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Posted: |
Aug 17, 2013 - 8:19 PM
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By: |
Solium
(Member)
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My point is no one, (other than Basil in private to friends or associates, apparently) EVER complained about the Conan score. Never did I hear a score fan say, he used the wrong instruments, or it sounds too small, the chorus sounds weird, what ever.
That's kind of a strange thing to say, seeing how (no offense) it's just not true. Many have had issues with Conan, even the people who love it. Are you saying that no one SHOULD have had a problem with the original?
Before the re-recording Ive never heard of such complaints. If they exist, I guess I wasn't in those circles to hear such arguments.
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The Raine's re-recording is surely a work of love.
But it ended being so different from the original soundtrack that YOR just cannot listen to it without cringe - specially the choral parts.
The Intrada 3CD set is glorious, but have some flaws, like the aforementioned merging of "The Three of Woe" with "The Recovery", something that makes no sense since both cues are not even close to each other in the film (we have all the "demons' attack" scene in between).
But it is quite strange that the Raine's re-recording of "Conan, the Destroyer" ended sounding very similar to the original soundtrack!
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Posted: |
Aug 17, 2013 - 8:41 PM
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By: |
cguthrie00
(Member)
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Here's the question, followed by the details: I've got the Varese Sarabande CD of "Conan the Barbarian"... is it worth upgrading to either the recent Intrada 3-CD release and/or the Nic Raine 2-CD rerecording?
Well, if you love the score, then you should pick up the other versions, especially since they contain additional music, like the Prologue, the Rozsa-inspired Gladiator (Pit Fights) music, the hypnotic Tower of Set music, etc, as well as some alternate takes.
However, I've been surprised to read on the main thread here about the Intrada release how people are griping about tracks not being split the way they'd like, or the recording sounding as warm as they thought it would, etc. Thus, I'm not sure, is it worth getting? There's also the Nic Raine rerecording, which I gather from reviews has much better sound, but I've also read reviews that mention that the tempos at time vary significantly from the original, which would bother me (having percussion experience I have an acute sense of tempo).
I probably complained a little about the Tadlow and Intrada versions, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't recommend them. Hey, when comparing the releases, to me, the Varese version comes out on top; however, I love all of them, and I would say that if you love the score you should have all three versions. I will mention that the Milan version is now obsolete due to the Intrada release...
You should think of it as a symphony. I love Sibelius second symphony, and I have heard several versions of it (Davis, Jarvi, Bernstein, Maazel, Gilbert, etc), and while I could complain about certain versions and the tempo's (see Bernstein and Maazel), I still think they have something to offer. In terms of the Conan score, I love listening to the Varese version, the additional music on the Intrada version, and the new sound of the Tadlow recording. Heck, I even love the suite by the CITY OF PRAGUE PHILHARMONIC on the "The Greatest Themes from the Films of Arnold Schwarzenegger" cd.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXcq-vQAoRM
Now, yes, there are some changes in the Tadlow recording, but it's possible to love both takes.
So, what say you all? Sorry, I'd post this in one of the longer theads, but I figured it would get missed. Thanks!
So, I say again, get them all, and "if you do not listen, then the ... 
-CG
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The Intrada is worth the upgrade. There's just too much good music there to miss if you don't get it. Although, all versions have their strong and weak points.
Slightly off-topic, none of the liner notes mention the similarity of the track 'War Paint' with the 'Main Title' of Fumio Hayasaka's SEVEN SAMURAI.
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For all the ragged playing on the original, the Orchestra Of Santa Cecilia play with passion and fire. The City Of Prague's performance, while technically more smooth, is pretty apathetic (and their playing isn't technically perfect either).
Although the rerecording should rightly be praised for restoring some of the difficult passages Poledoruis had to compromise originally, their recording of Anvil Of Crom falls flat, because that was one cue which Poledouris improved for the original recording (at John Mlilius's behest) by tripling the number of French horns.
