The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra – Great Western Themes (2005) MCH SACD ISO + FLAC 24bit/48kHz

The world’s largest-ever classical recording contract with one of the most outstanding orchestras, was begun in September 1993 and has been build into a collection of over 150 albums of the world’s best classical music. Our aim is to present the ultimate in quality at an unbeatable price, making ‘The Royal Philharmonic Collection’ the only collection you will ever need.

As a film style, westerns have largely disappeared into the sunset. Modern technology has enabled writers and directors to let their imaginations run away with them, and when you can create the illusion that everybody moves around at the speed of light, directors and special effects have drifted away from a mode of transport which is restricted to a single horsepower!

This is something of a shame, for westerns ruled the roost not too long ago. Okay, so the plot lines were somewhat thin, half the characters had no name and Hollywood’s assessment of America’s heritage showed considerable artistic licence (for example, although everyone in western films bar the funeral director carried a gun, in reality they were extremely expensive and not everyone could afford them). Thankfully, if the budget set aside for the plot was often minimal, the money spent on the music was not. A host of composers have made their name and reputations with some truly memorable songs and tunes, most of which are as instantly recognizable today as they were when first released.

The tracks on this particular album are not only memorable, they are also part of folklore. It is difficult to listen to the opening bars of any of the twelve tracks and not instantly think of Yul Brunner, Charles Bronson, Robert Vaughan, Steve McQueen, Clint Eastwood, Lome Greene, Henry Fonda et al, all of whom seemed to have played an integral part in cleaning up the West. The themes to films such as The Magnificent Seven, Raw Hide and A Fistful Of Dollars were originally written with full orchestras in mind, and the superb interpretations offered here by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra only add to the ambience.

Much of the credit for this goes to Mike Townend and Carl Davis. Mike, who has arranged the scores to keep faith with the originals and allow the RPO the opportunity to show their virtuosity in equal measure, has already displayed an exceptional ability with some adventurous arrangements, most notably on the Nursery Rhymes album. Carl Davis meanwhile has already done an excellent job in putting the RPO through their paces on three other film-based albums; The World At War, Pride And Prejudice and other Great Themes, Cinema Classics and James Bond Themes. The triumvariate of Mike, Carl and the RPO is an impressive one, as is this album.

Tracklist:

01. The Big Country
02. High Noon
03. Bonanza
04. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
05. The Magnificent Seven
06. Once Upon a Time in the West
07. Blazing Saddles
08. For a Few Dollars More
09. A Fistful of Dollars
10. Rawhide
11. The Green Leaves of Summer
12. Gunfight at the OK Corral

Performed by The Royal Philharmonic Orchester. Conducted by Carl Davis.

SACD ISO

mqs.link_TheRyalPhilharmnicrchestraGreatWesternThemes2005SACDIS.part1.rar
mqs.link_TheRyalPhilharmnicrchestraGreatWesternThemes2005SACDIS.part2.rar
mqs.link_TheRyalPhilharmnicrchestraGreatWesternThemes2005SACDIS.part3.rar

FLAC 24bit/48kHz

mqs.link_TheRyalPhilharmnicrchestraGreatWesternThemes2005FLACStere2448.rar