Search - Artistes Divers, Various Artists, Soundtracks & Original Casts :: Composed By: Classic Film Themes From Hollywood's Masters - Motion Picture Soundtrack Anthology

"unique collection of classic themes & suites ~ EPIC"

J. Lovins | Missouri-USA | 12/07/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Rhino Records presents 23 Original Soundtrack recordings from MGM, RKO and Warner Bros studios...entitled "Composed By:Classic Film Themes From Hollywood's Masters - Motion Picture Soundtrack Anthology"...boy is that a mouth full...everything a "film-score-buff" could hope for is all under one roof, or should I say compact disc.



This rare find in film scoring covers several decades, beginning with the '30s and inclusive into the mid '60s...many have never seen the light of day...all from the original composer, the way it should be heard...let us begin in the next paragraph with some serious reviewing.



From the early film composers with have "KING KONG", composed by Max Steiner, recorded 1933..."THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD", composed by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, recorded April of 1938..."GUNGA DIN", composed by Alfred Newman, recorded 1939..."GONE WITH THE WIND", composed by Max Steiner, recorded November and December 1939..."THE WIZARD OF OZ", composed by Herbert Stothart, recorded May and July 1939..."THE SEA HAWK", composed by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, recorded May 1939..."THE PHILADELPHIA STORY", composed by Franz Waxman, recorded September 1940..."NORTHWEST PASSAGE", composed by Herbert Stothart, recorded December 1939..."CITIZEN KANE", composed by Bernard Herrmann, recorded 1941..."THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS", composed by Bernard Herrmann, recorded 1942..."CASABLANCA", composed by Max Steiner, recorded 1942..."NOW, VOYAGER", composed by Max Steiner, recorded 1942..."THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE", composed by Max Steiner, recorded 1948..."MADAME BOVARY", composed by Miklos Rozsa, recorded April and June 1949..."THE BAD AND THE BEAUTIFUL", composed by David Raksin, recorded September 1952..."RAINTREE COUNTY", composed by Johnny Green, recorded July 1957..."NORTH BY NORTHWEST", composed by Bernard Herrmann, recorded May 1959..."BEN-HUR", composed by Miklos Rozsa, recorded 1959..."HOW THE WEST WAS WON", composed by Alfred Newman, recorded July 1962..."DOCTOR ZHIVAGO", composed by Maurice Jarre, recorded December 1965...the composers of today have some big shoes to fill...the likes of Green, Herrmann, Jarre, Korngold, Newman, Raksin, Rozsa, Steiner, Stothart and Waxman will be sorely missed, they'll never be anything quite like them, one of a kind and they left their mark in film history.



All in all many of these composers gave much more that we could ever put on any single compilation...but these are the highlights, some of the most memorable suites, themes and cues to grace the big screen...as we sit in a darkened theater when the curtain goes up, we lose ourselves in the plot and characters become very much alive and real...the music conveys every moment of drama, comedy and mystery, without it the film would be empty...we can thank these golden age music makers for putting the icing on the cake...hats off to Didier C. Deutsch (producer), Julie D'Angelo (project supervisor) and Turner Entertainment for sharing these precious themes from the films that keep us thrilled with their timeless scores...just the way we like 'em!



Total Time: 75:29 on 23 Tracks ~ Rhino Records 72847 ~ (7/29/1997)"