THE CHRISTMAS THAT ALMOST WASN’T **** – Bruno Nicolai – Digitmovies CDDM073 – 29 tracks – 56:17
For better or worse, in the minds of soundtrack aficionados’ composer Bruno Nicolai (1926-1991) will always be remembered in affiliation with Ennio Morricone. The two first met and became friends while students at the Santa Cecilia Conservatory in Rome. They went on to professionally collaborate for many years within the Italian film industry. Historically it is understood that this collaboration involved Nicolai conducting for Morricone from roughly 1964 until 1975 (Morricone publicly stated that he stopped employing conductors after 1975). As for Nicolai, he is credited with having independently composed almost 100 scores between 1951 and 1984. Today it seems peculiar if one is to recall the days when pioneering American soundtrack buffs, those becoming obsessed with Italian cinema and scores as far back as the mid-60s, wrestled with uncertainties as regards the true identity of musicians named Ennio Morricone, Leo Nichols, Dan Savio, and Bruno Nicolai. It must be remembered that this was before the internet, before mega-record stores like Virgin and Tower, and before specialty shops like SAE, so all that collectors had to go on were screen credits as read in theatres or on TV, and the rare LP or 45 acquired only after tentatively being ordered from Europe. It was soon discovered that “Leo Nichols” and “Dan Savio” were Morricone’s Anglicized anonyms, but for a time some argued that “Bruno Nicolai” must also be an alias for Ennio and this because Nicolai’s name was being discovered on films with scores that sounded very much like Morricone. To this very day there is still debate over which man contributed exactly what, and how much, to scores such as RUN MAN RUN (1968), THE RED TENT (1969), OK CONNERY (1967), THE MERCENARY (1968), THE DIRTY HEROES (1967), and a few others. But the foremost conundrum has always been an issue of orchestration. Ennio has proclaimed vociferously that he has never used an orchestrator, in1988 he maintained “I am the only one, well, possibly one of the few who do everything single-handed!” However, amongst Italian film music connoisseurs it is generally accepted that Nicolai did arrange much of Morricone’s 1960s output and the accepted corroboration for this belief is in the music. Ennio Morricone’s work exhibits a definite shift in style or texture during the early to mid-70s, and this is around the time when his relationship with Nicolai was souring. What is fact, and not speculation is the eerie similarity of these artists’ individual compositional idiosyncrasies and bearing, and it was this odd caprice of providence that now allows for so many treasures to be reaped from their decade together! The issue of attribution does not haunt Nicolai’s efforts for THE CHRISTMAS THAT ALMOST WASN’T, but apparently there are minor unanswered questions. The Americanized version of TCTAW (in Italy known as IL NATALE CHE QUASI NON FU) displays evidence of having had music not from Nicolai recorded and inserted, including a theme song, The Christmas That Almost Wasn’t, which for the film was performed by Glenn Yarbrough. To add more confusion there was a TCTAW record album released here in the States (RCA Camden CAS 1086), but it was a “Disney-style” story-book thing with a mix of narrative and music. It is said that not a note of music by Bruno Nicolai appears on this LP, and even the English language ballad is sung by someone other than Yarbrough. This new Digitmovies CD finally allows everyone a clear view of Nicolai’s designs for the beloved fantasy. The main theme, Marionette, is a teasing march which features a sensitive melodic line for strings; this warm emotive quality runs contrapuntal to the child-like nonchalance indicated via percussion and brass making the piece surprisingly complex. Track 25, Via Col Vento, is a gorgeous full-orchestral expansion of the Marionette theme. A secondary theme, L’avvocato Bambino, is a smooth and delightful synthesis of holiday sentiment, as wonderful as anything by our own Irving Berlin. Many cues do what is expected; evidence joyful antics and silly perils as might come from the imagination of a sleeping cherub, and the best of these is track 16, Impressioni Di Viaggio; a child’s vision of elves scampering throughout Santa’s toy shop. There are four cues on the disc that stand apart, sublime and mystical evocations of qualities unseen. Perhaps with these, tracks 6,15,17 and 26, Nicolai was attempting to capture the true magic of Christmas, that unique extract of love, love in it’s transcendent form that many claim is only liberated once a year. If so, I believe he succeeded. This score is an enchanting experience.
– John Bender, 2007
Review written for and printed originally on Film Score Monthly Online, and reproduced here with permission by the critic. Please do not copy and print/upload elsewhere.