CINEMA CHORAL CLASSICS
VARIOUS
Rating: 
Original Review: The main reason that I bought this album was so that I could finally get hold of some music from Jerry Goldsmith's The Omen. I have searched high and low for this score in Sheffield, to no avail, so I thought an eleven-minute suite on a compilation would be the next best thing. It's the one and only score that Goldsmith has won an Oscar for and, although I personally don't think it's his best, it certainly makes you realise what a talented composer he is. Compare The Omen's dark and chilling strings and the utterly terrifying dissonant passages he employs here with the thematic beauty of scores like Powder or any of his Star Treks, and you can appreciate the skill all these musicians have. The music presented here is in the form of a concert suite, featuring the deadly-sounding 'Ave Satani' which, despite having Latin lyrics which translate as "Blood we drink/Flesh we eat/Raise the body of Satan/Hail the anti-Christ/Hail Satan!" was Oscar nominated as Best Song in 1976, lots of frightening violins and metal percussion representing the carnage of Damien's evil nature, and a surprisingly lush and beautiful love theme reminiscent of First Contact about six and a half minutes in. And, although I wouldn't say I like The Omen all that much, I can fully understand its importance and cleverness, and the way in which it suits the movie perfectly which, I suppose, is the whole idea. The other highlights, for me, are Alan Silvestri's beautiful theme from The Abyss (which sounds remarkably like James Horner's Brainstorm in parts); Maurice Jarre's angelic but often ignored score from the Zeffirelli's epic TV series Jesus of Nazareth, and of course those old classics Carmina Burana, Conan The Barbarian, The Mission and The Lion in Winter (in fact, I think the performance of Ave Guarani here is better than on the original album) . The choral work by The Crouch End Festival Chorus is very impressive throughout, as is the orchestral performance by The City of Prague Philharmonic, and I don't think you can ask for more than that. Overall, a very worthwhile effort by all concerned which, as a companion release to Swashbucklers and Warriors of the Silver Screen, rounds off a great 1997 for Silva Screen.
Track Listing:
- O Fortuna from Carmina Burana from Excalibur (Carl Orff) (2:47)
- Prelude and Birth of Christ from Jesus of Nazareth (Maurice Jarre) (4:09)
- Agnus Dei from Adagio for Strings from The Scarlet Letter (Samuel Barber) (6:14)
- Never Surrender from First Knight (Jerry Goldsmith) (5:28)
- Theme from The Abyss (Alan Silvestri) (5:11)
- The Lord's Prayer from King of Kings (Miklós Rózsa) (2:45)
- Riders of Doom from Conan the Barbarian (Basil Poledouris) (6:05)
- Ave Maria: Guarini from The Mission (Ennio Morricone) (2:34)
- On Earth As It Is In Heaven from The Mission (Ennio Morricone) (3:31)
- Suite from The Lion in Winter (John Barry) (8:15)
- Theme from 1492: Conquest of Paradise (Vangelis) (5:06)
- Funeral and Finale from The Vikings (Mario Nascimbene) (3:34)
- Suite from The Omen (Jerry Goldsmith) (11:53)
- Non Nobis Domine from Henry V (Patrick Doyle) (3:50)
Running Time: 71 minutes 33 seconds
Silva Screen SILKD-6015 (1997)
Conducted by Nic Raine, Paul Bateman and Kenneth Alwyn. Performed by The City of Prague Philharmonic and The Crouch End Festival Chorus. Chorusmaster David Temple. Recorded and mixed by John L. Timperley and Mike Ross-Trevor. Mastered by Matthew Dilley and Ian Shepherd. Album produced by James Fitzpatick.
Home Page | Soundtracks | Soundtrack Reviews | Composers | Soundtrack Links
These web pages were designed and maintained by Jonathan Broxton copyright 1997. All opinions and views expressed on these pages are my own and are in no way intended to reflect those of my employer, the Trent Institute for Health Services Research, or those of the University of Sheffield.