Un tranquillo posto di campagna. Ennio Morricone

Renowned painter Leonardo Ferri (Franco Nero), whose works have a standard price set by the market, and his girlfriend Flavia (Vanessa Redgrave) live together in his studio in Milan. He has not completed any paintings in two months as he slowly goes mad. His mental issues, about which Flavia is aware, includes a recurring dream where she is torturing him before attempting to kill him. As such, Flavia makes arrangements for them to rent a country villa outside of Venice where the change in scenery may recharge his creative juices.

This score is Ennio Morricone at his most inaccessible. It is made up almost entirely of string experimentations and improvisations, inspired by the work he did with his colleagues in Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza, namely Franco Evangelisti, Mario Bertoncini, Egisto Macchi, John Heineman, and Walter Branchi. It contains all manner of intellectual and complicated harmonies and patterns and performance techniques, but captures the essence of the film perfectly, creating an alienating and increasingly horrifying atmosphere. We can listen the opening cue “Musica Per Undici Violini”.