Giallo fever: part 12

Title: Indagine su un delitto perfetto (The perfect crime)

Year: 1978

Composer: Carlo Savina

Indagine su un delitto perfetto wasn’t a classical Italian giallo film with a masked killer going around killing young women, but more of a corporate thriller story where people are killed while pursuing a chairmanship. Carlo Savina’s score harks back to classic giallo progressions and moods, though explores new ideas which represent the buzzling underworld of the city of London.

Right from the start the listener is thrown into a world of mystery and murder. The track develops from the schizophrenic piano phrases to a mellow main theme tune which features the classic voice of Edda dell’Orso and some groovy bongo drums. Sadly the solo voice isn’t utilized again until the finale cue. The score is basically monothematic and it’s actually surprising how many of the cues incorporate the melody in some shape or form. This already elevates the whole score and especially the moody suspense cues to a tightly cohesive experience.

The main go-to instrument for the theme is the bass flute which has qualities fit for a 007 score. The first full reprise is heard in Seq. 3 which resolves into a dreamy and jazzy chorale for the flute and keyboards. Those same moods return briefly in Seq. 4 before it once again turns back to the chase style arrangement of the main title. However from that onwards it is mostly developed within the suspense department, such as in the impressionistic opening of Seq. 5 which later explores the keyboard suspense motif heard briefly in Seq. 2. Sparse piano chords dominate the following cue before the man theme rises again from the darkness offering a soothing, jazzy moment. The score starts to break down even more in Seq. 7 which includes floating, strangely evocative chords along with another beaten down main theme version for bass flute.

Seq. 8 is perhaps the album’s only cheerful moment written for a bar piano that has a romantic prelude. The schizophrenic phrases of the main title return in Seq. 9 which then features a reprise of the chase arrangement which cools down significantly to bare rumbles in the dark alleyways. The longest stretch of suspense, Seq. 10, is unfortunately the most boring one. The absence of the main theme is clearly noticeable this time and the leftovers are just an uninteresting bunch of moods that are not even that frightening. Compare them to Seq. 11 which is excellent especially when listened through headphones. Though the cue is quiet and sparse, what makes it so effective is the clever orchestration of woodwinds playing at their lowest range and some distant bar piano disturbed by high tinkling effects. Seq. 12 on the other hand has my favourite versions of the main theme presented in an otherworldly, dream-like way that is soothingly disturbing. The following solo piano version of Seq. 13 can almost be considered beautiful before it moves again to more macabre variations perfect for morbid discoveries.

I love how Savina crafted a score this suspenseful that features no strings and on the whole only a bare minimum of instruments needed. Though some of the moodier tracks can’t reach the desired effect on album, there are many exceptional moments that benefit from the chosen theme-and-variations type approach.

Rating: ****

Tracklist:

1. Indagine su un delitto perfetto - Seq. 1 (01:51) *****

2. Indagine su un delitto perfetto - Seq. 2 (01:39) ***

3. Indagine su un delitto perfetto - Seq. 3 (02:04) *****

4. Indagine su un delitto perfetto - Seq. 4 (01:49) ****

5. Indagine su un delitto perfetto - Seq. 5 (02:03) ****

6. Indagine su un delitto perfetto - Seq. 6 (02:19) ****

7. Indagine su un delitto perfetto - Seq. 7 (01:06) *****

8. Indagine su un delitto perfetto - Seq. 8 (01:38) ****

9. Indagine su un delitto perfetto - Seq. 9 (02:48) ****

10. Indagine su un delitto perfetto - Seq. 10 (04:25) **

11. Indagine su un delitto perfetto - Seq. 11 (03:25) *****

12. Indagine su un delitto perfetto - Seq. 12 (02:59) *****

13. Indagine su un delitto perfetto - Seq. 13 (02:33) *****

14. Indagine su un delitto perfetto - Seq. 14 (02:19) *****

15. Indagine su un delitto perfetto - Seq. 15 (01:15) ****

CrimeWaves: part 9

Title: Qualcuno ha visto uccidere… (Witness to murder)

Year: 1973

Composer: Stelvio Cipriani

For a movie about a guy killing his wife’s lover by planning a plane crash and dealing with the revenge caused by it, the score seems rather tame. Cipriani wrote two main themes that are perhaps too light for the subject matter and don’t really stand out from the crowd of other exceptional main themes created by the composer.

