Gigi: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Music

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by: Frederick Loewe, Alan Jay Lerner

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Customer Reviews
Average Rating: Rating: - Orchestrations presented beauitfully, vocals not so beautifu I am by no means an expert on the technicalities of sound recording, and it usually doesn't bother me, but while the brilliant orchestrations on the underscoring of the soundtrack of this classic film are heard generally well, the singers sound a bit strange (Particularly Louis Jourdan) and it's a bit disconcerting. It definitly seems like a sound problem. The problem might be that, unlike the usual case in movie musicals, the singers and orchestra were recorded at seperate times and in seperate locations to save time. Maybe the singers were recorded too hastily and the many takes combined too quickly to worry too much about sound problems and the folks at Turner/Rhino (Who generally do an excellent job remastering the MGM soundtracks) couldn't really fix them. The sound on Jourdan's vocals (especially in "Gigi," as on the recording) isn't that great on the video copy I taped off a television airing, either, so I guess it's a permenant problem. What's really sad is that the performers sound like they're in a recording studio and it's hard to imagine them as they are in the film, which again is probably the sound's fault, but what can you do? Oh, well, enough about the technical stuff. In spite of the sound problems, you are sure to enjoy the performances of Maurice Chevalier, Louis Jourdan, Hermoine Gingold, Betty Wand dubbing for Leslie Caron, and even Caron herself in the first verse of "The Night They Invented Champagne" and in three piano/vocal recordings of her songs (before it was decided to dub her) included as bonus tracks. They could shine through even the muddiest sound, as could Lerner and Loewe's wonderful score, which may not be politically correct at times but is so irresistably charming you can't help but love it anyway. And as I said, the orchestra sounds superb and Loewe's lovely and witty underscoring is really given its due. Music you can't really pay attention to in the film, like the waltz underscoring the "Ice Skating Sequence," and the urgency, seeming hopelessness and hilarity the underscoring of the "Lessons" scenes conveys, are really compositions that can be enjoyed in their own right, apart from being buried under the decor and dialogue of the film. Unless you are even more tolerant about sound problems that I usually am, you may have some quibbles about this soundtrack, but overall, it's still as great as the film itself. Rating: - Great remastering of a Perfect Movie Musical Score. This release containing all the music to "Gigi" will be treasured by anyone who loves what Broadway was all about in the 1950's. Lerner and Loewe produced a captivating score tailored to the requirements of the Hollywood Musical Movie, and brought to it a bit of the bite and tang of Broadway that is missing from most other movie musicals. The acidic clarinet parts, the whooping french horns, the rich harmonic shifts unders songs like "It's a bore" and "The Parisians" are fully evident in this remastering. The sound is a remarkable improvement on my VHS tape of the film. Anyone who loves the film will be ecstatic with the quality of this cd. Don't hesitate! Rating: - I'm glad I'm not bored by instrumental underscoring I am so glad that Turner/Rhino's soundtrack releases contain all of the underscoring from the films represented thus far. For those who tire of it, you can always program your CD to play only the tracks you want to hear. The rest of us are eternally grateful for these releases. Especially when you compare them to the truncated, inferior LPs originally produced. GIGI offers us a substancial bonus by including Leslie Caron's original tracks. In an interview with Robert Osborne on Turner Classic Movies I found it amusing to see Leslie's reacion to the fact that these tracks have been released. Try to see this interview if possible to enjoy her for yourself. It's also fascinating to hear the original structure of "The Parisians." The song was shortened considerably in the version which ended up in the film. The booklet included with the disc is extremely interesting in it's examination of the post-production challenges that the underscoring and orchestrations went through. How interesting it would be to hear some of the discarded material. What really shocked me was that fact that in the latter part of the film when Gigi is taken to Maxim's the background players subject her to the same gossip treatment that had been accorded to Liane earlier in the film. During post production the vocals were removed. If you watch you can see their lips all moving in unison, but the words have been substituted with random mumblings rather than the original "greek chorus." I never noticed this prior to acquiring this CD. Just one more reason these Turner/Rhino discs are indispesible.

Gigi: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Music

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