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There is
no doubt that any new release of a masterpiece from one of the greatest film
music composers of all time must be celebrated - and we are talking about
Miklos Rozsa, who did build a historical career in Hollywood starting in the
mid 1930s, ending only in 1982. Along the years the hungarian composer
scored a large variety of genres, however he is considered a master
especially in noir and epic movies. In this
last category stands out, along with Ben Hur and King of Kings,
his equally monumental score for El Cid (1961), considered as Rozsa's
last great epic work.
As you may know, the movie star is another egress from Ben Hur,
Charlton Heston, who plays the legendary Spanish warrior who defended his
country against the Moors.
Grand brass fanfares bring to the listener all the heroism of the knight and
his exploits, leading a work that resulted from extensive and detailed
musical
research of the composer, which in the film managed to survive the loss of
some of
the recorded material and an incompetent job of the sound editor, who
truncated the score unnecessarily.
It must be remembered that all the album releases of Ben Hur,
including Sony's original edition (later reissued by Chapter III) with 43
minutes conducted by the Rozsa, are re-recordings, since the original master
tapes were lost
- something that remained until director Martin Scorsese, decades later,
helped in its restoration.
In 1996 the Koch label released a very good recording with The New Zealand
Symphony Orchestra conducted by James Sedares, which added 20 minutes to the
original album but was still far in terms of interpretation and length from
the almost 150 minutes of music
composed by Rozsa.
Thus, despite being well represented on disc, Ben Hur in a sense was
a work that deserved a release that would do justice to it.
At last Tadlow's James Fitzpatrick, responsible for producing the 2007
edition of the remarkable score reconstruction of Rozsa's The Private
Life of Sherlock Holmes, devoted himself to his dream project: to
release the El Cid original soundtrack
in its entirety, performed by a large orchestra.
For both projects he had the conductor Nic Raine, who served as associate
producer and coordinated the reconstruction of the score based on the
original notes of the composer and the orchestrations of Rozsa's
collaborator Eugene Zador.
The result was a 3 CD set released in 2008 by Tadlow, with two discs
containing the full soundtrack and one disc for unused or alternate cues and
a suite of Double Indemnity.
Now at last the Silva Screen label re-releases the same recording of the
Tadlow edition, in a 2 CD set containing what really matters - the complete
score for El Cid as originally conceived by Miklos Rozsa.
With a superior performance from the 91 players of The City of Prague
Philharmonic Orchestra and large choir, conducted by Raine, the new digital
recording stays very close to the version heard in the film, with the
advantage of an excellent sound fidelity.
Even with previous versions of the score on disc, I could not help but to be
impressed by the strength and energy found on this version, highlighted by
the additional material and the exquisite performance of the massive
orchestra.
Although created in 1961, we got a score with the best of the Golden Age
music, featuring a beautiful love theme dedicated to Rodrigo and his beloved
Chimene (one of its best renditions can be heard at "The Barn - Love Theme"),
plenty of a romanticism rarely heard these days, and a heroic orchestral
splendor that echoes through horns and percussion in tracks like "The Siege
of Valencia".
Also, like in Ben Hur, Rozsa imbues his music with melodious and
intense religiosity, as we heard in "The Legend and Epilogue," which marks
the hero's triumph over death and showcases the unforgettable
organ
solo and choral work.
But we are talking about the end of an album that, since its beginning with
"Overture", strikes us with its adventurous and heroic grandeur.
"Prelude" introduces the aforementioned love theme, a great interpretation
which undoubtedly brings one of the finest melodies written by Rozsa.
In a masterpiece like this one is hard to point highlights, but
since the first time I heard it
I think that "The Fight For Calahorra" is one of its most exciting tracks,
that reflects the nobility and courage of the combatants.
Following this grand-heroic line there are another batch of favorites, "The
Road To Asturias / Thirteen Knights" and "For God And Spain" / "Battle of
Valencia".
"Entr'acte: The El Cid March", composed for the transition between the first
and second parts of the film, is another prime example of
courage and nobility
and is one of the cues that helped to place this score on a historical level.
"Battle Preparations / Starvation / Revolt" is another of my favorites,
bringing a musical signature heard in another Rozsa's works like Ben Hur
and The Golden Voyage of Sinbad - but here it sounds more threatening,
foreseeing the harshness and shadows of the approaching battle.
This magnificent re-recording of El Cid, complemented by a booklet
containing notes from Martin Scorsese and Rozsa's daughter, Juliet, is
indispensable to any serious
film music
collector thanks to the intrinsic qualities of Miklos Rozsa writing, the
excellence of its
interpretation and sound quality.
It's a real tribute to the composer, and in this regard Fitzpatrick and all
those who collaborated in the project could not have been more successful.
For my part I have Miklos Rozsa among my five favorite
composers of all time, and I am very grateful for this wonderful release. |
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