I was unfamiliar with the work of Yann Tiersen until I saw the film Amelie and loved the score. Foreign film scores always seem to have a quality that others lack - Il Postino, Cinema Paradiso etc. to name but a couple - and Amelie is no exception. The general flavour of the music reminded me a lot of Michael Nyman's score for The Piano, particularly some of the more minimalistic movements. On the whole, however, this is far more accessible than Nyman, and its rhythms and melodies will captivate the listener almost immediately. Especially noteworthy is Tiersen's effective use of the accordion, evoking the Parisian setting of the original film.