# Remembering Wojciech Kilar's Bram Stoker's Dracula



## dcoscina (Aug 24, 2020)

Just spun the LaLaLand 3 disc re mastered expanded edition of this monumental score from 1992. What a terrific work. So evocative and moody, yet lyrical in the softer passages. Kilar's love theme is timeless, anguished and tragic. It's endlessly fascinating how he plays around the key centre with chromatic lines. The expanded release features more developed tracks that Kilar had composed. It's common knowledge that the finished score as it appears in the film was heavily edited in Pro Tools to fit the scenes. Kilar had composed it without ever having set foot in LA.


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## Loïc D (Aug 24, 2020)

Can’t agree more ! Fantastic score.


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## bryla (Aug 24, 2020)

I reconstructed the score for Sony last year following the CD release. They ordered a live-to-picture package so I gained a lot of insight to the music and the process. Kilar was in LA but turned ill after recording so he flew back to Poland leaving the music to be edited by Quittner. Coppola was not happy with the original recordings so they had to scramble and Quittner wrote some additional overlays. Sometimes adding or shuffling bars or overlaying up to three simultaneous recordings in different tempos. 

I’m surprised people don’t notice it but there are several severely bad edits in the movie. But the music is lovely - especially the love theme for bass flute.


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## dcoscina (Aug 24, 2020)

bryla said:


> I reconstructed the score for Sony last year following the CD release. They ordered a live-to-picture package so I gained a lot of insight to the music and the process. Kilar was in LA but turned ill after recording so he flew back to Poland leaving the music to be edited by Quittner. Coppola was not happy with the original recordings so they had to scramble and Quittner wrote some additional overlays. Sometimes adding or shuffling bars or overlaying up to three simultaneous recordings in different tempos.
> 
> I’m surprised people don’t notice it but there are several severely bad edits in the movie. But the music is lovely - especially the love theme for bass flute.


Oh that's fabulous info Bryla! the re mastered LaLaLand release is a revelation. The opening Prologue is much better in its original form.


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## Pier (Aug 25, 2020)

This got me into soundtracks as a teenager. I was maybe 14 when I got the CD to be used as background music when playing tabletop RPGs.

One of my favorite soundtracks even to this day. The mood is fantastic but it is so concise and evocative.


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## dcoscina (Aug 25, 2020)

Pier said:


> This got me into soundtracks as a teenager. I was maybe 14 when I got the CD to be used as background music when playing tabletop RPGs.
> 
> One of my favorite soundtracks even to this day. The mood is fantastic but it is so concise and evocative.


I highly recommend the restored La La Land 3 disc edition to anyone who loves this score. The quality is nothing short of brilliant. They did a fine job with the packaging and liner notes as well.


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## dcoscina (Aug 25, 2020)

I'd love it if OMNI MUSIC would release this full score. There's so much density to the orchestration in places.


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## José Herring (Aug 25, 2020)

He created a great score. Took the Hollywood money and ran. I think he lives in a castle now in his home country.


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## Lionel Schmitt (Aug 25, 2020)

José Herring said:


> He created a great score. Took the Hollywood money and ran. I think he lives in a castle now in his home country.


That would be strange because he died in 2013.


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## dcoscina (Aug 25, 2020)

José Herring said:


> He created a great score. Took the Hollywood money and ran. I think he lives in a castle now in his home country.


uh he's dead... he passed away in 2013. He was already a celebrated film and concert composer in his native Poland when Coppola approached him to score this film in 1992. At the time he was 59 years old. He was 81 at the time of his passing. 

other notable scores that followed were: 

Death and the Maiden (1994)
Portrait of a Lady (1996)
the Ninth Gate (1999)
We Own the Night (2007)

Little known fact that he was originally asked to score LOTR and you can even hear his _Kościelec 1909_, for orchestra (1976) in Shore's FOTR in the Prophecy track.


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## José Herring (Aug 25, 2020)

DarkestShadow said:


> That would be strange because he died in 2013.


oops. Yeah that's about the time that I heard he was living in a castle in Poland. Hadn't really kept track of him after that. Too bad he's dead.


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## José Herring (Aug 25, 2020)

dcoscina said:


> uh he's dead... he passed away in 2013.



But, his spirit lives on....


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## dcoscina (Aug 25, 2020)

This isn't a superficial similarity to LOTR. . It's clear Jackson temped this piece to some of it.


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## bryla (Aug 25, 2020)

dcoscina said:


> I'd love it if OMNI MUSIC would release this full score. There's so much density to the orchestration in places.


May I ask what you find dense? In terms of orchestration it is very sleek and very 'Polish'. If you have some of his other scores you have the essence of his orchestration.


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## dcoscina (Aug 25, 2020)

bryla said:


> May I ask what you find dense? In terms of orchestration it is very sleek and very 'Polish'. If you have some of his other scores you have the essence of his orchestration.


I was referring to some of his string and choral writing which employs clusters and sound masses- I wasn't referring to contrapuntal density like Korngold is known for.


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## José Herring (Aug 25, 2020)

dcoscina said:


> This isn't a superficial similarity to LOTR. . It's clear Jackson temped this piece to some of it.



Oh man, so good.


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## bryla (Aug 25, 2020)

dcoscina said:


> I was referring to some of his string and choral writing which employs clusters and sound masses- I wasn't referring to contrapuntal density like Korngold is known for.


I see. Most of those are not by Kilar. They are superimposed overlays.


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## dcoscina (Aug 25, 2020)

bryla said:


> I see. Most of those are not by Kilar. They are superimposed overlays.


Ah it seems to be compared to Kilar's original cues on the LLL release. Pretty cool stuff. Then again, I can always study a ligeti score (I took out his Requiem in university and the score was MASSIVE- same for Xenakis' larger orchestral work).


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## bryla (Aug 25, 2020)

Well the main thing that makes it sound clustery is that they are often not in the same key and tempo as the main cue.


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## dcoscina (Aug 25, 2020)

bryla said:


> Well the main thing that makes it sound clustery is that they are often not in the same key and tempo as the main cue.


As an aside, I was thrilled when Omni announced they’d be releasing Korngold’s adventures of Robin Hood. Talk about needing the score to figure out what the hell he was doing. And I dare say Sea Hawk is even more stunning... sorry, back to our regularly scheduled program...


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