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"L'uccello Dalle Piume Di Cristallo" (The Bird With the Crystal Plummage) - Ennio Morricone (1970)
A score for the ages, Ennio Morricone delivered one of the most exciting and unique works ever for a movie that most folks would never have heard as of this writing otherwise (myself included). Ennio Morricone is perhaps best remembered for his work on Spaghetti Westerns by Sergio Corbucci, Sergio Leone and others ("Navajo Joe", The Dollars Trilogy, etc) but his discography is insanely vast and diverse. While inventing the sound that became synonymous with Western films, he also simultaneously created the unsettling sounds which helped cement the character and vibe of the Giallo genre. "L'uccello dalle piume di Cristallo" or "The Bird With the Crystal Plummage" was the directorial debut of Dario Argento, Giallo's most renowned figure. Before most famously collaborating with the band Goblin, Argento worked with Morricone on three films which later became known as the "Animal" trilogy- this one, "Il gato a nove code" (also excellent) and "4 mosche di velluto grigio". Each of the scores to these movies showcases Morricone at his most experimental and unsettling - light years away from the emphathic, whipladen palate of the Westerns. To begin with, we get kind a Pagan-esque of meditative hymn "Piume Di Cristallo" featuring gentle vocals, swirling ambient bells and light organ punctuated by harpsichord that launches into a folk-song. It's a lulling entry that might convince listeners they can let go and drift away and one that continues on the following loung-y interlude "Non Rimane Piu Nessuno" but this is deceptive invitation because what follows is anything but furniture music. The next piece "Corsa Sui Tutti" is possibly my favorite Morricone moment ever and one that turned me on to this score in the first place. It's also featured on Mike Patton's excellent "Crime and Dissonance" compilation of Morricone's more experimental pieces. With virtually no air in between, brooding drums begin soloing before a truly perverse, descending chromatic melody enters on bass, flutes, mallets and piano. It turns out that Morricone uses this a cell which returns in intervals throughout a mostly free texture of the drums, distant bells and the now menacing "la's from the first piece which are panning in and out of focus in the stereo mix. By itself, that piece makes the whole score worth serious investigation and I'll stop myself from saying more just to keep the this post as compact as possible. Death Waltz Recording Company reissued the full score as well as outtakes on a double, clear vinyl in 2021. It's super awesome. You should check it out.
A score for the ages, Ennio Morricone delivered one of the most exciting and unique works ever for a movie that most folks would never have heard as of this writing otherwise (myself included). Ennio Morricone is perhaps best remembered for his work on Spaghetti Westerns by Sergio Corbucci, Sergio Leone and others ("Navajo Joe", The Dollars Trilogy, etc) but his discography is insanely vast and diverse. While inventing the sound that became synonymous with Western films, he also simultaneously created the unsettling sounds which helped cement the character and vibe of the Giallo genre. "L'uccello dalle piume di Cristallo" or "The Bird With the Crystal Plummage" was the directorial debut of Dario Argento, Giallo's most renowned figure. Before most famously collaborating with the band Goblin, Argento worked with Morricone on three films which later became known as the "Animal" trilogy- this one, "Il gato a nove code" (also excellent) and "4 mosche di velluto grigio". Each of the scores to these movies showcases Morricone at his most experimental and unsettling - light years away from the emphathic, whipladen palate of the Westerns. To begin with, we get kind a Pagan-esque of meditative hymn "Piume Di Cristallo" featuring gentle vocals, swirling ambient bells and light organ punctuated by harpsichord that launches into a folk-song. It's a lulling entry that might convince listeners they can let go and drift away and one that continues on the following loung-y interlude "Non Rimane Piu Nessuno" but this is deceptive invitation because what follows is anything but furniture music. The next piece "Corsa Sui Tutti" is possibly my favorite Morricone moment ever and one that turned me on to this score in the first place. It's also featured on Mike Patton's excellent "Crime and Dissonance" compilation of Morricone's more experimental pieces. With virtually no air in between, brooding drums begin soloing before a truly perverse, descending chromatic melody enters on bass, flutes, mallets and piano. It turns out that Morricone uses this a cell which returns in intervals throughout a mostly free texture of the drums, distant bells and the now menacing "la's from the first piece which are panning in and out of focus in the stereo mix. By itself, that piece makes the whole score worth serious investigation and I'll stop myself from saying more just to keep the this post as compact as possible. Death Waltz Recording Company reissued the full score as well as outtakes on a double, clear vinyl in 2021. It's super awesome. You should check it out. 
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