Ennio Morricone better after cancelling gigs over vertebrae damage

Oscar-winning composer Ennio Morricone, 87, is back on his feet after cancelling a string of concerts due to two collapsed vertebrae.

Three-time best sound-track Oscar winner Ennio Morricone answers questions during an interview with The Associated Press, in Rome, Tuesday, May 31, 2016. Picture: AP

Morricone, whose memorable scores, including Cinema Paradiso, have made him one of Hollywood’s most sought-after composers, says he is doing fine now and is ready to get back on tour to mark his 60 years in the industry.

Morricone says even after all his years, he still gets the jitters before going on stage to conduct.

“I get very nervous, because sometimes despite the goodwill, accidents can happen,” he said. “Even small accidents can bother me, things that the audience doesn’t even notice.”

“I rather prefer to write music, but obviously it is natural that I direct the music I wrote,” he adds.

Morricone received his second Oscar win earlier this year, for scoring Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight Western.

He previously won a lifetime achievement Academy Award in 2007. He also said it was critical to have a good relationship with the director.

Morricone’s most famous collaboration was with Italian director Sergio Leone, whose Dollars trilogy starring Clint Eastwood and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly enabled Morricone to reinvent the music for Westerns.