Cinema Paradiso

Slokar Quartet
Obrasso Records: CD 892
Total Playing Time: 45.34 mins

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In recent years there seems to have been a mushrooming of brass chamber groups of various shapes and sizes, both performing and recording a wide range of repertoire. Of these combinations the trombone quartet can be particularly successful, the four instruments from the same family being able to cover a wide range, both in terms of notes and the ability to adapt their playing to a variety of styles. The Yugoslav trombonist Branimar Slokar was born in Maribor in 1946, studying in Ljubljana and obtaining his Concert Diploma in 1969. An award from the Paris Conservatoire and prizes at competitions in Geneva, Zagreb and Munich followed soon afterwards. He
has held orchestral positions with the Radio Orchestra of Ljubljana, the Symphony Orchestra of Berne and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra.

The Slokar Quartet celebrated their 30th anniversary in December 2003, although the other personnel have changed since the early days. Their repertoire is rich and varied, ranging from early baroque through to the avant-garde, and their latest offering, entitled "Cinema Paradiso" presents five arrangements of film music. Three arrangers have been involved in
transforming the music, and the four trombones are joined by percussionist Daniel Aebi in the first and last tracks.

From the opening notes of John Barry's "James Bond Theme" it is apparent that this is a first class ensemble, comfortable with each other and able to
blend well. The arrangement, by Marcel Saurer, keeps all the players busy, and the writing is such that it often seems hard to believe there are only four trombones playing. The music has been selected from a number of the more recent films, and features some of the best writers of music active in the modern cinema: David Arnold ("Tomorrow Never Dies" and "The World is Not Enough"), Michael Kamen ("Licence to Kill"), Eric Serra ("Goldeneye") and Bill Conti ("For Your Eyes Only"). The more energetic sections are
separated by references to the romantic side of Bond providing contrasts in both style and texture, with the percussion mostly adding a gentle rhythmic pulse to the proceedings. There is certainly nowhere to hide in music such as this, the middle parts being as important as top and bottom, and the players show they are up to the challenge.

With the second track the listener is transported to the world of the spaghetti western with an ingenious representation of Ennio Morricone's theme for "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly". Morricone, who studied trumpet as well as composition, came from a background in experimental music, and specialised in lean textures, mingling real sounds in with musical ones.

The trombones manage to replicate the original theme quite effectively, and it is quite easy to picture Clint Eastwood riding over the brow of the hill! The selection includes music from another collaboration with Sergio Leone in the form of the epic "Once Upon a Time in the West", but Morricone was not limited to composing music for westerns, which actually only represent about 30 out of some 400 film scores. The other three films whose music is featured give a clue to the breadth of his interest, with the political
intrigue of "Investigation of a Citizen", the spy thriller "Espion leve toi" and the nostalgic look back at Italian cinema which gives the album its title, "Cinema Paradiso". Once again the arranger's art is put to good use with some at times quirky melodies and harmonies, with some very effective octave melodies. The tightness of the playing is exemplified by some rapid descending figures that flow seamlessly down through the parts.

John Williams seems to have just about cornered the market in Hollywood, and no self-respecting collection of film themes would be complete without some of his melodies. The "John Williams Medley" starts with one of his most distinctive recent scores, that for "Harry Potter". Judicious use of mutes and varied timbres helps to provide the appropriate atmosphere before the rhythmic background is laid down in preparation for the theme from "Indiana Jones". This is contrasted with the poignant melody written for Steven Spielberg's "Schindler's List", with some first class legato playing. The medley draws to a close with some of the themes from "Star Wars": again the
octaves in the melody are very effective, giving a real feeling of power and menace, whilst the articulation in the inner parts ensures that there is no loss of momentum.

The fourth track is entitled "Musica Per Federico Fellini" which is a little misleading, as it includes music from four of his films and three by other directors, including Francis Ford Coppola's "The Godfather" - or in its Italian version given here "Il Padrino". It should be pointed out at this stage that the sleeve notes, giving biographical information on the four
trombonists, together with a summary of each selection, are only in German, with the film titles often being in their original languages. Nino Rota himself was somewhat of a child prodigy, having an oratorio performed at the age of twelve. Becoming involved with music for films in the early 1940's he has won numerous awards, including the Oscar for the music to "The Godfather". There is much humour in his film music, and the players capture this well, using flutter-tonguing and other effects to help paint the pictures. Near the start of the track there is a quite spectacular effect where the trombones move from close harmony to a wide spread chord, with the top trombone up in the stratosphere and the bass - excellent throughout - reaching right down into his boots.

The disc closes with "Filmmusic Special", arranged by Denis Armitage, which comes as somewhat of an anticlimax. He has made a rather odd choice of
Maurice Jarre's theme from one of his collaborations with David Lean, "Lawrence of Arabia", and "Tara's Theme", from "Gone with the Wind", together with two of the songs written by the Sherman brothers for "Mary Poppins" - "Chim Chim Cher-ee" and "A Spoonful of Sugar". It is not that there is not some good music there, rather that it does not seem to gel
satisfactorily, and ends rather unexpectedly. Even with the inclusion of the percussion, "Lawrence of Arabia" does not quite come off, missing the timpani in the opening, and then, with the melody coming over as a jazz waltz, it appears a little too tame and lacking the expansive images portrayed so well in the original. The move into "Chim Chim Cher-ee" is rather abrupt, although "A Spoonful of Sugar", preceded by a brief tattoo on the snare drum, works well. The setting of "Tara's Theme" is pleasant enough, but it then seems to peter out, as if the whole piece could have benefited from either a more extended treatment or an additional tune to finish things off.

In addition to Branimar Slokar himself, the featured trombonists are Rumanian-born Edgar Manyak, the Swiss Armin Bachmann and Wassil Christov, who hails from Bulgaria. An international group then, but one which brings tremendous enthusiasm and flair to some very attractive music. Although it may be particular interest to trombonophiles, there is much here for any brass enthusiast, or even any music-lover. Branimar's smooth tones dominate throughout, and it may be that some may not find his sound as pleasing on the ear as this reviewer did, as personal tastes differ from one to another, particularly where the trombone is concerned! Equally, some will regret
there being no information on the instruments used, although he does sound to be playing on an alto on occasion. The running time is short by today's
standards, but there is no doubt as to the quality of the music making, with irst-class technique, fine arrangements and excellent musicianship all
coming together to produce a disc that can be highly recommended.

Peter Bale
Copyright 4BR

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