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Author	Topic: Under-appreciated Composers

Probable Oscar® Winner	These are a few composers whose work I really admire but who don't seem to get a whole lot of recognition(or work!). Please list your own, I always love finding new composers. -Michael Nyman -Craig Armstrong -Carter Burwell ...hm, thought there were more than that...I'm sure I'll think of a few...
posted 10-04-2000 05:46 PM PT (US)

scoreboy13 unregistered	hmmmm.... I think most composers don't get the recignition (or however it's spelled) they should. But here's a few: -John Powell (big, but not really) -Richard Marvin There's a lot more, but I can't think right now. Clay G. NP Face/Off Expanded Bootleg (John Powell)
posted 10-04-2000 05:53 PM PT (US)

jonathan_little Oscar® Winner	Christopher Gordon Christopher Gordon Christopher Gordon oh, did I mention Christopher Gordon?
posted 10-04-2000 07:19 PM PT (US)

TimT Oscar® Winner	John Scott and David Newman
posted 10-04-2000 08:19 PM PT (US)

James Oscar® Winner	How many more times must I mention Richard Band?
posted 10-04-2000 08:38 PM PT (US)

Probable Oscar® Winner	Three. Otherwise how can he compete with Christopher Gordon?
posted 10-04-2000 08:41 PM PT (US)

Wedge Oscar® Winner	Angela Morley Shirley Walker Marc Shaiman Sergei Prokofiev
posted 10-04-2000 08:58 PM PT (US)

JJH Oscar® Winner	Carter Burwell a lack of work? I doubt that. He just scored at least 4 commercial for some insurance company of all things. he is one of the most sought after composers out there isn't he? If he is perceived as having a lack of work, I think it is because he is picky to a certain degree. He chooses little indie films, with the occasional "big" film like Conspiracy Theory. I mean, how many people saw Hamlet, or Gods and Monsters? yet. these are tremendous scores, for chamber-sized orchestras. NP -- Frankei Starlight, again
posted 10-04-2000 08:58 PM PT (US)

Shaun Rutherford Oscar® Winner	Seriously, do you think that Richard Marvin has been around long enough to be considered "underappreciated"? Underappreciated? I'm with Wedge. Shirley Walker. Prokofiev is underappreciated by Horner, but that's common knowledge, is it not? And frankly, I'm shocked, outraged, dismayed, and outraged that JJ has neglected to mention the artistic merits of Mr. Robert Folk, Esq. Shaun
posted 10-04-2000 10:53 PM PT (US)

BMikeJ Oscar® Winner	quote: Originally posted by TimT: John Scott and David Newman Tim, I totally agree with you here, especially about John Scott. What a score he would've written for Ridley Scott's Gladiator... His scores for Greystoke, The Final Countdown, Shogun Mayeda, and Antony & Cleopatra are masterpieces and should be more than enough to secure him work in Hollywood. Why he doesn't get work mystifies me. Another great unappreciated composer is Michael J. Lewis. In the 1970's and into the 1980's, Lewis wrote some absolutely MAGNIFICENT film scores for films like Julius Caesar, Sphinx, The Medusa Touch, and The Passage, among others. Excellent film music, with lush orchestrations and heartfelt themes. At the Oscars a few years back, one of his themes from The Passage was used for the montage of actors who had passed on. It was such a perfect piece of music and I was SO sure he would get work from it. But he didn't. And I don't even think he was compensated for having the piece used. It's just criminal... What a score for Ridley Scott's Gladiator could he have written, also... For those of you out there who don't have his promo, Mike, the guy over at Super Collector gives it his highest recommendation.
posted 10-04-2000 11:31 PM PT (US)

THE GREEK Oscar® Winner	If we consider that composers like ALEX NORTH, MAX STEINER, ALFRED NEWMAN, DIMITRI TIOMKIN, MANCINI, SCHIFRIN, ROZSA, BERNSTEIN are rarelly seen in topics of this messageboard - comparing to MACNEELY, ZIMMER, DAVID NEWMAN etc - then...yes the giants i first mentioned are under-appreciated(at least by the members of this messageboard.
posted 10-05-2000 01:58 AM PT (US)

