Deutsche Grammophon release the 44 track (2hr, 05 min, 44 sec) Anthology: The Paris Concert - a selection of cinematic themes from composer Howard Shore. The dawn of the 21st century brought a seismic change for the composer when New Zealander Peter Jackson invited him to write the music for The Lord of the Rings trilogy, followed a decade later by The Hobbit. The blockbuster films introduced the wonders of Shore’s writing – here applied to storytelling on an epic scale – to audiences worldwide...

Although having composed for movies since the late '70s, composer Howard Shore's real breakthrough came at the turn of the 21st Century with his work on Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Hobbit. In fact, the first 19 tracks on this release are dedicated to themes from those films.

Other movies that are represented by more than a handful of tracks include The Fly, Ed Wood and Crash. I was actually a little disappointed to not see any appearance from his scores from Dead Ringers (to my mind one of his greatest works, along with The Fly), Mrs Doubtfire, Big and The Silence of the Lambs.

The Theremin performance on the Ed Wood segments is wildly off key and isn't a patch on the original soundtrack recording, whereas the rest of the album beautifully shadows Shore's original recordings.

If you're a Shore fan, then you'll already own the original soundtracks and the recordings on this release makes for an interesting listen. For those new coming to Shore's work, there's plenty here for you to appreciate and enjoy.

Track listing:

01. The Noble Wood (I Roderyn) - From The Hobbit
02. Where the Shadows Lie - From The Lord of the Rings
03. The History of the Ring - From The Lord of the Rings
04. A Long-Expected Party - From The Lord of the Rings
05. The Seduction of the Ring - From The Lord of the Rings
06. A Black Shadow - From The Lord of the Rings
07. Last Homely House - From The Lord of the Rings
08. Turning Southwards - From The Lord of the Rings
09. The Road Under the Mountain - From The Lord of the Rings
10. The Halls of Durin - From The Lord of the Rings
11. Durin's Bane - From The Lord of the Rings
12. The Golden Wood - From The Lord of the Rings
13. Gandalf’s Lament - From The Lord of the Rings
14. Beyond Lothlo´rien - From The Lord of the Rings
15. The Anduin - From The Lord of the Rings
16. The White Hand - From The Lord of the Rings
17. The Passing of Boromir - From The Lord of the Rings
18. The Fate of the Bearer - From The Lord of the Rings
19. In Dreams - From The Lord of the Rings
20. Catania
21. Esther Kahn (Paris Suite)
22. Eastern Promises
23. Tatiana - Trans-Siberian Diary - From Eastern Promises
24. Main Title - From The Fly
25. Plasma Pool - From The Fly
26. Stathis Enters - From The Fly
27. The Stairs - From The Fly
28. The Jump - From The Fly
29. Finale - From The Fly
30. Naked Lunch
31. Fadela's Coven_Dr. Benway - From Naked Lunch
32. Main Title (Transcr. for Theremin and Orchestra) - From Ed Wood
33. Grave Robbers (Transcr. for Theremin and Orchestra) - From Ed Wood
34. This Is the One (Transcr. for Theremin and Orchestra) - From Ed Wood
35. Crash
36. CineTerra - From Crash
37. Mechanism Of Occupant Ejection - From Crash
38. Mirror Image - From Crash
39. Where's the Car - From Crash
40. Sexual Logic - From Crash
41. Road Research Laboratory - From Crash
42. Chromium Bower - From Crash
43. Triton - From Crash
44. Prophecy Is Dirty and Ragged - From Crash

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Darren Rea