What an honor it was to perform our original music to accompany
Yuri Norstein's beautiful animated films at the
Balboa Theater this week. Actually it was a bit nerve-wracking to have the great man sitting right behind me as I lead the group through the score for Tale of Tales. One part of my mind was completely focused on the task at hand while another was searching for his response to our re-contextualization of his masterpiece. (It was the first time he had heard it, and the large Russian audience seems to hold the original score and narration dear.) In the end it was received well and we had the even more harrowing experience of providing music for his work in progress 'The Overcoat' which only exists as a silent piece so far. We got a copy of it in the morning and quickly created a series of cues and improvisations to underline the intricate character study. Despite the language barrier, Mr. Norstein seemed tickled by our dedication to his films and seems to have appreciated the change of perspective it gave him on his own work.
