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movie. With his score for Fargo (1996), the nextmasterwork of the siblings, Burwell counterpointedthe dark humour of this story, a kidnapping that turnsbloody, with a haunting score based on a traditionalScandinavian folk tune, enriched with the nostalgicaccents of a fiddle.CARTERBURWELLMUSIC FOR FILMCarter Burwell is of course best known for hisremarkable creative and loyal collaboration withEthan and Joel Coen. It’s as difficult to imagine aCoen Brothers film without Carter Burwell’s music,as a Hitchcock film without the music of BernardHerrmann or a François Truffaut film without themusic of Georges Delerue. Burwell’s groundbreaking scores for the quirky films created by theCoen Brothers and his work for many other directorsindicate a fierce originality and a strong feeling forthe eccentric, the experimental and the minimalistic.On this album we have half a dozen examples ofthe Coen Brothers-Carter Burwell partnership thatstarted with Blood Simple (1984), the debut featureof the Coens. For Miller’s Crossing (1990), a hardboiled, stylised variation on Dashiell Hammett’s RedHarvest, Burwell composed a subtle, melancholyscore of which the chosen track (‘End Credits’)also captures perfectly the moral gravitas of theThe Man Who Wasn’t There (2001), a beautifullybizarre black-and-white homage to ‘film noir’, inspiredBurwell to write a dark and solemn piano-centricscore.Burwell’s sad, delicately layered music for A SeriousMan (2009) underscores the poignancy of thishilarious Jewish film noir about a physics professor in1960s Minnesota, whose life is falling apart.True Grit (2010) the brothers’ remake of a John Wayneclassic was their straightest take on a Hollywoodgenre and gave Burwell a chance to try his hand at awestern score in which he incorporated church music.On Burwell’s original approach the LA Times wrote:‘Eschewing the traditional brassy triumphs that markmany a western score, Burwell opts to focus insteadon lovely, albeit slightly sorrowful, piano arrangements.It allows for True Grit to work equally well for bigscreen vistas and solitary contemplation.’Finally, there are two tracks from Hail, Caesar!(2016), a tale of an old-time Hollywood fixer forwhich directors and composer playfully parody somefavourite film genres.Todd Haynes is another independent Americandirector who over the years developed a closeprofessional relationship with Burwell. We presentthree scores of their unique collaboration. Theopening titles of the Emmy awarded HBO miniseriesMildred Pierce (2011) and the movie Carol (2015)are tributes to the strong female characters thatdominate these adaptations of novels by James M.Cain and Patricia Highsmith. For the formally veryunusual Wonderstruck (2017), Burwell says hewrote music ‘that is carrying you through the dramaand informs you about the characters and the story. Itwas just as important for the music to be withholdingthe information as it was for the music to be tellingthe audience things.’Two tracks are of special interest as they werecomposed for scores that haven’t been previouslypublished. Of his caressing score for LisaCholodenko’s HBO miniseries Olive Kitteridge(2014) Variety wrote that ‘Carter Burwell sets thetone with one of those rich scores of his that invitespersonal reflection without spelling out exactly howwe should feel.’ And for David Mamet’s deliciouslyclever con-trick drama The Spanish Prisoner (1997),Burwell ‘did a nice job of swirling mysteriously anddiscreetly jangling nerves,’ according to Janet Maslinin The New York Times.Other highlights on this album are Twilight, ThreeBillboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri and Gods andMonsters. ‘Effective, subtly, creepy. No bombast orbig orchestral wows,’ was the verdict of the ChicagoTribune on Burwell’s score for Catherine Hardwicke’soriginal Twilight (2008) film, definitely the strongestin the immensely popular saga. Burwell’s musicalstorytelling casts a truly magical spell on this tensetale about the unconsummated romance betweenliving and dead.Burwell previously collaborated with MartinMcDonagh on In Bruges (from which two tracks arealso presented on this CD) and Seven Psychopaths,but it was for the third film of the pair that thecomposer got his second Oscar nomination.For Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri(2017) ‘the director wanted the film and themusic to feel like they are from a specific place,which is somewhere in the middle of the country– the southern-middle of the U.S,’ Burwell toldEntertainment Weekly. ‘That’s why the film hasthat really long title. It seemed right from thebeginning that the music was going to somehowbe idiomatic with regard to American folk music orfolk instruments.To capture the mystery and complexity of the lifeand death of filmmaker James Whale, the subjectof Gods and Monsters (1998), Burwell avoidedthe cliché horror film approach and created ahaunting waltz. ‘A typically eccentric choice, and, ofcourse, absolutely right,’ according to Bill Condon,the director of this warm and clever fictionalisedbiographical treatment of the director of The Brideof Frankenstein (1935).Maybe Condon gives the best description of CarterBurwell’s greatest quality as a film composer: ‘Ina time when most film scoring is an exercise inredundancy (action sequences hyped by agitatedstrings, emotional moments underlined by tendertinkling) Carter remains a true iconoclast.’Patrick DuynslaegherArtistic Director Film Fest Gent
Miller’s Crossing (1990)11Mildred Pierce (2011)02Fargo (1996)12Olive Kitteridge (2014)03The Spanish Prisoner (1997)1304Gods and Monsters (1998)14Being John Malkovich (1999)15The Man Who Wasn’t There (2001)16In Bruges (2008)17Twilight18Wonderstruck (2017)19Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri01050607080910End Credits 04: 06 EMI Music PublishingFargo, North Dakota 02: 40 Universal Music PublishingThe Spanish Prisoner 02:19 Best Possible MusicFriend? 01: 53 Sony/AT V Music PublishingPuppet Love 01: 42 Universal / MCA MusicThe Trial of Ed Crane 03: 43 Universal / MCA MusicPrologue / Medieval Waters 02: 59 Universal / MCA Music(2008)Bella’s Lullaby 02:19 Warner/ Chappell North AmericaA Serious Man (2009)A Serious Man 02: 39 Universal / MCA MusicTrue Grit (2010)River Crossing / Talk About Suffering /The Wicked Flee 06:11 Sony/AT V Harmony UKOpening Titles 01: 43 Universal / MCA MusicOlive Opening 02: 07 Universal / MCA MusicCarol (2015)Opening 02: 21 Kobalt Music PublishingAnomalisa (2015)Overture 02: 05 Best Possible MusicThe Founder (2016)Flags and Steeples 02:19 Kobalt Music PublishingHail, Caesar!(2016)5 a.m. / Hail, Caesar! 04: 01 Universal / MCA MusicGoodbye Christopher Robin (2017)Drawing Pooh 02: 31 EMI Music PublishingSilent Whispers / Little Girl, Big City 03: 33 Universal / MCA Music(2017)My Dear Anne / Billboards on Fire 05: 21 Kobalt Music Publishing
CARTER BURWELL GIVES A VOICE TO THE INNER SELFCarter Burwell likes his songs to have as fewnotes as possible. That may sound strangecoming from a composer who has written abouta hundred film scores, but it does capture theessence of his work. In fact, just like EnnioMorricone, whom he greatly admires, CarterBurwell aims to convey as much as he can withas few notes as possible. So it comes as nosurprise that Burwell, who was born in New Yorkon 18 November 1954, is sometimes labelleda minimalist. Yet minimalism does not precludeeloquence. On the contrary, by focusing on theessence, his music gains an inner power capableof revealing a whole new world. Without hismusic, the characters in his films are unfinished.The music brings their personalities to life andexpresses what they cannot convey themselves.His music gives a voice to the inner self. Aperfect example is ‘Carol’ by Todd Haynes, inwhich you hear the main characters, played byCate Blanchett and Rooney Mara, before youactually see them, because they are thematicallylinked to a clarinet and an oboe.