The album opens with a somewhat groovy arrangement of the main theme. It’s rather similar to other melodies for his works in the giallo genre, but instead of the regular female voice of Nora Orlandi, the melody is carried by a solo saxophone and electric guitar. The underlying latin rhythms give the cue some 70s cop show type edge which I like. The bouncy bassline is heard later in the score as an action motif that dominates the score’s two best cues, Seq. 13 and 15. The first is the fullest arrangement of the main theme simultaneously working as an exhausting chase cue. It goes through many instrumental solos like a marimba, a theatre organ and wild percussion section showing the orchestral brilliance Cipriani was capable of. The latter highlights an awesome saxophone solo played with passionate clarity. The same brilliant sax carries over to Seq. 16 but after so many repetitions of the same motif it starts to get a bit redundant. Unfortunately these cues are really the first ones after the opening that burst with any energy or excitement. Any previous versions of the main theme, like Seq. 3, 4 & 10, act as alright background music but offer no extra punch.

The love theme, Seq. 2, is a sweet lullaby that almost puts you to sleep which isn’t a compliment in a film where brutal acts of crime appear. It’s a simple tune thus offering almost no room to grow to anything more substantial. Though Seq. 8 tries to connect it with the suspense stylings, the result leaves the listener cold because the orchestration is just too plain, especially when compared to the complex orchestrations of the chase cues. The tremolo strings playing the main theme’s chords are a sweet touch at the beginning of Seq. 17 and the resulting love theme statement might be the album’s sweetest. Fortunately the ‘final confrontation’ i.e. the last suspense track, Seq. 18, combines snippets of the love theme and the suspense material far better than the previous attempts.

As the story unfolds, a few other styles emerge as well, like the bar source music of Seq. 5 and 14 both of which are built around simplistic, repeating riffs. The first attempts of so-called suspense of Seq. 7 are just a collection of electric guitar droning dissonantly over looping bass figures culminating into some annoying distorted guitar notes. In Seq. 9 it’s hard to even hear anything because the orchestration is so sparse. Even the short love theme reprise at the end can’t salvage this bore of a cue. Seq. 11 at least tries to offer something new by combining a glockenspiel to the distorted guitars, which are still annoying as hell. Luckily the previously mentioned action motif brings some new life to the score with some crazy keyboard effects in Seq. 12 creating an actually enjoyable cue.

I really didn’t care that much of this album. The score feels a bit like it was written on autopilot; put together with bits and pieces from better scores and failing to find cohesion in the process. Though there are a few instances where the music soars with pace and excitement and the musicians seem to have fun, most of the score is just too dull to leave a lasting impact.

Rating: **1/2

Tracklist:

1. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 1 - Titoli) (02:35) ****

2. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 2) (02:04) ***

3. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 3) (02:01) ****

4. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 4) (02:09) ***

5. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 5) (01:24) **

6. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 6) (00:59) **

7. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 7) (03:57) *

8. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 8) (01:54) **

9. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 9) (03:29) *

10. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 10) (01:41) ***

11. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 11) (01:08) **

12. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 12) (02:27) ****

13. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 13) (04:31) *****

14. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 14) (01:01) **

15. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 15) (01:43) *****

16. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 16) (03:08) ****

17. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 17) (02:01) ****

18. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 18) (00:55) ***

19. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 19) (03:48) ***

20. Qualcuno ha visto uccidere (Seq. 20 - Finale) (01:27) ***

WTF (Weird tho' fabulous): part 8

Title: Edipeon – il sapore della pelle

Year: 1970

Composer: Stelvio Cipriani

I was saddened by the passing of one of the greats of Italian film music, Maestro Stelvio Cipriani. He was an incredibly prolific composer who wrote dozens of film scores a year during his prime with stupendous quality. Luckily the labels still release unreleased music by him and I doubt this will cease anytime soon. I decided to revisit one release from 2015 by Digitmovies. The obscure film is about a teenager dealing with Oedipus complex and other unhealthy desires finally winding up to murder and suicide. Cipriani’s score rises above all this with classically beautiful, restrained music that includes some of his most beautiful passages.

