Though when it comes to pronouncing Elmer Bernstein's surname he erroneously pronounced it the same way as Leonard's when he should pronounce it as Burn-steen. Lol
Someone needs to interview John Williams before he leaves us forever. I especially want to hear his explanation for the way he scored the first episodes of "Lost in Space". One episode, "My Friend Mr Nobody", has a music score that is probably the most beautiful piece of music written for any tv show of the 60s in the US. Williams is a genius.
Amen to this comment. He needs/deserves a long interview. Has he ever been covered by the PBS American Masters series? You mentioned Lost In Space. I would love to hear him comment on his all of his estimable tv series work, esp."Checkmate".
I agonized about this issue for a long time. I wanted someone to document anything he could offer about his process, approach, etc. But then I realized it's really already all there for us. Sure any comment he might make would be precious, no doubt, but his "secret" isn't going anywhere, because it's something every truly great artist figures out. The secret is a developed taste. That's it. Just a well developed ability to judge if a thing is right or wrong for its purpose. Everything else is means to the end.
It should be mentioned that Jerry Goldsmith was more than merely a "fan" of Alex North. The two gentlemen shared a tremendous respect for one another and developed a deep personal friendship; the likes of which few composers can boast. I find it amusing the way Mr. Williams posed his Goldsmith remark. It seems even the greats aren't above trying to position themselves next to larger greatness. Love 'em all nonetheless!
I'd be curious to know the influence of Shostakovich on American composers of Alex North's era as Shostakovich's music has a cinematic quality to it, no doubt due to his writing scores for Soviet cinema.
I want John to make a recording dedicated to Mancini...We forget that John was the pianist for all the famous Mancini recordings...Peter Gunn, etc. North's score for the Misfits is sublime. At one time I had the original vinyl soundtrack of The Bad Seed, which was one that really heavy early vinyl....now that record can pay a months rent for some people...anyway, now you can find it on CD. Tom Waits is also a fan of Alex North.
I wonder if anyone pointed out to Williams that he was having it both ways, claiming that North was and wasn't formed in the European tradition, especially as he talks about him being influenced by Prokofiev and Shostakovitch, two of the more classical, European tradition oriented composers of the time. Movie music is to music what movies are to novels.
+Anthony McCarthy Williams mentions that Mr. North was influenced by both the European classical, and the American Jazz and Pop. You act as if that is some sort of contradiction. Additionally, Williams has written music for the concert hall, large historic events such as the Olympics, in addition to films. So, who are you to try to degrade him?
@William David Hilton Maybe some of his film scores are, but remember that what he writes for those are often based on a Director's orders and temp tracks. Have you heard his concert music? I think his Bassoon Concerto called "The Five Sacred Trees" is fantastic.
John Williams sits at the top of the film music pecking order---however, right below him in very close position, sits Erich Korngold. Then....below these two, there is a group of remarkable composers led by Bernard Herrmann, Max Steiner, Franz Waxman, Dimitri TIomkin, Alfred Newman, and Alex North. Then, just below these guys you find Jerry Goldsmith, Elmer Bernstein, David Raksin, and a number of others. It is a sad thing, indeed, to think that the last 50 years have produced just a handful of really find film composers--originals. Fortunately, John Williams is a product of those years and he makes up for what is lacking. Finally, Alex North is the kind of composer who you have to admire for his ingenuity and melodic invention. I will never understand Kubrick's decision to 86 North's score for 2001. It is a very good score and in almost every way, is better than the traditional works Kubrick used. It is not North's best score, however.
I prefer Alex North's original music for 2001 over the classical pieces which Kubrick used, if Kubrick had done this with Bernard Herrmann he would have probably thrown a chair at Kubrick
I hope North didn't neglect to visit the Gulag and the death camps, or to salute Stalin for the 20 million+ murders committed by the regime. This apparently didn't bother him, but when he heard Duke Ellington, well, that was too much and he had to head home. I suppose he wasn't too upset by the lack of bloody tyranny in the US. He adjusted to the excessive freedoms and focused on making a killing through the evil capitalist system. I admire his music, like I admire Wagner's. But I try not to think too often of his, and Wagner's, warped philosophies..
Alex North was a far better and certainly much more original composer than John Williams and what he says here is Williams IMHO mode which is fine, but more gifted and more original is rarely calculated in $s and cents, but who am I to judge? Michael McDonagh www.alexnorthmusic.com
