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Crescendo
Ignace "Iggy" Jang |
Movies and music
join East and West
It's movie night at the symphony! In collaboration with the Hawaii International Film Festival, maestro Samuel Wong will lead the orchestra in a collection of audio and visual delights, highlighting the essential role of music in movies. Our featured presentation, "Araki Mataemon, Master Swordsman," will be shown on a giant screen above the orchestra, served up with live benshi narration and the music of Bernstein, Korngold, Debussy and more. In true international fashion, the evening celebrates European music, samurai feats, Hollywood tunes and tea ceremonies in a symbiosis of Eastern and Western culture.
'Reel to Real'
Honolulu Symphony performs with Samuel Wong, conductor; Midori Sawato, narrator
Featuring: Multimedia presentation with the Japanese film "Kensei Araki Mataemon (Master Swordsman)"
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In the beginning, the tunes weren't elaborate. Their purpose more often than not was to drown out the sound of hand-cranked projectors and rowdy audiences. But as the art evolved, it became apparent that music would enhance the visual drama or comedy. Scores for orchestras were commissioned, and the task of creating theme music became an art. If only a pianist could fit into the theater, he would play a scaled-down part, but if no such part existed, the player would ad-lib his own scores. They were just like an organist performing at a baseball game, but with a wider range of emotions to display -- one would hope!
In Japan, the art of the benshi, or Japanese narrator, grew with the silent movie. This performer stood next to the screen and read from a script, explaining the movie or providing voice-over for on-screen characters. The script was only a guide, allowing the benshi to improvise and interpret the film.
This weekend, Midori Sawato will stand between the screen and the orchestra, narrating "Araki Mataemon." She is regarded as one of Japan's leading benshis and has even practiced this narrative art on Western films.
Now here's the exciting part. No score was composed for "Araki Mataemon," so we had to create one. Assistant conductor Joan Landry spent countless hours viewing the film to come up with the best-fitting tunes. The music she selected is European and contrasts with the film's Asian heritage, from the "Oriental" sounds of the French composer Debussy to the percussive rhythms of the Russian Shostakovich. We'll have to manage the delicate balance between Sawato's narrative and our inspiring brass section. I look forward to this blend of East and West, and welcome audience feedback.
The musicians will enjoy the undivided attention of the audience in the first half of the program, before they are upstaged by the on-screen samurai. Two of Hollywood's most ambitious scores will be performed: Erich Korngold's "Robin Hood Suite," followed by Leonard Bernstein's "On the Waterfront."
Bernstein brought his genius to the movies only once, writing the score to the 1954 classic. The music matches the hypnotic power of Marlon Brando's performance, with its haunting romantic melodies and obsessive rhythms. I remember working on the piece as a teenager at a summer music camp. Every day at lunch in the cafeteria, the students would attempt to mock the rhythmic motive, hitting incrementally filled glasses with their knives. I can't remember anything from the movie, but the rhythm has stayed with me.
Korngold's impact as a film composer is undeniable. His Oscar-winning "Robin Hood" score is from the 1938 version, starring Errol Flynn. Korngold described his movies as operas without singing, and perhaps for this reason, the "Robin Hood Suite" is regarded as one of the finest tracks ever written for film. Sadly, the German-born composer did not experience much success in other musical fields. His violin concerto, premiered by the great Jascha Heifetz in 1947, received lukewarm reviews. One critic described the work as offering "more Korn than gold."
I invite everyone to observe the important role of music the next time they go to the movies. Think of Hitchcock's "Psycho," and of the screeches from the violins in the shower scene. It's as though the repeated stabbing and repetitive musical strikes are seamlessly intertwined. The music becomes as frightening as the visual.
No need to worry about shower scenes with us! You'll find yourself in the dry confines of the concert hall, serenaded by the symphony. Enjoy this unique experience, but no popcorn inside the "theater!"