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Home › Culture & Entertainment › Music › Your Pick of the Week: Ennio Morricone

Your Pick of the Week: Ennio Morricone

Started by Raymond Walker5 · · 👁 5 views · 72 replies

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Participants Raymond Walker5Larry Walker24Jessica Morris6Casey Cox2vivideagle7silverpanther13analogbear40Dennis Hall41Michael Roberts7Patrick Cooper2Sam WatsonPatrick MartinRichard Brown51Elizabeth Rivera6granitecyclist
Raymond Walker5 Raymond Walker5 Active MemberOP
79 messages
joined Jul 2017
#1 ·
The pokvariti link in the poll, under number 9:
L'Arena


Since it’s been mentioned a few times now that there isn't any issue with opening additional polls, I’m going to launch a new little concept. As long as I have some free time and people are actually interested, I’ll be the one putting these polls together. If for some reason I can't keep up with them in a reasonable timeframe, someone else can certainly step in and take the reins if the interest stays alive. And if interest fades? Well, then that’s just how it goes.

The core idea behind these polls is that we’ll host a weekly vote featuring the best (or most iconic) works from specific groups, artists, or musicians based entirely on your personal taste. Whether it’s Beethoven, Taylor Swift, or Beyoncé—it really doesn't matter to me. It could even be music you produce yourselves; who knows, maybe one day I'll join in with my own tracks! Whether the artists are household names or completely underground is totally irrelevant. The only thing that matters is that the selection reflects the musical preferences of our community members. There won't be any strict rules about whose turn it is to pick; everyone will get a chance, potentially multiple times, if this takes off.

As for the rules, all you have to do is send me a friendly private message with your favorite groups or artists, and I'll kick off a poll for their work. Since I don't exactly share your specific tastes, it would be great if you could also include a tracklist of the songs you think deserve a spot in the poll (feel free to include links right away if you want to save us both some time).

When putting those lists together, please try to:
1. Represent the essence and the absolute best of those groups or artists.
2. Not leave out the biggest hits or the greatest tracks just because of silly reasons like "I've heard them too many times already."
3. Avoid favoring obscure deep cuts over the major essentials (though, to be clear, obscure stuff and your personal favorites are absolutely welcome to be part of the list).
4. Ideally, provide links to the songs; if you're short on time, I don't mind hunting down YouTube links myself.

I suspect many of you might feel like you could run these polls yourselves, but I think it’s better to have a steady cycle of polls at regular intervals so we don't suddenly flood the forum with too much content all at once.

The number of songs included in these polls will be quite flexible. You might look at a list and wonder why I've included 50 different Ennio Morricone tracks. Well, when someone has had a career spanning over half a century, composed music for over 500 films, series, and documentaries, and remained incredibly versatile and high-quality across genres, they deserve to be showcased in all their glory.
On the other hand, for someone who has only released two to four albums, it wouldn't make sense to have a poll longer than 15 or 20 songs. We should use a bit of common sense here so we don't overwhelm everyone by forcing them to listen through a mountain of obscure, repetitive, or mediocre tracks from a single album.

Regarding the voting process, I’ll specify at the start of each poll how many votes each member is allowed to cast. If you decide to go rogue and vote more than that, there isn't much I can do about it anyway; besides, we aren't calculating a grand total, so it shouldn't really skew anything.

For every artist or group, I'll keep the main thread active permanently. Each new poll will be started under a new thread so we can have long-term discussions about that specific artist's music, which I think makes things much cleaner. Plus, it ensures all results remain easily accessible to everyone.

Voting will stay open for one month for each artist or group, even though I'll aim to introduce new ones every week. The idea is to ensure nobody feels rushed and that people can still cast their votes even if they missed the initial window.

I won't be providing tedious biographies or exhaustive discographies; instead, I'll just provide a link to the Wikipedia page and the artist's official website.
I'm assuming everyone here is fluent in English, unless you're 70 years old and were taught Russian in school.

And finally, just to wrap things up, the ultimate goal of this thread is really just about relaxation and having a bit of fun together.

