Filmtracks Recommends:
Buy it... if you have always enjoyed the melodic romanticism of Ennio Morricone's light, dramatic works and wish to hear the first American score by his son, Andrea. Avoid it... if you expect to hear any of the unconventional elements of the father's style in his son's early work, for Liberty Heights is as pleasant and relaxing as it gets. Filmtracks Editorial Review:
Liberty Heights: (Andrea Morricone) In an attempt to win arthouse audiences in the 1999 awards season, director Barry Levinson returned once again to the setting of Baltimore for a film that could not be any more different from his disastrous, previous venture for Sphere. Levinson's rich, period character dramas, whether set in his favorite city or not, have often exhibited the director's best work. In Liberty Heights, he would tell the story of a Jewish family growing up in 1954, and the cultural, racial, and religious narratives span each member of that family for significant air time. With the story's constantly pleasant tone and little violence to speak of, Liberty Heights is a positive and upbeat tale, and this tone translates to an easy score by Andrea Morricone. Son of the famed composer Ennio Morricone, Andrea's writing career for most casual listeners was restrained to the additional work he had provided to his father's efforts. Levinson's usual list of musical collaborators resides high on the talent scale, including several projects worked with Ennio Morricone. While it's not certain if Ennio was the primary choice of Levinson for Liberty Heights, it wouldn't be surprising to learn that he recommended his son for the assignment. The score would be Andrea's first American exposure, though the recording would be conducted in Rome. Perhaps also of no surprise is the plain fact that Andrea's writing for this score reflects many of the stylistic tones of his father's career, though without any of the unconventional aspects that have defined his father. A keen sense of melody, and the lyrical expression of fragments of that melody throughout the score, is a capability that has obviously passed from father to son. His work for Liberty Heights is rich with meaningful theme and heart, providing a very strong backdrop for the family tale in timeless fashion. It is impressive not only in the genuine conveyance of contemplation it provides for the film, but it also translates into a very listenable series of classically constructed orchestral cues (with a few highly notable solos) on album. With a minimum of pomp and with outstanding orchestration, Morricone's score utilizes an acoustic guitar with the traditional elements of an orchestra in a conservative manner. Loosely classical and very romantic in a European sense, the style of the music will remind listeners of not only Ennio, but also Gabriel Yared and Nicola Piovani in parts, not to mention an occasional woodwind solo that will hail back to the personal dramas of Elmer Bernstein. No single piece of thematic material is dominant in Liberty Heights, though Morricone alternates between a primary "family theme," heard first in the opening moments of the score and prominently in "Patterson Park Story," as well as a "youth theme" heard in the cue of that title and "Nate With His Boys." Individual cues introduce new dilemmas using fragments of these themes, with these pieces often in performance to some degree in each cue. The majority of performances is highlighted by rich, multi-level strings, with an occasional wandering and deep piano accompaniment. The acoustic guitar performances fare better than the solo woodwind ones, if only due to the guitar's more resounding depth. Unlike most typical low-key scores of internal character development, Morricone's music never becomes burdensome or boring on album; this despite the consistency of a score broken only by the percussion-aided "Down a Baltimore Street," the only suspenseful cue. While not exhibiting anything flashy in his instrumentation or volume, Morricone still maintains a consistent level of dramatic substance. For fans of Ennio, there is a distinct bond here that is conveyed in the willingness of Andrea to shamelessly explore pleasant melodies for extended periods of time. While many had hoped that Liberty Heights would lead to a major international scoring career for Andrea, he has had little exposure in America in the years since. One can only imagine how a son could compete with a father so dominant in the field, even into the late 2000's. Regardless of the outcome, Andrea's first scoring assignment is relaxing and warm, with several cues that will surely impress. A score album was released concurrently with a song album, and although the score album features a minimum of dialogue from a narrator at the start and finish, it has very little impact on the music itself. Overall, the album is a delightful surprise. **** Track Listings:
Total Time: 44:15
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