Intrada Soundtrack Forum

2/10/2019

Tidbits, Teases and Taste Treats. Three terms the late Len Engel, veteran music editor at 20th Century Fox and friend to Jerry Goldsmith, would use in descriptions of various musical comings and goings in his work with Intrada, which was pretty extensive back in our early years. The taste treat comes this Tuesday, February 12. We’ll have our newest CD available on that day and it’s a good one. A nice expansion of an 80’s hit by one of our favorite composers. Melody and action galore! Check out our sound samples and view the artwork and contents on Monday the 11th, late in the afternoon our time.

The tease: I’ll be working here at Intrada’s studio this week with a terrific composer in attendance. He’s also a really good friend. We’ve released a number of his soundtracks in the past and are this week collaborating on a really big one, both in terms of scale and duration. The picture itself chronicles a famed American historical event. The score is by turns elegiac and powerful, moving and exciting. In my opinion it’s a truly great one. Look forward to it after we bring everything across the finish line.

The tidbit: A few listeners have written and suggested, in lieu of publishing some mammoth coffee table book covering our 34 years in business, I at least offer personal anecdotes gleaned from our work with numerous composers and their music. So perhaps I can toss some recollections out when I get opportunities to post in my corner here. They’ll be at random and sometimes pretty lame… literally just tidbits. Anyway, here’s one for starters: Back many moons ago, when arriving at Jerry Goldsmith’s home to pick up a master on a project we were working on together, I recall walking up his front steps with a smile. The cause for my grin was hearing way off in the distance the faint but unmistakable strains of The Blue Max, specifically the main title. I had to pause for a moment and think about it. Here was the great Jerry Goldsmith, listening to his own music just like the rest of us mere mortals would do. He was even conducting it, baton in hand, leading an imaginary orchestra sitting in front of him. Who of us hasn’t at some point conducted our own imaginary symphonies in our own living rooms? But this was Jerry Goldsmith, not just one of “us”. Turned out, he was practicing for an upcoming concert performance and nothing more. Or so he said to me a few moments later when the cue ended. Actually I prefer to think he simply enjoyed his music… just like the rest of us.