If you happen to have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to reach out to me via DM.
Larry Walker24 Larry Walker24 Veteran
1K messages
joined Jun 2022
#2 ·
Set up a poll for all the James Bond songs
Raymond Walker5 Raymond Walker5 Active MemberOP
79 messages
joined Jul 2017
#3 ·
What is going on with this cookie? Why won't standard hyperlinks work in the polls? It seems like anything over 50 characters breaks it... and now I'm noticing even shorter ones are causing issues too.. 🤦

Alright, does anyone have a clue what the deal is here?
Raymond Walker5 Raymond Walker5 Active MemberOP
79 messages
joined Jul 2017
#4 ·
Jessica Morris6 Jessica Morris6 Active Member
195 messages
joined Nov 2022
#5 ·
I really feel like "la resa" is missing from the collection...
Casey Cox2 Casey Cox2 Active Member
73 messages
joined Jul 2018
#6 ·
The Great Silence🙏
Raymond Walker5 Raymond Walker5 Active MemberOP
79 messages
joined Jul 2017
#7 ·
Mark Cruz15 said:We're missing "la resa" here.

Honestly, quite a bit is missing. I didn't even realize I'd left out "la resa" because the main track feels so similar to "The Trio," which is what I ended up putting in its place.
Raymond Walker5 Raymond Walker5 Active MemberOP
79 messages
joined Jul 2017
#8 ·
Just a quick heads-up regarding the voting in this poll: you can pick a maximum of 20 tracks. If you happen to select more than that, don't worry—nothing bad will happen—but there’s really no point in cluttering up the results. In my opinion, 20 is the perfect upper limit when we're looking at a selection of 50 items.

For those interested in learning more about Morricone, feel free to check out these sites:
Wikipedia
Discography
Official website

I’m sure there will be some disagreements over the selection, as there always are! However, since I feel I know his body of work quite a bit better than most—I actually have over 400 of his soundtracks in my collection—I’ve tried my best to strike a balance. I wanted to mix his most iconic hits with some of those lesser-known gems that are just as incredible.
If anyone does have complaints, it'll probably be because I didn't include the main theme from the movie 'The Mission.' But honestly, 'Gabriel's Oboe' is the true heart and soul of that soundtrack, and it actually flows right into the piece "on Earth as it is in Heaven."

I had to cut quite a few tracks that definitely deserved a spot on this list, but if I hadn't, the total listening time would have been way too overwhelming for everyone.
Raymond Walker5 Raymond Walker5 Active MemberOP
79 messages
joined Jul 2017
#9 ·
Larry Walker24 said:Set up a poll featuring all the James Bond songs

That’s actually a great idea. I might just do that.
vivideagle7 vivideagle7 Active Member
135 messages
joined Oct 2014
#10 ·
So, what I'm hearing is that I've got 20 votes for that?
Raymond Walker5 Raymond Walker5 Active MemberOP
79 messages
joined Jul 2017
#11 ·
vivideagle7 said:So, what you're saying is I've got 20 votes for that?

Somewhere between zero and 20, 😁
You could technically throw in 50 votes, and we’d be right back where we started at zero. Let's just cap it at 20 maximum. 🙂
silverpanther13 silverpanther13 Newcomer
3 messages
joined Nov 2009
#12 ·
Raymond Walker5 said:What is up with this cookie? Why don't standard hyperlinks work in polls? It used to act up if you went over 50 characters... and now I'm seeing it glitches out even with less than 50. 🤦

Anyone know what the deal is?

You can actually add more than fifty characters once the poll is live—you just have to use the edit poll option, which, unfortunately, is restricted to moderators.
Raymond Walker5 Raymond Walker5 Active MemberOP
79 messages
joined Jul 2017
#13 ·
silverpanther13 said:You can actually add more than fifty characters after setting up a poll by using the edit poll option, though unfortunately, that feature is reserved strictly for moderators.

Thanks for letting me know.
So, unless someone decides to hand me a moderator badge, I guess this is just how polls will look on this forum. It’s a little more clunky, but it still gets the job done perfectly well.
I'll make sure to place any hyperlinks right underneath the poll, just like I'm doing now, so everyone can find their way around easily.
Raymond Walker5 Raymond Walker5 Active MemberOP
79 messages
joined Jul 2017
#14 ·
I went out and fulfilled my civic duty by casting votes for 20 different things. I have to admit, it was quite a heavy lift making those decisions, but regardless of which way I leaned, I know I didn't miss the mark.
Raymond Walker5 Raymond Walker5 Active MemberOP
79 messages
joined Jul 2017
#15 ·
Since I highly doubt I’ll ever be granted moderator status to properly edit polls—probably because there's a lingering fear I might commit some sort of digital terrorist act against the forum—I've decided that from now on, polls will just feature song titles, with the corresponding links tucked neatly in the text below. I think this will make things much cleaner and easier for everyone to navigate, so you'll know exactly what you're voting for.
By the way, we already know what's dropping next week. I'm just fulfilling the request of the very first person who spoke up.

