John Williams, we’re told, has relinquished his franchise on the Harry Potter cycle to concentrate on films offering a greater variety of subjects, such as Memoirs of a Geisha. Based on a bestseller, this is a prestigious production to which Williams has brought his considerable artistry, along with that of his star soloists.

This score is thoughtful and elegant, complementing the film’s visual beauty, and the antithesis of screen music with which he’s more closely associated (Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark). The subject matter, one might say, has brought out the feminine muse in Williams.

Itzhak Perlman brings a magical and peculiarly oriental sound to his violin-playing. The sinuous cello theme associated with the Geisha, played by Yo-Yo Ma, is heard in various metamorphoses throughout the soundtrack. They are joined by Japanese players on shakuhachi and koto – the Japanese bamboo flute and zither, oddly enough of Chinese origin. Their individual timbres combined with violin and cello leave a haunting impression, not unlike the world created by Tippett in his Triple Concerto (try track 13 from around 1’18”). Williams, like Tippett, has followed this path in the autumn of his career.

Other distinctive cues include a salon waltz, ‘The Chairman’ (track 8), and a running minimalist theme introduced in ‘Destiny’s Path’ and heard again on the closing track, a miniature tone-poem that precises the entire score. The luxuriant recording enhances a fine piece of work.