ライト・アンド・シャドウ

映画やドラマの名曲を室内アンサンブル編成で再構築!

本アルバム『ライト・アンド・シャドウ』は、オーケストラ・オヴ・ザ・スワンと芸術監督デイヴィッド・ル・ペイジによるSignumレーベル6枚目のアルバムで、映画やドラマの名曲を室内アンサンブル編成で再構築した作品です。収録曲には《アメリカン・ビューティ》《戦場のメリークリスマス》《パルプ・フィクション》《めまい》など、映像と音楽が深く結びついた映画の名シーンを彩る楽曲が並びますが、あえて「ワイドスクリーン」的なアプローチを避け、親密な質感や繊細なニュアンスに焦点を当てたアレンジが特徴です。ピアノ、ツィンバロン、チェロ、ボーカルといった個性豊かなソリスト陣の活躍にも注目です。
東京エムプラス

The Orchestra of the Swan has recorded its share of repertory material, much of it from the 20th century, but the 2020s have brought some highly effective thematic recordings from the group and its conductor, David Le Page. Some of these, including 2025s Light and Shadow, have been denoted as "mixtape" albums, and these feature arrangements and a generally personal flavor created by Le Page. The general Light and Shadow title doesnt quite get to the specific nature of the program, which is film music, mostly arranged by Le Page except where the lush originals by Ennio Morricone and Bernard Herrmann already fit the general mood. Hermanns pieces for Alfred Hitchcocks Vertigo express that mood perfectly. Not all the pieces were written for films, but all of it was used that way; such varied pieces as Astor Piazzollas Libertango and Radioheads Exit Music (for a Film) reveal their dramatic qualities here. Some of the pieces are quite familiar; a starkly intense treatment of Thomas Newmans American Beauty seizes the listeners attention right at the beginning, and Light and Shadow can safely be recommended for those who simply want a rich treatment of film music in line with other orchestral anthologies, which are indeed often given opulent flavors. However, there is more to this one. The mixtape concept is more than just the use of a contemporary buzzword; it is an indicator of a personal treatment that includes Le Pages work as both conductor and arranger. It is an enjoyable listen for anyone who likes film music, but it is also worth hearing in a philosophical frame of mind; it is genuinely inventive. ~ James Manheim