Let's get back on track.
When it comes to Morricone, he is personally my favorite composer, and honestly, his work is a genre all its own. He possessed an incredible talent that allowed him to produce a massive volume of high-quality work. Even a list of 50 tracks can't begin to scratch the surface of his full musical spectrum; his style could jump from experimental and jazzy to completely atonal.
What you see on this list are, let's say, the "safe bets," though they are all undeniably brilliant. I had to make some painful compromises regarding what to include and what to leave out. I know people tend to get really excited about the spaghetti western vibes, so I tried to maximize those while still doing justice to the rest of his career. Morricone himself actually gets a bit annoyed when people only associate him with westerns; he often points out that he only scored about 30 westerns, whereas he composed over 400 soundtracks for other genres.
In recent years, Tarantino has been using his work extensively in his films, which has helped bring Ennio's legacy to a whole new generation. In fact, for his upcoming film, Morricone actually composed original music.
Personally, I believe a musician like Morricone is a true rarity in human history. His music can shift seamlessly from terrifyingly dramatic to pieces so beautiful they can easily bring a tear to your eye. His ability to craft melodies and harmonies is simply otherworldly. I've heard people claim that his music sometimes doesn't quite "fit" certain scenes, but honestly, that's exactly what I love about him. He isn't afraid to be uncompromising, creating sounds that challenge the listener, unlike the sterile background music we've become accustomed to in modern cinema. Best of all, unlike many other film composers, Ennio's work stands perfectly on its own for independent listening while simultaneously telling the story through emotion on screen.
vivideagle7 vivideagle7 Active Member
135 messages
joined Oct 2014
#16 ·
To me, Morricone is hands down the greatest film composer out there. He can hit any note, capturing every possible spectrum of emotion and mood you could imagine.

I remember watching an interview with him before one of his big shows in New York. They asked him about his process—how he actually composes. He mentioned that real musicians have the whole thing mapped out in their heads first, and then they just write down the notes, rather than playing things out and trying to transcribe them later. I really think he's onto something there; I feel the same way about music.

So, I’m diving back into his absolute masterpieces, and I'll be posting some detailed thoughts on my favorites soon.
analogbear40 analogbear40 Member
20 messages
joined Nov 2013
#17 ·
We are undoubtedly talking about a true legend here, someone with an incredibly deep and diverse body of work that really deserves a deep dive.

It’s really just a matter of time—or rather, how much time each of us is willing to carve out to truly wrap our heads around everything he's put out there.

Either way, I have to say, great job on putting this together. 👍
Dennis Hall41 Dennis Hall41 Active Member
55 messages
joined Jan 2018
#18 ·
SoulCycle, you should totally run a poll on early Elton John stuff—maybe up to A Star Is Born.

Just a suggestion if you're feeling it—you definitely know his catalog better than I do (haven't gotten around to Blue Sky or Caribou yet)—but we're talking about 9 studio albums that basically hold at least 50 absolute masterpieces.
Raymond Walker5 Raymond Walker5 Active MemberOP
79 messages
joined Jul 2017
#19 ·
Yeah, he actually composes entirely in his head, which is such a departure from most people I know who tend to sit down at a piano to work things out. From my own little experiments with songwriting, composing directly at the keyboard always feels much more practical and logical to me. Honestly, I have no idea how someone can capture every single note, the exact harmony, the rhythm, and everything else just by thinking about it. It’s pretty incredible, really...
Raymond Walker5 Raymond Walker5 Active MemberOP
79 messages
joined Jul 2017
#20 ·
Dennis Hall41 said:Raymond Walker5, you could even do a poll covering Elton John's early work, maybe up through Captain Fantastic and The Brown Dirt Cowboy.

I’m throwing that out there just in case you're interested, since you definitely know his catalog better than I do (I haven't actually gotten around to listening to Empty Sky or Caribou yet). And we're talking about a serious haul here—correct me if I'm wrong—but there are 9 studio albums in that stretch that yield at least 50 absolutely stellar tracks.

Haha, I could! But Dile already gave quite a bit of spotlight to those earliest Elton John records, so the music from the Songs from the West Coast era onwards—which is just as highly regarded—was completely overlooked. Honestly, I'm a fan of his entire career; I don't really have any major complaints, even during his slightly weaker periods.
If I were to put together a poll on his music, I might lean toward focusing on those deep cuts that weren't massive hits but totally deserve the attention, but... well, we'll see. It would need to be planned out pretty carefully. Then again, considering how we previously had the chance to dive through almost the entire Nirvana discography in one poll, I'm certain Elton has enough great albums to fill a whole series without breaking a sweat.

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