MR. HOLLAND'S OPUS
Rating: 
Original Review: Rather unfairly maligned by the soundtrack buying public, I actually think that this is Mr. Kamen's Opus - the best piece of music he has written to date. The controversy surrounds the concluding cue of the album - the American Symphony, written by the fictional Glenn Holland - and the fact that, after five and a half minutes it stops being an orchestral piece and turns in to music with a soft rock underscore. I personally feel that this is wholly appropriate, as anyone who has seen and loved the film will attest: Holland's problem in getting through to his students was that they found traditional classical music 'boring', so he got their attention through rock and roll, and cited it as an integral part of American musical history. Although I disagree with the sentiments regarding classical music, I wholly agree with the latter part - so doesn't it stand to reason that rock and roll should feature prominently in an 'American' Symphony? I personally think that it is a master stroke on Kamen's part to take the risk doing this - and succeed. Besides, I think it's a brilliant piece of music anyway, despite what the "experts" say. And so is the rest of the score - from the sneaky preview of the Symphony in 'Mr. Holland Begins' to the gentle love theme in 'Iris and Glenn' the amazing piano solo in 'Practice, Practice, Practice', the sublime flute melody in 'Cole's Tune', the slightly more downbeat 'Vietnam' the darkly romantic 'Rowena', and the emotional, joyous 'Thank You Mr. Holland', every track on this album is an absolute gem. Even the bits Kamen didn't write, like the excerpts from Beethoven's 7th and Bach's Concerto for Three Harpsichords in C, fit in with the rest of the score perfectly, as does the strangely moving Cole's Song, performed by Julian Lennon. Keep your chin up Michael, and take no notice of your critics. If every soundtrack album was as good as this, the world would be a better place.
Track Listing:
- Mr. Holland Begins (2:56)
- Iris and Glen (2:28)
- Practice, Practice, Practice (3:51)
- New Baby/Coltrane/Children Should Listen to Mozart (3:17)
- Rush to Hospital (While Parents Listen to Beethoven) (3:17)
- 7th Symphony - Allegretto (written by Ludwig von Beethoven) (11:06)
- Cole's Tune (4:18)
- Vietnam (We Know Too Many of these Kids) (4:30)
- Rowena (6:11)
- Concerto for Three Harpsichords in C - 1st Movement (written by Johann Sebastian Bach) (7:50)
- Thank You Mr. Holland (5:08)
- An America Symphony (Mr. Holland's Opus) (8:27)
- Cole's Song (written by Michael Kamen, Julian Lennon and Justin Clayton, performed by Julian Lennon) (3:49)
Running Time: 67 minutes 43 seconds
London/Decca 452-065-2 (1995)
Music composed and conducted by Michael Kamen. Performed by The London Symphony Orchestra and The London Metropolitan Orchestra. Orchestrations by Michael Kamen and Jonathan Sacks. Recorded and mixed by Stephen McLaughlin, Andy Warwick, Joel Iwataki and Andy Swanson. Edited by Michael Ryan and David Olsen. Mastered by Doug Sax and Gavin Larsson. Album produced by Michael Kamen, Stephen McLaughlin and Christopher Brooks.
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These web pages were designed and maintained by Jonathan Broxton copyright 1997. All opinions and views expressed on these pages are my own and are in no way intended to reflect those of my employer, the Trent Institute for Health Services Research, or those of the University of Sheffield.