TRACKLISTING
1. Pelagia's Song
2. The Recruiting Officer
3. To Albania
4. Horgota Beach
5. Albania
6. The Arrival of the Italians
7. La Scala Songs:
La donna è mobile (Verdi)
Lilli Marlene (Schultze)
8. The Tango
9. Santa Lucia (Cottrau)
10. The Mandolin
11. After the Dance
12. Agii Fanentes
13. Lemoni
14. The Guitar
15. Surrender
16. On the Jetty
17. The Battle
18. Senza di te*
19. Escape from the Island
20. The Aftermath
21. Iannis' Letter
22. Ricordo ancor (Pelagia's Song)*
23. Reunion
*Performed by Russell Watson

DIRECTOR'S NOTES
It is impossible to think about approaching a film of this novel without thinking first of its most prominent character: music. In a process which habitually relegates music to the last position in the film’s evolution, this was a wonderful opportunity to reverse the established order: to shoot the film to the music.

Stephen Warbeck is an extraordinary composer; like the film’s hero, he is utterly spontaneous and without inhibition. Over a string of projects Stephen and I have developed an instinct for working together. He works from the inside out, producing an abundance of musical ideas that might evoke an atmosphere, or a feeling, and I find myself sifting them, attaching them to certain moments or images in the story, moving them about until a structure emerges. In Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, we started to shoot with an entire musical vocabulary in our heads, from the rough harmonies of La Scala and the the exuberance of the island dances, to the fragile beauty of “Pelagia’s Song”. In more than one scene, each shot was geared to the music that now accompanies it. The music of this film is its heart and its story. This score was not applied to a finished product, it inspired the film itself.
John Madden, Director

ABOUT THE FILM
Louis de Bernières’ Captain Corelli has become one of the most successful books of recent years and now John Madden directs the film, starring Nicolas Cage, Penélope Cruz and John Hurt. It is an epic tale about the enduring hope of love and the devastating brutality of war, set amid the Italian occupation of Greece during World War II.

Music plays an important part in this film where Captain Corelli’s soldiers are always singing opera, Pelagia dances a memorable tango and of course a mandolin features in the title and main theme. As composer Stephen Warbeck says, “The story offers a wonderfully varied landscape of music. It requires the music Corelli plays, local song and dance, and an original score”. Warbeck’s score brilliantly captures the dramatic scope and atmosphere of the story and place. Tenor Russell Watson appears on the soundtrack, singing the end-title version of the main theme “Ricordo Ancor” (Pelagia’s Song).

The Story
The idyllic beauty of Greece’s Mediterranean coast has been invaded by Italy, bringing legions of soldiers to the once tranquil island of Cephallonia. Captain Antonio Corelli (Cage), an officer with an irrepressibly jovial personality and passion for the mandolin, initially alienates a number of the villagers, including Pelagia (Cruz). The daughter of the village doctor (Hurt), Pelagia is an educated and strong-willed woman, and while at first offended by the Italian soldier’s behaviour, she slowly warms to his certain charms as they are forced to share her father’s home

When Pelagia’s fiancé, a local fisherman, heads off to war, the friendship between Antonio and Pelagia grows even stronger. Her beauty and intelligence have captured his heart, and his fondness for the village’s vibrant community causes him to question his reasons for fighting. Antonio becomes a part of the lives of the villagers, but the moment is fleeting. As the war grows ever closer, Antonio and Pelagia are forced to choose between their allegiance to their countries and the love they feel for one another – a love which must overcome tremendous odds, and endure the inevitable sacrifice which accompanies eternal devotion.

COMPOSER'S NOTES
The world of the novel and later, images from the film, and the island of Cephallonia itself, all provided inspiration for the composition of this score. The music was written over a period of a year, beginning with “Pelagia’s Song”, the mandolin tune Antonio writes for Pelagia, which became a central theme in the film. Because music is so fundamental to this story, it was an intrinsic element of the shoot: from the mandolin scenes with Nicolas Cage, through the numerous dancing sequences, to La Scala and their ebullient opera society.

We recorded some of the orchestral pieces shortly after filming was completed, which meant we were able to use thematic material during the editing process, thus enriching the final blend of music and image. The orchestra we used had at its core a group of players who were involved with the film throughout: Giovanni Parricelli, Dario Rosetti-Bonell, Eddie Hession and Alison Stevens, all provided us with wonderful continuity.

Thanks must go to Paul Englishby for training La Scala and, along with Giovanni, for helping to coach Nicolas Cage, who learnt to play the mandolin especially for this film. I would also like to thank Nick Ingman and all the musicians involved for their invaluable contribution to this project and to add that collaborating once again with John Madden made this score a pleasure to compose.
Stephen Warbeck, Composer