Mishima
(1985)
CATALOG:
TRACKS:
| 1. | Mishima/Opening | 2:46 |  |
|
| 2. | November 25: morning | 4:08 | ||
| 3. | 1934: grandmother & Kimitake | 3:37 | ||
| 4. | Temple of the golden pavilion ("like some enormous music") | 3:06 | ||
| 5. | Osamu's Theme: Kyoko's house | 2:58 | ||
| 6. | 1937: Saint Sebastian | |||
| 7. | Kyoko's house ("stage blood is not enough") | 5:00 | ||
| 8. | November 25: Ichigaya | 2:11 | ||
| 9. | 1957: award montage | 3:56 | ||
| 10. | Runaway horses ("poetry written with a splash of blood") | 9:09 | ||
| 11. | 1962: body building | 1:29 | ||
| 12. | November 25: the last day | 1:30 | ||
| 13. | F-104: epilogue from Sun and Steel | 1:59 | ||
| 14. | Mishima/Closing | 2:57 |
NOTES:
Over the last fifteen years, Philip Glass has defined a new form of biographical opera. There was never any doubt that he would be the ideal composer for Mishima, a mosaic film biography. I wanted a score which would unite the film's disparate elements and propel it forward. Such a score, by definition, would be a distinct, cohesive composition.
I only wondered how to induce Glass. Money was out of the question: the film was already an egregiously under-budgeted labor of love production. I opted for a soft sell. (I've subsequently learned how remarkably resistant Philip is to a hard one.) I simply gave him the script and all the materials by and about Mishima at my disposal.
Philip responded enthusiastically and after several pre-production meetings and a trip to the Tokyo locations, wrote a score from the script as he would from a libretto. With Kurt Munkacsi and Michael Riesman he recorded a temp synthesizer version.
I edited the film to this temp score, altering it as necessary: cutting, expanding and repeating cues. I then played the edited film and score for Philip. He rewrote the music to fit the film's now-precise specifications and recorded it with a full orchestra. Later, he supervised last-minute changes during the final mix.
In keeping with the original concept, Glass has re-edited the score as a distinct musical entity. His Mishima equally serves the film and stands alone.
CREDITS:
Original music composed by Philip Glass.
Conducted by Michael Riesman.
String quartets performed by The Kronos Quartet:
David Harrington, violin.
John Sherba, violin.
Hank Dutt, viola.
Joan Jeanrenaud, cello.
Produced by Kurt Munkacsi for Euphorbia Productions, Ltd. NY, NY.
Recording engineer: Dan Dryden, Assistant: Don Christensen.
Recorded at: Greene St. Studios NY, NY and The Living Room Inc. NY, NY.
Remixed by: Dan Dryden, Kurt Munkacsi, Michael Riesman.
Remixed at: The Living Room, Inc. NY, NY.
Contractor for the musicians: Earl Shendell.
Mastered by: Bill Kipper, Masterdisk, NY, NY.
Album art direction: Eiko Ishioka.
Photo: Sukita.
Album design: Makoto Kumakura.
Published by Dunvagen Music Publishers, Inc. (ASCAP).
© 1985 Nonesuch Records.
RELATED COMPOSITIONS:
RELATED RECORDINGS:
- Philip on Film on Nonesuch
- The Truman Show on Milan Records
- Kronos Quartet on Nonesuch
- Kronos Quartet Performs Philip Glass on Nonesuch
RELATED FILMS:
- Mishima by Paul Schrader
- The Truman Show by Peter Weir
RELATED BOOKS:
- Film Music Screencraft by Mark Russell
CATEGORIES:
Chamber, Film, Orchestra
