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Alfred Newman - what gives?

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Author	Topic: Alfred Newman - what gives?

Laurence Page Standard Userer	At the risk of incurring your wrath - I like "All About Eve", but, well..that's about it... What am I missing? What scores should I hear to change my mind? I'm listening to the Gerhardt compilation and I wonder why Newman's held in such high regard. If I put on the Tiomkin or Raksin or Waxman or Steiner - now they really make me sit up. The Sea Hawk disc has always been a favourite. All the best PS Like Thomas Newman however!
posted 07-10-2001 07:29 AM PT (US)

dgoldwas Standard Userer	Here are three Alfred Newman "must have" scores: - The Greatest Story Ever Told - How The West Was Won - The Robe That should get you started! Dan
posted 07-10-2001 08:16 AM PT (US)

sakman Standard Userer	Those are good.... also try: "Airport"--especially if you like Williams scores from the 70s. "How Green Was my Valley" is pretty good too. And there's always "The Egyptian" written with Bernard Herrmann. And the excellent "Hunchback of Notre Dame" available on Marco Polo.
posted 07-10-2001 12:31 PM PT (US)

John C Winfrey Standard Userer	Nevada Smith is a good one. Prince of Foxes Song of Bernadette Diary of Anne Frank There are four more really good ones. John.
posted 07-10-2001 02:30 PM PT (US)

John C Winfrey Standard Userer	and on the Historical Romances CD-Gunda Din.
posted 07-10-2001 02:31 PM PT (US)

John C Winfrey Standard Userer	and on the Historical Romances CD-Gunda Din.
posted 07-10-2001 02:33 PM PT (US)

Marian Schedenig Standard Userer	and also on the Historical Romances CD-Gunda Din. NP: Battle for the Planet of the Apes (Leonard Rosenman)
posted 07-10-2001 03:06 PM PT (US)

JEC Standard Userer	And if you don't like Gunda Din, try his score to Gunga Din.
posted 07-10-2001 03:15 PM PT (US)

JJH Standard Userer	The Song of Bernadette. if this one fails to move you, well then, you a big poopyhead. hehe The Robe I believe is one the best scores out there, with a moving main theme. The Egyptian ain't bad either.
posted 07-10-2001 05:15 PM PT (US)

mlw Standard Userer	Newman music is distinguished by uncommonly beatific reserves of understanding for other human beings in terms of dramatic content; in terms of technique his romantic style gave his subjects dignity, basic empathy, and robust larger-than-life vitality-- his conducting of his studio orchestras has never been matched. This man's accomplishments were titanically huge. You have to watch the movies to gain the full benefit, how the music submerges into the deepest undercurrents of meaning and brings it out in the Newman-trademark powerful surge of compassion. Rent Diary of Anne Franke, get the OSTs of Song of Bernadette, Razor's Edge.... the subtlety will probably be lost on most people and Newman will ultimately just go away, but those are the breaks. [Message edited by mlw on 07-10-2001] [Message edited by mlw on 07-11-2001]
posted 07-10-2001 06:04 PM PT (US)

mujerado Non-Standard Userer	quote: Originally posted by mlw: [B]You have to watch the movies to gain the full benefit, how the music submerges into the deepest undercurrents of meaning and brings it out in the Newman-trademark powerful surge of compassion. Rent Diary of Anne Franke, get the OSTs of Song of Bernadette, Razor's Edge.... the subtlety will probably be lost on most people and Newman will ultimately just go away, but those are the breaks. Alfred Newman will never go away, but you're right that watching the films is probably necessary for a full appreciation of his achievement. Newman's music was always beautiful and romantic, but his understanding of music's use in a film is what made him unique. He's one of the creators, after all, of what we now know as the traditional Hollywood film score. It's possible to argue whether Newman, Steiner or Korngold had the greatest influence or was the greater composer, but not possible to discount any one of the three. As to examples, I'd second "The Song of Bernadette," "The Robe," and add "Captain From Castile," which really has much more to offer than just the "Conquest" march. The title music for "Leave Her To Heaven" is awesomely portentous. Inspired by the ideas or the events depicted, Alfred Newman sometimes produced a masterful score for a less than masterful film.
posted 12-26-2007 09:51 AM PT (US)

