Max Richter is my favorite composer. A German born now British composer and pianist, I was reminded about Max Richter this morning when I was thinking about someone I care about flying across oceans on business, and Richter’s ‘Written on the Sky‘ popped into my head. (It’s the stunning ocean scenes of that particular video I love, as well as Richter’s beautiful music).
So I thought I would feature another Max Richter piece today as my Repeat Rotation Video. An interesting piece as it’s a melding of his orchestral piece ”On the Nature of Daylight’Â with a gorgeous Dinah Washington song ‘This Bitter Earth‘, and was originally produced for the movie ‘Shutter Island’.
The video I’m featuring below is the song as it was used for the video game ‘The Secret World‘, as I love the addition of sounds from the video game track. The video below that is the original ‘Shutter Island‘ version, which is longer and equally as lovely.
Personally, I think this is one of the most beautiful pieces Richter has produced. Although…..that is difficult to quantify, as I doubt there is a more prolific composer out there, and everything he creates is breathtaking.
Richter, by the way, collaborates with many musicians, including French artist Woodkid. So if you like ‘This Bitter Earth/On the Nature of Daylight‘, you might also want to listen to his collaboration with Woodkid – ‘The Golden Age‘. Gorgeous.
As for Dinah Washington, the voice on this track, she was a phenomenally talented singer. She didn’t have a very happy life, and tragically died of a drug overdose in 1963. She was only 39 years old.
This Bitter Earth Lyrics
This bitter earth
What fruit it bears
What good is love
That no one shares
And if my life is like the dust
That hides the glow of a rose
What good am I
Heaven only knows
This bitter Earth
Can it be so cold
Today you’re young
Too soon your old
But while a voice
Within me cries
I’m sure someone
May answer my call
And this bitter earth
May not be so bitter after all
.