The Man Who Knew Too Much / On Dangerous Ground - Re-Recording

Intrada announces the third release in its Kickstarter-funded recording series, this time featuring two striking works by composer Bernard Herrmann. Performed by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra under the baton of William T. Stromberg, the album features the complete scores to the the 1951 thriller On Dangerous Ground and an early Hitchcock/Herrmann collaboration, The Man Who Knew Too Much from 1956. Stromberg is no stranger to recording film scores, having recorded dozens of albums, including many Herrmann scores. His attention to detail is second to none, and his rapport with the players in the orchestra led to a warm, enthusiastic atmosphere under which both scores were passionately recorded.

Outside of the Prelude, The Man Who Knew Too Much remained the only Herrmann/Hitchcock collaboration not recorded in full form for commercial appreciation. Clocking in at just under 30 minutes, its brevity may have precluded it from being recorded previously. But from the dramatic and thundering Prelude (preceded by Nathan Van Cleave's soaring VistaVision logo), to the Arabic source music reminiscent of Seventh Voyage of Sinbad and numerous suspense and action cues, it's pure Herrmann/Hitchcock. As an added bonus, we have included an alternate finale that plays up the humor of the last scene with a wry quote of the song "Que Sera, Sera" (otherwise never referred to in the underscore). However, the filmmakers ultimately opted for a more dramatic approach to the musical ending: a shortened version of the Prelude.

On Dangerous Ground faired a bit better when it came to commercial releases. Chosen to rise from obscurity by Herrmann and Charles Gerhardt when recording the compilation, Citizen Kane, the Film Scores of Bernard Herrmann, the team decided to open the album with the aggressive, relentless "Death Hunt" sequence. Decades later, the Film Score Monthly label released the score from surviving acetates. The sound was sub-optimal, but it's all there was. Now listeners can enjoy the entire score in a state-of-the-art new recording, including the emotional viola d'amore performances by Huw Daniel and, in this case, the clanging of a steel pipe giving dramatic emphasis to the exciting music Herrmann composed.

Both scores are packaged on a single disc, engineered by Mike Ross-Trevor, with newly commissioned artwork by Stephane Coedel and liner notes by Herrmann biographer Steven Smith. Kickstarter contributors are also treated to an exclusive slip case not available on the retail CD release.