Franz Waxman's celebrated 1940 score to Rebecca, said to be his personal favorite, is magnificent: sophisticated, witty, anxious, decadent, and also very extensive (more than 72 minutes in this recording). He really does capture the full range of the story, from the innocent opening to the creepy music for Mrs. Danvers, and he manages to suggest the evil presence of Rebecca hanging over it all. The movie itself represents an ideal marriage of plot and music; it's impossible to imagine it without Waxman's contribution. This recording, while perhaps lacking the last bit of opulence in the Manderley Ball music and final conflagration, is extremely good in all other respects. Adriano is a pro at this sort of thing, and he gets the Slovak Radio Symphony (studio musicians, after all), to give a good account of itself. Originally on Marco Polo's film series, this budget-priced Naxos reissue should win the music many new friends--and it deserves them. [9/21/2005] --David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com
