The Brothers Karamazov (Limited Edition CD Soundtrack)

 

Sound: B-     Music: B

 

 

Bronislau Kaper had been writing film music since 1940 and in his final years of being a composer did some key films at MGM.  Among them was a star-studded 1958 version of Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov, which featured Yul Brynner (the center of convincing realism in the casting here), Lee J. Cobb, Claire Bloom, Maria Schell, Richard Baseheart, Albert Salmi and even William Shatner in his first feature film.

 

Also helping was Richard Brooks in the directing chair, known more for his gritty films than anything else.  Then there was future Stanley Kubrick cinematographer John Alton, which also helped to film’s look and feel, but it is the varied and never forced music of Kaper that completed the circle of good talent that made this film liked.  Sure, it dumps much of the book, but this can go a few rounds with any other version of the book to date and the music score is on a class by itself.

 

The CD is divided into the actual film score in 17 tracks, then adds 10 more tracks of diagetic background music (i.e., what the characters could hear) that shows just how thorough Kaper was in flushing out the time and culture that would accompany the situations.  There was even more of the latter, but only so much could fit on the CD.  Now when I go back and watch this film again, the complex strategy Kaper so cleverly used and the complex layers of music and sound will be more evident.  In all, it is deep and purely cinematic work like this that takes a book classic and makes at least a minor drama classic out of the film version.  I highly doubt anyone will be bale to top Kaper’s score, no matter how many (or even any better) versions of the book will ever be filmed.

 

The PCM CD sound is unfortunately monophonic, as MGM made the sad decision to start recording their feature film scores monophonic, despite the fact that the film is a big A-film that should have received stereophonic release.  It also suffers warping in parts, from the 17.5mm magnetic sound source.  That holds back what is an incredible series of compositions, but it is here standing up just fine outside of the film.  This CD is limited to 3,000 pressings and can be ordered only and exclusively through Film Score monthly Magazine’s FSM label at www.filmscoremonthly.com while supplies last.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo