Music on the Orient Express

Twelve suspects, two composers, one train.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Kenneth Branagh (left) and Albert Finney sport their mustaches as Hercule Poirot
in two very different versions of Murder on the Orient Express. Images © 2017 and 1974.

So in the middle of writing this year's Metropolitan Opera Preview (currently three posts done out of twenty-five) I found the time to watch Kenneth Branagh's 2017 remake of Murder on the Orient Express. And this tale of train-board derring-do gives me the opportunity to write about one of my favorite subjects: film music. In this case, we'll be discussing the scores of both the new movie and the 1974 classic, directed by Sidney Lumet. It should be noted that I approached the Branagh remake with some trepadition, as the Lumet film is one of my all-time favorite movies.

Concert Review: The Tale of the Broken Wand

The NJSO continues its Harry Potter project.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Dueling lessons: Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter (with Kenneth Branagh, right) in a scene
from Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. HARRY POTTER characters, names and related indicia are © & ™ Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. J.K. ROWLING`S WIZARDING WORLD™ J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Publishing Rights © JKR. (s17)

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, the second installment in the eight-film Warner Brothers film series chronicling the adventures and education of a certain young wizard is the longest and most immersive movie in the series. On Saturday, the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra offered two performances of the complete score concurrent with a screening of the film at NJPAC. Once more, stately Prudential Hall was filled with Potter fans, who seemed (sadly) more interested in the film onscreen than the orchestra playing the score.