Michael Gordon: Decasia
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Edition: Music CDCD Release Date: 2002-08-13
Music Label: Cantaloupe
Music reviews of Michael Gordon: Decasia
Music Review: Its not cinematic....
Rating: 3 Stars
If there is one major problem with the post-Mahlerian totalist composition 'Decasia', is that it is not cinematic music. Originially composed for a film about the decay of past cinematic film fragments, and I suppose, our collective memory, the music evokes little, or nearly no mental imagery when listening to it. Hence it is not cinematic. And I listenened to it before I watched the film and its lack mental imagery heightened my curiosity to see the film and watch what images the composer was framing with music. The music somewhat depicts a factory but (later) has no ethnic flavor - there is a segment with a Turkish whirling dervish but no beat or rhythm or melody associated with the culture. Nor does the composer paint an image of the past silent films; heaven forbid, he wastes many opportunities to awaken nostalgia for the quieter times of 'silent' films and the lonely piano player plunking away at what he/she is seeing. Plus the film maker had many moments of aleatoric imagery which reminded me of a blend of biomorphic images that could have been painted by Yves Tanguay and Joan Miro. Was there any aleatoric music to 'sync' with the images? No. Not to be too literalistic, but the music seems to just steam-roll over the film with little reference to the images unfolding in front of your eyes. And the music is orchestrated too densely and overwelms the images; I most fervently believe this music should not be post-Mahlerian but should be rescored for a chamber orchestra ensemble - minus the electronics, because the score works best at its most reduced (spare) musical moments. I do not like to compare one composer to another but Michael Gordons' effort is not equivalent to the memorable film scores composed by Phillip Glass. Glass's music thrusts forward in time while Gordons' static composition flows like Molassis.
If you are getting (sic) the idea that I found this music, in conjunction with the images, or for that matter, the music alone, dissappointing, you are correct. Away from the film I found the music an excruciating listening experience and had a tough time listening to it. If you are thinking I am some sort of music wimp who runs from modernist music you are wrong: I own about 1,000 discs and most of them are contemporary classical, modernist, and twentieth century with an emphasis on music from the northern forebidding countries of Europe and the former Soviet Union. My favorite composer is Shostakovich (speaking of a great post-Mahlerian, film-music composer). My dislike for this composition stems from lost opportunities, (perceived) unimaginative moments and heavy-handed scoring.
On the plus side I found the music strangely, and painfully, memorable and encourage you to listen to it and decide for yourself. If you wanted to kill two birds with one stone rent the film DVD, and if your DVD player is connected to a stereo, first play the disc with the TV off. Afterwards turn the TV on and watch the music in conjunction with the video. If you then find it to your liking, purchase one or both because I realize you might just like it. As for myself, I will not listen to it often.
An after thought: what do you ask, or at least you may be thinking, is this authors' favorite film music? A: Howard Shore's soundtrack from David Croenberg's movie CRASH. It consists of strummed guitars, one flute and a small ensemble of strings. The orchestration is transparent; the music haunting, seductive and memorable. I wish I could say the same for Decasia.
Description of Michael Gordon: Decasia
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