On June 29, we celebrate the Centennial of the birth of the late Bernard Herrmann, (arguably) my all-time favorite cinematic composer. Herrmann was the composer of reference of my entire youth, and the reason that I fell in love with classical music, opera and learned to have equal passion for, and better understand, the work of other cinematic music composers. While other great film composers are Herrmann's equals in my mind, by an inch I most personally relate to my love for Herrmann's scores.
Another wonderful example of the music of the great Japanese cinema and classical composer Iwashiro Taro (岩代 太郎), who scored John Woo (吳宇森, Wu Yu-Sen)'s epic, RED CLIFF. This, from Japanese TV's Aoi Tokugawa Sandai (葵 徳川三代)--as I understand it, conducted by the one-and-only Charles Dutoit!!!:
I can't recommend more enthusiastically the adorable Japanese comedy, Hula Girls (フラガール Hura Gāru). It is directed by Korean director, Sang-il Lee, and features a wonderful ensemble of Japanese actors. Hula Girls is the story, set in 1965, of the people of the economically depressed mining town of Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture. When unemployment became rampant in the town -- because coal was being replaced by fuel and mines were progressively shut down -- the mine owners turned to new sources of revenue. In this case, they decide to build, in this cold, northern Japanese prefecture, a Hawaiian theme park and recruit local girls to learn to dance the Hula (and a feisty dance teacher from the big city to teach them) at the park and on tour. I won't reveal much more, but suffice to say that what occurs is the stuff of great, sometimes hillarious, sometimes sentimental humor.
Among the film's greatest virtues is the musical score by the Japanese-American ukulele virtuoso (!), Jake Shimabukuro. An example of his incredible gifts can be found in the video clip below. Very special.
