Mission Impossible Theme Orchestra
Ronald Frison
Devoted readers of Curious Minds will know that my affinity to Tom Cruise goes a long way back\u2026and hearing this theme takes me back to 1996 when I watched Ethan Hunt complete an impossible mission, while simultaneously making the best tourism promo for the city of Prague.
He would go on to produce and arrange more than 100 jazz albums throughout the 1960s, including Gillespiana, a musical portrait of Dizzy Gillespie that earned Schifrin a lot of recognition \u2013 and an invitation to Hollywood.
Though Schifrin was not asked to score any of the big-screen adaptations of Mission: Impossible, he is not unhappy about it, and even met with other composers and encouraged them to \u201Chave fun\u201D with his theme.
\u201CSchifrin started from the Morse code for M.I. which is \u201C_ _ ..\u201D; if a dot is one beat and a dash is one and a half beats, then this gives a bar of five beats, exactly matching the underlying rhythm.\u201D
In the adrenaline-fueled video, Etihad Airways performed a stunt that had never been done before. Etihad put together a skydiving orchestra, who could play the instantly recognisable Mission: Impossible theme song while falling 13,000 feet at 120 mph through the air.
The stunt took weeks of preparation. Each skydiver was given their part of music to practise and learn by heart, which they needed to be able to play perfectly despite the wild environment while skydiving.
In addition, custom rigging was made for each instrument to ensure the skydivers could safely play and pull their parachute when the time came. A professional skydiving cinematographer jumped with them each time to capture it all, including group shots where each instrument affected the rate at which they fell. Throughout the process, safety was always the number one priority.
The hours of practice and preparation paid off. Etihad was able to create an impossible orchestra of their own and highlight to the world that Etihad is an airline that pushes boundaries and makes it their mission to deliver incredible experiences and hospitality to its guests.
Tom Cruise is known as one of the icons of Hollywood. With a career in films spanning over four decades now, his exploits, not just as an actor, producer, and even director have made him nothing short of a legend. A new video has now surfaced online, that showcases a never-before-seen side of the actor, and his ear for music.
An X (formerly Twitter) user @huntfausts posted a video of Cruise conducting an orchestra during a recording session of the opening credits of Mission Impossible 3. And to the layman, surely it is quite impressive to see Tom Cruise taking up another new role, and executing it.
Cruise is almost infamous for how strongly he advocates for actors doing their own stunts. His time as Maverick in Top Gun led him to eventually become a licensed pilot. Some of his lesser known talents include rock climbing, even sword fighting after The Last Samurai. Conducting an orchestra seems to be one other pie that Cruise tried to put his finger in.
However, the original commenter eventually shared a longer version of the same video, from where it is evident that Cruise was only trying out his hand at conducting. He can be seen being guided by composer Michael Giacchino as well, the composer of the score of Mission Impossible 3. Following this, another video of Tom Cruise, conducting the orchestra for the opening theme of Mission Impossible 4: Ghost Protocol was also shared online. The fact that Tom Cruise is only trying to learn gets clearer in this video.
Hans Zimmer, after writing what I think is his best work of all time in Gladiator, took a complete left turn with Mission: Impossible 2. Whereas Gladiatorfeatured a humongous orchestra, soloists, chorus, ethnic instruments, and avocalist, M:I-2 is scored exclusively for a "band" made up of mostly electricguitars, sampled strings, and various electronic keyboards. Additionally, the composer utilizes flamenco dancers, Spanish guitars, and Lisa Gerrard (whosevocals added immeasureably to Gladiator) for an exotic twist, at times even melding this with the rock elements, making for a fun listening experiencethat most will identify with. Hollywood Records' release features just over45 minutes of music, preserving all the highlights without allowing the heavy metal towear out its welcome. If you need further proof of its merits, just look at me - I've always despised rock scores with a passion, but M:I-2 managed to transcendthis hatred. Of course, it's a "Guilty Pleasure" score, but thenagain, what Zimmer album isn't? Where else can you find a huge 4-part chorusaccompanied by huge electric guitar riffs?
From the very start, Zimmer makes it clear that M:I-2 isn't going tobe your typical orchestral score. After a subtle introduction forelectronic bass, the main thematic material for the track enters in guitar- an upbeat, modern rock riff! This idea weaves throughout the restof the track, at points utilizing thunderous male chorus. Much ofthe rest of the piece features foreboding electronic rhythms, at one pointintroducing a (sampled) string theme. The final section, after ahuge guitar riff, becomes a heavy, Metallica-inspired action piece.
Zimmer abruptly takes a right-hand turn into flamenco territory, asound that will permeate much of the rest of the score. The mainflamenco theme is introduced on Spanish guitars, immersed in a rich danceatmosphere, complete with clapping and stomping. After a short interludein which Lisa Gerrard makes her first exotic appearance, the dance themereturns, now accompanied by the rest of Zimmer's "band." Finally,Gerrard's vocals end the cue with another of the main themes, which willcome to full fruition towards the end of the album.
Spanish guitarist Heitor Pereira presents another flamenco-inspired themefor Nyah, as a companion piece to her other theme from Seville. I prefer the version on the song compilation, which adds an entirely different flavor to thefilm version's calm acoustics.
Zimmer bases this track around another new theme, which doesn't recur anywhereelse in the score. It's quite bluesy, almost jazz-like, but its biggest quirkis the orchestration - it begins with the same flamenco sensibility that pervadedearlier tracks, and soon delves into the typical rock instrumentation - weird because of its foundation in jazz. Overall, however, it doesn't add much to thealbum.
One of the highlights of the album, this takes the ominous theme from "Hijack" and places it in a continually building orchestral arrangementthat moves from dark colorings in the bass to a full string presentation, completewith dark male chorus.
One of the album's major flaws, this is a completely incoherent techno abomination.That statement was not a judgment against techno itself (although I personallydon't care for it) - it's just that the piece is schizophrenic and makes nosense.
Perhaps my favorite track of the score, this wild ride turns one of Nyah's themesinto something akin to Gladiator's "Now We Are Free." It begins subtly with a pulsing guitar ostinato, gradually coalescing into the heavenly voice of LisaGerrard, who expands Nyah's theme into a whirlwind of tone color. Zimmer continually builds on the accompaniment, and Gerrard and the band proceed tocreate almost an indescribable feeling of euphoria.
Or is this my favorite track? Another guitar ostinato starts up, and Zimmerfeatures a reprise of the theme from Hijack, now with strings and soprano chorus. After an uncomfortable period of silence, the chorus enters, singing a tragic chant that soon proves to derive from the Hijack theme. Then the track trulybegins with a lengthy rock version of Schifrin's main theme reminiscent of boththe main titles and Metallica's version. The bulk of the rest of the cue develops Hijack's thematic material further, climaxing in an eerie return to Nyah's theme, voiced by Gerrard.
A militaristic timpani and snare ostinato serves as the foundation of the finalaction cue. Ingeniously, Zimmer inserts a terrified vocalization of Nyah's themeinto this section, demonstrating once again that it is essentially the centerpieceof the score. Finally, the ostinato overwhelms it and transforms the climaxinto a primal display of power. After a final plea by Gerrard's vocals, we segue to:
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