10 Soundtracks for the New Year

A new form of classical music is on the screen.

Those of us who are fans of classical music often seek diversion in film soundtracks. I have no doubt that if Mozart, Beethoven, and Bach were around today, they would be composing for the pictures and the mega-bucks. There are serious composers working for Hollywood and the fact that their work is on screen should not detract from their achievements.

I regard the music that Miklos Rozsa composed for Ben-Hur as the gold standard, but the film scores for Gone with the Wind (Max Steiner); Lawrence of Arabia (Maurice Jarre); The Godfather (Nino Rota); Cinema Paradiso (Ennio Morricone); Braveheart (James Horner); and Star Wars (John Williams) are not far behind.

But what about some lesser-known scores? I’m certain that any list that I compile will have plenty of people groaning at the omissions, but these soundtracks deserve more attention:

The Thin Red Line by Hans Zimmer. Zimmer’s work for Interstellar; Gladiator; and Inception are better known but give this a try. Although the music was for a war film, it contains haunting and enormously beautiful segments that hint of a journey.

Nowhere in Africa by Niki Reiser. This excellent soundtrack has an African tone as the action quickly moves from Nazi Germany to Kenya. Beautifully done. The film itself deserves to be far better known.

Seven Years in Tibet by John Williams. The man does not compose poor soundtracks. This one threw me off a bit when I first heard it, but the combination of Tibetan influences and the work of Yo-Yo Ma has become my favorite background music whenever late-night work is required.

The Cowboys by John Williams. You can sense an Aaron Copland influence in this rousing western soundtrack. It will get you moving in the morning.

The Taming of the Shrew by Nino Rota. Music to hear as you accompany a down-at-the heels nobleman when he seeks to woo a wealthy bride in Padua.

Is Paris Burning? by Maurice Jarre. The jarring German military sounds are eventually overcome by the French accordion music. The film was based on the best-selling book about the liberation of Paris during World War II.

Ragtime by Randy Newman. Jaunty and often humorous as one might expect from the name and the composer. It was nominated for an Academy Award in 1982 and deserves a wider audience.

Jurassic Park by John Williams. Very mellow. If you only listened to this beautiful soundtrack, you wouldn’t suspect that the film had a lot of dinosaurs munching their way through the Park’s visitors.

The Last of the Mohicans by Trevor Jones and Randy Edelman. Due to some technicalities in the Oscar evaluation process, this soundtrack didn’t qualify for be nominated for Best Film Score, but if there’d been a vote, it would have won.

Amélie by Yann Tiersen. This final recommendation – like the film itself - is pure pleasure. Go ahead and put it on. You will smile.

As a soundtrack buff, I often watch films for the moments when music and action combine in an unforgettable blend. One of the best examples of this can be seen (and heard) as Maurice Jarre’s soundtrack amplifies the Amish barn-raising scene in the film Witness.

Absolute perfection.