Maurice Jarre - Doctor Zhivago: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack - The Deluxe Thirtieth Anniversary Edition

Music for the soul

Love the movie, love the music. This musical CD will take you back 30 years to the story and magic of Dr. Zhivago. Definitely will want to add it to your music collection if this movie was a favorite. May 9, 2008

Dr. Zhivago original motion picture

If you are a hopeless romantic, love beautiful scenery, have an interest in history and enjoy good musical scores you must see this movie. March 28, 2008

The Greatest Musical Score Ever?

If not number one, Maurice Jarre's sweeping, beautiful score for David Lean's "Doctor Zhivago" is certainly in the top three of the greatest film scores ever composed. Lean and Jarre had already proven a magical combination on their previous collaboration - "Lawrence of Arabia". But with "Doctor Zhivago", Jarre would arguably make his finest creation, and certainly his most famous - the ubiquitous, sweepingly romantic "Lara's Theme".

Rarely, if ever, has a score captured the feel and emotions of a film so well. The Overture alone showcases the film's juxtaposition between the romantic and personal, and the inevitable, tragic tide of history. The score is unbelievably complex, ranging from tragic to upbeat to haunting to stirring. It is truly a remarkable achievement, and the score is plenty effective on its own.

The CD features a plethora of highly memorable pieces. While the more critical might grow weary of the umpteenth rendition of "Lara's Theme", this reviewer wouldn't, and in any case might point the cynic to the many other cues on the soundtrack. The early segments of the soundtrack contain mostly indifferent incidental music, but around track 10 the show starts to kick into high gear. The haunting "They Began to Go Home", "After Deserters Kill the Colonel", and "Yuri is Taken Prisoner By the Red Partisans" convey the tragic, unavoidable violence of Russia's civil war. Anyone who wants something other than romance would hardly find a more stirring and violent contrast than here. Much of the incidental music is surprisingly good too - the heart-rending "Kontakion", "Evening Bells-Moscow Bells", and the ominous "Yevgraf Snaps His Fingers" are highlights.

The heart-breaking Main Title, Lara Says Goodbye To Yuri, the build-up to crescendo in "Yuri and the Daffodils", and "On a Yuriatin Street" are the most notable renditions of Lara's Theme, and each is moving in its own way; there's enough variation to prevent these tracks from becoming monotonous. And in any case, the piece is so beautiful in its own right that it's difficult to complain about it, in my view.

Beautiful artwork, liner notes, and a few fun bonus tracks only add to the experience. "Doctor Zhivago" is, simply, one of the most memorable, emotional and versatile film scores ever written - a sweeping experience that transcends the film. February 20, 2008

Music to Enjoy

Doctor Zhivago is a soundtrack that goes from soft and slow to thunderous and dynamic. If you never knew the story, the music would move you to joy and tears with each selection. From the Overture to Lara's Theme, it is a ride of high and lows. This is one soundtrack you just put on and close your eyes. It is perfect. May 13, 2007

love that track

The product is great. My mom wanted the 1 track, Lara's Theme. She actually was disappointed that all the other songs were on there. I am not sure what she expected from a soundtrack. It is exactly what I expected. March 27, 2007

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