At 87, Ennio Morricone is having a banner year.
The world-renowned Italian composer snagged his first competitive Oscar earlier this year for his score for Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight (he received an honorary Academy Award in 2007) and now he has signed a new worldwide record deal with Decca Records.
The first release through the nascent venture will be Morricone 60, which features new recordings of some of Morricone’s classic scores conducted with the Czech National Symphony Orchestra, recorded, and curated by Morricone himself. The set, which commemorates his 60-year career, comes out Oct. 7, a month before the maestro’s 88th birthday. Decca previously released The Hateful Eight score internationally, while it came out on sister label Verve in the U.S.
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“After the success of The Hateful Eight score, I’m delighted to be returning to Decca with my own record deal – an extraordinary moment in my 60th professional anniversary year,” Morricone said in a statement. “It’s been a wonderful experience to be able to conduct my scores and to record these with the Czech National Symphony Orchestra. The quality of their performance of my work is truly outstanding.”
Morricone, one of the most revered composers in film history, has scored more than 500 movies and television programs, as well as written more than 100 original musical works. Among his best-known scores are Once Upon A Time In the West, A Fistful Of Dollars, The Untouchables, The Mission and The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.
“It is a great honor to be signing Ennio Morricone, whose iconic scores have inspired artists, film-makers and music-lovers around the world for generations,” said Decca Records managing director Rebecca Allen. “We have waited over 60 years to sign this legendary artist and are thrilled to welcome him to Decca Records – also 87 years strong.”
The new deal coincides with his 60 Years Of Music World Tour, which will take him across the globe, conducting his music with more than 200 musicians and singers on stage.
Morricone 60 – Tracklisting:
1. The Man with the Harmonica (from Once Upon a Time in the West)
2. The Fortress (from The Good, the Bad and the Ugly)
3. The Good the Bad and the Ugly – Main theme (from the film)
4. Jill’s Theme (from Once Upon a Time in the West)
5. A Fistful of Dynamite (from the film with the same name)
6. The Ecstasy of Gold (from The Good, the Bad and the Ugly)
7. Gabriel’s Oboe (from The Mission)
8. Falls (from The Mission)
9. On Earth as it is in Heaven (from The Mission)
10. Nuovo Cinema Paradiso
11. Abolisson (from Quemada)
12. Chi Mai
13. H2S
14. Metti una Sera a Cena (from the film)
15. Croce d’Amore (from Metti una Sera a Cena)
16. Deborah’s Theme (from Once Upon a Time in America)
17. Stage Coach to Red Rock (from The Hateful Eight)
18. Bestiality (from The Hateful Eight)