Search - Mark Isham :: A River Runs Through It: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Masterful

10/24/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Isham came to prominence during the "zenith" Windam Hill years, which I define as 84-87, when the label was still fresh, creative, and not so big that it had become too commercialized (alas, to think that the same label that put Shadowfax, Alex de Grassi, and Michael Hedges on the map would eventually sign Yanni... Michael's got to be spinning in his grave on that one). In that thick crop of talent, Isham's work hadn't yet distinguished itself. It was still top quality performing, but works like Vapor Drawings and Songs my Children Taught me revealed a capable artist still struggling for control, still over-concerned with style and instrumentation rather than the lyrical/emotional content. His soundtrack for A River Runs Throught It clearly represented breakthrough work: an abundant delicacy wedded perfectly to the Montana scenery of the movie and Redford's thoughtful, loving detail. In an age of mediocrity, this album towers. It is mastery."

Beautiful and Relaxing

Jeffrey Moore | Richmond, VA | 02/21/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is wonderful music that you can enjoy even if you haven't seen the film. (The main theme, "A River Runs Through It," has been used on several movie trailers, and I've heard it played during the Olympics as well.) Perhaps what is best about this music is its depth of emotion. One minute, the music is expressing sadness and loss ("The Moment that Could Not Last," or "Without Complete Understanding"), and then the next minute it is fun and light ("A Land Filled With Wonder" or "A Wild Ride.") The soundtrack also includes some swing music, such as "The Sheik of Araby" and "Muskrat Ramble," which are nice breaks from the score. The other wonderful aspect of this soundtrack is that the musical themes are not overdone or over-repeated. Some film scores tend to replay the same theme over and over, but "A River Runs Through It" really explores several melodies to their fullest potential. The highlight of the score is "In the Half-Light of the Canyon." This is the music played during the finale of the film when Robert Redford says "I am haunted by waters." Trust me. . . you'll be haunted by this beautiful music, too."

I was married to this soundtrack...

Jeffrey Moore | 06/27/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Isham's score for ARRTI is almost as good as the novella itself, so well done in fact that my wife and I asked a friend to arrange the title theme for guitars as our wedding processional a decade ago. I bought the CD within days of first seeing the film and have doubtlessly played it through well over 1,000 times...it's the most played recording I own, and I likely have in excess of 4,000 albums/discs on hand. The score does for the movie what Redford hoped the movie would do for the book-- it takes it to another level, provides a synergy that yields more than the sum of the parts."