House of Flying Daggers (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by Shigeru Umebayashi, Shigeru Umebayashi, Kathleen Battle - VitaMusik

ALBUM

Shigeru Umebayashi's score for Zhang Yimou's House of Flying Daggers is a study in simplicity, featuring a few understated but hypnotic themes that are repeated with different arrangements of traditional Chinese and Western instruments. Considering that Umebayashi also wrote the music for Wong Kar Wai's In the Mood for Love, it's understandable that this score's romantic moments are among the standouts. The "Lovers" theme has a pure, yearning melody that works as well in a stripped-down arrangement as it does in the more lavish "Lovers (Flower Garden)" and "Lovers (Mei and Jin)." Soprano Kathleen Battle's version of the song is more overtly Western-sounding but still retains the melody's almost unearthly beauty. The score's bittersweet romance is balanced out by a few percussion-driven tracks that score the film's action sequences, but even pieces like "Battle in the Forest" and "No Way Out" are more melodic than might be expected. Gentle drama and restraint are the watchwords for most of the score, particularly on "Bamboo Forest," "Taking Her Hand," "Ambush in Ten Directions (Shi Mian Mai Fu)," and "The House of Flying Daggers" itself. The score's subtlety helps give House of Flying Daggers its own identity and, in the long run, makes the music more compelling than more bombastic music would be.
© TiVo

1. Opening title

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

2. Beauty Song (Jia Ren Qu)

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Percussion: Wang Shuai; Performer
Performer: Zhang Ziyi
Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Piano: Bi Xiaodi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

3. The Echo Game

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

4. The Peonyhouse

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

5. Battle in the Forest

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

6. Taking her hand

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

7. Leo's Eyes

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

8. Lovers - Flower Garden

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

9. No way out

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

10. Lovers

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

11. Farewell No. 1

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

12. Bamboo Forest

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

13. Ambush in 10 directions (Shi Mian Mai Fu)

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

14. Leo's Theme

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

15. Mei and Leo

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

16. The House of Flying Daggers

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

17. Lovers (Mei and Jin)

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

18. Farewell No. 2

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

19. Until the end

by Shigeru Umebayashi

Primary Artist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Performer
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production

20. Lovers (Title Song)

by Kathleen Battle

Primary Artist: Kathleen Battle;shigeru Umebayashi
Kathleen Battle
Shigeru Umebayashi; Main Performer
Flute: Shota Mochizuki; Performer
Guitar: Koichiro Tashiro; Performer
Percussion: Ikuo Kakehashi; Performer
Performer: Shigeru Umebayashi
Kathleen Battle
Arigat-orchestra
Tomoko Kanda; Performer
Piano: Takehiko Yamada; Performer
Saxophone: Bob Zung; Performer
Soprano: Kathleen Battle; Performer
Violin: Konno Hitoshi; Performer
Orchestra: Arigat-orchestra; Ensemble
Composer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Lyricist: Shigeru Umebayashi; Composer
Orchestration: Sachiko Miyano; Composer
Conductor: Shigeru Umebayashi; Conductor
Producer: Shigeru Umebayashi; Production
Programmer: Tadashi Yatabe; Production

Technical Specifications

Volume

1 volume only

Tracks

20 tracks available

Type

ALBUM

Format

Digital Media

Duration

49 minutes and 37 seconds

Explicit

None

Coverart

Available and up to 600x600 px

Booklet

Not available

Max Quality

CD Quality (Lossless)

16bit / 44.1 kHz

Stereo

Audio Extension

Lossless: FLAC, M4A, WAV, WV, AIFF

Lossy: AAC, MP3, M4A, MP4, OGA, OGG, OPUS, WMA

Archive Format

Available in these formats: ZIP, TAR, RAR

Lyrics

7/20 tracks have lyrics

Synchronized Lyrics

No synced lyrics found

Genres

Film Soundtracks, Soundtracks, Soundtrack

Label

Sony Classical

Music Distribution Service

Sony

Country

United States

Language

No linguistic content

Popularity

Release Date

Nov 14, 2004

Track Preview

Available

Delivery Charge

Free

Delivery Method

Digital download link via Email or Personal Dashboard on this site

UPC

5099709356124