A Certain Point of View, Too

Music Album Review: ‘Amadeus: Original Soundtrack Recording’ (1984)

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by

Alex Diaz-Granados
in , , , ,

(C) 1984 Fantasy Records and The Saul Zaentz Company


Amadeus: Original Soundtrack Recording

Artist(s): Sir Neville Marriner, Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields

Label: Fantasy Records

Year Released: 1984

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Amadeus and Me: A Soundtrack That Never Stops Echoing

Photo by Ana Carolina Escobar Arce on Pexels.com

I first met Mozart on the silver screen. Milos Forman’s Amadeus didn’t just introduce me to the genius of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart—it gave me an emotional blueprint. The performances were unforgettable: F. Murray Abraham haunted me as Salieri, and Tom Hulce’s infectious energy made Mozart feel incandescent and real. But the music? That was the soul. Sir Neville Marriner conducted every note like a heartbeat, and the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields gave those notes wings.

The original soundtrack is a two-disc set, but it holds entire worlds. It’s not just a companion to the film—it’s its own living entity. These selections—from symphonies and operas to concertos and the Requiem—are steeped in drama, humor, longing, and grace. For me, it wasn’t merely background music; it became emotional scaffolding for my writing, especially when exploring grief, memory, and renewal in stories like Comings and Goings and the Reunion Duology.

🎼 Disc One Highlights

  1. Symphony No. 25 in G minor, K. 183 – 1st movement
  2. Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater (Quando Corpus Morietur, Amen)
  3. Bubak and Hungaricus – Early 18th-century Gypsy folk
  4. Serenade for Winds, K. 361 – 3rd movement
  5. Turkish Finale from The Abduction from the Seraglio, K. 384
  6. Symphony No. 29 in A major, K. 201 – 1st movement
  7. Concerto for Two Pianos, K. 365 – 3rd movement
  8. Kyrie from Mass in C minor, K. 427
  9. Symphonie Concertante, K. 364 – 1st movement

It opens with a storm: Symphony No. 25, a minor-key whirlwind of urgency, composed when Mozart was just 17. It’s the perfect overture to a film where obsession and envy drive the plot.

🎶 Disc Two Highlights

  1. Piano Concerto in E-flat, K. 482 – 3rd movement (Ivan Moravec, piano)
  2. The Marriage of Figaro, K. 492 – Ecco la Marcia & Ah Tutti Contenti
  3. Don Giovanni, K. 527 – Act II: Commendatore scene
  4. Zaide – Ruhe Sanft (Felicity Lott, soprano)
  5. Requiem, K. 626 – Introitus, Dies Irae, Rex Tremendae, Confutatis, Lacrimosa
  6. Piano Concerto in D minor, K. 466 – Romanza (Imogen Cooper, piano)

Here’s where Mozart gets celestial. The Requiem selections carry a gravity that feels outside time, and “Romanza” closes the journey with contemplative sorrow and beauty—an echo of everything that came before.

Track List from the reverse cover. (C) 1984 Fantasy Records and The Saul Zaentz Company

📖 The Booklet: A Listener’s Companion

The included booklet is divided between “The Story” and “The Music,” guiding listeners through scenes and historical context. It’s perfect for anyone who wants to go beyond passive listening and truly engage with the emotional architecture of each piece.

For me, this soundtrack isn’t just tied to Mozart—it’s tied to who I’ve become as a storyteller. I revisit it whenever I need to reconnect with the emotional truth behind the Garratyverse, when I feel the pull of memory, or when I want to rekindle the fire that Amadeus sparked all those years ago.