Les Passagers

Music Box Records presents for the first time ever on CD two unreleased scores written for Serge Leroy's Les Passagers that of Claude Bolling which came to replace the music originally composed by Eric Demarsan.

Demarsan composed his music around the child, an essential character in the story, and of his relationship with his new father "pretty hip to his style." Piano, glockenspiel, vibraphone and xylophone combine to infuse a melancholic and mysterious lightness right before the opening titles. The second strong theme of the film, that of the menace represented by the black van, is more dissonant based on brass and woodwinds, with touches of piano and xylophone.

With Bolling, the main theme of the film became a jazz lullaby on piano to a nonchalant tempo, supplemented by simple bass and guitar, then relayed to a dynamic string ensemble underlying the cheerful and tranquil stretches of their trip. By contrast, the scenes of suspense generated by the chase with the van are represented by oppressive string movements and saxophone.

Music Box Records, in collaboration with Warner Chappell Music France, Claude Bolling and Eric Demarsan, presents both scores for the first time on CD and transferred from the original master tapes. The limited edition of 500 units comes with an 8-page booklet with French and English commentary by Gilles Loison.