© Pictural Press/Alamy
Percy Faith (1908–1976) was a Canadian-American orchestra conductor, arranger, and composer known for his easy listening music.
Career
He was born in Toronto, Canada, and moved to the United States in 1940, where he became a naturalized citizen in 1945. Faith was a pioneer of easy listening and created a lush, orchestral sound that was very popular in the 1950s and 1960s. He worked closely with Columbia Records and released numerous successful albums. His music was often characterized by string arrangements and gentle melodies. Faith had three number one hits in the US: “Delicado” (1952), “Theme from Moulin Rouge” (1953), and “Theme from ‘A Summer Place’” (1959). “Theme from ‘A Summer Place’” was awarded a gold record in 1962. He also composed film scores, including for the film “The Oscar” (1966) and the theme music for the television series “The Virginian.”
Awards
Oscar nomination: 1956 for Best Music for a Musical Film (“Love Me or Leave Me”).
Grammy Awards
1961: Grammy for “Single of the Year” for “Theme from ‘A Summer Place’”. 1970: Grammy for “Best Contemporary Vocal Performance by a Chorus” for “Love Theme from ‘Romeo and Juliet’”. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the Recording category (1501 Vine Street).
Percy Faith died on February 9, 1976, in Encino, California, and is buried at Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery in Culver City.
Collaboration with Mahalia Jackson
with Percy Faith for the album “The Power and the Glory” (1960) is a fascinating example of how Mahalia's powerful gospel singing could be fused with orchestral arrangements. This collaboration was part of a broader trend in Mahalia's career after she moved to Columbia Records in 1954, where the label sought to make her sound more accessible to a wider audience.
As mentioned earlier, Mahalia was initially hesitant to record with an orchestra. She was accustomed to the flexibility and spontaneity of smaller ensembles, which supported her improvisational style. The structured environment of an orchestral recording presented a challenge to her usual musical approach.
Percy Faith's professionalism
His studio work ethic, characterized by discipline and high standards of quality, impressed Mahalia. She described him as a “very strict man” and emphasized the absence of “nonsense” during recordings. This professional approach enabled efficient and focused collaboration.
"The Power and the Glory" - A success
Despite initial concerns, Mahalia was very pleased with the result of the collaboration. She praised “The Power and the Glory” as one of her best albums. Faith's arrangements gave her singing a new dimension by underscoring the emotional intensity of her voice with orchestral opulence.
Persistent ambivalence
Although Mahalia recognized the quality of “The Power and the Glory,” she continued to have mixed feelings about orchestral recordings. She missed the intimacy and spontaneity that characterized her earlier gospel recordings with smaller ensembles.
The collaboration between Mahalia Jackson and Percy Faith on “The Power and the Glory” shows how Mahalia's gospel singing could be presented in a new musical context. Faith's orchestral arrangements gave her voice a new tonal dimension, and his professionalism in the studio made the collaboration a success. At the same time, however, the experience also highlights Mahalia's ambivalent relationship with orchestral recordings, which offered new possibilities but also required compromises in terms of her accustomed musical freedom.