Due to the existence of dual microphone perspectives, FSM has been able to mix nearly all of Dragon Seed in genuine stereo. The sound quality utterly belies its age (over 65 years old).
Clever. It seems that the release hiatus is officially over.
Wow -- most limited FSM title, EVER. I guess Lukas has finally had to give in (thanks to the economy, I am sure) and regularly release titles limited to the numbers all the other labels have been doing for a while now (though I'm sure he'll still regularly release more of most titles than the other labels would put out). I think for this score it is a good decision. It looks interesting but of course I won't be able to afford it any time soon when I can't even afford the titles by my favorite composers (a group which Stothart definitely is far from joining) [EDIT: I just listened to the sound clips and was pretty impressed overall. This could probably be my new favorite Stothart score.)
I'll definitely be listening to the sound clips and will one day buy it when I can afford it, just as I will every single FSM title (the only label I will do this for, because of Lukas's perfectionism for every single title).
On another note, great job on the artwork, Joe!
Yavar
P.S. Funny note...when I saw this on the forum my brain read it as "Demon Seed" because of all the Fielding talk lately...I thought someone was just commenting on it as a result.
One of Stothart's best scores. When Lukas said that it would be a double CD, this score is the first one I thought of because I remembered it being quite lengthy. Although the film itself is not a classic like some of the others for which Stothart provided the underscore, the music really is very characteristic of his style and IMO quite outstanding. This is going to be my new favorite FSM Golden Age score.
It's also one of my two favorite films from MGM in the 1940s. The other being "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" which had a terrific score by Franz Waxman.
For "Dorian Gray," Stothart utilized Chopin which he expertly worked into the score to aid the narrative.
Of course Stothart wasn't in the same league as say Alfred Newman or Franz Waxman or Miklos Rozsa. Stothart was a gifted musician who borrowed liberally from the classics. He was also a good conductor. Too bad the sound on MGM's scoring stage was so flat and lifeless during the 1940s. That all changed once John Green to over the music department in the late 1940s. Working with MGM sound director Doug Shearer, Green made substantial changes to the stage as well as how the orchestra was recorded. He chucked all the lousy Altec ribbon microphones and replaced them with good condensers. Green also replaced a few inferior musicians with some of the best in Hollywood.
Just listen to the sound quality from this 1954 Cinemascope short conducted by Green:
That's the natural acoustics of the stage you hear. No added reverb. It was recorded onto 35mm full-coat three-track film.
WOW! This is by far one of the best sounding golden age soundtracks as far as the lack of age in the sound. Listening to the samples I would never have guessed this was from 1944! Samples are so beautiful that I am ordering this immediately in case it happens to be a quick sell-out.
WOW! This is by far one of the best sounding golden age soundtracks as far as the lack of age in the sound. Listening to the samples I would never have guessed this was from 1944! Samples are so beautiful that I am ordering this immediately in case it happens to be a quick sell-out.
