El Cid | ||
 | Composer: Miklos Rozsa Label: Tadlow Music Release Date: 2008-09-01 Producer: James Fitzpatrick Conductor: Nic Raine Performer: City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus Buy this soundtrack: | 3 Ratings |
Track Listing | ||||||||||
| 01 Overture (3:41) 01 Alfonso's Oath (0:38) 02 Prelude (2:53) 02 Banishment / Forgiveness (6:13) 03 Ben Yussuf (5:22) 03 Friendship (1:33) 04 Destiny / Burgos (3:10) 04 The Barn - Love Theme (5:06) 05 Palace Music (1:25) 05 For Spain! / Farewell (6:47) 06 Bad News (4:52) 06 Entr'acte: The El Cid March (4:03) 07 Entry of the Nobles (2:16) 07 Rodrigo's Men (1:09) 08 The Meeting (4:33) 08 The Twins (2:40) 09 The Slap (0:48) 09 Rodrigo's Doubts (1:53) 10 Count Gormaz / Courage and Honour / Gormaz' Death / Honour and Sorrow (7:43) 10 Unity (1:26) 11 The Court of Ferdinand (1:20) 11 Moorish Feast (1:27) 12 The Gauntlet (0:31) 12 The Siege of Valencia / Rodrigo's Encampment (2:34) 13 The Fight For Calahorra (3:33) 13 Desperate Love (1:52) 14 The King's Champion (1:29) 14 United Again (1:21) 15 Chimene's Decision (1:57) 15 Battle Preparations / Starvation / Revolt (7:37) 16 Investiture (0:33) 16 Valencia For the Cid (3:20) 17 The Expedition (1:46) 17 Ordonez' Death (0:52) 18 Betrayal / Ambush (3:59) 18 And God For Spain / Battle of Valencia (8:45) 19 The Wedding (0:44) 19 The Arrow / The Promise (4:16) 20 Wedding Supper (1:35) 20 The Cid's Death (4:13) 21 The Wedding Night (5:39) 21 The Legend and Epilogue (5:43) 22 The Road to Asturias / Thirteen Knights (2:56) 23 Ride to Valencia (1:45) 24 Al Kadir's Delights (0:37) 25 Sancho's Demand (2:09) 26 Dolfos' Mission / Sancho's End (6:01) 27 Coronation (2:23) Total Length: 2:29:34 | ||||||||||
More Soundtracks by Miklos Rozsa Reviewed by James - Grade: A El Cid solves a debate I have been having with my brother for years. He is not a fan of older scores, mostly because they sound “old.” While this is true of a proportion of Golden and Silver Age scores, this is definitely not an absolute. A sign of the masterpiece is that it stands the test of time, whether it is recorded in 1933, 1964, or 2009. And if my brother is not enjoying an older masterpiece, it is just as likely because of old recording equipment, not because of the music itself. I kept insisting that if one of these classics had been recorded with modern systems, he would love it. For me, El Cid is the proof.
Thanks to Tadlow Music, producer James Fizpatrick, conductor Nic Raine, and the City of Prague Philharmonic, we can now hear El Cid in all of its glory. I had never realized how good a score it was. I was not pre-disposed to like it. From what I had heard in the film, I thought it had a terrific love theme and a catchy main theme, but that was about it. How wrong I was. This is very complicated work, and with the clarity of the new recording, you can finally hear all the finely tuned details that Rozsa had written. The whole set is fantastic, but I will admit that I think the first CD is the better listen – with the fantastic Overture, some thrilling action music, a set of brilliant marches (Entry of the Nobles, The King’s Champion), and some nice renditions of the love theme. Though overall not as complete an experience, the second disk has the most sumptuous version of the love theme (The Barn) in what is possibly the highlight of the entire score. Rozsa could always write violins, but the solo in this track just knocks me off my feet. It is stunning. This is a 3-disk set includes most (if not all) of the music in the film, as well as alternate recordings and a suite from Double Indemnity, another classic Rozsa score. Seek this score out. It is worth every penny, and has my vote for the best CD release of 2008. Now if I could just get my brother to listen to it! More Movie Soundtracks
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