10 Extraordinary Partnerships Between Composers and Directors

[h2]4. Nino Rota and Federico Fellini[/h2]

One of the most prolific and talented composers of the 20^th century, Nino Rota is best known to American audiences for his beautiful, haunting, utterly iconic work scoring The Godfather. Yet among all his many accomplishments, he may be most notable in the annals of film history as Italian director Federico Fellini’s trusted creative partner. Until his death in 1979, Rota scored nearly everything Fellini directed, collaborating on 15 feature films – including such revered masterpieces as 8½, La Strada, and Amarcord – and several shorts. One cannot examine Fellini’s work without discussing Rota’s stirring contributions, for it is quite common for Rota’s scores to blur the lines between diegetic and non-diegetic sound, the music touching every inch of the film and serving as an essential component of the story, characters, and thematic exploration. The composer’s work so integral to the director’s craft, in fact, that even after Rota passed away, Fellini continued to use pieces of Rota’s music in his films. When Fellini died, one of Rota’s pieces was played at the funeral, capping one of the most artistically significant partnerships in cinematic history.

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