Composer: Harold Arlen, Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Frederick Loewe, Johnny Mandel, Alfred Newman, David Raksin, Max Steiner, Franz Waxman
Performer: Andy Wood, Michael Lovatt
Orchestra: Sinfonia of London
Conductor: John Wilson
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Chandos
Catalogue: CHSA5294
Release: 2022
Size: 1.06 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
01. Korngold: The Private Lives of Elizabeth & Essex: Overture
02. Raksin: Laura: Theme
03. Arlen: The Wizard of Oz: Suite
04. Loewe: Transylvanian March and Embassy Waltz (from ‘My Fair Lady’)
05. Steiner: Now, Voyager: Suite
06. Mandel: The Sandpiper: Main Title
07. Waxman: Rebecca: Suite
08. Newman: Street Scene (from ‘How to Marry a Millionaire’)
Sinfonia of London rose to fame in the 1950s as the leading recording orchestra of the day, appearing in the musical credits of more than 300 films, including the 1958 soundtrack by Bernard Herrmann for Hitchcock’s Vertigo. It was reformed by John Wilson in 2018, initially as a recording orchestra, and is made up of some of Europe’s finest orchestral musicians. Their recording of Korngold’s Symphony in F-sharp won the orchestral award of the magazine BBC Music and drew critical acclaim worldwide.
The Overture from The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex, which opens this latest programme, is an excellent demonstration of Korngold’s rich, chromatic soundworld, one that set the blueprint for the Hollywood sound for countless composers who followed.
Although the songs were written by Harold Arlen, it was Herbert Stothart’s score for The Wizard of Oz that won the Oscar, and it is his suite from the movie that features here. There are also Suites from Max Steiner’s Now, Voyager and Franz Waxman’s Rebecca (here receiving its première recording). Shorter pieces by David Raksin, Frederick Loewe, Johnny Mandel, and Alfred Newman complete this rewarding programme.