‘Carol’ was a key film in Carter Burwell’s career,not only because he was working at the pinnacleof his talents, but also because it marked thebeginning of his life in the public eye. Until then,he had mainly kept to the shadows, preferring towork on his memorable artistic masterpieces fromthe privacy of his house on Long Island. Films bythe Coen Brothers, Todd Haynes, Spike Jonze,Martin McDonagh and Bill Condon form a kindof cadence in his oeuvre, or points of referenceif you prefer. With the exception of the big shotsbehind the ‘Twilight Saga’, the large studios tendto pass Carter Burwell by. Not that he minds,although he does secretly dream of working ona sci-fi film.For Carter Burwell, sound came before music. Infact, he once referred to himself as an “untrained”composer. He studied animation and electronicmusic at Harvard College, where he worked as alecturer for many years. He was passionate aboutcomputer technology and digital sound, and aftera stint as Chief Computer Scientist in a LongIsland lab, he became an animator and was laterappointed Director of the New York Institute ofTechnology. He contributed to digital TV films andcommercials for a Japanese anime studio. At thesame time, he threw himself into the New Yorkpunk scene, banging away tunelessly at the pianoto the dismay of his family and friends. Nowadays,in interviews, he calls it “self-expression”.Sounds became music in 1983, when sounddesigner Skip Lievsay approached him to askwhether he would be interested in composingsome music for a film. The film turned out tobe ‘Blood Simple’, the Coen Brothers’ debut.Based on a single film reel, he sought out themusical relationship between himself and what hehad just watched. To bring some synchronyto the process, he used a stopwatch. He hasbeen the Coen brothers’ in-house composerever since. Their working relationship andfriendship owe its strength to the fact thatthe brothers constantly ask him to come upwith something new. An orchestral score,for example, knowing he had never createdone before (‘Miller’s Crossing’), or musicthat can barely be distinguished from thesound design (‘Barton Fink’). Simply put,they always ask him to come up with adifferent colour of sound. When looking for afitting or ambiguous link between music andimages, Carter Burwell feels like somethingof a film maker as well as a composer. It ishis job to give films the finishing touch.Curiously, his work has not yet earned him anOscar, but the World Soundtrack Academyhas already awarded him three prizes. Forlack of an Oscar, we’re throwing in a tweetinstead. It comes from Guillermo del Toro,praising Carter Burwell as “The voice ofthe Coens. Majestic Melancholy. Music ofimages and moods. Sublime defeat andcrushed hopes”. The Academy itself couldnot have said it better.Raf ButstraenIn reflecting on the honor that the GhentFilm Festival has paid me this year, I’velooked back at the random path that’sbrought me here. It had never been myintention to be a composer of film scores- or a composer at all. But after Joel andEthan Coen bestowed that title on mewith the film BLOOD SIMPLE, and thenasked me to write an orchestral score forMILLER’S CROSSING (knowing perfectlywell I had no experience doing that),I began to believe that I was in some sensea composer and have tried to be worthy ofthat title.A film composer is two things: a composerand a filmmaker. It’s not easy to separatethese two things, and I generally find itoff-putting to take the music, written forparticular characters, particular dialogue,particular action, out of its context forperformance on its own. In the case ofthe compositions presented here, I’mendlessly grateful to Dirk Brossé andthe Brussels Philharmonic for giving themusic its own life.Carter Burwell
