I now own the complete scores to Vertigo, Psycho (Varese re-recordings), and North by Northwest. What other complete Herrmann/Hitchcock scores are available and where?

The second part:

2. The "self-borrowings" of Herrmann are well-known and often discussed. Herrmann had particular motifs etc. which he liked using in different scores. Some of the music from his radio scores also ended up in film, such as the pastoral theme from "The Trouble with Harry" which originated from an episode of Crime Classics. The main point here is that he didn't do this because he couldn't write anything else, but because that was a particluar piece of music he was fond of and wanted to work with in other settings. The context in which he uses these motifs are never the same, and all of his scores have a distinct and unique character eventhough some of the melodic material might be identical to something he wrote before.
All in all, this is just part of Herrmann's style, and something you have to accept in order to enjoy his music. Personally I like hearing small snippets of melodies from other scores where I didn't expect it. It's like getting a visit from an old friend

SFT

They all do it occasionally though. Some more frequently than others. Korngold re-used themes, Herrmann apparently did, Goldsmith and Williams occasionally do. When it happens once in a while, it's not really annoying. Williams recent liking for Ludlow's Demise is annoying.

But still, they do it *sometimes*. For Horner, borrowing has become a trademark and a major part of his style. I don't think anyony would bitch about Gayaneh in Aliens if that was the only time he did it. And also, he sometimes does something to the stolen themens that annoys me a lot. He twists them only slightly, sometimes making them simpler than they originally were, but to me, the way he uses them and does the minor changes sounds like "ha, listen, it's *MY* theme, not Schumann's" - referring in this case to Willow, which I still think is his most annoying bit.

Also, Herrmann rarely, if ever, re-used entire melodies and cues, which Horner does regularly.

SFT

NP: Swanwhite, Sibelius

There are some bootleg copies available from www.majestyx.com (they are cdrs). These are mostly rare scores/promos that are not in circulation...original recordings, etc.

------The second part:
I was watching North by Northwest today, and I swear, I heard strains of Vertigo within the scenes involving Thornhill and Eve. Anybody wanna say he was stuck in his style of music?-------

The love theme from North has a similar feel to the theme you're thinking of from Vertigo, but they are very different.

I agree with the remarks made by SFT. Bernard Herrmann would borrow from himself but it was always necessary, and Herrmann always did it in clever and intelligent ways (writer Bill Wrobel has completed a detailed essay about Herrmann's self-borrowing, which will appear in the second issue of The Journal of Film Music, an issue that will be devoted entirely to Benny).

What James Horner does is quite ludicrous, especially using half of Nino Rota's theme from Armacord for 'Honey, I Shrunk the Kids'. And everybody always speaks about that motif he's endlessly been utilizing in his recent scores. There's no rational motive to be comparing the two...Horner is not creative with his borrowed, or re-re-re-used material, and (from what i gather) he's doing it for reasons that would point to him as lazy.

"Also, Herrmann rarely, if ever, re-used entire melodies and cues, which Horner does regularly."

Amen.

Dylan