Nicolai P. Zwar Oscar® Winner	Well, when we go back in time and take a look at thee past hundred years of film music, then I would say that of the good old "classic" composers the two most underappreciated names in these types of discussion forums seem to be Alex North and Leonard Rosenman, two ingenious composers with a unique voice. Both had enormously stunning and influential debut scores (A Streetcar named Desire and East of Eaden, respectively), both advanced the art of film scoring through their seminal work. The quality of their film scores is rivaled by only a handful of other composers (say, Bernard Herrmann or Miklos Rozsa), yet unlike those two both North and especially Rosenman are totally underrepresented when it comes to CD releases.
posted 10-05-2000 03:17 AM PT (US)

THE GREEK Oscar® Winner	Nicolai i have no other option than to fully agree with you.It is sad for a film music forum to spend most of its space for composers who can't and probably won't ever reach the status and the greatness of BERNARD HERRMANN or LEONARD ROSENMAN.
posted 10-05-2000 04:56 AM PT (US)

JJH Oscar® Winner	Robert Folk, dammit.
posted 10-05-2000 05:11 AM PT (US)

mgh Oscar® Winner	I agree that John Scott and Michael J. Lewis are under appreciated. And one of the giants of the Golden Age--Hugo Friedhofer--was and still is under appreciated. He could write for every genre. THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES--Americana HONDO, BROKEN ARROW--westerns BETWEEN HEAVEN AND HELL, THE YOUNG LIONS, IN LOVE AND WAR--war THE LODGER--suspense THE BISHOP'S WIFE--comedy/romance THE ADVENTURES OF MARCO POLO--adventure SEVEN CITIES OF GOLD--historical drama THE RAINS OF RANCHIPUR--drama and the list goes on. [Message edited by mgh on 10-05-2000]
posted 10-05-2000 05:22 AM PT (US)

H Rocco Oscar® Winner	John Scott has been so little visible of late, perhaps he IS underappreciated, although he was a cult favorite of soundtrack fans in the seventies and eighties. Three fine Hollywood composers who are all but ignored by both fans and the industry: Daniel Licht, Terry Plumeri and Joel Derouin. (My opinion of Derouin is based on the only score of his I've heard, for the Chuck Norris actioner THE HITMAN ... he doesn't seem to have done very much.) Another little-known American-based composer who's done interesting work (FIST FIGHTER, THE ICE RUNNER) is Emilio Kauderer. Most of you probably remember Gerald Fried's wonderful STAR TREK scores -- if you liked them, then you owe it to yourself to pick up FSM's double CD issue of some of his horror scores. There's more to him than STAR TREK! Good sound considering the age of the tapes, and great music, each score completely different from the other, despite the uniformity of genre. From Japan: Riichiro Manabe, best known here for his two Godzilla scores (SMOG MONSTER and MEGALON). He's often derided for his exaggerated brass effects and peculiar instrumentation, but I think of him as sort of the Japanese Leonard Rosenman, a serious, if somewhat eccentric and repetitive, musician whose work is really an acquired taste. He's considered quite avant-garde over there (which, indeed, is the reason he was selected for the strangest of all Godzilla movies, GODZILLA VS. THE SMOG MONSTER -- the producer wanted Ifukube, but the director, who'd already worked quite happily with Ifukube on BIRTH OF THE JAPANESE ISLANDS the previous year, wanted something completely new.) From Spain: Jose Nieto, whose fine work is represented on the Varese double CD "Seville Film Music Concerts," which last time I looked was STILL being priced as a single CD (the other disc includes rather poor renditions of Maurice Jarre themes which are all available in better versions elsewhere). From England: Christopher Gunning. He works steadily over there, has even picked up a few awards, but is all but unknown outside his home country. And from Italy: Francesco DeMasi. Pick up the expanded CD of LONE WOLF McQUADE if you can find it -- a great action score with much of the flavor of an early Morricone western.
posted 10-05-2000 08:25 AM PT (US)