DIRK BROSSÉ - COMPOSER, CONDUCTORDirk Brossé has made over 100 CD recordingsand has collaborated with world-class artistessuch as José Van Dam, Barbara Hendricks,Julia Migenes, Julian Lloyd Webber, SalvatoreAccardo, Alison Balsom, Hans Zimmer, EmmaThompson, Randy Crawford, Lisa Gerrard andMarcel Khalifé.Dirk Brossé has been awarded the titleCultural Ambassador of Flanders, the FlemishParliament’s Gold Medal for Merit, the AchilleVan Acker Prize, the Joseph Plateau HonoraryAward and the Global Thinkers Forum Award forExcellence in Cultural Creativity. In 2013 he waselevated to Belgium’s hereditary nobility, with thepersonal title of Knight. He is a member of theRoyal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Scienceand the Arts and since 2018 a Fellow at theUniversity of Brussels (VUB). photo Luk MonsaertDirk Brossé is a multi-faceted composer and arespected conductor on the international musicscene. Since 2010, he has been Music Directorof ‘The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia’ andMusic director of Film Fest Ghent. Dirk Brosséhas composed some 400 works, includingconcerti, oratorios, lieder, chamber music,symphonic works, musicals and film scores. Hisscore for the BBC/HBO series ‘Parade’s End ‘was nominated for an Emmy Award. His scorefor ‘Knielen’ was nominated for The Golden CalfAward. Maestro Brossé has conducted all theleading Belgian orchestras. He has conductedover 120 orchestras all over the world such asLondon Symphony Orchestra, Vancouver Opera,l’Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, CamerataSt Petersburg, Hong Kong Philharmonic, l’Orchestre de l’Opéra de Lyon, PhilharmonicOrchestra of Shanghai.BRUSSELS PHILHARMONICThe Brussels Philharmonic was founded in 1935by the Belgian public broadcaster (NIR/INR).Over the years, the orchestra has performed withmany top conductors and soloists. It enjoys anexcellent reputation for performing premieresof new works and has collaborated with worldrenowned composers such as Bartók, Stravinsky,Messiaen and Francesconi. The orchestra’shistoric home port is the Flagey building, whereit rehearses and performs in Studio 4, in acousticterms one of the top concert halls in the world.and international representation by IMG Touringbrings further tours and concerts on new stagesboth in Europe and beyond (e.g. Japan, USA).As of 2015, Stéphane Denève is the musicdirector of the Brussels Philharmonic. This topFrench conductor designs his programmescombining 21st century music with the greatclassics, thereby opening up a dialogue betweenthe repertoire of the past and that of the future.The recordings of Brussels Philharmonic(Deutsche Grammophon, Film Fest Gent,PalazzettoBruZane,Klara,BrusselsPhilharmonic Recordings) have been warmlyreceived by the international press and awardedan ECHO Klassik, Choc de Classica de l’annéeand Diapason d’Or de l’année, amongst others.The Brussels Philharmonic is an institution of theFlemish Community.At the international level, the BrusselsPhilharmonic has made a name for itself, withregular appearances in the major Europeancapitals. The appointment of Stéphane DenèveThe Brussels Philharmonic is internationallyacclaimed for its expertise in film music. For theperformance and recording of soundtracks itregularly partners with MotorMusic and Film FestGent. International recognition has come, amongothers, in the form of the Oscar-winning score for‘The Artist’ (music by Ludovic Bource).www.brusselsphilharmonic.be
ANASTASIA GOLDBERG - PIANISTBRUSSELS PHILHARMONIC MUSICIANSConductorDirk BrosséConcertmasterHenry RaudalesFirst violinBart Lemmens (1)Sylvie BagaraOlivia BergeotEva BobrowskaStefan ClaeysChristophe PochetFrederic PreusserJustine RiguttoElizaveta RybentsevaAnton SkakunPhilippe TjampensBram Van EenooGillis VeldemanSecond violinSamuel Nemtanu (1)Pablo Ases UrenyaAna Bajo DjurasevicAnne BaluVéronique BurstinBartosz KorusEleonore MalaboeufKarine MartensEline PauwelsJulien PoliFien Van den FonteyneFrancis Vanden HeedeViolaKris Hellemans (1)Griet François (2)Benjamin BraudeVictor GuaitaPhung HaAgnieszka