Customer Reviews

Best of Motion Picture Scores

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Shostakovich's film music is usually disparaged when compared with his concert hall compositions. Of course it isn't up to those standards. Most of the movies weren't good & some scoring assignments were actually propaganda punishments for his "formalist" & "decadent" creative transgressions, & none ranks with the Eisenstein/Prokofiev collaborations. But try comparing this music with what came out of Hollywood during the later of these years. Alex North is rightly praised for "Cleopatra," Franz Waxman for "Taras Bulba" & "Peyton Place." Also John Green's "Raintree County." These are hardly film classics. Miklos Rozsa, a consummate professional, turned out memorable scores for some very expensive clinkers. Such examples are legion. Brits William Walton & Malcom Arnold arranged concert suites of their movie music. & I personally despise Maurice Jarre for composing that insidious earworm, "Lara's Theme."

This double CD box is indifferently programmed & contains no liner notes; you'll have to sort out the history yourself. But the performances are fine - a few are on higher-priced releases. The music itself ranges from cabaret to waltzes to dramatic battle action. In "New Babylon" the Krafty Komposer demonstrates the sardonic wit he often used to mock his Soviet Kulture Kummittee Kumrades.

Bob Rixon

If you like Shostakovich's main music, check out this sampling of his motion picture scores, his little know music. I think you will be suprisue.