By JASON COMERFORD Your average Roman Polanski joint involves someone in a small enclosed space who’s slowly losing their marbles, and Rosemary’s Baby, Polanski’s 1968 adaptation of the Ira Levin bestseller, is a prime example. Claustrophobic intensity is Polanski’s bread and butter, and he was a perfect match with Levin’s tale of an apartment-bound Manhattan housewife whose pregnancy may not be as natural as she thinks. Polanski was already deservedly celebrated in critical circles for early efforts including Knife in the Water and Repulsion, but Rosemary’s Baby’s enormous international success paved the way for a long career studded with some remarkable films (including Macbeth, Chinatown, and Tess) and no end of controversy. For the score, Polanski turned once again to his frequent collaborator Krzysztof Komeda, with whom he’d previously collaborated on Knife in the Water, Cul-De-Sac, and most notably, The Fearless Vampire Killers. Komeda, already well-established as a serious talent in the avant-garde jazz scene in Europe, brought to Rosemary’s Baby an iconic lullaby theme, an approach mimicked in many subsequent horror scores. The film’s unnerving centerpiece is the hallucinatory sequence in which Rosemary (Mia Farrow) is impregnated by her husband – or, perhaps, by something else. Komeda scores Rosemary’s feverish, drug-induced dream with tense, seesawing strings and plucked bass notes, leading into a soft, demonic chant as her horror – and helplessness – intensifies into a sexually-charged nightmare. Tragically, Rosemary’s Baby was one of Komeda’s final works. Late in 1968, he sustained head injuries in a fall and returned to his native country; he died on April 23, 1969 in Warsaw, just a few days shy of his 38th birthday. Thankfully, his estate has kept his legacy going strong with a series of releases of his music, readily available at this writing from Amazon.com. In addition to his striking and varied film music, Komeda’s innovative jazz recordings are highly recommended; his album Astigmata is an essential listen for jazz fans.
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Click here to listen to a selection Individuals submitting comments Click here to submit a comment Awesome Websites! Official Krzysztof Komeda Website
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| Howlin' Wolf |
The contest period for this final installment of 13 CHILLS will run until midnight on Sunday, October 31, HALLOWEEN! All prizes that have not yet shipped will be shipped on Monday, November 1. If you have not received an email confirming that your prize has been shipped, then it has not yet been posted. You will receive a confirmation email once your shipment is posted. Special thanks to Jason Comerford for creating and authoring this awesome series and for collaborating with Howlin' Wolf Records to make it possible. And the greatest thanks to everyone who has participated, for without readers and the insightful and interesting comments, 13 CHILLS would not have the life it has been given. Please Keep It Alive: This series is by no means over, please continue submitting comments...we will continue to post them. We will also update information when we can and try to post new and interesting websites we discover. Who knows, for a few of the sadly unreleased gems featured in this series, maybe someday in the future we will see releases! |
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| iZombie |
Such a sweet innocent theme, surrounded by this trippy-esque film... very sad about Krzysztof Komeda I was unaware of the tragedy of the man's life... this movie is one of those film that gives you more of an idea of horror... the what if factor. What if everyone you knew and loved was in control of the life you thought was yours. What if? I pulled the trusty LP out to listen the haunts of this score and the lullaby... Thanks to all those involved for bringing such a great section to the Howlin' Wolf, I have enjoyed being part of the great music... and Happy Halloween. |
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| David Kessler |
Komeda’s Rosemary’s Baby is a haunting trip and a great way to end this 13 CHILLS from HW... It has been a joy following it and I’m sad it has come to an end. Thanks for an interesting October month and I’ll keep supporting and hope for further releases... |
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| Jedizim | Rosemary's Baby...I can honestly say it is not one of my favorites, both the score AND the movie, but it IS very interesting...in a bizarre sort of way. The movie by Polanski and the score by Komeda work well together, the soundscape that Komeda crafted and the visuals that are on the screen compliment each other to create a film quite unlike any other. It is always a shame when someone is taken too early in life, and I am sure Komeda would have had a long successful career had he not passed away at such an early age. I want to thank Howlin' Wolf Records for this series through the month of October, it has been really enjoyable!! |
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| AMeck | The scariest part of this movie to me -hands down- was the opening music. The 'la-la-la' lullaby stuck in my head and really creeped me out. Mike Patton from Faith No More recorded a version with his band FANTOMAS that is rather wild as well. It is availbale on YouTube if you haven't heard it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrSqZzkCgAU Happy Halloween everyone!  |
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| Howlin' Wolf | Congratuations David Kessler for being the name drawn out of the pumpkin bowl and thus our final installment winner. Thanks for participating. We will be contacting you by email to get your shipping information. Thanks also to everyone who contributed to this series and to this final installment. We hope everyone had a great Halloween! To show our appreciation, those who commented on ROSEMARY'S BABY but whose names were not drawn, we will be contacting you as well by email and will offer to send you a DVD for MIDNIGHT MOVIE autographed by Jack Messitt along with your choosing of any one of the Howlin' Wolf Records CD releases MALEVOLENCE by Stevan Mena SILENT NIGHT, BLOODY NIGHT by Gershon Kingsley MIDNIGHT MOVIE by Penka Kouneva |
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| Irish Elvis | Congrats to the winner of the Malevolence soundtrack! Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. |
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