KosakowskaMaryna LepiasevichHelena RaeymakersKorneel TaeckensPatricia Van ReuselCelloKarel Steylaerts (1)Kirsten AndersenSolène BeaudetBarbara GerartsJulius HimmlerSophie JomardEmmanuel TondusElke WynantsDouble bassJan Buysschaert (1)Uxía Martinez Botana (1)Elias BartholomeusDaniele GiampaoloSimon LucePhilippe StepmanFluteLieve Schuermans (1)Eric MertensJill Jeschek: piccolo (2)Pianist Anastasia Goldberg receivedher first piano lessons at the age of 5from Irina Renova.OboeJoost Gils (1)Maarten WijnenLode Cartrysse:English horn (2)TubaJean Xhonneux (2)ClarinetDanny Corstjens (1)Midori Mori:bass clarinet (2)PercussionGert D’haese (2)Titus Franken (2)Tom PipeleersBassoonKarsten Przybyl (1)Alexander KuksaJonas Coomans:contrabassoon (2)HarpEline Groslot (3)HornHans van der Zanden (1)Pierre BuizerMieke Ailliet (2)Evi BaetensGuitarInti De Maet (2)Stein Verrelst (2)TimpaniGert François (1)Piano/CelestaAnastasia Goldberg (2)TrumpetWard Hoornaert (1)Jonas Van HoeydonckLuc SirjacquesTromboneAlexandre Mainz (1)Arno Tri PramudiaTim Van Medegael:bass trombone (2)Glossary:(1) principal(2) soloist3 years later she made hersuccessfuldebut,performingHaydn’s Pianoconcerto in D with theChamber Orchestra of Ekaterinburg(RU). She graduated from the UralState Conservatory in Ekaterinburgand completed her Master degree byProfessor Naum Grubert at the RoyalConservatory in The Hague (NL).AnastasiaGoldbergwontheInternational Piano Competition inSan Sebastian, March 2000. Dueto her success she toured severaltimes throughout Spain and has beeninvited since 2009 to be part of thejury of the same competition.As soloist Anastasia Goldberg playedwith renowned conductors suchas Mikhail Jurowski, Stefan Vladar,Michel Tabachnik, Anton Grishaninand many others.She contributed to the WorldPremiere of Michel Tabachnik’s PianoConcerto (2007) and played theWorld Premiere of Beethoven’s PianoConcerto in F, during the BeethovenFestival 2010.Several CD recordings have beenrealized, some of which receivedhigh international praise includingher reading of Mozart/Beethovenand was prized top 5 CD of the year2010, next to recordings by the RoyalConcertgebouwOrchestraandBayerische Rundfunk.AnastasiaGoldbergcurrentlyholds the positions of professorof piano at the Prince ClausConservatory, Groningen (NL) andthe Maastricht Conservatory. Shealso holds the position of Presidentof the jury of the International FestivalCompetition Star Olympus (RU).As frequent performer AnastasiaGoldberg can be found in differentvenues in the Netherlands, France,Germany, Spain and Russia.HENRY RAUDALES - CONCERTMASTERBelgian violinist Henry Raudaleswas born in Guatemala into a musicalfamily. His father Enrique Raudales,a student of Zino Francescatti,Henryk Szeryng (violin) and ErichKleiber (conducting), started Henryon the violin at the age of four. Agedseven he played his first publicconcert with the North CarolinaSymphony Orchestra which caughtthe attention of Yehudi Menuhin, whorecommended him for a scholarshipin London. At age 14 he received theYoung Violinist of the Year Award bythe Panamerican Union.Henry studied conducting and violinat the conservatory of Guatemala,Guildhall School of Music andDrama (London) and the RoyalConservatory of Antwerp withteachers such as Erick Friedman,Henryk Szeryng and Mrs. Kogan.In 1985 he won the 3rd prize at theQueen Elisabeth Competition inBrussels. Since then, he has giveninnumerable concerts and recitalsthroughout the world, sharing thestage with renowned artists such asPierre Amoyal, Nigel Kennedy andYehudi Menuhin. Additionally, since2001 he has been the concertmasterof the Münchner Rundfunkorchester,which he also conducted for severalCD recordings.His ties to Belgium remain strong:having played as a concertmaster atthe Royal Flemish Opera, he is alsoa founding member of the Belgianchamber orchestra Enkabara andsince 2005 the concertmaster ofBrussels Philharmonic.Henry Raudales plays a Guadagniniviolin from 1787.
