Dimitri Tiomkin
The stature and influence of composer Dimitri Tiomkin endures, as indicated by a quick look at news from around the world—Tiomkin’s name has appeared in national publications from The Guardian to the Wall Street Journal—since the beginning of the year.
A review of director Gregg Araki’s teen noir film Bad Turn Worse shows the impact of Tiomkin on pop culture, and is proof that a new generation of composers have been influenced by his music, in this case from the films of director Alfred Hitchcock.
If there’s one failure, it’s Jürgen Knieper‘s score, which makes too many on-the-nose nods to Dimitri Tiomkin‘s mood-setting for Hitchcock’s thrillers.
READ: “DVDanger: Youth Gone Wild” by Richard Whittaker, Austin Chronicle, January 17, 2015
For the latest cover version of a Tiomkin song, check out “Wild Is the Wind” from the Sunnyside Records album The Origin of Adjustable Things by Joanna Wallfisch with pianist Dan Tepfer. Wallfisch, a New York-based British vocalist, commingles wide-ranging cover songs from folk to film with her own original work. Her catchy song “This Is How You Make Me Feel,” is refreshing.
The resulting mix of Wallfisch originals and offbeat covers (Tim Buckley, Radiohead, Dmitri Tiomkin) cuts a lean profile, mostly.
READ: “Wallfisch, Tepfer learn to collaborate on CD and on stage” by Steve Smith, Boston Globe, March 12, 2015
Concert audiences in Tennessee, Illinois, Ireland, and Scotland enjoyed classic themes from Rawhide, High Noon, and The High and the Mighty. A full house in Dublin enjoyed “Heroes in Hollywood” with conductor Richard Kaufman. Kaufman went on to lead the Royal Scottish National Orchestra in a concert of film music in Edinburgh on April 17 and 18.
When Kaufman was here in December, he brought Olivia Douglas Tiomkin, the widow of one of the great Hollywood composers, Dmitri Tiomkin. On Saturday, he went one better and produced not only Tiomkin’s widow but two of his Academy Awards. To terrific applause, the twin Oscars took pride of place on the stage as the orchestra played Tiomkin’s music from The Old Man and the Sea and The High and the Mighty.
READ: “Music Review: RSNO – Hooray for Hollywood – The Golden Age of Film Music, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall” by Alison Kerr, www.heraldscotland.com, April 19, 2015
New releases of DVDs and CDs with Tiomkin’s music are a regular occurrence, witness a review of a new Blu-ray disc for 55 Days at Peking.
Much of that emotional rush is due Dimitri Tiomkin’s music score, which executes a beauty of a segue between musical themes at moment of the Major’s acceptance. As was his gift, Tiomkin’s music binds the film’s disparate elements into an almost cohesive whole.
READ: “DVD SAVANT: 55 Days at Peking: Savant Region B Blu-ray Review” reviewed by Glenn Erickson, www.dvdtalk.com
CD releases with music from films scored by Tiomkin continued in 2015.
READ: Rio Bravo soundtrack released by Intrada
Director John Carpenter interviews citing Tiomkin made their way around the Internet.
I have to say, from classical music, you can’t get any better than Johann Sebastian Bach. Have you heard of him? Alright. In terms of musical scores from movies: Bernard Hermann, Dmitri Tiomkin. For rock, The Beatles, Stones, Doors, Byrds – ’60s rock.
READ: “John Carpenter: An interview with the horror film great” by Rafer Guzman, www.newsday.com, updated February 11, 2015 6:17 p.m.
READ: Playlist: John Carpenter’s Favorite Scores, February 2015
Radio programs filled with Tiomkin’s music abound, take the pre-Oscar special Listening to the Movies hosted by Reuben Jackson on Vermont public radio, VPR Classical.
And that only covers the first few month of 2015…there’s much more to come.