Released 2008 Length 59:00 Release date 2008 Producer John Erik Kaada | Recorded Wrongroom, Oslo Artist John Erik Kaada Movie O' Horten Genre Film score | |
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Label Kaada Recordings
(KAAA-015) Similar Junkyard Nostalgias, Music from the Motion Picture N, MECD, Kaada & The Late Bloomers, Thank You for Giving Me Your | ||
With the tragicomedy O'Horten, Norwegian writer-director Bent Hamer (Factotum, Kitchen Stories) returns to his domestic landscapes, off-beat humanism and stylistic quirks of earlier works. The bittersweet episodic tale of an ultra-dedicated locomotive engineer uneasily transitioning into retirement provides warm and gently humorous entertainment. At the age of 67, loner (but not lonely) Odd Horton (Bard Owe) is forced to step down from his engine-driving job. An encounter with Trygve Sissener (Espen Skjonberg), an elderly gent with a cheerful "it's never too late" philosophy, inspires Horten to finally take off his uniform and open himself to things he never previously tried.
Contents
O'Horten was Norway's Academy Award entry for Best Foreign Language Film in 2009.
Reviewers praise John Kaada's music across the board. Variety calls it "outstanding." His score focuses on calm melodies played on exotic instruments, many of which he built himself. Kaada is himself an accomplished classical musician, touring with various chamber orchestras and performing at festivals.
Track listing
All music composed by Kaada.
Kaada quote from the cover sleeve : "The process of making the music for O’Horten was quite special. For every project I work on, I always try to get involved as early as possible. If I get music in there before the editing process begins, the entire music production becomes so much easier and the scenes seem to work better as well. Usually, directors are afraid to make decisions about music early on. When I deliver the first sketches, they tend to say: “Yeah, it sounds good, but make some more of this and that, so that we have more to choose from.” This is a natural reaction. After reading the script of O’Horten, I immediately started to work on the score. Bent Hamer’s reaction to the first samples was very surprising. When he heard the first track on the CD tentatively called main theme, he said: “YEP, we’ll go with that one!” Then he picked some other suggestions for different scenes. Bent is known for being a kick-ass good director and I wanted to make sure I had a strong album to bring to him. Yet, I never expected this kind of response. It was surprising and a bit shocking. They had not even started with principal photography. I had more than a year to work on these selected songs until the final deadline!"
Musicians
Other Involved
Songs
1Blindekjøring
2Hardangervidda
3Valkyrien