Intellimusica

A Gift of Thistle James Horner’s music for the film Braveheart is one of the most iconic and beloved scores in cinematic history. Most consider ‘A Gift of Thistle’ to be the central theme of the film. This track is played during the scene where […]

Fifty Fifty Narcos: Mexico is the soundtrack that I had been waiting for. It’s a glorious series and Gustavo Santaolalla adds a smooth, dark underpinning. Much like Amado Carrillo Fuentes character himself. Although Gustavo Santaolalla is prolific pop musician and composer — I prefer his […]

Running Up That Hill If you’re right around my age (or older) you might fondly remember Kate Bush’s 1985 hit, Running Up That Hill. I was in second grade when that came out. Like everything from the 80’s — it’s a reminder of a far […]

Pale Mourner ‘The light wraps you in its mortal flame. Abstracted pale mourner, standing that way against the old propellers of the twilight that revolves around you.’ Excerpt from The Light Wraps You – Pablo Neruda. I draw a lot of musical inspiration from the […]

Top Gun Top Gun: Maverick has me totally pumped up. I’m 45 and remember the VCR revolution in the mid 80’s. Prior to VCRs and home video rental shops, we relied on HBO or encore showings at smaller theaters to see movies like Return of […]

The Last Kingdom The Last Kingdom is a historical fiction (Netflix) series based on a series of novels entitled, The Saxon Stories by English author Bernard Cornwell. The television series is like early Game of Thrones; fast-paced storytelling, well developed character arcs, and replete with […]

Cloud Atlas Cloud Atlas is a complex, interconnected narrative that explores reincarnation and the interconnectedness of humanity across space and time. The score for the film, was composed by Tom Tykwer, Reinhold Heil, and Johnny Klimek; a film music trio, collectively known as the “Pale […]

The Survivor The Survivor (HBO Max) is about Harry Haft, a real-life survivor of the Auschwitz concentration camp; a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps, operated by Nazi Germany, in occupied Poland during World War II and the Holocaust. In Auschwitz, Haft (Ben […]

Left Behind (Together) Left Behind (Together) is a nifty, steel-string guitar piece by Gustavo Santaolalla; from The Last of Us Volume 2. It’s emblematic of his ability to find small spaces, and set positive constraints on the guitar. Gustavo Santaolalla picks low hanging fruit like […]

Mary Goes to Jesus Mary Goes to Jesus is the most solemn and exquisite piece of music from The Passion of the Christ. It is also from the most poignant scene: The Apostle John, takes Mary to a better vantage point to possibly see, touch, […]

Altamira Altamira (Mark Knopfler & Evelyn Glennie) is the title track from, Finding Altamira: a 2016 film about a Spanish archaeologist (Antonio Banderas) and his daughter (Allegra Allen) who cause worldwide controversy in 1879 when they discover cave paintings that are 10,000 years old. Here’s a short […]

The concept is based around, The Wayfaring Stranger, a well-known American folk and gospel song that originated in the early 19th century. The song is about a plaintive soul on the journey of life. The most popular variation is from Johnny Cash. In my humble […]