Waxman – Suite from Taras Bulba
Born in Königshütte
(which is now Chorzów,
Poland), Franz Wachsmann (as was the original spelling) studied in Dresden
and became involved in film music through his work on Marlene Dietrich’s Der Blau Angel. His Jewish heritage made him a Nazi target,
so he fled Germany
for France in
1934. Shortly upon his arrival in Paris,
he was invited to work on Jerome Kern’s Music
in the Air, which resulted in his relocation to the United
States.
His score for The Bride of
Frankenstein in 1935 secured his position as a leading composer in Hollywood. During his career of more than twenty years
he wrote nearly 150 complete film scores, including those for Rebecca, Sunset Boulevard (which won the
Oscar in 1951), and The Spirit of St. Louis. He also maintained a strong interest in
music for the concert hall, founding the Los Angeles Music Festival and working
hard to promote the music of Stravinsky and Shostakovich, along with the
performance careers of violinists Isaac Stern and Nathan Milstein.
The film Taras Bulba was adapted from the historical
novel by Nikolai Gogol. The title charcter,
played by Yul Brynner, is
an old Cossack warrior who had helped the Polish army defend
his native Ukraine
from invading Turks, but who was then betrayed by the very Poles he believed to
be his allies and which continue to rule over Cossack homeland. Now retired, he is forced to confront his
nationalistic loyalties anew when his son falls in love with the daughter of a
Polish aristrocrat.
Waxman researched Ukranian folk music while
visiting Kiev for work on a symphony, and his sensitivity to native Ukranian
musical style shines thorugh in this score. His work on Taras Bulba was the last of his eleven scores
to be nominated for an Academy Award.
2003-04 PCO repertoire