By RAY KELLY
Quartet Records – in collaboration with Fifth Continent Music Classics – is offering a remastered reissue of the acclaimed 1991 recording of Bernard Herrmann’s lost score for The Magnificent Ambersons on audiophile CD
The Magnificent Ambersons was Herrmann’s second film collaboration with Orson Welles, but the music was highly modified in the finished film – due to RKO Pictures decision to re-edit the film in Welles’ absence. Much of Herrmann’s work does not appear in the film and he insisted on having his name removed from the end credits. Approximately 30 minutes of Herrmann’s original 58‑minute score was cut by the studio and music by Roy Webb added to the studio cut.
In a 1971 interview published by the British Film Institute, Herrmann said of the recutting of Ambersons: “As it affected Welles, it affected me. They never asked him to reshoot the ending or me to write new music for it. A composer named Roy Webb wrote the last few minutes of music. They finished Ambersons in a totally different style; they didn’t even attempt to carry out the textures of Orson Welles.”
Producer John Lasher was determined to rescue Herrmann’s score from oblivion, and thanks to the recovery of the well-preserved original manuscripts, the score was re-recorded in its entirety as Herrmann had conceived it. The music was performed by the Australian Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of conductor Tony Bremner.
The album has been remixed and remastered by Chris Malone on Super Audio CD at 32-bit/96 kHz from high-resolution sources transferred in two-channel stereo. This hybrid SA-CD can be played on any standard CD player, although those with an SACD system will be able to enjoy it in DSD. The lavish 20-page booklet features an exclusive essay by Herrmann’s official biographer, Steven C. Smith, uncovering new aspects of the relationship between Herrmann and Welles.
Limited to 1,000 copies, the SA-CD can be ordered online at quartetrecords.com/product/the-magnificent-ambersons
The company, based in Madrid, Spain, ships worldwide using DHL and Federal Express.
Quartet Records is also offering a remastered SA-CD reissue of the acclaimed 1991 recording of Herrmann’s score for Citizen Kane, again performed by the Australian Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Bremner.
Lasher undertook a re-recording of the original score of the film, working directly from the original manuscripts in 1991. Although it is not the complete score, another later recording conducted by Joel McNeely and produced by Robert Townson for Varèse Sarabande, was more complete), it was celebrated for its fidelity, sound quality and rendition.
Limited to 1,000 copies, the Citizen Kane SA-CD can be ordered online at quartetrecords.com/product/citizen-kane
Herrmann’s professional relationship with Welles dated back to radio and the Mercury Theatre On the Air. He often emphasized that Welles was one of the few movie directors who had a strong musical and cultural background, which made collaboration smoother.
“People always tell me how difficult Orson Welles is. … Welles in every other way might be difficult, but when it comes to making artistic decisions he’s like the Rock of Gibraltar.”
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