Grandes Familles, Les (1989)

Composer(s):
Vladimir Cosma

Released in:
1989

Reviews

Majestic effort for a costume series
by Dorian (October 27, 2005)
Edouard Molinaro is one of France's most prolific directors who worked with countless composers during his career which spans for almost 50 years. Since his first collaboration with Vladimir Cosma on "Le Télephone Rose" in 1975, the two men worked together on numerous projects during the next years.
Perhaps the most valuable result of their collaboration is the score for Les Grandes Familles, a costume TV series from 1989. I always felt that Cosma did some of his best work for television and this score truly confirms it. The magnificent orchestral score starts with a majestic theme but then continues in a nostalgic and somehow sad waltz theme - and it is this waltz theme that was most recognized and that usually appears on compilations. Variations of these two are heard many times during the score, but there's many more to find here, including what I call a "historical" theme and also some gypsy music (along with reed instruments like flute, clarinet and oboe the gypsy violin is one of the solo instruments used) - but not that much gypsy that it would spoil the atmosphere set by the main themes.
The CD release is very hard to find but a search effort is extremely rewarding in this case. This reward is a beautiful and cohesive music score.

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