Taxi Driver [IMPORT] [SOUNDTRACK]

Bernard Herrmann (Composer)

Product Details

• Composer: Bernard Herrmann
• Audio CD (August 30, 2005)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import, Soundtrack
• Label: Arista Europe
• ASIN: B0009XFMXS
• Also Available in: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #161,790 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
American composer Bernard Herrmann's last film score was for director Martin Scorsese's (and writer Paul Schrader's) deeply unsettling, Dostoyevskian film noir, Taxi Driver--a portrait of urban alienation that's never been matched. In the slow-motion images of New York City as Dante's Inferno (steam rising into the air to suggest the hellfire below), the orchestral music is ominous and dissonant, a rumble and crash that rises up from the underworld. But Herrmann's other major motif is a slinky, smoldering sax theme that suggests the forbidden pleasures of big-city nightlife--bars and clubs, prostitutes and porno palaces--things Travis Bickle (Robert DeNiro) may himself indulge in, but that give him no pleasure. (In fact, they disgust him.) The soundtrack features a track in which Herrmann's music is played behind bits and pieces of narration from Travis's "diary": "Some day a real rain will come along and sweep all the scum off the streets." Unforgettable music, unforgettable movie. --Jim Emerson

Product Description
Vinyl Classics reissue of the 1968 Original Soundtrack comes as a vinyl look-a-like CD that's packaged in a die-cut see-through Slipcase. Arista. 2005.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The movie music composer who touches you emotionally, December 10, 2002

By	Richard Espinor (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Taxi Driver: Original Soundtrack Recording (Audio CD)

I first became aware of American composer Bernard Herrmann's movie music in 1958 at age nine when I saw "The 7th Voyage of Sinbad" on the big screen. I was in awe of the great Ray Harry hausen special effects and the movie music, also, added great excitement to the scenes. At age fourteen I saw another Ray Harryhausen movie with a music score by Bernard Herrmann. Again, Herrmann's music added excitement to the scenes in the movie. Herrmann's music touches me emotionally. That's what I want. I want to feel the music. I didn't see Taxi Driver in 1976 when I was twenty-seven years old. After the publicity of the assassination attempt of President Reagan, the newspapers reported the assassin was inspired by watching the movie "Taxi Driver." I rented the video in 1981 or 1982. The movie is a disturbing account of a New York City cab driver slowly entering into madness. Again, Bernard Herrmann's music added the ingredients that capture Robert DeNiro's character moving into the world of madness. I am a music composer myself using my computer to write original music and Bernard Herrmann is one of the major movie music composers who is a major influence for me. I rented the DVD Collector's Edition of "Taxi Driver" and I enjoyed the "Making of Documentary of Taxi Driver" which was made in 1999. I can write without a doubt that I am glad that director Martin Scorsese seeked Bernard Herrmann and that the late Bernard Herrmann accepted writing the music score after reading the script to "Taxi Driver."

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bernard Herrmann's finest, January 4, 2007

By	Herr Tarquin Biskuitfaß "aka Tarquin F'tang F... (Luton) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Taxi Driver: Original Soundtrack Recording (Audio CD)

There is something fascinating and still very haunting about this music. The main theme, with such a simple theme of just two notes, is barely music and almost absurd in its base form, but given the pacing, dynamics and subtle orchestration, it becomes gold. In its understated and twisted beauty, if you could even call it that, this is more horrifying than the theme from Psycho, for example. The theme from Taxi Driver is ethereal and subsconscious, rather than in your face. There is great influence of jazz in the score and Miles Davis certainly comes to mind.

For example, listen to "Thank God for the Rain": the music literally inhales and exhales; there is a sublime, constant tension that is never quite resolved. It matches the film and the stressed mind of main character of Travis Bickle perfectly.

It is not without reason that the producers of Taxi Driver, and Martin Scorsese, honored "friend" Bernard Herrmann in the credits by dedicating the film in his memory.

As other reviewers have pointed out, the final tracks (those not scored by Herrmann) sound horrible in comparison. They sound very '70's', which is appropriate for the film and the time, but very dated and not fitting the intense, gritty mood of the film at all. It shows how differently the same material can be handled by two opposing minds, and how drastic the contrast can be. Still, this does not detract from the release, since they are all placed at the end of the CD, so they are easy to skip without hassle.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing!!!, February 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Taxi Driver: Original Soundtrack Recording (Audio CD)

Martin Scorsese's classic film "Taxi Driver" is not only one of the greatest films of all time but it also managed to produce one of the best musical scores of all time as well. Bernard Hermann (Psycho, Vertigo) composed the nightmarish score heard in the movie. He died hours after finishing it and it was arguably his best score ever. Hermann's themes can be really light and lush jazz music at times yet can also be very psychotic which is the feeling Travis Bickle had in the movie. It is one of those scores that paints a wonderful portrait of what the film was all about and one doesn't see that too often anymore. It is a truly wonderful score. There are 30 minutes of additional material. One is Diary of a Taxi Driver which is when the listener gets to hear what went on in the mind of Travis Bickle. Then there is a bunch of strange smooth jazz arrangements of the score which are nice but don't have the feel of Hermann's score at all. The bottom line is you have to get this if you appreciate movie scores. Even if the movie didn't do much for you it is still a score that belongs in every music lover's collection.