Intrada is proud to announce the third album in their Excalibur Collection of classic film score rerecordings. Following the intricate reconstructions of Ivanhoe and Julius Caesar (both by Miklos Rozsa), Intrada presents the world premiere recording of Bernard Herrmann's "Jason and the Argonauts," one of the four films on which Herrmann worked for Ray Harryhausen. Herrmann wrote some of his most impressive music for Harryhausen's fantasy films in the years from 1958 to 1963. Jason was the most extravagant in that Herrmann omitted strings and created a huge ensemble of brass, woodwind, percussion, and harps. The number of individual instruments required was tripled and in some cases quadrupled from that of the standard orchestra.

The score contains several major set pieces, including the powerful prelude that opens the score with an heroic theme for Jason and his men and the mythological adventures in which they are about to partake. For the sequence with the giant statue Talos, Herrmann composed a massive, threatening sound for brass and percussion. Herrmann displayed his flair for using low woodwinds and an array of harps to bring the tormenting harpies to life. Highlighting the film is the spectacular climactic Hydra sequence and the subsequent battle between the Argonauts and an entire army of skeletons, culminating in a rousing "scherzo macabre."

This sonically brilliant new 20-bit digital recording conducted by Bruce Broughton and performed by the augmented Sinfonia of London presents a full hour of Herrmann's most impressive masterwork.

Arguably the most intelligently written film to feature the masterful stop-motion animation of Ray Harryhausen, Jason and the Argonauts is a colorful adventure that takes full advantage of Harryhausen's "Dynarama" process. Inspired by the Greek myth, the story begins when the fearless explorer Jason (Todd Armstrong) returns to the kingdom of Thessaly to make his rightful claim to the throne, but the gods proclaim that he must first find the magical Golden Fleece. Consulting Hera, the queen of gods, Jason recruits the brave Argonauts to crew his ship, and they embark on their eventful journey. Along the way they encounter a variety of mythic creatures, including the 100-foot bronze god Talos, the batlike Harpies, the seven-headed reptilian Hydra, and an army of skeletons wielding sword and shield. This last sequence remains one of the finest that Harryhausen ever created, and it's still as thrilling as anything from the age of digital special effects. Harryhausen was the true auteur of his fantasy films, and his brilliant animation evokes a timeless sense of wonder. Jason and the Argonauts is a prime showcase for Harryhausen's talent--a wondrous product of pure imagination and filmmaking ingenuity. Also stars Nancy Kovack and Honor Blackman (who played Pussy Galore in "Goldfinger"). 1963

1. Jason Prelude
2. The Prophecy/The Battle
3. River Bank
4. The Feast
5. The Oak Grove/The Ascension
6. Mount Olympus
7. The Olympic Games
8. Departure
9. Hera’s Effigy
10. Argo
11. The Titans/The Chamber/The Door
12. Talos/The Boat/The Wreck
13. Hera Speaks
14. The Attack/Talos Heel/Talos Death
15. Sorrow/Hera’s Warning
16. The Harpies
17. The Nets/The Rope/The Cage
18. Medea’s Ship
19. Triton
20. Medea
21. Acastus And Jason Fight
22. Temple Dance
23. The Glade/The Golden Fleece
24. The Hydra/The Hydra Fight
25. The Stolen Fleece/The Teeth
26. The Path/The Cure
27. Hydra’s Teeth/Skeletons/Attack
28. Scherzo Macabre
29. Finale