Podcast: In Conversation With Kim Criswell.

In this episode I talk to singer and actress Kim Criswell. It was recorded at BFI Southbank in London, on Thursday 24th of February, 2022.

Review: City Lights at Glyndebourne.

On Saturday November 20th, I travelled to the renowned Glyndebourne Opera House in Sussex, to see (and hear) one of Charlie Chaplin‘s masterpieces, “City Lights“ (1931). The film was projected on a big screen and was accompanied by Chaplin’s own original score. The music was performed by the Glyndebourne Tour Orchestra under the baton of Jamie Phillips, who was making his debut at the Opera House.

 

Chaplin started making “City Lights” in the late 1920s following a somewhat rocky period when he made “The Circus”. In 1927 the world’s first talkie, “The Jazz Singer,” was premiered in New York and cinema changed forever. By 1930, silent films were seen as obsolete but Chaplin was determined that “City Lights” would follow on in the grand silent tradition.

 

Chaplin composed his own musical score with the assistance of arranger Arthur Johnston. Chaplin could not read or write music in the conventional way and needed a professional musician’s help with the details.

 

Amazingly, I have never seen “City Lights” in full until now. The music was played brilliantly and the orchestra exceeded my expectations by managing to replicate the 1930s playing styles, especially with a high level ofvibrato in the strings, which I believe is crucial when performing such a score.

 

The audience genuinely appreciated the film and it got plenty of laughs. The hospitality of the venue was top-notch. The surroundings were beautiful - it was my first time at Glyndebourne - and the atmosphere was great. After the film finished the orchestra gave a brief encore. Then, after the concert I fortuitously bumped into TV and film composer Paul Lewis and his wife, Sharon, and had a nice chat with them.

 

Me (Left) with Paul Lewis (Right).

All in all, I had a splendid day, and had several firsts: first time at Glyndebourne, first entire viewing of “City Lights” on the big screen, and a first for hearing The Glyndebourne Tour Orchestra. I can only hope now, that Glyndebourne does even more of these screenings in the future.

Podcast: In Conversation With Tommy Pearson.

In this episode, I speak to broadcaster and film music expert Tommy Pearson. This episode was recorded 16th November 2021, via Zoom. Apologies for any issues with the sound quality.

Podcast: In Conversation With Ben Palmer.

In this edition, I talk to conductor Ben Palmer about working in film. This episode was recorded in Berlin, October 24th 2021, prior to a screening of Charlie Chaplin’s “The Kid” (1921) at the Babylon cinema.

New Podcast! In Conversation With Günter A. Buchwald.

In this episode I speak to composer, conductor and silent film accompanist Günter A. Buchwald. It was recorded on Friday October 8th, 2021. At the Le Giornate Del Cinema Muto Festival in Pordenone, Italy.

Film Score Junkie Podcast: First Edition, Featuring Neil Brand.

In this first edition of the Film Score Junkie podcast, I talk to composer, writer, broadcaster and film music expert Neil Brand. This episode was recorded over two days (October 6th and 7th) at the 2021 Le Giornate Del Cinema Muto Festival in Pordenone, Italy.

BBC Proms 2021: John Wilson and the Sinfonia of London.

Last Saturday I had the opportunity to meet one of my idols, the conductor, John Wilson. I attended the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall, in London. John Wilson and his new orchestra, the Sinfonia of London, were performing works by mainly Austrian composers. The highlight of the concert for me, was the “Symphony in F sharp” by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, who was from the Viennese School of Composers, and studied under Richard Strauss and Alexander von Zemlinsky. He made a name for himself scoring many golden-age Hollywood films, such as “Captain Blood” (1935) and “The Adventures of Robin Hood” (1938) both starring Errol Flynn.

John Wilson.

The first half opened with the overture from “Der Fledermaus” by Johann Strauss II. Like a lot of well known compositions, you may know what it sounds like, but not what it’s called. That was the case with me. I knew it as the music that accompanied “Tom and Jerry at the Hollywood Bowl” and crashing cars during the opening of Disney’s “The Love Bug“. The operetta the overture was written for, was based on a play entitled “the prison“ by Roderich Benedix.

Strauss’s overture was followed by “Seven Early Songs“ by Alban Berg, and sung wonderfully by soprano Francesca Chiejina. The songs were originally written over three years from 1905 to 1908, but were not orchestrated by the composer until 1928.

Francesca Chiejina.

This was followed by Ravel’s “La Valse”, a piece described as a tribute to the Viennese waltz. At first I thought it was Strauss, but the seemingly chaotic tones and rhythms at the end are said to reflect the descent of Vienna after the Great War.

The Korngold “Symphony in F Sharp” is a piece I have never heard in full. The symphony began with a quiet and mysterious passage, played on percussion with pizzicato strings and piano. Then, as the peace progressed, it started to sound more cinematic. At various points I was reminded of the scores from “Jaws” and “Indiana Jones”. It seems to me (and has also been commented on by others) that John Williams was influenced by Korngold. It’s my loss, but the only pieces of Korngold that I am familiar with are his “Theme and Variations” and, of course, his film scores.

The concert wound up with a piece by Korngold’s teacher, Zemlinsky, as the deserved encore, a piece that predates film scores but sounded, for all the world, just like one.

I, myself, am passionate about film music, and this is how I became familiar with John Wilson’s work, as he is often associated with music from the stage and screen. In fact I attended this particular Prom because I am familiar with film music history and how it has its roots in the music played at this concert. I imagine that John Wilson chose these pieces because he wanted to show what preceded Hollywood film scoring, to enable the audience to understand the evolution of golden-age film music.

John Wilson (with mask on) after the concert.

Autographs from John Wilson (large signature on right) and members of the Sinfonia of London.

I very much enjoyed the concert and felt so lucky to be able to have a short discussion with John as he left the Albert Hall. His parting words to me were, “Study the music you enjoy!” Wise words indeed.

Watch the full concert on BBC iPlayer: https://bbc.in/3tGu6MF

Listen on BBC Sounds: https://bbc.in/3nhkwOO