PORTRAIT
An Organist in the Film Studio – Anđelko Klobučar and his Film Music
An analysis of the film music of Anđelko
Klobučar in comparison to his organ music on the basis
of differentiating works of popular musical expression
based on musical tradition and composition with contemporary
elements which adhere to the typical constants in Klobučar’s
style.
Composer, organist and music teacher Anđelko Klobučar
was born on July 11, 1931. He graduated from the music
history department at Zagreb’s Music Academy and continued
his studies in Salzburg and Paris. He composed with ease
and his works encompassed almost all aspects of classical
music. In spite of the fact that he wrote a large number
of film scores, these compositions were overshadowed by
his other works.
According to Hana Breko’s analysis there are two groups
of organ compositions by Anđelko Klobučar in those works:
compositions with a more popular musical expression which
signify the composer’s return to third chords and musical
tradition and those works with contemporary elements which
adhere tot the typical constants in Klobučar’s style. By
analyzing Klobučar’s film scores according to this division,
we came to the conclusion that in spite of the necessary
popular approach, some scores have more traditional elements
while others highlight the elements of Anđelko Klobučar’s
typical style.
Works that fall into the first group include the music
for the feature length children’s film Chasing the Motorcycle,
which is characterized by a very simple musical language,
as well the more complex score of the feature film The
Birch Tree, which is based on the folk song Slavuj pjeva.
The music for the The Birch Tree joins together
elements of both the old and new musical procedures.
The music for the film The Emperor’s New Cloths links
the stylistic trends of Romanticism, the Neorenaissance,
Neoclassicism and the widened tonal system and in some
way looks for a balance between the traditional and contemporary.
Representing the contemporarily oriented film works is
the score for the documentary film Ivan Meštrović.
The film’s music is within the framework of the typical
constants of Klobučar’s style (clearly formulated dispositions,
fourth chords, additional seconds, etc.).
The documentary film Antun Augustinčićand the
feature film The Secrets
of NikolaTesla are also contemporarily oriented, but
due to some elements (tonal experiments, musical sections
with simple textures) there are boundaries between the
first and second group.
Since Anđelko Klobučar wrote a large number of works for
the concert podium on which he worked long and hard, it is
not surprising that he considers his film music secondary
and less important. However, the comparison between his film
music and his organ works proves that there are portions
of his film music which deserve serious analysis.
Irena Paulus |
