The brilliant and prolific Maurice Jarre passed away on Sunday. He wrote and recorded the entire score to Lawrence of Arabia in an astonishing 6 weeks – in reverse order. He achieved this by sleeping for 10 minutes every three hours for days at a time. One has to wonder if the crazed schedule and sleep deprivation added some useful DNA to the score. I have always loved the romantic, epic hugeness of this music. His aggressive use of timpani seems to perfectly convey the sudden release of trapped energy that one feels must lurk below the surface in vast, quiet spaces. The melody to the main theme is simple and instantly memorable yet it retains a fresh mystery throughout the film. Sadly, I have still only ever seen it on a wheezing 12 inch TV but I have listened to the score many times. It is definitely time to experience the real deal soon.