giant morricone

Joe Hisaishi’s score to Spirited Away is one of my all-time favorite pieces of music. While listening to something completely different this evening, I was sharply reminded of it. The piece? A brief interlude in Ennio Morricone’s score for Cinema Paradiso. Compare this, the third interlude from “Four Interludes”:

[http://www.place.org/~cwage/sounds/Ennio_Morricone_Third_Interlude.mp3] (Ennio Morricone - Four Interludes)

to this snippet from A Road to Somewhere from the Spirited Away score:

[http://www.place.org/~cwage/sounds/Joe_Hisaishi_Road_to_Somewhere.mp3] (Joe Hisaishi - Road to Somewhere)

Is it just me, or are the similarities striking? I find myself wondering if Hisaishi wasn’t directly inspired by Morricone here. In any event, they are both two very beautiful pieces of music.