The Bride of Frankenstein

1	Bride of Frankenstein (Main Title) / Westminster Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir 1:24
2	Prologue-Menuetto and Storm / Westminster Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir 3:52
3	Monster Entrance / Westminster Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir 2:14
4	Processional March / Westminster Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir 2:16
5	Strange Apparition/Pretorius' Entrance/You Will Need a Coat / Westminster Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir 2:55
6	Bottle Sequence / Westminster Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir 2:13
7	Female Monster Music/Pastorale/Village/Chase / Westminster Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir 4:30
8	Crucifixion/Monster Breaks Out / Westminster Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir 3:11
9	Fire in the Hut/Graveyard / Westminster Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir 2:07
10	Dance Macabre / Westminster Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir 2:09
11	The Creation / Westminster Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir 10:14
12	The Tower Explodes and Finale / Westminster Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir 3:10
13	The Invisible Ray Suite / Westminster Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir 5:54

Barnes & Noble

One of the masterpieces of the 1930s, James Whale's quirky and innovative sequel to his early-sound classic featured a brilliant score by Franz Waxman. Waxman, whose music stands as one of the most cohesive and important soundtracks of the '30s, built his music around a handful of central themes -- the menacing opening motif for the monster, a baroque chamber theme representing real life author Mary Shelley, a processional-like march fanfare for the angry villagers, and best of all, a haunting love theme for both Dr.Frankenstein and the Monster's female interests. Waxman's score was one of the first film music milestones, a benchmark in its use of dramatic texture and integration within a film, a blueprint that filmmakers and composers used for years afterwards. This 1993 Silva Screen recording by Kenneth Alwyn and the Westminster Philharmonic is considered the definitive presentation of the score, and includes both music cut from the final print, and excellent booklet notes discussing Waxman's historic contribution. Andy Dursin

All Music Guide

Franz Waxman's score for James Whale's The Bride of Frankenstein has held up better than almost any other movie music of the 1930s. In addition to their association with the movie for which they were composed, major parts of Waxman's score later turned up in the Flash Gordon serials (like The Bride of Frankenstein, made at Universal), especially Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars, and fragments also showed up in various westerns and B-thrillers. With its strange, sweeping yet disquieting melodies and unusual timbres, it was some of the most ambitious music ever written for the screen -- indeed, if Max Steiner's score to King Kong made that movie into a "symphony accompanied by a motion picture," in the words of composer-pianist Oscar Levant, then Waxman's music for The Bride of Frankenstein gave that movie the impact and sweep of a Wagnerian opera (although the finale recalls the Mahler "Symphony No. 2"). The Silva Screen recording of the score, by Kenneth Alwyn and the Westminster Philharmonic Orchestra, is the best representation that Waxman's music has ever had, restoring some sections that were lost to the last-minute pre-release editing of the original film -- the only complaint in the treatment is the use of a synthesizer to enhance certain sections of the score; the instrument's presence is momentary but jarring in those moments. The CD includes a six minute suite of Waxman's music for The Invisible Ray as a bonus , the only other fantasy film that he scored while at Universal; it isn't in the same league as The Bride of Frankenstein's score, but it is entertaining. Bruce Eder