HOLLYWOOD IN VIENNA: A NIGHT AT THE OSCARS (2019)
Music composed by Gabriel Yared, Marc Shaiman & others
Conducted by Keith Lockhart
Piano solos by Gabriel Yared
Performed by the ORF Radio-Symphonieorchester Wein
Special performance by Marc Shaiman
October 19, 2019
Wiener Konzerthaus
Vienna, Austria
PART 1: THE LEAD UP TO THE CONCERT
Gabriel Yared is one of my favourite film composers. His carefully crafted music perfectly fits the films they’re written for, and his music successfully crosses a wide range of styles from traditional film scoring with orchestra to modern pop music. In many ways, the emotional responses I get from his music is similar to that of my other favorite composers like John Barry, Georges Delerue, and Philippe Rombi.
The only problem is that his concerts are exceedingly rare.
So when it was announced that the 2019 edition of Hollywood in Vienna would be honouring him with the “Max Steiner Film Music Achievement Award” as well as a gala concert, I immediately bought tickets as soon as they went on sale.
I had never been to Austria before, but I’d always had this image of it being the music capital of the world full of opulent palaces and concert halls, tuxedos and evening gowns, and so on. I knew then that I had to dress properly for this event- none of the rag that I usually wore to concerts! So I carefully packed my suit and dress shoes and made sure to iron my shirt at the hotel before the concert.
On the evening of the concert I got to the venue early and noticed a guest arrivals/press area, so I found myself a spot near the front hoping to meet Yared and perhaps get an autograph or photo. After a few minutes of waiting, his ride pulled up to the curve and he popped out looking suave in his tuxedo.
After taking a few press photos, he was quickly whisked away so I missed my opportunity with him. While waiting, I remember a woman walking up to me and asking, “Who’s the big artist for tonight?” and I replied, “Gabriel Yared” while pointing at the sheet music in my hand that I was hoping to get signed. “Oh him,” she replied. “He’s pretty good.” We both smiled.
The lobby of the Wiener Konzerthaus was, as I had expected, gorgeous. It was lined with mirrors and pylons and had an atmosphere of culture and prestige. People were dressed to reflect this, and I remember feeling slightly embarrassed that I hadn’t worn a tie.
Just up the stairs to the left was a large merch table where they sold program booklets and posters from previous Hollywood in Vienna events. I couldn’t buy much as I was low on money and worried about the posters getting bent on the way home – and besides, I still had to fly to the UK the next day to see John Powell in concert in Croydon!
The concert program, which I did buy, was beautifully designed and printed on very nice paper. It was hard to read inside the concert hall though as it was too dark, so I thought I would just let the concert surprise me with its selection of film scores.
PART 2: THE CONCERT BEGINS
The concert began with the instantly recognizable Warner Brothers Fanfare by Max Steiner under the commanding baton of Keith Lockhart. This was a perfect way to get the night started as it set an appropriate “film music” mood for the rest of the evening.
The first half consisted of many popular and beloved favourites such as THE SEA HAWK, THE WIZARD OF OZ, AN AMERICAN IN PARIS, JAWS, SCHINDLER’S LIST and FORREST GUMP among others. These were all beautifully performed and well received by the audience.
For MARY POPPINS RETURNS, its composer, the legendary Marc Shaiman, walked up on stage, sat down at the piano, and treated the audience to a beautiful vocal performance of his theme, “The place where lost things go.” It is such a beautiful and bittersweet song, and it was performed so delicately by Shaiman and Judith Hill, who sung the second half of the song.
The first half of the concert ended with a suite titled “Oscar End Credits,” which was a fast and uplifting arrangement of Oscar winning scores from the likes of John Williams, John Barry, Vangelis, Henry Mancini, The Sherman Bros. and more.
The second half is what many of us had been waiting for: A Tribute to Gabriel Yared.
Unexpectedly, it began with a “Suite for an Unreleased Film,” which according to the program notes “consists of two pieces that Yared composed for a well-known director.” This was a short but melancholic piece written in that inimitable Yared style.
