Gabriel's Oboe
Encyclopedia
"Gabriel's Oboe" is the main theme
for the 1986 film
The Mission directed by Roland Joffé
. The theme was written by Italian composer Ennio Morricone
, and has since been arranged
and performed several times by artists such as Yo-Yo Ma
, Holly Gornik, and Brynjar Hoff, among others. The theme has been called "unforgettable" and a "celebrated oboe
melody". Vocalist Sarah Brightman
begged Morricone to allow her to put lyrics
to the theme to create her own song, "Nella Fantasia
". In 2010, Morricone encouraged Christchurch, New Zealand soprano Hayley Westenra
to write English lyrics for Gabriel’s Oboe (Whispers In A Dream) in her international album Paradiso
.
for the film was very well-received amongst critics, being nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Score
and earning Morricone the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score
.
In the movie, the theme is most prominently used when the protagonist, the Jesuit Father Gabriel, walks up to a waterfall and starts playing his oboe, aiming to befriend the natives with his music so he can carry his missionary
work in the New World
. The Guaraní tribesmen, who have been stalking him from a distance, approach Gabriel for the first time, puzzled by the sounds of the unknown instrument. The chief of the tribe, however, is displeased by this, and breaks Gabriel's oboe. This marks the beginning of the relationship between Father Gabriel and the Guaraní natives.
Several orchestras have performed "Gabriel's Oboe", often under the direction of Morricone himself. The most famous renditions of the piece, other than in the movie, are probably those found in the Morricone Conducts Morricone series of concerts during the mid-2000s.
's poem "Love Came Down at Christmas
", Tom Fettke's arrangement for soprano-alto-tenor-bass incorporates Morricone's ethereal wind treatment as the voice of the eponymous Archangel in his piece titled The Annunciation.
Theme music
Theme music is a piece that is often written specifically for a radio program, television program, video game or movie, and usually played during the title sequence and/or end credits...
for the 1986 film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
The Mission directed by Roland Joffé
Roland Joffé
Roland Joffé is an English-French film director who is known for his Oscar nominated movies, The Killing Fields and The Mission. He began his career in television. His early television credits included episodes of Coronation Street and an adaptation of The Stars Look Down for Granada...
. The theme was written by Italian composer Ennio Morricone
Ennio Morricone
Ennio Morricone, Grand Officer OMRI, , is an Italian composer and conductor, who wrote music to more than 500 motion pictures and television series, in a career lasting over 50 years. His scores have been included in over 20 award-winning films as well as several symphonic and choral pieces...
, and has since been arranged
Arrangement
The American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...
and performed several times by artists such as Yo-Yo Ma
Yo-Yo Ma
Yo-Yo Ma is an American cellist, virtuoso, and orchestral composer. He has received multiple Grammy Awards, the National Medal of Arts in 2001 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011...
, Holly Gornik, and Brynjar Hoff, among others. The theme has been called "unforgettable" and a "celebrated oboe
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
melody". Vocalist Sarah Brightman
Sarah Brightman
Sarah Brightman is an English classical crossover soprano, actress, songwriter and dancer. She is famous for possessing a vocal range of over 3 octaves and singing in the whistle register...
begged Morricone to allow her to put lyrics
Lyrics
Lyrics are a set of words that make up a song. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist or lyrist. The meaning of lyrics can either be explicit or implicit. Some lyrics are abstract, almost unintelligible, and, in such cases, their explication emphasizes form, articulation, meter, and symmetry of...
to the theme to create her own song, "Nella Fantasia
Nella Fantasia
"Nella Fantasia" is an Italian song based on the theme "Gabriel's Oboe" from the film The Mission . With music by famed composer Ennio Morricone and lyrics by Chiara Ferraù, "Nella Fantasia" is popular among classical crossover singers, and was originally sung by Sarah Brightman...
". In 2010, Morricone encouraged Christchurch, New Zealand soprano Hayley Westenra
Hayley Westenra
Hayley Dee Westenra is a New Zealand soprano, classical crossover artist, songwriter and UNICEF Ambassador. Her first internationally released album, Pure, reached No. 1 on the UK classical charts in 2003 and has sold more than two million copies worldwide...
to write English lyrics for Gabriel’s Oboe (Whispers In A Dream) in her international album Paradiso
Paradiso (Hayley Westenra album)
Paradiso is an international album by Christchurch, New Zealand soprano Hayley Westenra, in collaboration with Italian maestro Ennio Morricone. It was released worldwide beginning 18 April 2011 in New Zealand....
.
Movie soundtrack
The soundtrackSoundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
for the film was very well-received amongst critics, being nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Score
Academy Award for Best Original Score
The Academy Award for Original Score is presented to the best substantial body of music in the form of dramatic underscoring written specifically for the film by the submitting composer.-Superlatives:...
and earning Morricone the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score
Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score
The Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score is one of several categories presented by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association , an organization of journalists who cover the United States film industry, but are affiliated with publications outside North America, since its institution in 1947...
.
In the movie, the theme is most prominently used when the protagonist, the Jesuit Father Gabriel, walks up to a waterfall and starts playing his oboe, aiming to befriend the natives with his music so he can carry his missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
work in the New World
New World
The New World is one of the names used for the Western Hemisphere, specifically America and sometimes Oceania . The term originated in the late 15th century, when America had been recently discovered by European explorers, expanding the geographical horizon of the people of the European middle...
. The Guaraní tribesmen, who have been stalking him from a distance, approach Gabriel for the first time, puzzled by the sounds of the unknown instrument. The chief of the tribe, however, is displeased by this, and breaks Gabriel's oboe. This marks the beginning of the relationship between Father Gabriel and the Guaraní natives.
Several orchestras have performed "Gabriel's Oboe", often under the direction of Morricone himself. The most famous renditions of the piece, other than in the movie, are probably those found in the Morricone Conducts Morricone series of concerts during the mid-2000s.
SATB choral arrangement
Extending the simple lyrics of the Christmas carol adaptation of Christina RossettiChristina Rossetti
Christina Georgina Rossetti was an English poet who wrote a variety of romantic, devotional, and children's poems...
's poem "Love Came Down at Christmas
Love Came Down at Christmas
"Love Came Down at Christmas" is a Christmas poem by Christina Rossetti. It was first published without a title in Time Flies: A Reading Diary in 1885...
", Tom Fettke's arrangement for soprano-alto-tenor-bass incorporates Morricone's ethereal wind treatment as the voice of the eponymous Archangel in his piece titled The Annunciation.