Track Listing

1. Archers Ident
2. 49th Parallel: Prelude
3. 49th Parallel: Epilogue
4. Matter of Life and Death: Prelude/This Is the Universe
5. Matter of Life and Death: The Waiting Room/Washed Ashore
6. Matter of Life and Death: Prelude/Stairway to Heaven
7. Airman's Letter to His Mother: Narrative by Sir John Gielgud
8. Life and Death of Colonel Blimp: Prelude
9. Life and Death of Colonel Blimp: War Starts at Midnight
10. Life and Death of Colonel Blimp: Commando Patrol
11. Canterbury Tales: Prelude
12. Canterbury Tales: Toccata and Fugue in D Minor
13. Red Shoes: Prelude
14. Red Shoes: Ballet Music
15. Black Narcissus: Prologue
16. Black Narcissus: Composed Sequence
17. Gone to Earth: Prelude
18. Gone to Earth: The Tryst
19. Gone to Earth: The Hunt
20. Small Back Room: Composed Sequence
21. Small Back Room: Epilogue
22. Tales of Hoffman: Orchestral Tuning

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #21429 in Music
• Released on: 2002-07-15
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Soundtrack, Original recording remastered
• Running time: 74 minutes

Customer Reviews

Archers hit Gold
Anyone with a love of British films of the 40's and 50's will relish this CD. Powell and Pressburger were pre-eminent in their field and produced a string of unique films which, once seen, live long in the memory. A key element in creating the peculiar atmosphere of P&P films was the music which accompanied some of the most striking scenes - and this CD has it all. From the simple yet strangely sinister piano scales taken from A Matter of Life and Death to the full orchestral composition of the Red Shoes ballet we're treated to pieces which not only evoke classic film images but stand as fine works in their own right. Perhaps the ultimate example of how the score was incorporated into P&P films is the choral composition for the dramatic scene in Black Narcissus where the demented Sister Ruth (Kathleen Byron) pursues Sister Clodagh (Deborah Kerr)leading to a murderous confrontation on a cliff edge. The music was actually composed first and the film scene choreographed to match its tempo and dark mood. This CD is a must.

Disappointing effort unworthy of Gray, Easdale, Powell & Pressburger
This is a missed opportunity I'm afraid.

This claims to be a collection of digitally remastered soundtrack recordings but really, when you listen to it you may wonder whether this is in fact true. The quality varies with crackles in places. (e.g. 49th Parallel). Most of the recordings are (I suspect) taken directly from the films themselves, as is evident on track 11.

The inclusion of track 12 is baffling as it is clearly not the one familiar to people who have seen 'A Canterbury Tale'. A nice inclusion however is the 'commando patrol' from 'Life and Death of Colonel Blimp'.

Sadly, it appears that this is the only CD on the market where one can listen to this great film music. It hasn't been done justice. The Red Shoes deserves a release all by itself. On the plus side there is a very good booklet with lots of information, and the presentation is all very nice but really this music deserves a more complete and professional release, interpreted by an orchestra.