Customer Reviews

The Big Picture

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I have been a fan of Erich Kunzel and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra for a long time and they never cease to amaze me. This is a spectacular collection of great music from some of the best movies made within the last 5 years. The digital sound effects that are included on this cd are extremely realistic, especially the F-16 flyover. This is one of Erich's masterpieces. I hope he will come out with many more this good.

This collection of movie music ranks right up there with "The Great Fantasy Adventure Album." Having seen all these films (except Gettysburg), and owning tapes of about half of them, I have to commend whoever selected these particular themes for the disk. For the most part, listening to this CD is like watching the movie all over again, at least for 3 or 4 minutes. Favorites include: the pulsing insistence of "Speed", the heroic "Apollo 13", the deeply evocative "Crimson Tide" (including an excerpt from the Sailor's Hymn which was also featured in "Titanic"), and the spirited, glossy "Independence Day" theme. Listen to the tension build up and release in the excerpt from "Twister" and just try to refrain from humming along!

A great album for doing housework!

Telarc is one of the best, if not the best recording company of classical, jazz, and instrumental music. I have bought music with the Telarc recording label since 1984. Every CD I have from Telarc is flawlessly recorded with exceptional detail. The image is so clear, its as if you were there infront of the orchestra. This recording is no exception.

Great album with an esoteric mix: from the the Navy Hymn(Chrimson Tide) to rich orchestrations (Braveheart and Gettysburg) it has something for everyone.

If you have broad taste, you'll love this one but be warned- some of these tracks could turn older speakers into mush. Got a theater system with powered sub-woofer? Crank it and watch the windows pulsate with great sounds. Highly recommended.

All the Reich Kunzel and CPO movie albums are well done, this CD is no exception. As with some of the others, there is no thematic link between tracks - raucus, pulse pounding goodies followed by soft melodic material. If the selection was a little more consistent, it would get five stars. That said, you really can't go wrong with Kunzel and the CPO - their execution is generally flawless. Worth buying.

Perhaps it is me, but this recording had me fiddling far too much with my audio system's volume control. I could never seem to relax or simply enjoy the SACD because of the extremes in the dynamic range! Telarc has always been known for their superior sound production in their recordings and this certainly tests the abilities of a sound system! I guess if I were trying to sell my system, this might be the demo cd.

I didn't buy it for that purpose however, and I am disappointed. I wanted to enjoy this cd...I really did. Unfortunately, it will collect dust on my cd shelf. This experience has not soured me on Telarc or Eric Kunzel And The Cincinatti Pops - in fact - I also own the Ultimate Movie 4 cd collection. Fabulous music - just what I wanted (shamless plug here).

I got a great deal on Big Picture (The cd being reviewed) so I have no complaint there. Still, if you are just interested in listening to great music from the movies rather than testing your audio system's limits - buy a different collection (hint, hint, The Ultimate Movie Collection is wonderful).

Three stars is all The Big Picture will get from me.

Tough I was searching for DVD-Audio scores, this CD appeared as a must-have choice, its "simple" DTS sound ( :-D ) takes you to the core of the films which titles are included.

It's hard to think of a movie theme on this album that I don't like. This album is certainly one of the best movie soundtrack compilations I've ever purchased. The sound effects intentionally placed between songs (on their own tracks) can be slightly annoying, but they don't detract from the quality of the music throughout.

This CD does not have a DTS 5.1 audio track, it's just PCM stereo sound (standard CD quality). Beware if you're buying this CD thinking this is mastered in DTS, because it's not!

A CD that will literary ROCK! you house/car (7.6 millions pound of thrust). Eric Kunzel does it again incredible renditions of modern film blockbusters.