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Carlo Savina, 1919-2002
Composer, arranger and conductor Carlo Savina died in Rome on June 21, 2002, at the age of 82.
One of the most prolific and versatile figures in Italian film music, Savina worked on more than 200 films as composer, conductor or musical director. Although his own scores encompassed everything from comedy and drama to spaghetti westerns and horror, he was equally important as a trusted conductor for composers including Nino Rota, Miklós Rózsa, Philippe Sarde and Stephen Sondheim.
Savina was born in Turin on August 29, 1919, into a musical family. His father was principal clarinetist with the EIAR radio orchestra and introduced him to music at an early age. Savina studied violin, piano, composition and conducting at the Giuseppe Verdi Conservatory in Turin, and in 1944 received his diploma in composition. His early concert works included sonatas, chamber pieces and the opera Il vecchio geloso, which won a prize from the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in 1948.
After the Second World War Savina became increasingly active in radio and popular music. He formed his own orchestra, wrote songs and arrangements, and became a prominent conductor for RAI, participating in some of Italian television’s earliest experimental broadcasts. His polished orchestral style and ability to move easily between classical and popular idioms soon led him toward cinema. Read more…
MINORITY REPORT – John Williams
Original Review by Jonathan Broxton
Is it sacrilege to say that a new John Williams score is a slight disappointment? The 70-year old composer has been at the top of his game for over 25 years now, and the list of near-legendary scores he has written is almost incomprehensible. His collaboration with director Steven Spielberg is also the stuff of fable – how can two men come up with so much brilliance and genius between them? Minority Report, as a movie, is a marvelous amalgam of science fiction and morality gone wrong. But whereas Spielberg seems to still be at the height of creative talents, Williams seems to be flagging just a tad. A.I., his last Spielberg film, was enjoyable but failed to tread any new ground. Minority Report, which covers similar thematic ground by tackling deep intellectual issues in a science fiction setting, seems to have had the a similar effect on Williams – without wanting to sound unkind, its almost as though “thinking” films don’t provide him with the same seeds of musical inspirational as the popcorn adventure flicks that seem to be more and more his forte. Read more…
WINDTALKERS – James Horner
Original Review by Jonathan Broxton
It’s getting more and more difficult to review James Horner scores objectively these days – and everyone knows why. Listening to and writing about Horner’s music is a bit like having an itch you’re not supposed to scratch – you know it’ll do you no good in the long run but, by God, it irritates you so much, you just can’t help yourself – and the short term relief is worth it. I am almost at pains to say so, but on the whole Windtalkers bored me. Horner rarely does this; if nothing else, Horner’s music is usually interesting and worth taking the time to listen to. But, here, its as though he intentionally drew the majority the heart and color from his score, leaving instead a soulless musical shell that is technically sound but bereft of anything remotely resembling emotion. Read more…
THE BOURNE IDENTITY – John Powell
Original Review by Jonathan Broxton
Film music is a funny thing. Sitting down to listen to The Bourne Identity, the latest score from British composer John Powell, I fully expected to hate it. Electronics, synthesizers, drum loops, very little in the way of an orchestral palette – all the things I generally dislike about certain types of score are in place here. But, much to my own surprise, I didn’t hate it at all – it actually entertained me for much of its running length, and left me marveling at the deftness of Powell’s MIDI programming and electronic inventiveness. Read more…
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