The Miners' Hymns

Discuss releases by the BFI and the films on them.

Moderator: MichaelB

Post Reply
Message
Author
User avatar
antnield
Joined: Tue Jun 28, 2005 1:59 pm
Location: Cheltenham, England

The Miners' Hymns

#1 Post by antnield » Thu Jan 20, 2011 9:32 am

Bill (Decasia) Morrison's latest getting a release on the 15th June according to Central Books.

More info on the film here and here.

User avatar
knives
Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2008 6:49 pm

Re: The Miners' Hymns

#2 Post by knives » Thu Jan 20, 2011 3:40 pm

Now all I need is Decasia going back into print and I'll be a happy man. Any reason given for that OOP, by the way?

User avatar
antnield
Joined: Tue Jun 28, 2005 1:59 pm
Location: Cheltenham, England

Re: The Miners' Hymns

#3 Post by antnield » Tue Feb 01, 2011 10:17 am

Image

I've just received word that the above cover is purely a temporary one and will almost certainly be revised come the release date.

User avatar
antnield
Joined: Tue Jun 28, 2005 1:59 pm
Location: Cheltenham, England

Re: The Miners' Hymns

#4 Post by antnield » Wed Feb 02, 2011 9:33 am

Specs, courtesy of Amazon.co.uk:
The Miners' Hymns

A Film by Bill Morrison

An elegy in film and music to the coal mining history of North East England, and a unique creative collaboration between the renowned American filmmaker Bill Morrison (Decasia) and acclaimed Icelandic musician and composer Jóhann Jóhannsson.

Created from archive and newly-shot film footage, The Miners' Hymns celebrates the sense of vibrant community, rich, self-organised culture and the forbearance that characterised the lives of those who worked underground, and the places in which they lived. Accompanying Morrison s filmic collage, Jóhannsson s newly composed modern classical score draws upon the region's brass music culture: image and sound combine to create a rich homage to Britain's coal mining heritage.

Extra Features:

- New orchestral score presented in both stereo and 5.1 surround sound mixes
- Interview with filmmakers
- Durham premiere coverage
- Fully illustrated booklet features newly commissioned sleeve notes

User avatar
ellipsis7
Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 1:56 pm
Location: Dublin

Re: The Miners' Hymns

#5 Post by ellipsis7 » Thu Mar 31, 2011 8:47 am

Trailer

And a revised cover...

Image

User avatar
MichaelB
Joined: Fri Aug 11, 2006 6:20 pm
Location: Worthing
Contact:

Re: The Miners' Hymns

#6 Post by MichaelB » Fri May 27, 2011 6:48 am

Full specs announced:
The Miners’ Hymns
A film by Bill Morrison
Music by Jóhann Jóhannsson


This compelling elegy in film and music to the coal mining history of North East England is the result of an exceptional creative collaboration between renowned experimental American filmmaker Bill Morrison (Decasia) and acclaimed Icelandic musician and composer Jóhann Jóhannsson.

Focusing on the mines in the Durham area, The Miners’ Hymns shows the intense labour, endurance, vibrant community and rich culture that characterised the lives of those who worked underground during the twentieth century, and the legacy of mining in the region.

Collaged from archive film from the BFI National Archive, Amber Films & Photography Collective, BBC and the Northern Region Film and Television Archive, The Miners’ Hymns celebrates social, cultural and political aspects of the now-extinct mining industry, and the strong regional tradition of colliery brass bands.

Jóhann Jóhannsson’s newly composed modern classical score draws upon the region’s brass music and moves from dark and brooding minimalism to moments of rousing transcendence. The soundtrack album, also titled, The Miners’ Hymns, is released by FatCat Records on its 13071 imprint on 23 May.

The Miners’ Hymns project was initially commissioned by producers FORMA for the 'Brass: Durham International Festival’ and was premiered there with a live performance of the score in Durham Cathedral on 15 and 16 July 2010. As a finished film, The Miners’ Hymns had its worldwide premiere at The Tribeca Film Festival in New York during April 2011.

Bill Morrison (1965 – )

Bill Morrison’s films and multimedia environments have been presented in festivals, theatres, museums and concert halls worldwide. He has created films to accompany live performances of music by composers including John Adams, Gavin Bryars, Bill Frisell, and Steve Reich. Decasia (2002), his feature-length collaboration with composer Michael Gordon, was described by J Hoberman in the Village Voice as ‘the most widely acclaimed American avant-garde film of the fin-de-siècle.’ It was released in cinemas and on DVD by the BFI.

Jóhann Jóhannsson (1969 – )

Jóhann Jóhannsson has been called ‘Iceland’s foremost genre-crossing multi-instrumentalist’ (Irish Times). His background is in avant rock and electronic music, but his work writing music for theatre encouraged him to experiment with combining these elements with classical orchestration. Jóhannsson is a founder of the Reykjavik experimental art organisation Kitchen Motors, which specialises in instigating collaborations across different art forms and disciplines. He tours regularly in Europe and the USA with his ensemble and has performed in some of Europe’s leading cultural venues.

Special features

• Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround option (448 kbps)
Concert Documentation – Excerpts (2010, 12 mins): highlights from the live premiere performances in Durham Cathedral
• Interview with Bill Morrison and Jóhann Jóhannsson (2010, 8 mins)
• Original trailer
• Illustrated booklet with notes and essays including a contribution from writer Lee Hall (Billy Elliot, Cooking with Elvis, The Pitmen Painters).

Release date: 20 June 2011
RRP: £15.99 / cat. no. BFIV923 / Cert U
UK, US, / 2010 / colour, and black and white / silent with music / 50 mins / DVD5 / original aspect ratio 1.33:1
...and the trailer can be seen here.

User avatar
antnield
Joined: Tue Jun 28, 2005 1:59 pm
Location: Cheltenham, England

Re: The Miners' Hymns

#7 Post by antnield » Thu Jun 16, 2011 8:11 pm


Post Reply