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Posted: |
Dec 6, 2013 - 9:31 AM
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By: |
Morricone
(Member)
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JOHN DEBNEY TO PERFORM AT THE VARÈSE SARABANDE 35th ANNIVERSARY HOLIDAY GALA!
The Varèse Sarabande 35th Anniversary Holiday Gala with the Golden State Pops Orchestra is coming up in just two weeks and we are thrilled to announce that the great John Debney will be joining us to celebrate the holidays with a live performance of his Christmas classic ELF! Believe it or not, ELF, which opened on November 7, 2003 is 10 years old this year! Who didn't laugh out loud when Buddy (Will Ferrell) bounced off the sofa and dove into the Christmas tree to place the star atop it? (Things didn't go so well) We just couldn't have a Christmas concert without John Debney and ELF. With more than 20 of his scores released on Varèse Sarabande, John's discography here includes Sin City, Bruce Almighty, Evan Almighty, The Ant Bully, Cats & Dogs, Dream House, Paulie, The Replacements, The Scorpion King, Sea Quest DSV, End of Days, Zathura and many more! As a conductor, John has recorded such classics as The 7th Voyage of Sinbad by Bernard Herrmann, John Williams' Superman: The Movie and John Barry's Somewhere In Time for us. John Debney brought down the house at our May 11 concert, with his magnificent performance of THE ANT BULLY, featuring Sara Andon on penny whistle and the GSPO choir! In October he paid tribute to the legendary Bernard Herrmann and conducted the world premiere of THE GHOST AND MRS MUIR. John Debney now returns to the GSPO podium to conduct a special 10th anniversary performance of ELF on December 21, 2013 in the final concert of Varèse Sarabande's 35th anniversary celebration at the Warner Grand Theater in San Pedro, CA. The best way to spread Christmas Cheer, is singing loud for all to hear. Join us!
https://gspo.secure.force.com/ticket#sections_a03G000000aQmvQIAS
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Posted: |
Dec 22, 2013 - 11:42 PM
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By: |
Morricone
(Member)
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Always I have trepidations. This time the GSPO will drop the ball after I hyped them to the max. Their streak of fantastic concerts have come to an end.
Nothing of the sort. They always come through.
The key is simple. From day one they had this love of film music. Ten years ago when the Warner Grand was somewhat of a sad looking theater I'd traipse over to San Pedro to see concerts entitled "Swords, Sandals & Swashbucklers" (LAND OF THE PHARAOHS, IVANHOE, THE TEN COMMANDMENTS, PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN, BEN-HUR), "Round-Up" (THE ALAMO, THE COWBOYS, THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN, DANCE WITH WOLVES, CITY SLICKERS) or "Out of This World" (THE WAR OF THE WORLDS, A.I., LAST STARFIGHTER, FIRST CONTACT, COCOON). And their annual Halloween and Christmas shows became packed with film music. I was delighted, a Pops Orchestra totally dedicated to film scores! A dream come true.
That was the start of that love of film music.
The orchestra was eventually honed into a world class one and with that dedication it had started to attract a wide range of fans from the industry including Christopher Young, Stu Phillips, Sam Spence and his NFL scores, John Ottman, William Stromberg with partner John Morgan, Christopher Lennertz, the Gaming industry and it's myriad composers and in particular Austin Wintory, Bear McCreary, Richard Sherman, etc. PLUS large entities like Varese Sarabande Records and Walt Disney productions who have come to be a part of the GSPO family. The attendance steadily has increased until last spring's Varese Anniversary concert finally sold out the 1500 seat Warner Grand.
The absolute love of film music had started to become mainstream.
This time out the GSPO decided to break out of it's time honored mode to resurrect a 60 year old television version of Dicken's A CHRISTMAS CAROL with music by Bernard Herrmann for the first half of it's show. They would do it radio style. Well radio style indeed, choral director Maestra Marya Basaraba had everyone in full costume with props, like Marley's chains, added here and there. All with a spectacular backdrop of a Dicksensian street. Even Bob Townson's brief narration worked. The uneasy marriage of Herrmann and Dickens won me over eventually and I was profoundly moved at it's conclusion. The audience was a little taken aback. They were used to something closer to Broadway rather than Herrmann's approach which was closer to light opera. Speaking of which many of the cast was recruited from the LA opera and gave some astounding renditions of the Bernard Herrmann/Maxwell Anderson songs. I have the feeling most of the crowded theater preferred the familiar Leroy Anderson/John Williams/John Debney/ Vince Guaraldi/William Ross/ Alexandre Desplat second half. I can understand that. It was delivered with their usual class and splash of fun. But at the same time the guts of doing that first part, so complex and challenging and really triumphing will probably stay with me longer.
GSPO music director Victor Pesavento (whose IMDB credits include LINCOLN, THE RISE OF THE GUARDIANS, THE BOOK THIEF, LIFE OF PI and ARGO) spent months reconstructing the Christmas Carol's parts from Herrmann's music and notes that exist. Approximate cost he would have charged away from the GSPO $350,000. He did it for nothing. Everyone involved in this project seemed to give their all. The glow that came off that stage warms me still.
The love of film music.
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So, are there plans for a release of some sort, audio? Or, video?
I'd buy both...
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