by Nick Stubblefield
Wordless Music Orchestra at Symphony Space
Sometimes, you can have your cake and eat it too. I'm a lover of both music and movies, so as you could imagine, catching the Wordless Music Orchestra perform live the film score of Beasts of the Southern Wild last Saturday was a dream come true. My question going in: would a live musical accompaniment enhance or distract from the film?
The Wordless Music Orchestra was founded in 2006 as the house band for the Wordless Music Series, often enlisted to perform film scores with artists from the classical and rock worlds. Saturday's presentation of the Beasts score at Symphony Space presented an ideal listening environment. The sound mix was impeccable with deep, punchy bass from the percussion and the low strings being particularly effective. The film dialogue came in crisp and clear, easily cutting through the music when necessary. The only thing that seemed to be missing was a bigger film screen. Then again, this show was presented as a concert first, and film screening second.
Lost Bayou Ramblers. (Rick Olivier for NOLA Live Music Blog)
The score – composed by Benh Zeitlin and Dan Romer - proved to be as emotionally resonant as the film itself. Conductor Ryan McAdams brought great energy and life to the music, with peaks that were absolutely thrilling. The main theme, "The Bathtub," was the most impressive: a heavy, toe-thumping beat driven by strings and percussion was underlined by the Louisiana-based cajun roots band, the Lost Bayou Ramblers. Another particular highlight was the finale "Once There Was a Hushpuppy," which again featured a driving groove, but with triumphant brass soaring on top. The instrumentation evoked a cajun, Southern Louisiana setting, played with great clarity and emotion. (Special props to the celesta player, who was by far the busiest performer onstage.)
A film score should always accentuate the emotions presented on screen. It should tell the viewer how to feel about what they're seeing. This performance wasn't the most technically demanding performance I've seen on a New York City stage, but it was certainly one of the most affecting. The only real issue was the length of the performance: at less than 40 minutes, it left me wanting more — much more.