The year 2024 is behind us, so I have to prepare for the IFMCA Awards. As a member of this organization of film music critics, I have to listen to as many scores as possible from all over the world and from all kinds of media. I have collected my thoughts on more than 150 scores already, but I still have many in my backlog that I want to explore before making my decisions for the awards. To give myself this extra time while still being able to inform you about interesting music I have found on my journey this year, I will be preparing a few Spotlight articles, as I have done in previous years.
Metro Awakening – Anne-Kathrin Dern
As I mentioned in my Games in Concert: The Score report, I was introduced to Anne-Kathrin Dern’s music for the game Metro Awakening during that concert. The Metro franchise is quite popular, but I missed this game because it is a virtual reality game, and, unfortunately, those games are pretty niche.
One of the highlights of the music is its main theme, of which multiple versions can be found on the album. The best version is “My Beloved Land,” a song based on the theme’s melody. The other two versions are also quite interesting since they are performed on so-called harp guitars, an electric and an acoustic one. Two other highlights are the themes for Yana and Kahn. It is a bit unfortunate that the game is only made for VR. More people would probably have heard this fantastic score if it had been a regular game in the Metro franchise.
Music For Film – Elliot Goldenthal
Elliot Goldenthal is a composer who should not need any introduction, as he has been writing fantastic and exciting scores throughout his decades-long career. He has a unique style that can be extremely bold or very chaotic on one side and gorgeous and emotional on the other. I have enjoyed much of his music over the years, including during several concerts at different film music festivals. During these festivals, with Goldenthal present as a guest, I heard magnificent suites for Alien 3 and Final Fantasy, as well as the “Grand Gothic Suite” with music from Batman Forever and Batman & Robin. Unfortunately, only people in the audience could experience these magnificent pieces, but that has changed with the release of Music for Film by Film Fest Gent and its director, Dirk Brossé.
Elliot Goldenthal: Music for Film is the latest addition to the albums the Brussels Philharmonic records annually with Brossé at the helm for the film music festival, and it contains the three magnificent suites I have heard live, but music from other movies as well, including Titus, Heat, Frida and Interview with the Vampire. The album is a brilliant celebration of Goldenthal’s music and a pleasure to listen to. I own a physical copy, signed by the composer during the latest edition of the World Soundtrack Awards, so that I can relive these glorious live moments from the comforts of my home.
De Toeslagenaffaire – Merlijn Snitker
While many excellent scores are being made worldwide, I always keep an eye open for Dutch scores since this is where I am based. One of the highlights I have listened to in the last couple of months is the music Merlijn Snitker wrote for De Toeslagenaffaire, which is a TV show that focuses on a scandal involving the Dutch Tax Authorities, which lead to the fall of the Dutch government back in 2021.
It is not a long score, with only 22 minutes of music. Most of it consists of electronics and some individual instruments, but the highlights for me can be found in the first and last track of the album. In “Dit houdt niet op” and “De Toeslagenaffaire,” you can hear a gorgeous theme in which the human voice is the main focus. This theme is not the only beautiful piece of music to be found; “Klokkenluider” is also a gorgeous, emotional piece in which the voice plays another prominent role. It is a wonderful score for a show about a terrible affair.
