Artist..........: Gabriel Yared
Album...........: Amelia
Genre...........: Soundtrack
Label...........: VarΦse Sarabande Records
Catnr...........: VSD6994
Source..........: CDDA
Rip.Date........: 17-03-2010
Street.Date.....: 10-11-2009
Quality.........: VBR/44.1kHz/Joint Stereo
Url.............: http://www.amazon.com/Amelia-Gabriel-Yared/dp/B002S1CKL6/
Size............: 70.16MB
Song.Title :
01. Introducing Amelia 5:01
02. Flight To Wales 4:27
03. Amelia And George 4:14
04. No Longer A Passenger 6:56
05. Flying With Eleanor Roosevelt 2:38
06. Amelia And Gene 3:05
07. The Ecstasy Of Flying 2:02
08. Vagabond Of The Air 3:39
09. Hawaii Crash 2:22
10. The Call Of The Wild 3:11
11. Radio Love Call 2:17
12. Final Flight 11:03
13. Amelia 2:16
Runtime: 53:11 min
Release.Info :
When a film and score crash and burn in the estimation of box office figures and
critical reviews, it doesnÆt mean the aircraft was faulty as much as it was
misunderstood- or just plain antique in the case of AMELIA. For this voyage set
out with the simple goal of using glorious production values to inspire
audiences with the story of this legendary aviatrix- a mission accomplished with
old-fashioned biopic virtues that wouldnÆt be out of place in 1957Æs THE SPIRIT
OF ST. LOUIS. So why is Franz WaxmanÆs score for Charles Lindbergh acclaimed
like it just crossed the Atlantic, while Gabriel YaredÆs music for Amelia
Earhart has been relentlessly knocked for being just as big and bold? It
probably has a lot more to do with how audiences, let alone critics, who have
become immune to movies whose soundtracks actually said something. But for those
who appreciate the kind of unabashedly melodic scores they used to write,
YaredÆs AMELIA arrives as a vibrant musical time capsule that swoops them back
to a simpler time when heroines had moxie, and music had balls.
ItÆs fairly easy to see why director Mira Nair thought of Yared to score AMELIA.
After all, few composers beyond John Barry have had as much experience soaring
over scenic landscapes, though in YaredÆs case it was the deserts of his
Oscar-winning score to THE ENGLISH PATIENT, as opposed to the veldts that Barry
explored for his Academy Award in OUT OF AFRICA. Now Yared gets to fly over that
animal-filled terrain with findings that might have a similar orchestral voice,
but go to even more exotic places.
Yared first brings in the memorable theme heÆll frequently revisit with
ôIntroducing Amelia.ö And right from its lush, trembling strings and noble
brass, the music signals that weÆre in the presence of someone who will achieve
greatness- a soothing, gorgeously melodic tone that lifts the spirits in the
same way that Earhart felt her inner calling to fly. But where Barry loved
taking brass to its full resonance, Yared never quite goes so deep, as if to do
so is a territory better reserved for a masculine lead. That being said, AMELIA
is more ôfunö as a score than OUT OF AFRICA, as itÆs more about the love of a
woman for the air than her bond with a great white hunter (or newspaperman in
this case). Even more interesting is how Yared brings in flutes and African
percussion to play the animals below her wings, going more native as it were in
his approach.
But while it seems that Yared is in his natural ENGLISH element here, AMELIA is
a far more straightforward movie then PATIENT, whose existential nature let
Yared use a mix of ethereal electronics and orchestra thatÆs typified such
memorable scores as CITY OF ANGELS, THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY and even the
horrific 1408. Here YaredÆs musical flight plan is mostly symphonic as a way to
get across NairÆs straightforward storytelling. But thankfully AMELIA varies
from the mythic boldness of such cues as ôThe Ecstasy of Flyingö and ôThe Call
of the Wildö to the lyrical string and piano theme of ôAmelia,ö with YaredÆs
more personal, floating electronic touch coming across in ôAmelia and George.ö
Yet all of YaredÆs emotional moods have a distinctly feminine touch that makes
its heroine stand out from the manÆs world, one that views her dreams as
impossible destinations for a woman to reach. Yet perhaps none is lighter on its
feet than when the scratchy vintage start of ôFlying With Eleanor Rooseveltö
becomes a gloriously carefree gambol over nighttime LA with the greatest First
Lady of them all.
While there might always be a reassuring sense of melody to AMELIA, Yared
certainly doesnÆt play it safe, especially in his unusual choice of using flutes
in such pieces as ôVagabond of the Airö and ôRadio Love Call. The winds are very
much part of YaredÆs French approach, while simultaneously sounding Scottish.
And itÆs a sound that at first takes you aback to play a woman whoÆs as American
as her Kansas birthplace, But its YaredÆs ôforeignö flutes that ultimately make
Amelia a citizen of the world she flies over. And though she might not be over
Africa when almost meeting disaster on her ôFlight To Wales,ö Yared mixes his
flute theme with subtly tribal percussion, all as voices and swirling
orchestrations convey the true death-defying nature of the golden age of flight,
let alone AmeliaÆs quest to fly across the world.
ItÆs a voyage thatÆs especially terrifying as the exotic percussion of ôHawaii
Crashö speeds into an explosively dark orchestra, her flute theme signaling
EarhartÆs near-death escape. But she isnÆt so lucky in the in the eleven-minute
cue ôFinal Flight,ö which serves as YaredÆs suspenseful centerpiece. Beginning
with a bold, Barry-esque statement to signal AmeliaÆs oncoming destiny, Yared
brings in a dark piano figure that will ominously build with the orchestra, both
playing the growing sense of desperation as Amelia and her co-pilot search for
safe landing before their fuel runs out, a navy ship trying to reach her all the
while. Yet Yared maintains a poetic sense of doom through this masterful,
extended piece, at once capturing the terror of inevitable death with the poetic
resignation of flying into the history books- the music finally resolved with a
tender, and heartbreaking piano statement of AmeliaÆs theme.
Simply put, you will emotionally buy this score (and film), or you wonÆt. But
for someone like me who was drawn to film scores because of their unabashed way
of playing to picture, hearing the unashamedly lyrical sound of AMELIA is a
thrill when so many other composers have been forced to chicken out of their
bigger musical instincts, grounded by studios who donÆt dare to dream with the
same musical passion that Jimmy Stewart once flew to. But while such old-school
masters of this craft like John Barry may have had their wings clipped, at least
musicians such as Gabriel Yared are around to remind us of that symphonically
passionate sound from HollywoodÆs golden age. Like Earhart, heÆs a daredevil who
finds big scoring as a virtue instead of a hindrance. And hopefully, his music
will never be brought down to Earth.
Contact : crossfader@hush.ai
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