preserving film scores

[john mansell]

I have been a collector of film music for around45 years now, I started at just 7 years of age with Lawrence of Arabia, and progressed to zulu and james bond, what i am posting for is to simply ask why nobody in the UK is doing anything to either preserve or indeed release some of the great British film music that wwas around during the 1960,s worked with a record company a few years back writing notes for the Hammer films series, and was amazed when approaching film companies in respect of releasing further scores from other British non Hammer productions, that the person or persons we spoke to were not aware of where the music was if it still exsisted or even who the composer was, this surely is wrong, Ok I know Chandos has done a great job of all the re recordings of British material from film, but why cant the original tapes be located. Once again its a case of not caring, the trouble is now, time is running out and these treasures could be lost foreve, in the past 6 to 7 years the Italian record industry (soundtrack specialist labels) have certainly sat up and taken notice as they are issueing so many cds and yes they are selling, if they can do it WHY cant we......

[Film Man]

I tried my best to keep the Film Music programmes alive on BBC Radio...Producing and Editing ..'Music By...'(four series for Radio 2...interviewing and playing the best recordings of composers still alive), and 'Scoring For Britain' this time for Radio 4.



Although we did get a fair amount of letters from interested listeners...we didn't get enough for the 'Front Office' at the time, to let us make more.



Anyway, I enjoyed making them and love the power of music on film images.

Film Man

[darrenburnfan]

I would love to see Malcolm Arnold's beautiful score from the 1962 British 20th Century-Fox CinemaScope / colour film The Inspector released on record. Apart from two singles of the main title theme being released at the time of the film's release, one by piano duo Ferrante and Teicher on His Master's Voice 45-POP 1028 and the other by The Wayfarers on Decca 45 F.11473, no soundtrack material was released.



Arnold's next and truly spectacular score for another 1962 Fox CinemaScope / colour film, The Lion, was just as high quality as that for The Inspector, but Decca did release a soundtrack LP and EP from the score of The Lion at the time. Neither film has ever been released on video or DVD and The Inspector hasn't been shown on British television since the 1970's. I once wrote to Decca asking them to release the soundtrack score from The Inspector on an LP (or even an EP) and they replied that such items just didn't sell well enough to justify a record release. That they had released The Wayfarers cover version on a 45 rpm single in June, 1962 and it sold poorly.



Nevertheless, I have both singles of The Inspector theme and the LP and EP of The Lion in my collection and they are marvellous and have to be heard to be believed.