The opening Seq. 1 is a true beauty a melody, beginning with delicate harp playing that makes way to the recorder and later to the voice of Edda dell’Orso. The chord progressions are clearly Baroque in nature and after a modulation the piece turns into an actual medieval dance piece with the high soprano voice singing in the distance. Unfortunately Cipriani rarely returns to this idea later in the score. In Seq.2 it’s heard as a more menacing organ chorale which turns into a near horror territory before introducing the film’s real main theme that gets more coverage later in the score. The Baroque recorder is combined to unsettling flute and electric guitar effects along with vocal ‘whoo-hoos’ in the bizarre yet engaging Seq. 5. Finale is a short reprise of the opening theme and a fine end to the album.

A variation of the main theme, probably most familiar Cipriani melody heard on this album compared to his other works, is heard in Seq. 3 as a laid-back bossa cue with Edda’s scat vocals. This cue was previously released as public domain library music and I’ve surprisingly heard this cue playing in some YouTube videos quite recently. The main theme is hinted again in Seq. 11 disguised as a beat cue but the real first full performance is in the following Seq. 12. Here it’s sung by Edda with scat vocal stylings familiar to works of Ennio Morricone. Many full versions of the theme follow in cues Seq.15, 17, 18, 22, 23 and 24. The problem is that the theme gets rather repetitive eventually and slightly loses its magic in the process. Notable versions however include Seq. 17 with a classical-guitar waltz version with the vocals and Baroque flute, and Seq. 18 with a suspenseful climax to tremolo strings.

Another melodic winner is the score’s third thematic idea first heard in Seq. 4, clearly borrowing a note or two from Chaplin’s Smile. Nevertheless it is a spectacular theme that resonates childlike innocence that is highlighted by its usually small-scale orchestrations. Seq. 8 is a simple flute, guitar and percussion trio whereas Seq. 9 begins with an emotional string quartet that then gets going after a percussion set joins the fun. The plainest but probably prettiest version is the passionate solo piano performance, Seq. 10 probably played by the composer himself which gets me almost teary-eyed. The final version of Seq. 25 is an emotional send-off with a mournful organ prelude that leads to a bare harp and solo violin duet.

As for usual there are also moments that aren’t linked to the main thematic material. These include two beatnik party cues Seq. 7 & 16 with groovy keyboard solos and Seq. 13: a fast, walking bass heavy chase scene with out-of-tune guitar twanging and more of those groovy keyboards. A melancholic organ waltz Seq. 20 underscores the film’s more tragicomic aspects with slight touches to Italian folk music. A previously unheard melody, a romantic bolero for oboe and strings is heard in Seq. 21 which turns about to be one of the score’s most unique little moments.

The score has elements like the small-scale Baroque orchestration and progressions that are rather unique to this very score. Still the main theme is rooted in the same pool where Cipriani usually drew his thematic ideas which gives that familiar comfort. The latter half of the album drags a little after so many similar versions of the same theme with only slight variations. Overall it’s however a fine, beautiful composition that every fan of the composer should check out.

Rating: ****1/2

Tracklist:

1. Edipeon - seq.1 Titoli (02:43) *****

2. Edipeon - seq.2 (01:31) ****

3. Edipeon - seq.3 (03:12) ****

4. Edipeon - seq.4 (01:28) *****

5. Edipeon - seq.5 (01:39) *****

6. Edipeon - seq.6 (01:29) ****

7. Edipeon - seq.7 (02:37) ***

8. Edipeon - seq.8 (01:48) *****

9. Edipeon - seq.9 (01:15) *****

10. Edipeon - seq.10 (01:24) *****

11. Edipeon - seq.11 (01:48) ****

12. Edipeon - seq.12 (02:05) *****

13. Edipeon - seq.13 (02:12) *****

14. Edipeon - seq.14 (02:29) ****

15. Edipeon - seq.15 (02:17) *****

16. Edipeon - seq.16 (01:31) *****

17. Edipeon - seq.17 (02:30) *****

18. Edipeon - seq.18 (01:49) *****

19. Edipeon - seq.19 (02:23) ****

20. Edipeon - seq.20 (01:49) ****

21. Edipeon - seq.21 (02:37) *****

22. Edipeon - seq.22 (01:24) ****

23. Edipeon - seq.23 (01:04) ****

24. Edipeon - seq.24 (01:42) ****

25. Edipeon - seq.25 (01:58) *****

26. Edipeon - seq.26 Finale (01:32) *****