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I own the Varèse, Prometheus, and Intrada versions of Conan the Barbarian. I enjoy all 3 of these recordings and would not want to part with any of them. My advice to whomever wants to purchase Conan The Barbarian recordings would be to listen to clips available on www.tadlowmusic.com, intrada.com, and YouTube and to let your ears be your guide.
I also own 3 copies of The Rite of the Spring, which is composed by Igor Stravinsky. One copy is conducted by Igor himself, one by Leonard Bernstein, and one by one of Leonard's protégés Seiji Ozawa. The Bernstein recording is the one typically recommended as the benchmark recording. I happen to prefer the Ozawa recording.
Carmina Burana was composed by Carl Orff and Carl Orff endorsed Eugen Jochum's recording.
Conducting, too, is an art. Different interpretations resonate differently with each person. When evaluating which version of a recording to purchase, please don't get too weighed down with who is the superior conductor, the superior orchestra/choir, etc. and choose the recording that you enjoy more.
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Posted: |
Aug 17, 2013 - 11:50 PM
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By: |
TerraEpon
(Member)
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Ford, your point is taken that the late, great Mr. Poledouris had a lot to say about the project before he passed, but I still think the point stands that no one knows what he might have said / done / changed on the recording stage. He was an artist, and who knows what he might have changed his mind about on the day, when it mattered most. It is a tragedy he didn't live to see the rerecording, and a tragedy that we all lost him so young.
(ducks, preparing for abusive, dismissive comeback)
It's absolutely ridiculous that it should even MATTER that Poledouris didn't live to see the recording made, as if that somehow make it worse. God forbid people record music of a dead person and enjoy it....oh no, because Beethoven didn't oversee the 1000s of recordings of his music none of them are worth anything.
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For all the ragged playing on the original, the Orchestra Of Santa Cecilia play with passion and fire. The City Of Prague's performance, while technically more smooth, is pretty apathetic (and their playing isn't technically perfect either).
Really, can you point out one or two places " isn't technically perfect either" EXACTLY please?
You also have of course the written score to follow as well to prove this point, don't you?
Ford A. Thaxton
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The man wanted to do a new recording of this score right up until he passed away and made his feelings quite clear on the topic.
Ford, your point is taken that the late, great Mr. Poledouris had a lot to say about the project before he passed, but I still think the point stands that no one knows what he might have said / done / changed on the recording stage. He was an artist, and who knows what he might have changed his mind about on the day, when it mattered most. It is a tragedy he didn't live to see the rerecording, and a tragedy that we all lost him so young.
(ducks, preparing for abusive, dismissive comeback)
I have both the Intrada and the Tadlow versions. This score is also perhaps one of my all time favourites. The version I almost always listen to is the Tadlow. For me it blows the socks off the original recording. But I have the original to listen to what Basil created with the orchestra at the time.
As to the point above it seems to me to be a version of The Argument from Ignorance (no critcism intended). Correct me if I am wrong but the lack of evidence is evidence for nothing at all. I don't think we can cite the lack of evidence as if it were evidence of something - in this case, Basil would have changed something on the recording stage, which to me is what the point above is implying.
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Posted: |
Aug 18, 2013 - 8:49 AM
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By: |
Matt B
(Member)
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For what it's worth, I love the rerecording and have ZERO of the recording issues that some others claim to hear. It just bothers me, frankly, that Ford seems to think that some very valuable conversations between Basil, himself, and James Fitzpatrick automatically translates into Basil posthumously considering the recording to be the definitive CONAN. He's doing it for the PR value... it makes great copy, to be sure... but IMHO it's not necessary, and comes off as ever so slightly disingenuous.
Whatever though... RIP Basil.
And incidentally, I usually turn to the original recordings when I want to hear CONAN. Part nostalgia, part uniqueness of the performance... you can't really replicate things like the gong scratches on "Wheel of Pain", not that the rerecording didn't do a fine job.
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You also have of course the written score to follow as well to prove this point, don't you?
One doesn't need a score in front of them to judge a musical performance, just as one doesn't need to have read a script to judge an actor's performance.
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