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UPDATED Daniel Blumberg: 'The Brutalist' (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Every once in a while, a musical event catches my eye and that is certainly true this week of the BAFTA (the British Academy of Film and TV Awards) win for original score, which went to Daniel Blumberg for his extraordinary work on 'The Brutalist'.



I'm hoping to get to interview Daniel for my podcast, simply because the composition and recording process which he outlines in a YouTube video is breathtaking. Watch this space ...

This week has been a great one for The Brutalist with four BAFTA awards - US filmmaker Brady Corbet (Best Director), Adrien Brody (Best Actor) as well as cinematography and, of course, best original score. Last night (as I write this), the Academy Awards gave Oscars for Brody, cinematography and Blumberg's score once more. Very well-deserved awards for a truly extraordinary film.

Blumberg talks about the Overture that does much more than accompany the film's opening: “Brady and I wanted there to be continual music for the first 10 minutes of the film, and the entire opening sequence was actually shot and choreographed to the music using my initial demos. The Overture introduces the main players who appear throughout the film – including pianists John Tilbury, Sophie Agnel and Simon Sieger; Axel Dörner on trumpet; Evan Parker on saxophone – and it also covers the full spectrum of sounds and dynamics, the cacophony of the brass, the repetition of the prepared piano, the more lyrical piano melodies, and the instrumental techniques that blur with the diegetic sound. With the Overture I wanted to create this extremely disorientating, sensory overload that immediately immerses you in the film."

The Brutalist soundtrack lasts for almost two hours including a rare 15-minute intermission and is a crucial element of the film, with a prepared piano at the heart of the music. Cinemas that have clearly been ignoring the film are now beginning to show it but I managed to view it in a private screening room and it truly is a brutal film. The cinematograph and direction and truly outstanding, even if the content is extremely challenging. This is not a film for the squeamish or prudish.

British musicians feature on the soundtrack, including saxophonist Evan Parker and avant-garde pianist John Tilbury, whose performance serves as the inner voice and musical embodiment of the film’s main character, László Toth. The range of music crosses genres and echoes the film's narrative from the end of World War 2 until the1980 epilogue, which offers a good deal of explanation, while leaving several enigmas to the audience's imagination.

Having now watched the film, I can highly recommend it (with the caveats above) and the music is simply stunning. I'm still waiting for the call to interview award-winning composer Daniel Blumberg.
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