BMikeJ Oscar® Winner	quote: Originally posted by H Rocco: From Spain: Jose Nieto, whose fine work is represented on the Varese double CD "Seville Film Music Concerts," which last time I looked was STILL being priced as a single CD (the other disc includes rather poor renditions of Maurice Jarre themes which are all available in better versions elsewhere). From England: Christopher Gunning. He works steadily over there, has even picked up a few awards, but is all but unknown outside his home country. And from Italy: Francesco DeMasi. Pick up the expanded CD of LONE WOLF McQUADE if you can find it -- a great action score with much of the flavor of an early Morricone western. Hal, you rock... I agree with these three picks here. That Seville Film Music Concerts disc with the Nieto music is terrific. Especially the Captain Cook music. Very exciting... I'm also partial to El Caballero Del Dragon, which I was actually able to get a CD of a few years back. I also love Christopher Gunning. A few weeks ago, in a thread about scores people should try out, I brought up Firelight, which is a beautiful orchestral score in the tradition of Rozsa. And DeMasi is terrific... In addition to Lone Wolf McQuade, which is available here domestically from Varese and overseas from Beat, I really love his Seven Slaves Against The World/Spartacus and the Ten Gladiators release on the CAM label. Great rip-roaring sword and sandal music!
posted 10-05-2000 09:45 AM PT (US)

H Rocco Oscar® Winner	it's "Hank," actually ... Must keep an eye out for that DeMasi disc, sounds wonderful. I have a couple of his compilations and an older CAM release called TI-KOYO AND THE SHARK, and so far, that's it. I'd be fascinated to hear him in sword-and-sandal mode. Thanks for the heads-up. So there's finally a CD of CABALLERO & THE DRAGON, eh? I remember reading a rave review of the LP many years ago, that's one reason I decided to roll the dice on the Seville CD. I agree with you about CAPTAIN COOK, very fine work. Have you (or anyone) heard his one CD released in the US -- by Milan, I think -- PASSION IN THE DESERT?
posted 10-05-2000 10:01 AM PT (US)

Wedge Oscar® Winner	D'oh! Forgot Ronald Stein!
posted 10-05-2000 02:18 PM PT (US)

Graham Watt Oscar® Winner	Here I go again singing the praises of Gil Melle. He doesn't do films any more, but what he did was magnificent, particularly his orchestral scores for The Sentinel (1977 grotty horror), Embryo (1977 grotty SF), The Ultimate Warrior (1975 grotty SF), and Frankenstein The True Story (1973 TV, and it was GOOD!) Great jazz based scores too for The Organization (1970 Virgil Tibbs movie) and countless TV things. Trouble is, as you can see, he had bad luck with those low profile films, but that has happened to people like John Scott also. And how about Basil Kirchin? He too has disappeared off the map, but he did some brilliant scores for bad films (again) back in the 60s and 70s. The Abominable Doctor Phibes (the best of his movies), The Shuttered Room, The Mutations...VERY interesting small combo scores.
posted 10-05-2000 02:22 PM PT (US)

Aaron Collins Oscar® Winner	I will add my 5 cents... John Scott is a definite candidate. He has written some of the most beautiful scores(too many to name.) Bruce Broughton is one of the most talented composers in Hollywood and I wish I would see more posters with his name on it. I wasn't a fan of Robert Folks until my trip to LA where everyone hammered me with his soundtracks. He is definitely under-appreciated. Cliff Eidelman is a pretty good friend of mine and I think he should be scoring a lot more than he does. Franz Waxman! Now I really admire all his work and the only reason I bring his name up is when people mention the golden age composers they leave out Waxman. The above posts prove my point. I also enjoy all of John Addison's work and I think he too is under-appreciated. Later, Aaron NP: White Fang II(dEBNEY) *****
posted 10-05-2000 03:04 PM PT (US)

BMikeJ Oscar® Winner	quote: Originally posted by Aaron Collins: I will add my 5 cents... I wasn't a fan of Robert Folks until my trip to LA where everyone hammered me with his soundtracks. He is definitely under-appreciated. Cliff Eidelman is a pretty good friend of mine and I think he should be scoring a lot more than he does. Totally agreed with you on your picks, Aaron... Folk has written some powerhouse orchestral scores for Beastmaster II, Lawnmower Man II, and Toy Soldiers, among other things. His 2 CD promo is PACKED with great film music. And Eidelman is also terrific. He is capable of writing big orchestral scores like Christopher Colombus, Magdalene, and Star Trek VI and also small, intimate scores for pictures like One True Thing. He ought to be working more...
posted 10-05-2000 03:31 PM PT (US)

