Ennio Morricone, the Italian composer whose credits include the Sergio Leone “spaghetti” Westerns that made Clint Eastwood a star – A Fistful of Dollars and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly amongst others – has died in Rome aged 91. He scored more than 500 films over seven decades, including Once Upon a Time in America, The Untouchables and Cinema Paradiso and received an Oscar in 2016 for Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight.
He was born 10 November 1928 10.25pm in Rome with a jazz trumpeter father and started composing aged 6. His classmate at the conservatory he attended was film director Sergio Leone, whose offer of a film score later set Morricone off on his movie career.
He had his Sun and Moon in Scorpio in his 4th attaching him to his roots. Despite his success he never left Italy or learned English. He had a heavyweight Moon trine Mars and Sun trine Pluto; with a high-esteem Jupiter in his 10th opposition his Moon and trine/sextile Neptune. His musical Neptune was in his financial 2nd house fittingly for a creative money-earning talent. He also had his colourful Venus in Sagittarius conjunct a workmanlike Saturn in his 5th house which rules the performing arts and entertainment.
His superstar 22nd Harmonic was heavily aspected as was his musical creative 7H.
Sergio Leone, his collaborator, was born 3 January 1929 12.30am Rome with a cinematic pioneer father and he in turn became known as one of the most influential film directors of 20th century with his super-successful westerns and others. He had an influential and controlling Pluto on his Midheaven opposition a 4th house Capricorn Sun square a Libra Moon on his Ascendant. His focal point Moon would suit him for a career interfacing with the public. He had a short-tempered and disciplined Saturn opposition Mars; an easy-going Jupiter in his 7th trine Neptune. His artistic Venus was like Morricone in his performing 5th.
It wouldn’t always be the easiest of partnerships but the relationship chart indicates an intense creative connection with a composite Venus opposition Pluto square Moon; and a business-like composite Sun Saturn; plus a visionary and enthusiastic composite Neptune trine Jupiter sextile Mars.
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So another solar/lunar Scorpio in the lunar 4th. No wonder he was so attached to the safe haven of his roots. (Cyril Ramaphosa has this too). Thank you Marjorie.
“He had his Sun and Moon in Scorpio in his 4th attaching him to his roots. Despite his success he never left Italy or learned English.”
I also think this worked the other way around. He was truly beloved in Italy. Public figures, even artists, tend to be divisive in Italy, and while Italians generally speaking are respectful of others mourning, you usually can see people who just “stay quiet” when someone whose opinions or work they didn’t like passes. Looking at my media and social media feed, I do not see lagoons of quiet with Morricone.
I was blessed to attend one of Maestro Morricone’s last tour concerts some years ago, where he conducted his own compositions, and it was magical. I’ve always thought “Once Upon A Time in West” was his best soundtrack with Leone, but the concert version of “The Extasy Of Gold” wan that night. It’s truly wild. That said, my favourite works from him were “Cinema Paradiso” and “Mission”, and I’m still livid “Cinema Paradiso” wasn’t nominated and “Mission” lost the Best Original Score cathegory.
Interesting tidbit about Morricone/Leone collaboration is that they republished a recent interview (I think given for 90th birthday) from Morricone on “Corriere della Sera” where he confirmed what we see astrologically. He didn’t enjoy working with Leone, who was never satisfied with anything he put on table. Another interesting tidbit is that he also said that he cried twice in his adult life, seeing raw version of “Mission” without music (one of the producers wanted to commission to Leonard Bernstein), and then meeting Pope Francis. He clearly had deep attachment to Jesuits, that, if you choose to believe in reincarnation, would seem almost karmic.