The Omen: Original Motion Picture Score (Deluxe Edition)
Jerry Goldsmith's chilling soundtrack music for Richard Donner's 1976 Antichrist-themed thrillerThe Omenwas very nearly the score that never was; an unusual, last-minute budget extension was granted solely to secure the composer's services. That decision turned out to be one of the wisest the studio could make. Goldsmith's music would go on to score him his first Oscar®and a Grammy award and become the crucial thematic glue that held the entireOmentrilogy together. Standing the traditional requiem form on its head, Goldsmith in essence created Satanic liturgical music. As chorally ominous as Orff'sCarmina Burana, yet infused with the composer's own compelling sense of drama and color,The Omeninstantly became both a genre classic and one of the musician's greatest achievements. Varese's 25th anniversary edition has largely resequenced the track order to match the film and expanded it by nearly a third with seven previously unreleased cues. These new tracks add dimensions of both pastoral calm and mounting suspense, making the familiar "Ave Satani" theme even darker and more spine tingling by contrast. Edition producer Robert Townson's detailed new notes also carefully place each cue in its cinematic and musical context.--Jerry McCulley