Lunéville, France – marked a significant moment for film music enthusiasts as the third annual Cinéphonies festival opened its doors. The festival, hosted by the École de musique lunévilloise and spearheaded by Philippe Venant, welcomed two celebrated composers: the Romanian-born Vladimir Cosma and American Michael Kamen.
Cosma, known for his prolific output of over 200 film and television scores, took center stage, conducting the Philharmonie de Lorraine in a performance of his iconic works. This appearance coincided with the reopening of the Palace cinema in Metz, which screened “Le Placard,” a film featuring Cosma’s music – a serendipitous alignment that underscored the composer’s enduring presence in French cinema.
The festival’s invitation to Cosma wasn’t merely a celebration of his past achievements. It was an opportunity to reimagine his scores, transforming them from their original cinematic context into orchestral suites. Cosma, accompanied by jazz guitarist Philip Catherine, pan flutist Stanciu Simion, violinist Eugène Sarbu, and vocalist Fabienne Chanoyan, presented these reworked compositions, breathing new life into familiar melodies.
Cosma’s journey to becoming a celebrated film composer is a story of opportunity and mentorship. He credits Michel Legrand, with whom he worked as an orchestrator and assistant, for opening doors in the film industry. “Michel was one of the rare directors who knows, who loves music and knows how to give it a place in a film,” Cosma remarked in an interview from , as reported in Le Républicain Lorrain. “He knew Poulenc, Cocteau, collaborated with Les Frères Jacques. He knew how to trust an unknown Romanian musician of 28 years old when he could have played it safe with a ‘name’ from the soundtrack.”
His breakthrough came with Yves Robert’s “Alexandre le Bienheureux,” a film that launched a string of successful collaborations with prominent French directors including Claude Zidi, Gérard Oury, Francis Veber, Jean-Marie Poiré, and Daniel Duval. Cosma’s music became synonymous with a generation of French comedies, gracing films like “Le Grand Blond avec une chaussure noire,” “L’Aile ou la Cuisse,” and “Les aventures de Rabbi Jacob.”
However, Cosma resisted being pigeonholed as a composer of lighthearted fare. He emphasized the importance of musical independence, stating, “I am not a second illustrator of the film, in the manner of the American school. My music must be able to be listened to without the images. This proves a woman’s perfume. They don’t need it to be beautiful, seductive, but it will be an asset of personality, of identity.” He saw himself more as an abstract Mozart than a programmatic Wagner or Liszt, drawing inspiration from composers like Ravel, Debussy, and Fauré.
The Cinéphonies festival also highlighted the work of Michael Kamen, the American composer renowned for his scores to “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves,” “Highlander,” and “Brazil.” Kamen’s presence underscored the festival’s international scope and its commitment to showcasing diverse voices in film music. According to a report from AsturScore, Kamen was a guest at Les Cinéphonies in March 1999, demonstrating a pre-existing relationship with the festival.
Beyond the performances by Cosma and Kamen, the festival fostered emerging talent through its inaugural Young Film Composer Competition. Ten finalists were selected to compose scores for a short film, with the winning composition performed live alongside a screening of the film. This initiative, alongside a conference exploring the intersection of orchestras, computers, and film music, demonstrated Cinéphonies’ dedication to both celebrating established masters and nurturing the next generation of film composers.
The festival’s programming extended beyond the purely musical, offering a glimpse behind the scenes of film scoring with a presentation by Gréco Casadesus, a composer for theater and television. This educational component aimed to demystify the creative process and provide aspiring composers with valuable insights into the industry.
The 2001 edition of Cinéphonies, running from to , solidified its position as a key event on the international film music calendar, bringing together established composers, emerging talent, and passionate audiences in a celebration of the art form.
