Weekly Recommendations – w/e 9th February 2024: Flyways: The Untold Story of Migratory Shore Birds, Il Pianeta Errante, Faruk, & Kôtei no inai hachigatsu/August Without The Emperor

Continuing with our catch-up of weekly recommended scores, here’s another round-up of scores that caught my attention over the week ending, 9th February 2024.

Flyways: The Untold Journey of Migratory Shore Birds (2023) – Cezary Skubiszewski (RealityBytes)

The subject of the Australian feature documentary Flyways: The Untold Journey of Migratory Shore Birds (dir. Randall Wood) is bird migration and the negative effects of climate change on their breeding and feeding sites. There’s a delicacy about Polish-born Australian composer Cezary Skubiszewski’s score that makes the album a very appealing listen. Written for a relatively small ensemble, the composer uses various combinations of instruments in interesting ways, many of the musical ideas revolving around a three-note motif inspired by the composer’s own experience of bird song. A nice alternative to the large orchestral scores frequently written for natural world documentaries, Skubiszewski’s music reflects the birds that fly vast distances during their migrations.

---

Il Pianeta Errante (1966) – Angelo Francesco Lavagnino (Creazioni Artistiche Musicali C.A.M.)

Il Pianeta Errante (War Between the Planets) (dir. Antonio Margheriti) is the third movie of the “Gamma 1” quadrilogy, a group of four Italian science fiction films from the mid-1960s. A group of astronauts battle to save Earth from a deadly asteroid, facing various technical issues and inter-personal conflicts. Angelo Francesco Lavagnino’s score is very reminiscent of the scores written for Hollywood science fiction B-movies of the 1950s and even Hammer’s horror scores of the 1950s and 1960s. The orchestra is in full foreboding mode, with doom-laden sinister strings, dramatic percussion alongside hints of eerie electronics. There’s the obligatory romantic segment to lighten the otherwise threatening feel. Previously available on CD as part of a compilation album celebrating the film quadrilogy, Il Pianeta Errante is presented in wholesome mono sound which just adds to the overall enjoyment.

---

Faruk (2024) – Karim Sebastian Elias (Bavaria Sonor Records)

Straddling the fictional drama and documentary, Faruk (dir. Asli Özge) tells the story of Faruk, the director’s father, living in an apartment block earmarked for demolition, where bureaucratic corruption is rife. Karim Sebastian Elias’ score for Faruk is an interesting one. Divided into three different parts, one part has a series of tracks featuring a small string ensemble that plays a lovely melody that instills a feeling of quiet everyday life. Then there’s a number of tracks that are completely different in style: a very modernistic approach, with upward and downward glissando strings, lots of pizzicato, and musicians who try to get some unusual sounds from their stringed instruments. A third group of tracks are collection of songs, and orchestral tracks that feature a larger and more varied collection of musical instrumentation plus some electronics. It’s interesting that the more melodic tracks dominate the early part of the album with the music “descending” to the more atonal and dissonant style as the album progresses (whether the tracks reflect their appearance in the movie is unclear). Very much a curiosity listen, and one recommended for it’s intriguing qualities.

---

Kôtei no inai hachigatsu (August Without The Emperor) (1978) – Masaru Satô (Shochiku Records)

Kôtei no inai hachigatsu (August Without An Emperor) (皇帝のいない八月) (dir. Satsuo Yamamoto) tells the story of an attempted coup by a group from the Japanese Self-Defence Force. Their goal is to establish a military dictatorship. Previously available as an LP, Kôtei no inai hachigatsu opens with a dramatic statement of the title music where strings and brass play off against one another. And, from there, the album is a succession of excellent tracks that shifts from the drama of the main theme to interesting suspenseful sequences. The appearance of some sultry pieces and 2-3 tracks featuring what sounds like Hammond organ solos – which were a bit of a surprise to hear! – adds variety (which I could have personally done without). However, hearing a “new” Masaru Satô score is always a treat. (Searching for “august without” will probably bring up this album in your favoured streaming search.)