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Posted: |
Jul 10, 2012 - 2:49 PM
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By: |
OnyaBirri
(Member)
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"The Hundred Days Of The Dragon" shouldn't be as beguiling as it is. It's to Frontiere's credit that he engages the viewer/listener with a melody that goes down smoothly. However, the Asian contour & colorings of this melody creates an ersatz exoticism which assumes that the viewing audience is comprised only of non-Asian Americans. This is an unfortunate by-product of the Red-China-scare era which (I think) doesn't travel well geographically, culturally, or temporally. Whether this approach was wrong-headed or not, the greatest misfortune of this score is that it's valid primarily for only this episode and is ill-suited to be tracked into any other story.
Well, those were the times, and, as someone who LOVES exotica, this is not an issue for me.
I think as pure music, this is very effective, despite period and geographic trappings.
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Bumped in memory of mr frontiere
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Posted: |
Dec 25, 2017 - 10:26 AM
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By: |
Graham Watt
(Member)
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ToneRow, I could never rank the great scores which Dominic Frontiere wrote for that series - it would take me months to get my ideas together. But you've made me want to listen to the wonderful LLL 3-disc set again.
Regarding your comments on "The Hundred Days of the Dragon" - I thought it was just about perfect. The "yellow peril" Orientalisms might sound clichéd by now, but it works wonders nonetheless. Reminds me of what Goldsmith (and Friedhofer before him) would do with just a hint of the pentatonic scale and lots of beautifully subtle tinkling percussion.
I'd also like to give a thumbs-up to the Van Eps contribution. It reminded me of the underwater "ballet" in CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, so that's good enough for me.
About the other scores - as I said, it's hard for me to rank them. Off-hand I'd certainly go along with your choices of "The Architects of Fear" and "The Man Who Was Never Born". Splendid stuff - bristling, chilling action, unsettling mood music, and some of the most gorgeous romantic themes ever written.
I think, overall, I like Frontiere best when he is allowed to incorporate a good love theme into the brew. The one that stuck with me for years, ever since I first saw it on the telly, was the bit used for the finale of "A Feasibilty Study" (No spoilers - David Opatoshu in the church) which makes my hair stand on end just thinking about it. I think Joan Hue would say "bone-meltingly gorgeos". That's the first time I heard that music, but it might have been written for "The Human Factor" first, and later retracked - I'll have to check (or one of you can confirm it for me and save me the trouble).
I also love the LaLaLand CD of A NAME FOR EVIL and THE UNKNOWN. That's not off-topic, because as you all know, THE UNKNOWN is actually "The Forms of Things Unknown" from The Outer Limits. It's quite unlike his other scores for the series (you probably know why that's the case), and on each listening I hear the influence of Alex North more and more. The "Postlude" follows North's THE MISFITS fairly closely. And although A NAME FOR EVIL has nothing to do with The Outer Limits at all, it's not off-topic to mention that one either, because it SOUNDS like an Outer Limits score (complete with North-ish "open-ended" brass chords).
I wrote all that over five years ago, but I still agree with m'self. Not really "ranking" them might be cheating, or a result of laziness, but I can be pardoned due to the festive season, can't I?
Revisiting the 3-CD set yesterday (because it seemed timely, and I really hadn't played it in a long time), I was reminded how wonderfully eerie and compelling his score for "Nightmare" is, with those arpeggiating (sp?) harps. Pretty hypnotic weirdness.
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I just received The Immortal TV series for Christmas (the 1970 series starring Christopher George) and Mr. Frontiere's music is fantastic. It's tracked liberally, as was the custom of the time, and it always lifted every episode.
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I don't know why Frontiere wasn't employed for a 2nd season. Music can make & break a series, this is the case where the music gave the series a definite personality to the 1st season, its better than the 2nd.
The Outer Limits episode I like is The form of things unknown, its the same as the music in the Invaders, I'm one who pays attention to the small details, & like viewing a solid program the music matched, Can we soon have an over-due Invaders! Labels.
The tapes are missing.
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Hello,
I have been combing through the 3 CD set LLL set and the older GNP set. I was wondering if someone could tell me which cues on the available CDs comprise the tracks from "The Galaxy Being"? I heard some of the music but obviously some is tracked in from somewhere else, unfortunately. It's difficult for me to find all of it. Thank you all.
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The one that stuck with me for years, ever since I first saw it on the telly, was the bit used for the finale of "A Feasibilty Study" (No spoilers - David Opatoshu in the church) which makes my hair stand on end just thinking about it. I think Joan Hue would say "bone-meltingly gorgeos". That's the first time I heard that music, but it might have been written for "The Human Factor" first, and later retracked - I'll have to check (or one of you can confirm it for me and save me the trouble).
Yeah, Graham, "A Feasibility Study" was tracked with stock library cues.
Indeed, the selection of music for the ending with self-sacrifice came from the love theme written for 26-year-old Sally Kellerman falling for 48-year-old Gary Merrill in "The Human Factor".
I suspect, Graham, neither your bones melt nor your hair stands on end whenever you watch this "odd couple"'s love scenes in "The Human Factor"!
It's fascinating, though, how a piece of library music can be applied to different scenes and take on different effects according to the context of those scenes.
It was the characters' situation in conjunction with the music which made that lasting impression upon you.
I'm curious, Graham, when did THE OUTER LIMITS get broadcast in the U.K.?
Were they shown on ITV or BBC, and were they transmitted before 1970 or afterwards?
Nope.
AFS was supposed to be the FIRST episode broadcast. The score is original and was tracked in subsequent eps.
It fits so perfectly it had to be bespoke!
See my thread : OUTER LIMITS: THE JOY OF TRACKING
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