The Egyptian

While contemporary composers collaborate to write scores almost by committee, for two composers of the stature of Bernard Herrmann and Alfred Newman to team up was almost unheard of. However, due to other committments, Newman felt that he didn't have time to complete the score for The Egyptian and as heard of Fox Music had the power to draft in friend and colleague Bernard Herrmann to complete scoring duties. The amount of music written in total was a fairly even fifty-fifty split and while there are more tracks by Herrmann, it should be remembered that many of them are very short and so this album represents the best music of both composers from the total written for the film.

I don't think anyone writes or wrote in the style Bernard Herrmann; his music was either somewhat minimalist, with little motifs woven together or the orchestra was made up of a highly unusual ensemble, Herrmann created a whole new sound world for films. Newman's style is very much the smooth, romantic style of earlier Hollywood scores, thus the two composers couldn't be further apart in writing style. However, by some fairly shrewd assigning of cues, Newman managed to highlight the strengths of both himself and Herrmann so that the score flowed as best it could. Newman laid down the main material, but this was then adapted by Herrmann as he saw fit for his scenes, most notably during the Prelude. Herrmann's style comes through most obviously during the more dynamic episodes such as Pursuit and The Holy War, both of which are short, but violent outbursts. During the quieter remainder, Herrmann's music is fairly smooth and not quite as intense as some of his scores. There are still plenty of Herrmann touches, such as the muted brass and use of short repeated motifs which are musically evolved as dictated by the film.

The cues of Newman's represented here are almost all quieter episodes, although his music doesn't really have any great stretches until the lengthy, but sublime Valley of the Kings. The Hymn to Aton is a fairly impressive, yet mournful paean which marks one of the few appearances of the choir. Newman rounds out the score in a fairly low key and sombre style, which even given another brief appearance of the choir is still somewhat subdued.

While the score is undoubtedly an impressive achievement simply because it is so coherent despite the different tempraments, it isn't nearly so striking as the best work of either composer. I don't think this is a result of the collaboration, simply that the picture was a fairly mundane historical epic and given the large number of quiet cues, a fairly talk laden one at that. The original score is actually available on a long out of print Varese album, but this re-recording is another expertly handled one from the Marco Polo team of reconstrutionist John Morgan and conductor William T Stromberg with the Moscow Symphony Orchestra and Chorus. The sound is sharp and has the same close miking that gives it a more feeling closer to the original than perhaps the Varese re-recordings. Stromberg's handling of the different composer's styles is good, abrasive when necessary during the Herrmann, but delicate and impassioned for the Newman. A solid, if not classic score, given an excellent treatment and with excellent packaging and extensive liner notes.