The special event that closed the 43rd edition of the Giornate del Cinema Muto in Pordenone last October, Henry King’s western The Winning of Barbara Worth (1926) accompanied by Neil Brand’s orchestral score commissioned by the Giornate, will be presented on the opening day of the 78th Locarno Film Festival, Wednesday, August 6, with the same score performed by the OSI – Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana.

Composer Neil Brand and a small delegation from the Giornate led by festival director Jay Weissberg will be in Locarno for the occasion.

«Henry King’s The Winning of Barbara Worth is an emotionally rich, sweeping Western that helped expand the genre beyond the perceived limitations of the form. It’s on a grand scale yet not muscular, presenting a quasi-mythical West that’s both tough and fragile, much like the characters themselves. While perhaps best known today as the film that gave Gary Cooper his first important role, Barbara Worth is so much more than a showcase for the future star’s radiant screen presence, as it burnishes the American myth of a promised land needing to be tamed. Neil Brand’s bewitching score, commissioned by Le Giornate del Cinema Muto in 2024, is deeply informed by the majestic music of such 20^th century composers as Ferde Grofé and Aaron Copland, capturing the immensity of the landscape as well as the intimacy of the people seeking fulfillment there. We are thrilled that the Locarno Film Festival has chosen the film, with Neil Brand’s score, as the opening concert of the OSI – Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana, and we’re certain its power and heart will convince new audiences of the extraordinary modern artistry of silent cinema.» (Jay Weissberg)