Download Review: Music for Alfred Hitchcock

Review: Music for Alfred Hitchcock
Danish National Symphony Orchestra
John Mauceri, conductor
By: Steven A. Kennedy
September, 2014
Toccata Classics has done the film music community a great service by bringing back classic
film music recordings helmed by John Mauceri. The conductor led the Hollywood Bowl
Orchestra through many great film works during his 16 years as music director there, with
some 300 performances. His recordings with that orchestra were filled with a great variety of
classical and film selections as well as Broadway tunes, many of which were somehow both
unique and faithful to the originals. The present release, with the Danish National Symphony
Orchestra, was recorded in concert in November 2013. Many of the pieces on the program are
the first recordings Mauceri has made of this repertoire.
The concert overture from Bernard Herrmann’s The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) kicks
the album off with great excitement. This is a modified version of the oft-performed “Prelude.”
Exquisitely played music from Franz Waxman’s Rebecca (1940) follows in a suite from the
classic score. The orchestra is simply superb, with perfect balance and articulations, rendering
one of the best performances of this suite on record. And we are only 10 minutes into this
program!
The music changes style and course for a suite from Waxman’s brief score for Rear Window
(1954), separated into four tracks (“Prelude; Lisa-Intermezzo; Ballet; Lisa-Finale”). The music
bubbles along with great brass playing and delightful solo wind lines, while the saxophone
work is a spot-on noir recreation with the perfect balance of romanticism and mystery. Two
premiere suites of music by Dimitri Tiomkin follow, from Strangers on a Train (1951) and Dial
M for Murder (1954). The former features some of the composer’s delightful comedic writing
along with jazz elements and engaging thematic material. A beautiful waltz opens the latter
score, which stands out as unique from the other styles on this disc.
A lot more Herrmann follows, naturally, given his longstanding collaboration with Hitch until
their falling out over Torn Curtain. This would not be a Hitchcock disc without the inclusion of
Vertigo (1958), and Mauceri selects both the famous “Prelude” and mesmerizing “Scene
d’Amour.” The latter features great dynamic shading as it shimmers before its Wagnerian
swells. Of additional interest is a newly restored concert work from Herrmann’s Psycho,
expanded to run just under 16 minutes, and presented with the subtitle: A Narrative for
String Orchestra. The composer recorded this himself back in the day, but Mauceri uses his
own newly edited version, in one of the first digital recordings of the piece. The “Main Titles”
track from North by Northwest (1959) is followed by Herrmann’s arrangement of Arthur
Benjamin’s Storm Clouds Cantata (which played an important role in Hitchcock’s original
version of The Man Who Knew Too Much, re-edited for the 1956 remake). Klaudia Kidon’s
performance is excellent, well balanced with the choir and orchestra. Enthusiastic applause
follows this performance, but otherwise the live concert noise is very minimal on the album.
Finally, the disc closes off with the “End Credits” from Danny Elfman’s recent Hitchcock
score—the fact that the film is set during the making of Psycho helps give the music some
context here. Its inclusion is also a mark of Mauceri’s continued support of new film music in
the concert hall, and the result is a nice bonus on an already generous album.
Over the years, there have been a number of Hitchcock-based compilations. Some, like this
one, cover the basics, while others delve into less explored territory. None of them are as well
played, recorded and produced as this new Mauceri disc. The Psycho and Benjamin sections
may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but you will not find better performances currently on disc.
Toccata Classics makes one wish for the days when a release like this was not such a rare
occurrence, so perhaps we can hear more from Mauceri’s concert performances in the future.
The Danish orchestra really seems to relish this material, surely assisted by Mauceri’s own
appreciation of the selections. The album cover is a bit typical, with the Hitchcock portrait
silhouette and a listing of the works represented, not unlike other label’s similar releases.
Playlists like this can sometimes feel too pops-like, but here things are taken quite seriously,
with attention to detail, individual composer styles, and dramatic flair. The booklet notes are
equally superb and intelligently written. There are very few releases that have this much
synergy going for them.