July 5, 2011

  • Best of June 2011: New to the Collection

    June proved to be a great month for fans of limited edition music.  The summer blockbuster season also meant a few new power scores were released as well.  But many are not terribly interesting.  Here are five recently acquired discs that stand out in June 2011.

    The most unusual entry in the mix was a new release of concerti by the Baroque composer Graupner.  The Carus disc was reviewed here and you re encouraged to check that review out.  It is hard sometimes to make concerti that essentially were written as showpieces for period artists that keep one's interest. But the mix of bassoon with a few other concerto combinations helps make this a most satisfying release.

    Also important is Cedille's release (reviewed here) of The Pulitzer Project.  The Grant Park Orchestra and Chorus introduces two world premiere recordings of important works by William Schuman and, more importantly Leo Sowerby ("Canticle of the Sun") as well as a fine performance of Copland's Appalachian Spring.

    Intrada made many fans happy with the release of the original soundtrack for Masada.  The first two parts of the mini-series were scored by Jerry Goldsmith and the last two by Morton Stevens (using some of Goldsmith's themes).  The sound is superb as are the accompanying notes and this fills in an important whole in the Goldsmith discography.  (Note this is not the re-recording Goldsmith later made of this score.)

    Varese Sarabande's club releases included The Alfred Hitchcock Hour-Volume One.  The release was set to coincide with Bernard Herrmann's 100th Birthday celebration.  These are truly fascinating scores that come at a time when his film music opportunities began to dry up.  If you particulary enjoy his 1960s scores, especially Farenheit 451, or his work on The Twilight Zone tv series, this will be worth your time.  Herrmann enthusiasts need not hesitate, but this is a limited edition release and one can hope that the rest of these scores will soon be on their way.

    Finally, the score for the 1927 Fritz Lang film, Metropolis, has made it to CD in a fantastic new recording from Capriccio.  The score has been reconstructed and is conducted by Frank Strobel whose work on early film scores (especially some rare Shostakovivh works) has been stellar.  What is most fascinating in this score is how much of what we associate with "Golden Age" Hollywood style is on display.  Here is the score that inspired Korngold, Waxman, and Steiner and perhaps guided their own early film score efforts.  This is one release not to be missed whether you enjoy Golden Age film music, or Late-Romantic music.  The CD was reviewed at the beginning of July.