Thursday, February 12, 2015

Victor Borge Now Ennio Morricone

I was talking with The Great Matt Baldoni about music.  I often run my amateurish musical tastes past his to ensure that my ears do indeed have a good taste for good music and I'm not accidentally going pop.  So when I confessed an appreciation for the Spaghetti Western's symphonic scores, specifically the works of Ennio Morricone, I was happy to know that not only did he highly approve, but that Mr. Morricone was still performing.

I thought the man was dead.

This upset me because there are still some stubborn greats that have given death the finger.  Victor Borge was one of them, and I was fortunate enough to see him twice before he inevitably passed.  But did you know Don Rickles is still alive?  And so why not see Ennio Morricone?  There are many truly great legends that still live and PERFORM to this day that we either assumed were dead, or our parents lacked the cultural tastes to inform us of their existence in the first place, leaving us to discover them on our own, only to assume they were dead.

Ennio's performances are relegated to Europe now.  And though I generally loathe the continent, I do believe I am going to have to fly out there to see this great musician before he passes.  Besides, he has the hallmark of a great man that very few modern day ones can match.  And to that, I think we should get a rag tag band of Cappy Cappites to wear tuxedos and rendezvous to see this man perform at least once in our lives.


11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Dates and Times. Am in the EU twice in the next six months.

For him, I will detour. And buy a evening suit.

Jimmy Jambone said...

Count me in. Tuxedo at the ready.

Marshallaw said...

He played in Dublin recently.

Anonymous said...

Greatest composer of the 20th century. His theme at the end of Once Upon a Time in the West is arguably the closest music I can equate to, well, a sense of love.

[ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-95awK6oz8 ]

Ciao

Alex

Anonymous said...

Loved Morricone's music from the Marco Polo miniseries. That was my first exposure, but the man was prolific.

Maurice Jarre was another great, but he's already gone unfortunately.

Joe Hisaishi is great as well. See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OkT5HyumQ4 - some of his best.

Many film composers do not get the recognition they deserve. The world is too busy shake, shake, shaking it off.

Anonymous said...

Aaron, while Europe has its problems, it is a much better continent to live in anywhere in the US.

The US is a commercialised, consumeristic cesspit, with Mcdonalds, Walmarts and other garbage multinational chains everywhere.

Fat asses, obsese women and single mothers- yeah, the US is definately one of the most ugliest places to live.

Europe- class, higher standards of living, more to see and do, better and civilised people.

Jeff Wood said...

Humph. Nine months ago, Ennio was scheduled to conduct a mile or two from me, at the open air theatre at Lajatico, where Andrea Bocelli comes from.

Ennio was taken ill and had to cancel. He does astonishingly well, but at his age it is becoming a question of not when, but if he can turn up.

Anonymous said...

Saw him conduct his music at the Roman Arena in Verona a few years ago. Best concert ever.

Troy Lee Messer said...

The Ecstacy of Gold is awesome. And for those of you in the know, it accompanys one of the best scenes ever in cinema.


The music right after the family is massacred in Once Upon a Time in the West when fucking Henry Fonda appears out of the desert.

miforest said...

one of my best memories ofs of my dad taking me and my little brother to see clint eastwood westerns at the drive in when I was a kid. yep , I m that old.
Dads been gone a while, he was a airborne recon ranger in he 82nd.

this music is the closest thing can have now to a visit with my dad.

Bill said...

What a delightful article. Thanks for writing that Captain. I already have a tux by the way. Let's arrange the evening for Vancouver.