A “Gabriel Yared Medley” came next, opening with the gorgeous “Dance F” from the film THE TOURIST, complete with mandolins! While I love James Newton Howard’s final score for the film, I do wonder what it would have been like with Yared’s full score.
The medley ended with something COMPLETELY unexpected: a thunderous suite of music from Yared’s masterful score to TROY. After the well-documented debacle about the score’s rejection from the film, I never thought I would hear this incredible music performed live. But there I was in the Wiener Konzerthaus hearing this music performed live with mixed choir! Needless to say, it was a mightily arresting piece and made me long even more for a complete and legitimate release of the original soundtrack.
The music from THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY is another one that I had longed to hear live, and this performance, with Yared himself at the piano, was just perfect. After the dark and mysterious “Lullaby for Cain” came one of my all-time favourite tracks, “Italia.” As the film was near impossible to find on blu-ray in Japan for many years, I had never actually seen the movie despite having the soundtrack for ages. Whenever I popped the soundtrack into my CD player, “Italia” was and remains to this day, the first track I always play. For me, listening to this short but perfect piece of music creates vivid images of a couple, deeply in love, leisurely riding their bicycles through an idyllic Italian countryside. Just heavenly.
MONSIEUR CHOCOLAT was another favourite that started with the wistful tones of the clarinet and accordion before segueing into a foot-tapping arrangement of the theme for piano, banjo, bass, accordion and… washboard! It was such a fun piece that had us moving our bodies in synch with the music with huge smiles on our faces.
The evening ended with a suite from the first ever Yared score I heard, THE ENGLISH PATIENT. I remember borrowing the soundtrack CD years ago at the local library and being mesmerized by the track “I’ll always go back to that church,” which I remember playing non-stop for weeks.
The suite started with the vocalist, Golnar Shahyar, suddenly appearing in the aisle and singing an aching lament. This gave way to a lone oboist, followed by the orchestra swelling into the main “tragic” theme. Yared’s solo at the piano then began and we were immediately entranced by its simplistic, but pure beauty. I don’t know how many times I need to stress this, but there is truly nothing better in the world than seeing a composer perform their own music live, especially at the piano. You can really hear and feel their emotional intent, and you can see this embodied in the way they perform their music– it’s pure magic and just cannot be captured in words or film. You HAVE TO be there in that room experiencing it with your own eyes, ears and heart.
The suite ended with Shahyar reprising her painful lament into silence. It was an incredible moment that had us all holding our breath well after she made her final sound.
PART 3: CONCERT POSTSCRIPT
Just thinking about this concert, and especially the final suite from THE ENGLISH PATIENT, really captures for me what film music is all about. Good film music captures emotions that are not always evident on screen and amplifies them for the audience in subtle or obvious ways. It can make us feel better about ourselves and the world around us or it can do the exact opposite. And that is why I love it so much: it takes us to places or states that we often can’t go to or feel by ourselves. It can heighten what we already feel or make us vividly recall feelings or memories of the past. That’s magic for you. And that’s the power and beauty of film music.
PART 4: MEETING MARC SHAIMAN
Sadly, despite my best efforts I was unable to meet Yared after the concert. A dozen or so of us hung around for an hour or two in hopes of catching him but he disappeared (from us!) pretty quickly.
I did however manage to get a photo from below the stage of him holding his Max Steiner Award. Perhaps the closest I’ll ever get to him:
But the night wasn’t a total loss!
During the first half interval earlier in the night, I saw a bunch of people approach Marc Shaiman for photos and autographs. I thought I’d try my luck so I approached him for a selfie. He happily obliged:
Starstruck and unable to think clearly, I blurted out the first thing that popped into my head, “Man, you kick ass!”
Such a stupid and juvenile thing to say, especially to someone as accomplished as Marc Shaiman!
He laughed it off as I slowly edged away in embarrassment… 😉
PART 5: OVER TO YOU
Did you also go to this concert? How did you like it?
And what did you think of my report? Feel free to comment below or reach out to me directly in the “Contact Me” section.