BMikeJ Oscar® Winner	quote: Originally posted by H Rocco: So there's finally a CD of CABALLERO & THE DRAGON, eh? I remember reading a rave review of the LP many years ago, that's one reason I decided to roll the dice on the Seville CD. I agree with you about CAPTAIN COOK, very fine work. Have you (or anyone) heard his one CD released in the US -- by Milan, I think -- PASSION IN THE DESERT? Hank, I listened to Passion In The Desert and it didn't really do anything for me. I got lucky with El Caballero Del Dragon on CD. I picked it up here at Super Collector years ago. There was a period of time where Nieto was going to release scores on his own label and I think this was the only one that came out.
posted 10-05-2000 03:33 PM PT (US)

H Rocco Oscar® Winner	I see ... thanks for the info. I actually haven't heard PASSION IN THE DESERT myself. Robert Folk's name is recurring in messages above. I'd just like to chime in my three favorite works of his: TREMORS (additional score, uncredited) TOY SOLDIERS (which became a nice, lavishly lengthy Intrada CD) FAR FROM HOME (the finest piece of work I've heard from Robert Folk to date, all the more remarkable because the film it derives from is PRETTY BAD, even if it WAS directed by Gary Sinise)
posted 10-05-2000 09:33 PM PT (US)

Probable Oscar® Winner	Was Far From Home that bad? I've heard mixed things... Thanks to everyone who's listed someone so far.I've discovered a couple of composers I wasn't aware of before and should have been.
posted 10-05-2000 09:35 PM PT (US)

BMikeJ Oscar® Winner	quote: Originally posted by Probable: Was Far From Home that bad? I've heard mixed things... Thanks to everyone who's listed someone so far.I've discovered a couple of composers I wasn't aware of before and should have been. I actually didn't have a problem with Far From Home. A good cast. I think this film is one of Penelope Ann Miller's first roles and she really is a ray of light in the film. I fell in love with her when I saw her. A nice score by Folk...
posted 10-05-2000 10:16 PM PT (US)

H Rocco Oscar® Winner	The CAST is superlative ... it's the script that makes me retch.
posted 10-05-2000 10:31 PM PT (US)

Shaun Rutherford Oscar® Winner	Ah-hah! Rocco, I've caught you! It's MILES From Home! And all this time I thought you were talking about the Yellow Dog movie. Shaun
posted 10-06-2000 10:04 AM PT (US)

BMikeJ Oscar® Winner	quote: Originally posted by Shaun Rutherford: Ah-hah! Rocco, I've caught you! It's MILES From Home! And all this time I thought you were talking about the Yellow Dog movie. Shaun You caught me, too... I guess my mind made the title look like it was supposed to... Keeping things on track, I'd like to add the name of Jan A.P. Kaczmarek to this list of underappreciated composers. He has written some absolutely beautiful music for films like Bliss and Washington Square. His score for The Third Miracle is totally worth picking up and has some fascinating percussion writing in it that will have you wondering how he got those sounds! I'm really looking forward to his upcoming score for Lost Souls...
posted 10-06-2000 11:27 AM PT (US)

logied Oscar® Winner	Bronislaw Kaper, Bronislaw Kaper, Bronislaw Kaper. Enough said!!!!!
posted 10-06-2000 04:22 PM PT (US)

joan hue Oscar® Winner	I'll bring this thread back up to mention Carl Davis. I noted from the IMDB that he mainly does TV movies. I just received a tape of the score Champions, a movie he did in l983. Fabulous main theme. Reminds me of Man from Snowy River, but this is a movie about horse racing. Never heard of this guy before receiving the tape. NP Champions.
posted 10-23-2000 09:49 AM PT (US)

Nicolai P. Zwar Oscar® Winner	quote: Originally posted by Aaron Collins: Cliff Eidelman is a pretty good friend of mine and I think he should be scoring a lot more than he does. Cliff Eidelman's score for Star Trek VI** was terrific. Wonderful, with a real flair of the over the top dramatics of the movie, a space opera score nicely flavored with Stravinsky and Holst (but by no means a pastiche). Sadly, that's also the only score by Eidelman I actually own on CD or have ever really heard. Indeed, I wouldn't mind to see his name more often on a movie poster.
posted 10-23-2000 10:33 AM PT (US)

Marian Schedenig Oscar® Winner	I constantly see Carl Davis' Ben Hur score (a re-scoring project) in stores, but I've never heard anything he has done. Nicolai, I second every single word you just said about Eidelman.
posted 10-23-2000 10:40 AM PT (US)

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