Casino Movie Music
For the more spiritually aware among you, today is Maundy Thursday, four days before we get chocolate eggs, the day the Queen gives out money, and the day on which Christians celebrate the Last Supper. But we’re film fans here, so how best to combine the two? Why, by choosing a piece of music from one of Scorsese’s most foul-mouthed, violent pictures of course!
Plot – Sam 'Ace' Rothstein has moved too quickly in the ranks of the Mafia because of his incredible intuition. In 1973 he’s at the head of four casinos in Las Vegas, completely legal if it wasn’t for the part of income that regularly goes into the 'godfathers' pockets, not talking about the fact that Ace doesn't have the license for the activity. Casino Royale soundtrack from 1967, composed by Burt Bacharach. Released in 1968 containing music from Casino Royale (1967). Burt Bacharach appropriately comes up with a rambunctious soundtrack for the 1967 James Bond spoof, Casino Royale. Things get underway with Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass' performance of the fast-paced main title, which features the usual Bacharach mix of pop phrasing and complex arrangements; this theme is subsequently augmented with a lush string arrangement and marching band rhythms on.
Casino Movie Song
Casino (1995) is often unfairly called “the poor-man’s Goodfellas (1990)”. There is much to recommend it and, despite the same pair of lead actors, director and writer as Goodfellas, Casino is very much its own beast. Martin Scorsese, like Quentin Tarantino, has always had a way with musical choices. Scorsese, unlike Tarantino, chooses pieces of music from a wider base. At one point Scorsese nearly joined the Catholic priesthood, and the choice to use the closing movement of JS Bach’s phenomenal work, the St Matthew Passion is perhaps more logical in light of this knowledge.
“Wir setzen uns mit Tränen nieder” is the final movement of the Passion – the work which tells the story of Christ’s betrayal and crucifixion – and is full of severity, longing, and tragedy. The piece’s defining sound is that long unresolved end-of-phrase chord: the sound grates against one’s ear until finally, wonderfully, it resolves into a proper tonic chord. Listen out for it at the very end, but also at key points during the movement too.
Over Saul Bass’ title sequence, the Bach creates a depth of tone to the story, turning it from historical curiosity to the stuff of legend. As with Scorsese’s masterpiece Raging Bull (1980), where his use of the “Intermezzo” from Mascagni’s Cavalleria Rusticana created the heartache over the opening credits, here again Scorsese’s musical choice sets the tone for the rest of the film.
Casino Movie Music
Here, then, is the full finale from JS Bach’s St Matthew Passion, as heard over the opening credits of Martin Scorsese’s Casino.