Vertigo soundtrack to be performed live

The Orquestra Simfònica Camera Musicae, directed by Anthony Gabriele, will today perform the soundtrack to Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo in sync with the screening of the 1958 film in Barcelona’s Aribau cinema. The performance, which also took place in Madrid and Zaragoza this week, is an initiative of Reel Productions, which has done similar experiments with Psycho and Singing in the Rain. “Understanding how important Bernard Herrmann’s music is for the story is key,” pointed out Gabriele during a rehearsal on Thursday. “There are scenes in which the actors do not speak and it’s the music that explains what is happening.”

Gabriele has worked from Herrmann’s manuscripts, who, due to a musicians strike in Los Angeles, never saw his music worked into the film in a totally faithful way. “This concert screening allows us to restore Herrmann’s initial intention,” said Ramon Lamarca, the event’s organiser.