John C Winfrey Standard Userer	Well, back in late 80s and early 90s AMC showed a lot of the older films that Newman scored. I watched a lot of them. Some I had not seen since the early 60s on that old independent Channel 11 in Ft. worth. Great station back then. I noticed how good so many of these scores were in addition to all the more common ones we have commented on here. I really like Ten Gentlemen from West Point-1942, Moontide-42. Both very good and underrated scores. And many more like that. J.
posted 01-02-2008 06:18 PM PT (US)

Camillu Standard Userer	I found a 2nd hand copy of Silva's great Alfred Newman compilation recently - http://www.moviemusic.com/soundtrack/essentialalfrednewman I'm loving it so far, though I'm not too keen on the cantata part at the end (based on The Robe and Greatest Story Ever Told) - but I'm not much of a fan of such vocal performances. Besides hearing loads of brilliant music, I'm also hearing loads of influences.... such as: Disc 1 Track 2 (How to Marry a Millionaire) is bookended by a few bars of music that Williams later used to finish off his Star Wars main title. Disc 1 Track 3 (Diary of Anne Frank) - after the intro, a lush theme appears, which is very similar to the love theme from North by Northwest (which was released in the same year - which came first?) Disc 1 Track 13 (How the West Was Won - Cheyenne Attack) - after about 75 seconds you can hear a possible inspiration for the Matrix main title. Disc 2 Track 9 (The Promise of the Holy Spirit from either Robe or Greatest Story) - some of the distant trumpets make you feel like you're approaching the planet Krypton. Anyone spot any others? Is all this old news? [Message edited by Camillu on 01-10-2008]
posted 01-10-2008 03:35 PM PT (US)

tjguitar Standard Userer	I agree with you about the cantata. I sold that set for that very reason.
posted 01-10-2008 03:40 PM PT (US)

Anya_Angie Standard Userer	My personal favorite is "Anastasia" from 1956, but that's because I have enormous interest in Russian history and culture. It's rare but worth a listen IMO.
posted 01-11-2008 04:18 PM PT (US)

morricone Non-Standard Userer	Add to the above STREET SCENE and WUTHERING HEIGHTS but sounds like you might have tough going. Don't blame you, it took a long, loooong time for me to get Steiner's appeal. But I finally did.
posted 01-12-2008 11:52 AM PT (US)

John C Winfrey Standard Userer	That Silva 2 CD set has some good performances on it and some not so good. I love the music in the cantata. Some of the arrangements are very good. I love some of those same tunes in both scores and the vocals in the Greatest Story 3 CD set are excellent too. My favorite cut of all in that score is the Long Journey music with that vocal Hallelujah over it. A masterpiece. J.
posted 01-13-2008 03:53 PM PT (US)

Howard L Standard Userer	The Snake Pit. A master at scoring opening credits, a lost art. This one's a great example of how to set the mood for an important picture. And when Hester finally 'awakens', you will understand why Randy took a similar soft approach in a somewhat similar moment in Awakenings. Camelot's "Love Montage". The guy was one of the great adapters. Here's why. The restored South Pacific. Bloody Mary leads Cable from the wild boar ceremony into the rain forest and takes him on a mystical journey through paradise...and to Liat. Adaptation and original underscoring merge to create an unforgettable marriage between film and music. [Message edited by Howard L on 06-12-2008]
posted 06-11-2008 09:45 PM PT (US)

Wedge Standard Userer	Don't forget "Wilson" and "Dragonwyck"!
posted 06-11-2008 10:52 PM PT (US)

Howard L Standard Userer	quote: Originally posted by John C Winfrey: Nevada Smith is a good one. Prince of Foxes Song of Bernadette Diary of Anne Frank There are four more really good ones. John. http://www.moviemusic.com/mb/Forum1/HTML/015999.html
posted 06-12-2008 01:38 PM PT (US)

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