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Composed by
BERNARD HERRMANN
and
ALFRED NEWMAN

Rating
* * * * 1/2

Album running time
71:30

Performed by
THE MOSCOW SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA AND CHORUS
conducted by
WILLIAM T. STROMBERG

Orchestration
EDWARD POWELL
BERNARD HERRMANN
Reconstruction
JOHN MORGAN

Engineered by
EDVARD SHAKHNAZARIAN
VITALY IVANOV

Released by
 MARCO POLO
Serial number
8.225078

Artwork copyright (c) 1999 HNH International Ltd.; review copyright (c) 2005 James Southall; special thanks to Christian Kühn

 

THE EGYPTIAN

Marvelous collaboration by two masters

A review by JAMES SOUTHALL

The 1954 movie The Egyptian must be unique in film music history: its score was written by the two movie music megastars of the time, Alfred Newman - the godfather of film music - and Bernard Herrmann.  ("Unique?" I hear you cry.  "What about Batman Begins?"  Go to the back of the class.  Don't bother me again.)  This collaboration came about after Newman realised the time pressures on him were too great to enable him to write the score all by himself; Darryl Zanuck, studio chief at Fox, wanted Franz Waxman to assist Newman, but his music chief held out for Herrmann. It's unlikely that Herrmann would have said yes to working with anyone else - but his respect and admiration for Newman is legendary. The two composers generally have vastly differing styles, so it is something of a miracle that the score is as coherent as it is. This recording,made in 1998 by the Moscow Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, conducted by William T. Stromberg, presents the score strictly in film order; most of the early action music is by Herrmann, with Newman unsurprisingly concentrating on the mystical and theological aspects of the story towards the end. 

Herrmann's main love theme for The Egyptian, "Nefer-Nefer-Nefer", must rank as one of the most beautiful cues he ever wrote; its seven minute length allowed the composer more room than usual to develop his material, a chance rarely given to composers nowadays. The high-register oboe melody, later taken up by the strings, offers far more insight into the story than Michael Curtiz's long-forgotten movie did. H errmann's livelier material is just as good: "The Chariot Race" and "Pursuit" are two highlights, both offering up the kind of orchestral violence for which the composer was so renowned.  Its harsh brutality is unlike anything composers write for film these days and Herrmann writing in such a style is always a real treat.

The music by Newman is just as strong (and some of the cues credited to Herrmann are actually based around sketches by Newman).  Movies with strong religious connotations are those for which Newman is probably best-remembered today: The Robe, The Strong of Bernadette, The Greatest Story Ever Told et cetera.  His cue "Hymn to Aton" continues this tradition; this dates from before Christ, but the music is unmistakable Newman.  When the material is reprised for "Death & Exile", the effect is breathtaking. 

The Egyptian represents two composers at the peak of their powers, and is surely an essential purchase for all fans of the genre.  The sheer quality of the music speaks for itself. The orchestral performance by the Moscow orchestra is good, though the extremely close miking - in marked contrast to the concert-hall ambience of Varèse Sarabande's re-recordings like Patton, which provoked much debate around the time of this release - does produce a sound that at times borders on being tinny, particularly in the percussion.  Nevertheless, this is a fine release from Marco Polo, and comes highly recommended.  For those who prefer original tracks in all cases, then Film Score Monthly released those a few years later, and copies are still available at their website; and The Egyptian is one of a number of Marco Polo's film music recordings which has since seen a budget re-release by Naxos.  At any price, it's wonderful; at a low one, it's plain unmissable.

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Tracks

  1. Prelude (1:40)
  2. The Ruins (:54)
  3. The Red Sea / Childhood (3:02)
  4. The Nile / Temple (1:24)
  5. Her Name was Merit (1:19)
  6. The Chariot Ride (1:22)
  7. Pursuit (:35)
  8. Akhnaton - One Deity (1:18)
  9. Taia (1:13)
  10. Party's End (1:58)
  11. Nefer-Nefer-Nefer (7:02)
  12. The Rebuke (3:16)
  13. The Deed (2:20)
  14. The Harp / Couch (1:29)
  15. The Perfection of Love (1:21)
  16. Violence (2:13)
  17. Valley of the Kings (7:49)
  18. The Homecoming (1:13)
  19. Hymn to Aton (4:51)
  20. Sights, Sounds and Smells (:47)
  21. Live for Our Son (1:41)
  22. Am I Mad? (3:30)
  23. The True Pharaoh (1:28)
  24. The Tomb (2:44)
  25. The Holy War (:36)
  26. Dance Macabre (1:35)
  27. Death of Merit (4:10)
  28. Death of Akhnaton (5:23)
  29. The New Pharaoh (1:04)
  30. Exile and Death (1:47)