True Grit by Karen Karlsrud (CD, Dec-2010, Nonesuch (USA))

Album Features
UPC:	075597977516
Artist:	Karen Karlsrud
Format:	CD
Release Year:	2010
Record Label:	Nonesuch (USA)
Genre:	Classical, Film Score

Details
Playing Time:	35 min.
Contributing Artists:	Carter Burwell, Paul Pollard, Mike Davis, Marc Goldberg, Gordon Gottlieb, Jim Beard, Steve Williamson, Jim Ross, Mary Wooten, Joyce Hammann, Pedro Díaz, Ben Herman, Harry Searing, Karen Dreyfus, Maureen McDermott, Erik Charlston, Melissa Meell, Victoria Drake, Richard Dallessio, Alan Stepansky, Calvin Wiersma, Ken De Carlo, Jerry Grossman, Roberta Cooper, Bruce Wang, Demian Austin, Saeka Matsuyama, Kyle Turner [Tuba], Christof Huebner, Todd Phillips [Violin], Pitnarry Shin, Daniel Panner, David Krauss, Ellen Payne, Diva Goodfriend-Koven, Nadine Asin, Nancy McAlhany, Misa Iwama, Danielle Farina, Michelle Baker, Alissa Smith, Pico Alt, Anne Scharer, Peter Bahng, Tom Carney, Barbara Currie, Dean LeBlanc, Emily Popham, Javier Gandara, Jennifer Kim, Conway Kuo, Matt Lehmann, Liz Lim-Dutton, Joanna Maurer, Ming Hsin, Nate Robinson, Ragga Petursdottir, Shmuel Katz, Sophia Kessinger, Yurika Mok, Michael Roth (Violin)
Distributor:	WEA (Distributor)
Recording Mode:	Stereo
SPAR Code:	n/a

Album Notes
Carter Burwell's score for Joel & Ethan Coen's cinematic version of Charles Portis' novel True Grit (they consciously decided to ignore the original Oscar-winning film because they considered it a bore) is rooted in the world view of its main character, the outrageously self-righteous Mattie Ross (played by Hailee Steinfeld). Burwell used classic Protestant hymns as inspirations; in some cases bits from the classic hymns themselves -- "Hold to God's Unchanging Hand" (by Franklin L. Eiland), "What a Friend We Have in Jesus" (by Charles Converse), "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms" (by Elisha A. Hoffman & Anthony J. Showalter), "Talk About Suffering" (Traditional), and "The Glory-Land Way" (by J.S. Torbett) -- for his cues. These pieces in particular, from the opening theme, "The Wicked Flee," "A Methodist and a Son of a Bitch," and "I Will Carry You," all begin simply, lyrically, almost reverentially before giving way to grander pieces of music that reflect the land and history. More dramatic cues, from the brooding "The Turkey Shoot" and the intense bombast of the orchestra and snare drum corps in "Taken Hostage," to the taut, suffocatingly close drama in "Snake Pit" that transforms itself into something far more pastoral, are very effective not only as narrative cinematic devices, but as music that tells its own story by its evocation and equivocation with Americana. Of the 14 collaborations between the Coens and Burwell, this is among the most unique and satisfying for its enfolding of historic music into modern composition. [Digital downloads of the recording from Nonesuch's online store include a bonus track: Iris DeMent singing "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms," which plays during the film's closing credits.] ~ Thom Jurek

Editorial Reviews
3 stars out of 5 -- [With] a pleasant opening theme on piano...beautifully produced...
Record Collector