(Yeah, after last week, you kind of had to know this was coming…)

The story goes that Basil Poledouris was at home, working on the score to his friend’s next film, when his daughter, Zoe (who was nine years old at the time) walked in, playing a three-note melody on her recorder.

The melody, it turns out, was a perfect fit for the particular cue Poledouris was working on, so he incorporated it as a counter-melody, making sure to credit his daughter for her contribution.

And thus we have “The Orgy,” one of the most memorable themes in Basil Poledouris’s most famous score, Conan the Barbarian.

Ironically, it’s said that when Zoe first heard the theme, she complained to her father that he’d gotten it wrong.  But it all seemed to work out anyway, as Conan is an essential piece of film music (and Intrada Records’ three-disc soundtrack, which includes this story in its liner notes, is therefore an essential purchase).

And that’s your Film Music Friday for this week.  Hope you’re enjoying it so far – as always, feel free to leave a comment or send an e-mail with your thoughts, corrections, or any other suggestions.

Until next time, “be seeing you…”