UNA VOLTA IL WEST' / 'ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST' [expanded 27-track]

'NOVECENTO' / '1900'

'E RIDENDO L'UCCISE'

'CANONE INVERSO' / 'MAKING LOVE'

'MARCO POLO' [double CD]

'UN GENIO, DUE COMPARI, UN POLLO' / 'THE GENIUS'

'GIORDANO BRUNO' [expanded]

'NOSTROMO' [double CD]

'LA CALIFFA' / 'THE LADY CALIPH' [expanded]

'LA VENEXIANA' / 'THE VENETIAN WOMAN'

'VATEL'

'DAYS OF HEAVEN'

'IL MIO NOME É NESSUNO' / 'MY NAME IS NOBODY' [regular/expanded]

'EL GRECO' [edizione speciale]

'PADRE PIO ~ TRA CIELO E TERRA'

'I MAGI RANDAGI' / 'WE THREE KINGS'

'KAROL, UN UOMO DIVENTATO PAPÁ'

'LA SCONOSCIUTA' / 'THE UNKNOWN WOMAN'

'MIO CARO DOTTOR GRÄSLER' / 'THE BATCHELOR'

'122 RUE DE PROVENCE' / 'ONE TWO TWO'

'GIU LA TESTA' / 'A FISTFUL OF DYNAMITE' [double CD anniversary edition available]

'LA TENDA ROSSA' / 'THE RED TENT'

'ALLONSANFAN' [edizione speciale]

'LA DISUBBIDIENZA' / 'THE DISOBEDIENT WIFE'

'SACCO AND VANZETTI'

'SORSTALANSÁG' / 'FATELESS'

'LA LUPA' / 'SHE-WOLF'

'RENÉ LA CANNE'

'LA RESA DEI CONTI' / 'THE BIG GUNDOWN' ["complete"]

'IL GATTO' / 'THE CAT'

'GUNS FOR SAN SEBASTIAN' [FSM expanded edition]

'IL CLAN DEI SICILIANI' / 'THE SICILIAN CLAN'

'INDAGINE SU UN CITTADINO AL DI SOPRA DI OGNI SOSPETTO' / 'INVESTIGATION OF
A CITIZEN ABOVE SUSPICION' [expanded mono/stereo edition available]

'NOI LAZZARONI' [complete edition]

~and~(I suppose)

'PER QUALCHE DOLLARO IN PIÙ' / 'FOR A FEW DOLLARS MORE' [expanded]

~and~(surely! "Why NOT?!?")

'PER UN PUGNO DI DOLLARI' / 'A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS' [edizione speciale]

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::......................


To BARELY SAMPLE The Ennio Morricone Songbook, you would need at least:


'FOCUS' [CD/SACD with Dulce Pontes singing on the Universal label]

~and~

'NELLA FANTASIA' [the IL DIVO performance would be my recommendation]


Cheers!...

HUGH HUE CARROLL
Master of Arts of the Royal College of Art

huecarroll, February 8, 2009; 2:50 AM