New York (Top40 Charts/ Ronen Landa Official Website) - Composer Ronen Landa has compiled and re-mastered some of his most evocative music for independent films in his debut album PICTUREBOOKS, now available on iTunes, Amazon.com and CDBaby.com.
Acclaimed composer and violist Lev 'Ljova' Zhurbin says of Landa, 'Ronen's music is cinematic, imaginative, and offers a wonderful, thought-provoking journey. Listen to this.'
A multi-instrumentalist, Landa performs guitars, bass, mandolin, oud, keyboard and electronics on PICTUREBOOKS. Some of his talented collaborators include:
� Anna Bulbrook of the Airborne Toxic Event, violin
� Emily and Julia Bruskin of the Claremont Trio, violin and cello
� Mike Block of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Ensemble and Mark O'Connor's Appalachia Waltz Trio, cello
� Lev 'Ljova' Zhurbin, of Ljova and the Kontraband, viola
� Vlada Tomova of Vlada Tomova's Balkan Tales, vocals
'PICTUREBOOKS represents some of the film music I've written that is closest to my heart,' says Landa. 'And for this collection, I've specifically chosen pieces that incorporate elements of ethnic music from around the world.' Regarding the album's title, Landa explains that 'PICTUREBOOKS is meant to indicate that the music is rooted in a cinematic experience- I hope it also encourages people to embark on their own visual journey as they listen.'
PICTUREBOOKS is divided into three sections. After the preface track 'Come Here,' Book One features music for the landmark Iraqi-made documentary THE DREAMS OF SPARROWS directed by Hayder Mousa Daffar. Using an ethereal combination of vocals, oud, strings and electronics, the score embodies the pain, isolation, aspiration and confusion of the Iraqi people as they transition out from under Saddam Hussein's dictatorship and into a new reality. Book One evokes the depth of the Iraqi experience: at times nostalgic for its lost magnificence, as felt in the haunting melodies of 'The Dreams of Sparrows,' and at times, as experienced in 'Sa'ad,' indelibly scarred by its present nightmare.
Book Two features music for three short films. 'In Separation,' 'Grandson' and 'Memory & Credits,' from Kevin Choi's THE YEARS FLOW LIKE WATER, are scored for piano trio and illuminate the struggles of a Chinese family acclimating to life in New York City. The Eastern-influenced melodies, sensitive and dreamlike, reflect the characters' complex internal lives and the inevitable passage of time. At the album's midpoint, 'Prayer One' from Choi's DISSOLUTION OF BODIES, provides contrast as determined Japanese taiko drumming assumes the dominant role. The percussion is accompanied by a prayer bowl's resonant tones in an echo of the album's preface.
The score for Cambria Matlow's and Morgan Robinson's upcoming film BURNING IN THE SUN is featured in Book Three. For this documentary about environmental entrepreneurship in Mali, Landa uses elements of local music, like percussion and kora, to color familiar genres like rock and Rn'B. Tracks like 'Burning in the Sun' and 'Native Energy' symbolize the ambition and vigor of the film's characters in the face of the extreme poverty that surrounds them. 'Apre`s La Pre`mie`re Lumie`re' and 'Water Party (reprise)' feature stunning kora performances by Malian virtuoso Yacouba Sissoko, accompanied by a classical string trio. The album concludes with the heartfelt and soaring emotional climax 'Morning in Banko.'
'Ronen writes beautiful, emotional music - works of art in themselves - which, rather than jostling for attention against our film's visuals, bring out each moment's inherent potential,' says Robinson.
