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Posted: |
Jan 13, 2001 - 11:17 PM
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By: |
Spacehunter
(Member)
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I don't hear it talked about much, but does anyone else think Hermann's PSYCHO is just phenomenal? Especially in the way he uses nothing but strings to create a powerfully-effective score. I didn't care much for the film upon my first viewing and didn't really pay attention to the score, but subsequent watches showed me just how great both are.I think I asked on the last version of this board, but I'm not sure. How many different recordings are there of the PSYCHO score, and which is the best? I think most people recommended Danny Elfman's adaptation of the score for the remake as the best one to buy. True?
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Posted: |
Jan 14, 2001 - 12:44 AM
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H. Rocco
(Member)
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The Joel McNeely-conducted version available on Varese Sarabande is, for my money (already spent!) the absolute best. The Elfman version is reverent and well-done, but far from complete, and there's no reason to have it unless you're a Herrmann and/or Elfman completist. I only bought it because I found it in the used bin, and felt curious.There are more versions of the PSYCHO score than I care to count, including Jerry Goldsmith's cover of "The Murder" on PSYCHO II. Herrmann's own available rerecorded versions (I don't think the actual OST was ever sold) are conducted a bit off-tempo, I think, and I'm not alone in that opinion. PSYCHO received several Academy Award nominations, including Best Director for Alfred Hitchcock, but not Best Picture -- and, bizarrely, not Best Score either. So if you thought the Oscars actually MEANT something ........
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"I don't hear it talked about much".....Nothing personal, but have you been living in a cave or something? This incredible score has been discussed, rediscussed, analyzed, reanalyzed, and copied (but never bettered) for over 40 years. To me, the most interesting think about this score is how circumstances dictated art. "Psycho" was a low budget shocker, something Hitchcock had never done. Its' tight budget did not allow Herrmann his usual orchestral extravagances. Therefore, he was restricted to a string orchestra. I think it would be fair to say he got just about everything out of those strings there was to get. As for recordings, i agree Joel McNeely's is probably the best of the lot. Herrmann's own re-recording was done at a time of failing health. The tempi are, as in many of Herrmann's re-recordings, noticeably slower. The performance is not sloppy or lugubrious, just slower. What it inevitably loses in forward momentem, is partially made up for by Herrmann's attention to inner detail and harmonics. For whatever its worth, when Herrmann was asked about the slower tempi he almost universally adopted in his later re-recordings, his explanation (excuse) was that he had overwritten the scores and was therefore forced to conduct the original sessions faster than he wanted to fit the music in. I don't happen to believe this for a minute, but that's what he said. [This message has been edited by Brian Mellies (edited 14 January 2001).]
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Posted: |
Jan 14, 2001 - 10:38 AM
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By: |
Spacehunter
(Member)
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"I don't hear it talked about much"Sorry. What I meant by that was I hear it talked about much on these boards. Thanks for the recommendations. I'll look into them.
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That's because there's no doubt about it's brilliance. http://www.filmscoremonthly.com/board/wink.gif"> And another tumbs-up for McNeely's recording!NP: Star Trek: Generations (Dennis McCarthy)
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Posted: |
Jan 14, 2001 - 1:44 AM
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By: |
H. Rocco
(Member)
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awww, Marian's getting into Herrmann ... sweeeeet.Glad others agree about the McNeely version. One quibble, though, Mr. Mellies: while it's true that PSYCHO was made on a lower budget than Hitchcock or Herrmann were used to, my impression was that Herrmann SPECIFICALLY decided to use all strings. His TWILIGHT ZONE scores were done an equivalent or, more likely, even cheaper budget, and he didn't feel restricted to all strings in those cases. I think it was an artistic decision on his part. And he sure as hell got the most out of those strings ... Do you have VERTIGO, Mr. Hunter? That's another must, although in this case I cannot compare the merits of the OST with the McNeely, since I only have the OST, which is pretty much perfect for my own needs. I've heard raves about the McNeely VERTIGO, though.
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Add my vote for Joel McNeely's brilliant Psycho re-recording! Coupled with Bruce Broughton's equally wonderful re-recording of Jason And The Argonauts, you would think that Herrmann was still alive and at work in the recording studio!
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Posted: |
Jan 14, 2001 - 3:09 AM
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By: |
Dutch
(Member)
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Many, many, MANY times it has been said, written, and taped that Herrmann used an all string orchestra because the film was shot in black and white. Makes sense. Black. White. Strings. Silence. Masterpiece.And these are not just orchestral strings, notice how the strings are played without vibrato, flat, stabbing staccatos. And, lastly, another thumbs up for McNeely, certainly the clearest version for analyzing. [This message has been edited by Dutch (edited 14 January 2001).]
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quote: Originally posted by H. Rocco: awww, Marian's getting into Herrmann ... sweeeeet.
I've always liked Herrmann! (Well, at least since about the time when I realized that Goldsmith is NOT bad, I still can't believe I hated that guy in the beginning) I just have problems listening to many of Herrmann's scores in full length, including Psycho and North by Northwest. I love them in the movie and also as standalone music, but I find it hard to listen to Herrmann's "filler music". NP: The Cell (Howard Shore)
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Herrmann was given a budget. It was a small budget. How he spent it was his prerogative how he spent it. He decided to spend it by utilizing only the string instruments of the orchestra, much as he chose to eliminate those same strings from his afore mentioned "Jason And The Argonauts" score. The "black and white" music idea is fine. Only problem is Herrmann didn't refer to it as such until quite some time after the film had been released. However, whatever the reason, it obviously was the right decision.
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Posted: |
Jan 16, 2001 - 1:15 AM
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By: |
Amer Zahid
(Member)
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The original OST was never released but a bootleg cd did appear in the market some time ago. Dont know iwhere to get that one but the sound quality on that one is horrible.I also loved Esa Peka Salonen's version of PSYCHO expanded Suite on the FILM SCORES OF BERNARD HERRMANN Compilation. This is also a good rendition although bit partial to Herrmann's own slow tempo re-recording. I like the Joel Mcneely version but just dont discard Herrmann re-recording on the Unicorn label as it captures a different nuance which was absent from McNeely's version. As for the score itself, Its nothing short of pure Genius Its a masterpiece. Herrmann's music has a powerful narrative feel to it. And it psychonanlysis Norman Bates much better all along. The music is more of a psychological study of our instincts in sync to our intentions if we were in the same situation. And Herrmann and Hitchcock focused more on situational music. There a great deal of depth to this score which will elude you if you listen to this first time . I finally got the hang of it when I was down with a migraine! And it some how clicked. I watched the film again and again until the transformation began. And alas it was no turning back. I was hooked.! I specailly love the peseudo subliminal romatic motives for Sam and Marion in the City, Sam and Marian.
This is one of the best score of its genre.
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Posted: |
Jan 16, 2001 - 12:12 AM
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By: |
H. Rocco
(Member)
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The amazing melancholy of the two Marian cues is possibly my very favorite part of the score.Didn't know about the boot of the OST -- thanks for the info.
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Posted: |
Jan 16, 2001 - 12:33 AM
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Howard L
(Member)
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"His TWILIGHT ZONE scores..."He inserted a piece of his classic score for "Walking Distance", composed a few months earlier, into the scene late in the film with Leila snooping around Norman's (or Mother's?) room.
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quote: Originally posted by H. Rocco: The amazing melancholy of the two Marian cues is possibly my very favorite part of the score.
Yeah, it was a treat working with Herrmann, though of course you have to be careful not to make him upset. http://www.filmscoremonthly.com/board/tongue.gif"> NP: Anton Bruckner: Psalm 150 (Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Daniel Barenboim)
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