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I was watching the Universal 2 D.V.D. set "The Dracula Legacy", and noticed that there's no music credit for "Dracula's Daughter", which according to Randall Larson in "Musique Fantastique" was supposed to be scored by Franz Waxman, who left Universal for M.G.M.., and the film was scored by Heinz Roemheld, who got no screen credit. Can anybody explain this? After looking it up on the ASCAP website I suspect it's a TRACK job, with perhaps only the opening and closing credit are original and everything else is drawn from other scores composed by Heinz Roemheld for other projects. I'm sure either Mr. Larson or our friends at MONSTOUS MOVIE MUSIC will have more information, but that's my best guess. Ford A. Thaxton
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I'm totally ignorant about what information reposes in the ASCAP archives, so your guess is better than mine, (to coin a phrase). With that as a given, and respectfully, I just want to say I'd be very surprised if this was not a substantially original score. The same mood is sustained throughout, themes keep recurring, and darn it, it simply works so well in conjunction with the movie. It should be possible to verify this one way or the other. When I was researching for my Hans Salter interview in the mid-70's, the Universal music department had complete lists of the score cues for every movie produced by the studio. That was how I was able to determine which cues in which films were original Salter pieces, which were previously-usesd Salter cues, which cues had been contributed by a colleague, and which cues were "Salterized" -- as Charlie Previn affectionately called them -- from the Universal musical library.
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Didn't Ray Faiola once post that DRACULA'S DAUGHTER had an almost completely original score by Heinz Roemheld? I seem to recall he did... It's a great score indeed, and one of my favourite "little" Universal classic movies. I prefer it to the Lugosi DRACULA.
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Posted: |
Dec 13, 2012 - 1:21 PM
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By: |
waxmanman35
(Member)
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I'm totally ignorant about what information reposes in the ASCAP archives, so your guess is better than mine, (to coin a phrase). With that as a given, and respectfully, I just want to say I'd be very surprised if this was not a substantially original score. The same mood is sustained throughout, themes keep recurring, and darn it, it simply works so well in conjunction with the movie. The score is wholly the work of composer Heinz Roemheld, with the exception of the Chopin Nocturne that Gloria Holden is shown playing on the piano. The ASCAP cue sheet supports this, as well as the surviving manuscript. Roemheld moved to Warner's in '36, not MGM.
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Right after you do THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER, right?
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Posted: |
Dec 14, 2012 - 2:56 PM
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By: |
John Morgan
(Member)
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Both Dracula's Daughter and the 1934 Black Cat are great scores that would go on one CD nicely. What a treat that would be! John, since the early 1930s Universal horror scores used a small orhcestra would these be less costly for you to do? Night of the Hunter would make a great CD, BUT, only after Abbott & Costello meet Frankenstein! ............ sorry Preston! ...... Peter Yes, a smaller orchestra, but the overall price wouldn't be that much less. Remember, travel, studio, editing, mixing, etc. would be the same no matter how small the orchestra would be. Actually THE BLACK CAT had an enormous orchestra for the time (and for Universal) of about 60 players. Things like BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN, MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD, INVISIBLE RAY would be the same. The earlier ones, including THE MUMMY, INVISIBLE MAN, etc, could be and should be done with a chamber size group. When I reconstructed the 40s music, we used an orchestra numbering somewhere in the 80s. A&C would require about the same. The additions would be in strings to give a fuller sound.
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So do I, Peter, though I'm sure John and Bill already know how much their recordings have enriched my life. (As a matter of fact, they also know that I want to have them do ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN, perhaps even more than you do!)
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It was definitely Howard Thompson, who also wrote some fine movie books, including one that took advantage of his capsule critical skills. A couple of my own favorites from the Times: A SAND-AND-SANDAL MOVIE WHOSE TITLE I CAN'T RECALL: Sheiks and turks. And geese better scurry. *** John, if you like his take on GUNGA DIN, you'll appreciate what he said about ISTANBUL: Mostly bull. ***
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