Protege of Gustav Mahler, student of Ricard Strauss, beloved composer of film scores, Max Steiner.
In 1952 he was commissioned by Warner Brothers to provide the music score to their film THE MIRACLE OF OUR LADY OF FATIMA, a simplified but still moving cinematic rendering of the events in Fatima, Portugal a century ago.
A sampling of his lovely score, the Miracle of the Sun sequence, taken from acetate recordings of the original soundtrack.
So beautiful. This music is sublime. I can think of another composition that is similar, one that always affects me deeply, yet it is not a religious composition, but nationalistic. It is Smetana's "The Moldau", which he wrote in such as way as to give encouragement to his countrymen, when a more direct national reference would not have been allowed. It is a stunning work, describing the meanderings of the River Moldau, I believe. There is a moment in it when the gentle stream transitions, and what can I say, one can imagine the gates of heaven opening to such musical beauty, a moment when the soul glimpses for the first time the beatific vision. It is that lovely.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing this. I love to contemplate Fatima.
Thanks for your comment, Kathleen. I share your love of the Smetana piece. And I am glad that you found Steiner's piece to your liking. He was a gifted composer.
ReplyDeleteHe very cleverly weaves Credo IV into his soundtrack, especially the bit that goes "Et Incarnatus est de Spiritu Sancto, Ex Maria Virgine, et homo factus est."
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