In recent years, I have often worked on scores for thriller and horror films and specialized in these types of soundtracks. I've always appreciated these genres because they stimulate a composer's imagination and depict a world that is sometimes less scary than every day real life. These movies—apparently far removed from plots inspired by real events—cause us to reflect on the mysteries of the human mind and on what a human being is capable of doing in certain circumstances or when stressed by absurdity.
I've always tried to compose music that could enhance the movie's effectiveness and make the actions of the protagonist seem more believable. With Dario Argento I found myself completely in tune, so for ''Giallo'' I chose to compose something different from the previous soundtracks composed for his movies and to write a more symphonic, American-style score. This was the same course chosen for other thrillers such as ''Native'' (Golden Globe Italy winner for Best Original Score in 2011) and ''The Infliction.''
When I met the Sicilian director Giorgio Bruno, who has lived in Rome for some years now, I discussed with him the possibility of taking this approach. Giorgio (to whom I was introduced by my friend, actor Adnrea Galatà) had initially intended to use repertoire material, but the possibility of having a score composed specifically for his movie, synchronized with the images and mixed in 5.1, made him overcome his doubts. So I began working on the score, incorporating the theme composed by film editor Angelo D'Agata and also inserting three themes as additional music by my student and collaborator Michele Bocchini.
''Nero Infinito'' is an interesting Giallo, and the two main actors, Francesca Rettondini and Rosario Petix, gave excellent performances. The presence of cult directors such as Ruggero Deodato, Enzo Castellari and Claudio Fragrasso arise curiosity and add a bit of irony.
The musical structure of ''Nero Infinito'' is variegated. There are two alternating main themes, dissonant music with contemporary flavor—almost avant-garde, two rock cues, piano versions of the two main themes, and so on. For torture scenes—as I'd done previously for ''Giallo''—I tried to differentiate the musical styles. In the first scene, I made use of dissonant chords, unusual sounds and female voices, in the second, obsessive and abstract sound effects, and in the third, a solo flute and some atmospheric sounds.
My collaborator Guido Zen and I synchronized frame after frame of music with the images. This is high-precision work that is always done in the States but not very often in Italy. Once the various cues were prepared in wave format, I went to ''Revolver'' studios in order to mix the music into 5.1. Nowadays, it's fundamental to mix the original music in this way in order to wrap the audience and pull them into the soundtrack. The sound comes not only from the loudspeakers on screen but also from the left and right and behind the audience (for instance, violins on the extreme left and cellos on the extreme right, electronics in the subwoofers in the back, just to bring them forward and make them tour the whole cinema).
In these first 25 years of my career, I've had the opportunity to work with a diverse array of publishers, including Fonit Cetra (Raitrade), CAM, Cometa, Sinfonica, Emergency Music, Warner Chappell and Cinevox. For some time now, I have wanted to work with the historic label Beat Records, owned by Franco De Gemini. Daniele De Gemini and I immediately felt at ease working together, and through this movie we started a relationship that I'm sure will last a long time.
I hope the score for ''Nero Infinito'' pleases you!
Marco Werba
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