This is today's find at Vinal Edge. I found the premise of the movie, and the fact that it was directed by Roman Polanski intriguing. With this post, I feel that I've assuaged my need to share soundtracks. So, the next post will be a Mystery Album #6. Until then ....
[aka The Fearless Vampire Killers] The score for The Dance of the Vampires probably sounded just as strange in 1967 as it does today. The film was marketed as a horror farce, but it sounds like Polish composer Krzysztof Komeda had slightly different thoughts in mind. The score is not completely macabre nor is it completely tongue-in-cheek. Instead it inhabits this weird space in between that draws on both traits at the same time. It’s eerie but not frightening, legitimate but not serious. And some of its main themes ride upon instrumentation that could strike listeners today as almost alien. Harpsichord and upright bass with wordless incantations from a wavering choir sitting just a few tracks away from strings and woodwinds and drum-backed kitsch reminiscent of Rocky Horror—it begs the questions “Is this a joke?” and “Are you trying to freak me out?” simultaneously. It sounds slightly dated, but not in the ways one would think.
[aka The Fearless Vampire Killers] The score for The Dance of the Vampires probably sounded just as strange in 1967 as it does today. The film was marketed as a horror farce, but it sounds like Polish composer Krzysztof Komeda had slightly different thoughts in mind. The score is not completely macabre nor is it completely tongue-in-cheek. Instead it inhabits this weird space in between that draws on both traits at the same time. It’s eerie but not frightening, legitimate but not serious. And some of its main themes ride upon instrumentation that could strike listeners today as almost alien. Harpsichord and upright bass with wordless incantations from a wavering choir sitting just a few tracks away from strings and woodwinds and drum-backed kitsch reminiscent of Rocky Horror—it begs the questions “Is this a joke?” and “Are you trying to freak me out?” simultaneously. It sounds slightly dated, but not in the ways one would think.
With 19 tracks clocking in at just a hair over thirty minutes, The Dance of the Vampires is not a large score. Shortening it even more is the fact that many of the themes are repeated with sometimes very little variation. For instance, the “Main Title” at the start is almost identical to the closing number “Herbert’s Song” (the latter is longer by about two minutes). The slowed minor key vibratos of the choir are the driving force on these two tracks, using the harpsichord as a piece of archaic window-dressing. “Sarah in Bath” is an acappella “Snowman” sped up to a moderate tempo. And “Snowman” is a guitar and oboe waltz that mutates into a minor-key chant for “Koukol Laughs”. Then it goes back to being “Snowman” for the start of “Sarah’s Song”. “Sarah Asks for a Bath - Love Tune”, which appropriates the opening theme, is probably the least romantic twenty-two seconds of the program. Between these numbers are incidental cues that visually set scenes (as they should).
Krzysztof Komeda
1967
https://www.dropbox.com/s/5ixbiwyw8aqf215/Dance%20of%20the%20Vampires.zip?dl=0
ReplyDeleteExcellent soundtrack to a hilarious movie. It's also included in Polonia's box.
ReplyDeleteWhat is Polonia's Box?
DeleteThe Komeda boxset on Polonia Rec.:
Deletehttps://www.discogs.com/Krzysztof-Komeda-The-Complete-Recordings-Of-Krzysztof-Komeda-Vol-1-25/release/5897446
Oh, cool!!
Delete