Yumeji’s Theme was composed by Shigeru Umebayashi originally for the soundtrack of Seijun Suzuki’s 1991 film -“Yumeji”. It became very well-known when it was used in the soundtrack for the 2000 film -“In The Mood For Love” (花樣年華) by Wong Kar-Wai, a Hong Kong film director.
Wong’s film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on 20 May 2000, it earned critical acclaim and a nomination for the Palme d’Or. Tony Leung won Best Actor (the first Hong Kong actor to win the award). The film also won the Technical Grand Prize. Since then, Wong’s film has often been listed as one of the greatest films of all times. There are many covers of this piece of haunting but very-recognizable music. We have selected the most distinctive versions here.
From the film “In The Mood For Love”
… an extended music video using clips from The Criterion Collection’s 4K release of the film. Exquisite !
… a version of the music (without video) uploaded by Shigeru Umebayashi’s publisher
A surprising A Cappella version by Grace Davidson
A guitar version by Thibault Cauvin
Gidon Kremer recorded for Deutsche Grammophon a solo violin version.
A solo cello version by Edward Kim.
Spotify is another way to enjoy the music and allows you to save the playlist. Although a subscription is required to listen to the full length of each tune, you can play a sample without a subscription. The solo cello version is not on Sportify.
Click ▶ to play
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