Bruno Coulais - The Chorus (Les Choristes)
|
Our Price: $32.00 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Music CD See more new music releases 
|
|---|
Buy this Music CD at online store in your country
Canadian Music Store
Canadian Music Store
Free Music Notes for The Chorus (Les Choristes)
Free Music Review: Soundtrack that wraps you in musical heaven
Hit: 5 Stars
I heard about the movie and finally heard a piece performed during the Oscars this year (2005), a rendition of "Vois Sur Ton Chemin" performed by Beyonce Knowles. It melody was so haunting, it puts the emotion of sorrow into music, but if you read through the lyrical translation, it's actually of uplifting content.
Long story short, bought the soundtrack and although it's a measley 38 minutes long, each second of the song is absolutely worth listening to. As with most soundtracks, most of the incidental pieces are a spin off of a few of the main songs, which happens to be "VOis sur ton chemin" and "Carresse L'ocean" - both wonderful songs with enchanting melody and a wonderfully patterned arrangement of interwoven harmony. The voices of the boys choir is exactly as it should be, light and innocent in sound, which is exactly what everyone else is saying! The orchestral pieces are just as beautiful, strong on strings and low registered wind instruments with touches of harp here and there, where as the choral pieces are accompanied mainly by piano. What i don't understand is the last track on the soundtrack, track 21 "Nous sommes de Fond de l'Etang", near the end of the music, dialogue starts and seems to be an excerpt of the movie during an audition? I have no idea.
I haven't seen the movie yet, but the jist of it is about a group of troublesome orphaned boys. The soundtrack sounds in accordance with the theme of the movie, a song or two of fun mischievous melody, lonely sad melody (they're orphans remember?), and i can't stress enough about how uplifting reading the lyrics are. Of course the booklet comes with selected song lyrics and the english translation on the side, a plus!Well, i'm going to see the movie, regardless of which critics said what. A person who was talented enough to put together a soundtrack like this couldn't have participated in making a bad movie.
Free Music Review: An Enjoyable Soundtrack
Hit: 5 Stars
Until recently, I had never heard of the French film LES CHORISTES. I only became familiar with it when I was driving and heard a report about it on NPR. A film critic considered it a rather bad movie with a bad plot, and mediocre music. Yet the movie is a blockbuster in France, the soundtrack is a bestseller, and it will probably have some success in the United States as well. In the report, they played a few excerpts, and it caught my interest. I purchased it, and can see why it has such appeal.
The soundtrack is a collection of a few themes worked and reworked which is not uncommon for movie soundtracks. The music is simple enough that it would likely enhance the film while not taking way from the action. The instrumental music is enjoyable, but the real gem of the collection are the tracks with the boy chorus and especially the tracks with soloist Jean-Baptiste Maunier. There is a beauty and innocence to the boys' choir voices, which is in sharp contrast to the reality of the young people in the film who happen to be in a reform school. It also seems like the sort of soundtrack that can be enjoyed without seeing the film, and for many of us who will have to wait until it will appear to be a money making film, we will have to settle for the soundtrack only for the time being.
Until I see the film, I cannot say if it is truly an insipid story. Since I love a good sappy film, I will probably enjoy it and am anticipating its release in Boston. Yet I know that many wonderful films that are a joy to watch have rather weak stories, but excellent musical scores make them memorable and moving. Judging from this soundtrack, the music of LES CHORISTES has the potential to make the film memorable.
Free Music Review: "The Chorus proves music is essential in our schools"
Hit: 5 Stars
Nonesuch Records and Warner Music present "The Chorus(Les Choristes)", the soundtrack to a wonderful film from France...the music will instantly grab you, much like the clouds opening up in the heavens and pure angelic voices singing praises instantly top you in your tracks...agree with the other reviewers of the mesmerizing and uplifting cues from this children's choral group...the soloist Jean-Baptiste Maunier's voice is the purist and most beautiful boy soprano I've heard in a long time...being a Music Director myself for some 18 years, this child is a rare find.
Found the cues to be addictive and delightful...highlight is "LA NUIT", english translation "Night", "O night, come and bring to the earth the calm enchantment of your mystery, the darkness that escorts you is so gentle, so sweet is the concert of your voices singing of hope, so great is your power transforming all into a happy dream"...what lyrics these are and the boys sing them so well unaccompanied...but when orchestration is needed it is superb.
As another reviewer pointed out...this is a real gem of a collection...the beauty and innocence are quite clear and crisp...hats off to the Les Petits Chanteurs de Saint-Marc, with director Nicolas Porte and the Bulgarian National Radio, Sofia, Bulgaria and musical supervisor Slim Pezin and of course Nonesuch and Warner Music for this extraordinary release from the boys in France...Les Choristes!
Total Time: 38:40 on 21 Tracks ~ Nonesuch 61741 ~ (1/04/2005)
Free Music Review: il est incroyable!
Hit: 5 Stars
I love Cinema Paradiso, so I followed Perrin to this movie. I havent seen a french film in a long time, and this one was great. The story was nice, but if you really look at the whole, its the musical compositions which really stood out and made this a hit. The lyrics paint a beautiful picture and make me want to figure skate even if I dont know how. Heck, I think it would make a football team want to figure skate! Every highschool chorus should learn one of these songs and sing it, they are just so darn purdy!
PS- 3 hours after I wrote this and Im freakin cryin here, this
darn waltz called "cerf-volant" lifts you and your dancing
partner higher and higher, after waltzing on the sea?!
*sniff* Its like the scene with Uma Thurman and John
Neville in Baron Munchausen. And "Vois sur ton chemin" has
such strength as in a march!
"Caresse sur l'ocean" has the prettiest lyrics
of them all I believe! I havent felt this certain emotion
from a soundtrack since "The Secret Garden" starring Kate
Maberly and that scene in "Green Card" where Gerard
Depardieu is playing the poem piano song. Not as sad as that
but have the same potency to me. *sniff* go away bye.
Free Music Review: Very good
Hit: 5 Stars
I first watched this on an in-flight platform. Already, the score had appealed to me, although my french is rudimentary at best.
This soundtrack is a very lovely piece of work. I rarely come across something quite as good. Selected mentions include:
Track 4: Pepinot. This is an instrumental piece, woodwind, piano and strings. Very sensitive and slightly moving. If you have seen the movie, it really fits Pepinot's character so well.
Track 5: A reprisal of track 1. Already very well reviewed. I have nothing to add.
Track 7: Together with La Nuit, they are the highlights. Again, the melody hauntingly mirrors that of Track 4. After enchanting the first verse by the choir, the background orchestra tunes down, increasing the haunting woodwinds, and the lead singer comes in, blowing me away. He reprised the choir perfectly.
Tracks 9 and 16: Kites / paper planes. Almost mirror images. Fast paced and catchy. Childlike in innocence. This was sung during the scene where Clement Mathieu had to depart, and the boys, locked up in a tower, threw paper planes written with messages for him out of the window...
Very strong buy rating recommended.