Vienna to Hollywood: Impressions of E.W. Korngold & Max Steiner (CD)

Peter Erskine and Vienna's JAM Music Lab All-Stars celebrate the music of two iconic Viennese composers who, after moving to Hollywood in 1929 & 1934, transformed the dynamics of film as they set the standards for movie scoring. Through their work on Gone With the Wind, King Kong, and many dozens more, their role in shaping popular culture since is legion. First exposed to the music in the late '70s as he was touring with Weather Report, Erskine heard Joe Zawinul playing a beautiful melody and learned it was by Korngold, a fellow Viennese composer. He was moved to search out transcripts and recordings ever since. With his artist-in-residency at Vienna's cutting-edge JAM Music Lab University, his desire to reimagine this music in an improvised jazz setting finally became a reality. "... Erskine and the Jam Music Lab All-Stars demonstrate virtuosity, versatility and a keen attention to detail... creating a fitting tribute to the most influential figures in 20th-century music." The New York City Jazz Record

Track List

1. March of the Merry Men
2. Sterbelied (from Lieder des Abschieds Op. 14)
3. Old Spanish Song
4. The Boys Go to Play
5. Concerto Miniature (theme from Violin Concerto 2nd mvt.)
6. Romance (Violin Concerto 2nd mvt.)
7. Tara's Theme
8. Belle Watling
9. Johnny Belinda
10. String Quartet No. 2 in E-flat major Op. 26 (Larghetto)
11. A Summer Place
12. Ghost Coda