CREDITSWhat makes Film Fest Gent unique in the fullybooked festival calendar is the focus on music andthe celebration of the film composer, unfortunatelyoften the forgotten key figure in the artistic and/orcommercial success of a film.Ever since 1982, Film Fest Gent has experienceda growing focus on music in cinema with aspecial section dedicated to music in films. Thisled to the addition of screenings with live musicalperformances, big film music concerts, annual FilmMusic Seminars and recordings of several CDs.Over the years, Film Fest Gent became a meetingplace for composers such as Ryuichi Sakamoto,Dario Marianelli, Angelo Badalamenti, EnnioMorricone, Gabriel Yared, Howard Shore, HansZimmer, Elmer Bernstein, Patrick Doyle, GustavoSantaolalla, Francis Lai, Terence Blanchard andMaurice Jarre.To consolidate this growing focus on music incinema, the World Soundtrack Academy wascreated in 2001, aiming to offer a strong platform foremerging film music talent, through the presentationof awards, as well as through the development ofother promotional activities, such as seminars,workshops, master classes, music events, etc.“Ghent’s World Soundtrack Awards have inspiredclones throughout Europe” (Variety). The approachof Film Fest Gent has been very influential and hasa great follow-up. Many other festivals started tospend more attention to film music or also started toorganize concerts and award composers. “However,Ghent can lay claim to having played a pioneeringrole in this field” (Gabriel Yared).The culmination point of Film Fest Gent’s filmmusic programme is the annual World SoundtrackAwards Gala where several awards are distributedto celebrate outstanding achievements in scoringmusic for motion pictures. Each year a major filmcomposer is invited to present his work during thisprestigious event. Furthermore Film Fest Gent andpartner Brussels Philharmonic record an album withtheir music. This year we are honoured to welcomeAcademy Award-nominated composer CarterBurwell, considered one of the most brilliant filmcomposers of his generation. Burwell is known for hiscompelling scores including ‘Being John Malkovich’,‘In Bruges’, ‘Where The Wild Things Are’, ‘Twilight’and his unique collaborations with some of theworld’s most respected filmmakers such as the CoenBrothers (‘Fargo’, ‘No Country for Old Men’) and ToddHaynes (‘Carol’, ‘Wonderstruck’, ‘Mildred Pierce’).A selection of his film work is collected on thisunique and exclusive compilation album.Album produced by: Film Fest Gent& Brussels PhilharmonicUnder exclusive license to:Silva Screen RecordsAll music composed by: Carter BurwellOrchestra: Brussels PhilharmonicConductor: Dirk BrosséProducer: Film Fest GentGeneral manager: Marijke VandebuerieCoordination Music & Sound projects:Valerie DobbelaereAssistant producer: Thomas De KeereRecording, mix & mastering: Motormusic(www.motormusic.eu)Recording supervisor: Luk VaesRecording engineer: Floren Van StichelEditing: Ellen JanssensMixing engineers: Ellen Janssens& Steven MaesMastering engineer: Steven MaesIntroduction: Patrick Duynslaegher,Artistic Director Film Fest GentCarter Burwell biography: Raf rds.com & 2018 Film Fest Gent & Brussels Philharmonic exclusively licensed to Silva Screen Records Ltd.SILCD1587Cover photo: Tycho BurwellFilm Fest Gent wishes to thank:Carter Burwell, Vasi Vangelos, Dirk Brossé,Leen UytterschautBrussels Philharmonic: Gunther Broucke,Véronique Bossaert, Jim Seynaeve, Judith VanEeckhout, Nicola Mascia, the entire crew andall musicians for their enthusiasm, expertiseand energyMotormusic: Hans Bellens & Steven MaesSilva Screen Records: David StonerThe entire crew of Film Fest GentCarter Burwell would like to thank:the musicians who play his compositions, hisagent Vasi Vangelos, and his beloved family,Christine, Tycho, Tor and GretaExecutive producers for Silva ScreenRecords Ltd: Reynold D’Silva & David StonerRelease co-ordination: Pete Compton& Rick ClarkDesign & layout: Stuart Ford
OTHER RELEASES AVAILABLE IN THE GENT FILM FEST SERIESALAN SILVESTRIRYUICHI SAKAMOTOTERENCE ilvestri-at-film-festgent/1046664579?app film/1165395103?app lanchard-musicfor-film/1306231641?app itunes
boiled, stylised variation on Dashiell Hammett's Red Harvest, Burwell composed a subtle, melancholy score of which the chosen track ('End Credits') also captures perfectly the moral gravitas of the movie. With his score for Fargo (1996), the next masterwork of the siblings, Burwell counterpointed
