MAGNIFICENT SEVEN / O.S.T.

Original score composed by Elmer Bernstein. Original score composed and conducted by Elmer Bernstein. Recorded at City Halls, Glasgow, Scotland on April 7 & 8, 1997. Composer: Elmer Bernstein . While Elmer Bernstein's jazzy score for Otto Preminger's Frank Sinatra-starring drama, THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN ARM (1955), put him on the map, his compositions for THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN (1960) cemented his sterling reputation. To give John Sturges's epic Western--an adaptation of Akira Kurosawa's masterpiece, THE SEVEN SAMURAI--a sense of sweeping musical majesty, Bernstein drew inspiration from his legendary mentor Aaron Copland, creating a score of lushly orchestral pieces rooted in American folk themes. The soundtrack's most notable piece is "Main Theme and Calvera," a bold, propulsive tune that features an indelible melody that perfectly captures the expanse of the American West and has become woven into the fabric of pop culture, recognized by many who aren't even aware of its origins. (Oddly enough, this album went unreleased for decades.) The rest of MAGNIFICENT SEVEN lives up to its well-known opener, and includes such dynamic tracks as the lumbering, percussive "Fiesta" and the delicate, folk-tinged "Petra's Declaration." A stellar example of a classic Hollywood score, THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN is absolutely essential for fans of Western film music.