Another week, another John Williams score. 2005 has been an embarrassment of riches for Williams fans with four scores - the other two for Spielberg and a final trip to Lucasland - the composer's busiest film composing year since the early 70's. Of the four, Memoirs of a Geisha is perhaps the only one he wasn't pre-destined to score, indeed there is some suggestion that he actively pursued the assignment, although with Spielberg as one of the producers, it probably wasn't difficult to persuade Rob Marshall (director of Chicago) to have Williams on board. In any event, when Hollywood's top composer comes calling, it would be churlish to decline.

Jerry Goldsmith had few peers when it came to integrating asian styles into his music, one need only think of Mulan as one of the finest (treated so badly on the Disney disc) but Williams is not perhaps generally renowned for scores that evoke another culture, if only because he is rarely called to do so. However, with Seven Years in Tibet, in particular, he carefully captured the essence of Tibetan music, while finely blending it with his style. The results are unmistakable Williams, but with multiple passages of surprising authenticity. For Memoirs of a Geisha, the focus is on Japanese music, although there are numerous regional commonalities between the two.

Memoirs of a Geisha is based around two outstanding themes, Sayuri's and the Chairman's Waltz. The former is given to Yo-Yo Ma, who made such an impact on Seven Years in Tibet's score. While not native to the region, the cello seems especially well suited to oriental music, especially the use of portamento (sliding from one note to another). While it is a touch unfortunate that the theme track for Sayuri is rather brief, this is compensated by its inclusion, in subtle guises throughout; an upbeat and playful variation in Going to School, while strident and sweeping in Becoming a Geisha and the End Credits. The Chairman's Waltz is given to Itzhak Perlman whose peerless playing is as perfect an addition here as it was in Schindler's List.

Anyone expecting the epic sweep of Seven Years in Tibet is likely to be disappointed as Memoirs of a Geisha is one of his most restrained scores. Numerous tracks are scored for a small ensemble of authentic instruments, bouncing off one another and Ma's cello. Indeed it bears greater comparison to his Cello Concerto, albeit with an oriental flavour. Repeat listens bring to light the subtle uses of his major thematic material, developing it into a myriad of second motifs. Although his dramatic scores can be a little bombastic, nothing could be further from the truth here and one suspects that those accustomed to his larger than life scores will find Memoirs of a Geisha a little slow moving, but for those who revel in delicacy and beauty, there is ample to savour.

Rating ~

1. Sayuri's Theme (1:31)
2. The Journey to the Hanamachi (4:06)
3. Going to School (2:42)
4. Brush on Silk (2:31)
5. Chiyo's Prayer (3:36)
6. Becoming a Geisha (4:52)
7. Finding Satsu (3:44)
8. The Chairman's Waltz (2:39)
9. The Rooftops of the Hanamachi (3:49)
10. The Garden Meeting (2:44)
11. Dr Crab's Prize (2:18)
12. Destiny's Path (3:20)
13. A New Name... A New Life (3:33)
14. The Fire Scene and the Coming of War (6:48)
15. As the Water... (2:01)
16. Confluence (3:42)
17. A Dream Discarded (2:00)
18. Sayuri's Theme - End Credits (5:06)

Total Time ~ 61:02