Classis Film Scores for Errol Flynn
STEINER: Suites from Don Juan, They Died With TheirBoots On, Dodge City. WAXMAN: Parachute Drop from Objective Burma! FRIEDHOFER: Suite from The Sin also Rises. KORNGOLD: Suite from The Adventures of Robin Hood.
Ambrosian Singers. National Philharmonic Orchestra / Charles Gerhardt, cond.
EPOCH SACD CDLK 4633 TT: 57 MIN.
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Classic film Scores of Miklís Rízsa
Suitea from The Red House. The Lost Weekend.. Excerpts from The Four Feathers. Excerpts from . Excerps from Spellbound. Overture to Ivanhoe. Overture to Julius Caesar. Love of the Princess from The Thief of Bagdad. Excerpts from The Four Feathers. Excerpts from Double Indemnity. Excerpts from The Four Feathers.
Ambrosian Singers. National Philharmonic Orchestra / Charles Gerhardt, cond.
EPOCH SACD CDLK 4631 TT: 59 min.
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BRUCKNER: Symphony No. 9 in D minor
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra . Manfred Honeck, cond.
REFERENCE REC. SACD FR 733 TT: 63:12
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Here are two more important quad releases from the Classic Film Score Series. This site has praised previous issues in the series: Lost Horizon (REVIEW), Sunset Boulevard and Citizen Kane (REVIEW). On the Errol Flynn disk most of the music is by Max Steiner, suites from three moves. For me, the highlight of this disk are the excerpts from Korngold's scores for The Sea Hawk, Captain Blood, and Adventures of Robin Hood. In the latter, Archery Tournament and Coronation Procession are particularly thrilling. The Ambrosian Singers are herd in the rousing chorus in The Sea Hawk. The Miklós Rózsa disk is equally impressive, mostly broad, grand musical ideas to suit the movie. The disk is called Spellbound although it doesn't include the famous Spellbound Concerto: We have two excerpts, The Dream Sequence and The Mountain Lodge. For me, high point is the glittering Hawks in Flight, a very brief (1:19) whirlwind interlude from Knights of the Round Table. This is a dazzling interlude vividly representing the subject, with swirling harps, brass and woodwinds. Quite amazing. The Ambrosian Singers are heard in The Red house and Song of the Jungle. Again, performances are perfection, multi-channel audio of demonstration quality. Both recordings were made in 1974 in London's Kingsway Hall, produced by George Korngold, engineered by Kenneth Wilkinson. These recordings were spectacular in regular stereo, even more impressive in multi-channel with the countless fanfares and percussive effects immersing the listener in the performance. Don't miss these remrkable releases.

This site has praised many recordings by Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony, including Shostakovich Symphony No. 5 (REVIEW), Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 6 Bruckner Symphony No. 5 and Beethoven symphonies 4 and 7 (REVIEW) and a fine Strauss disk (REVIEW). Honeck has been Music Director of the Pittsburgh Symphony since 2008 and under his dynamic leadership he orchestra has gained international fame Honeck has particular interest in music of Bruckner and now we have his second recording, Symphony No. 9 from live performances February 23 - 26, 2018 in Heinz Hall for the Performing Arts. Honeck wrote program notes in which he gives insights into the music and his interpretation of it. Superb multi-channel sound although rear speakers are used primarily for hall sound. This surely is one of the most impressive recordings of Bruckner's mighty last symphony, surely the best sonically.

R.E.B. (Augyst 2019)

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