电影不仅用光影、也用声音来叙述故事，意大利电影配乐大师埃尼奥·莫里康内的作品就是极佳的证明。《海上钢琴师》《天堂电影院》《西西里的美丽传说》《八恶人》《黄金三镖客》......这些影史留名的经典之作，幕后都有他的名字。7 月 6 日，这位曾获得奥斯卡终身成就奖的作曲家因骨折引起的并发症与世长辞，令无数影迷和乐迷为之哀恸。他所创作的配乐究竟有独特的魅力，为电影画龙点睛。
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What makes the ultimate film soundtrack?
是什么成就了顶级电影配乐？
The snaking rhythm and ripple of "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly"; the elegiac beauty of "Once Upon a Time in America"; … the prolific film scores of Italian maestro Ennio Morricone not only elevate classic scenes onscreen; they seem to live with us beyond them, in surround sound.
《黄金三镖客》的配乐节奏婉转、音调起伏，《美国往事》的则凄婉动人......意大利配乐大师埃尼奥·莫里康内创作的众多电影配乐不仅为银幕上的经典场景增色不少；似乎还超越场景本身，如环绕立体声般铭刻在我们的记忆里。
The news of Morricone's death this week, aged 91, bears a particular emotional weight. Morricone is credited for (re)defining the sound of the Western, although his music obviously went much further than that.
莫里康内于本周去世，享年 91 岁；这一消息令人悲恸万分。莫里康内因其（重新）定义了西部电影配乐而备受称颂，不过，他的音乐所取得的成就显然远远不止于此。
British composer, dramatist and broadcaster Neil Brand has explored the technique and power of film soundtracks throughout much of his work. "It was Morricone’s maverick-ness that made him stand out," argues Brand.
尼尔·布兰德是一名英国作曲家、剧作家和节目主持人，他在自己的工作中长期探索电影配乐的技巧及其影响力。他表示：“莫里康内之所以杰出，是因为他与众不同。”
"There was no chance that any of the other golden age film composers would ever use a whistle, a handslap and a whipcrack in their music — and here it was, in 'The Good, the Bad and the Ugly': part of an incredibly bananas take of what constituted a film score."***
“任何其他处于巅峰时期的电影作曲家都不会在自己的配乐中使用口哨、掌击和抽鞭子的声音，然而在《黄金三镖客》中，这些元素构成了一段极其疯狂的音乐，成为了影片整体配乐的一部分。”
Morricone's film scores also bring a profound resonance, along with catchy hooks. In a 2008 interview, he said: "What I look for as a composer for cinema is the underlying story in a film; the story that cannot be told through images or through dialogue."
同时，莫里康内的电影配乐旋律抓耳，还能引起强烈的共鸣。在 2008 年的一次访谈中，他提到：“作为一名作曲家，我为电影艺术找寻的，是影片中潜在的故事，那种画面或对话无法传达的故事。”
In "A Fistful of Dollars", Clint Eastwood only has about 25 lines, but the music suggests that something has happened in his past that has scarred him so much, he has to go on this solo quest to bring justice to lawless places. Whereas in the plot, he's doing it for money!
在《荒野大镖客》里，演员克林特·伊斯特伍德只有大约 25 句台词，而电影配乐给人的感觉是，他过去经历的某件事给他带来了严重创伤，他不得不独自踏上征途，为罔顾法纪的地方带去公正。尽管从情节来看，他那么做只是为了挣钱！