Notes on a Scandal: Original Soundtrack
Philip Glass deserves his Oscar® nod for this superb, richly atmospheric soundtrack. His work on, say,The Hoursmay have been found overly sappy and intrusive by many, butNotes on a Scandalis a masterful example of what a film score can achieve. Glass has explained that he wrote it from the point of view of the Judi Dench character, who becomes increasingly obsessive and unhinged as the film progresses; similarly, the early tracks are relatively calm, only to start building up and up and up, and the last third of the CD is a master class in how to suggest psychological tension. The composer's familiar hypnotic repetitions are used very sparingly,  giving the technique even more impact when it hits (check out "Invitation" and "Betrayal" for textbook examples). A cue like "Barbara¹s House" easily sits next to Bernard Herrman's best work on Hitchcock classics--no small compliment.--Elisabeth Vincentelli