William Dart pays tribute to the Italian film composer Ennio Morricone, who died 6 July 2020.
Ennio Morricone at Cannes 2007 Photo: Olivier Strecker CC3.0
The young Ennio Morricone played trumpet in jazz bands and earned his living working in the recording studios of post-war Rome.
It was the heyday of cinematic New Realism propelled by directors such as Visconti, Rossellini and de Sica. Morricone was moved and excited by what he saw on screen, but the accompanying music didn’t always work so well for him.
In the meantime, he supported his family by writing arrangements for popular singers, including Mario Lanza, Chet Baker and the Italian pop diva, Mina.
He first made a name for himself as a movie composer in the 1960s, most notably in the films of Sergio Leone.
He went on to become one of the most prolific and most respected of all film composers, scoring over 400 films.
William Dart follows a personal trail through some of Morricone's music. The original soundtrack music gets a look in, but equally, he features what other musicians have done with the songs and compositions, including performances by Mike Patton, John Zorn, Joan Baez, and Céline Dion.
Music Details
'Song title' (Composer) – Performers
Album title
(Label)
'The Good The Bad and The Ugly, Main Title' (Morricone) – Unione Musicisti di Roma/Bruno Nicolai
The Good The Bad and The Ugly, original soundtrack
(EMI)
'Overture, Der Freischütz' (Weber) – German SO, Berlin/Marek Janowski
Der Freischütz
(RCA)
'The Man with the Harmonica' (Morricone) – Studio orchestra
Once Upon a Time in the West, original soundtrack
(RCA)
'Se telephonando' (Morricone) – Mina
Studio Uno 66
(Ri-Fi)
'Dear God Please Help Me' (Morrissey) – Morrissey
Ringleaders of the Tormentors
(Attack)
'Deep Deep Down' (Morricone) – Mike Patton
Mondo Cane
(Ipecac)
'The Battle of Algiers' (Morricone) – Studio orchestra
The Battle of Algiers, original soundtrack
(United Artists)
'The Battle of Algiers' (Morricone) – John Zorn
The Big Gundown
(Tzadik)
'The Howl and the City' (Morricone) – Studio orchestra
Wolf, original soundtrack
(Columbia)
'Quasiraga' (Morricone) – Gruppe Nuova Consonanza
Improvisation
(DG)
'Recitazione/Corale' (Morricone) – I Cantori Moderni di Alessandroni
I Cantori Moderni di Alessandroni
(Cherry Red)
'Muchio' (Morricone) – I Cantori Moderni di Alessandroni
I Cantori Moderni di Alessandroni
(Cherry Red)
'The Ballad of Sacco and Vanzetti' (Morricone) – Joan Baez
Sacco and Vanzetti (original soundtrack)
(GDM)
'I knew I loved you' (Morricone) – Céline Dion
We All Love Ennio Morricone
(Sony)
'Chi Mai' (Morricone) – John Zorn
The Big Gundown
(Tzadik)
