Eugene Zador - Celebration Music

This release is the seventh in Naxos' Eugene Zador series. And it's an album comprised entirely of world premiere recordings. Zador was for many years the top film orchestrator at M-G-M Studios. In the 1950s he worked closely with fellow Hungarian Miklos Rozsa. They collaborated on several classic films like Ben Hur, Quo Vadus, and King of Kings.

But Zador was more than a talented journeyman. In Hungary, he was an important composer. His career derailed in 1939 when he fled the Nazis and emigrated to America. And while he worked in a dream factory by day, he kept his own dreams alive.

Zador's name never appeared in the credits of any film. He reserved it for his serious music, which he continued to compose. This release presents a sampling of those works, mainly from the latter part of his career.

The 1931 Chamber Concerto hints at the direction Zador might have taken without the war. It's a sparsely orchestrated piece, somewhat resembling Bartok mixed with Stravinsky. This was definitely contemporary music.

The remaining works from the 1960s and 1970s tell a different story. The music is more tonal, although it's a very free-form tonality. Occasionally I could hear passages that reminded me of his film work. But this isn't film music.

Zador's themes are deceptively complex. It's only as the work unfolds that the complexity begins to resolve itself.

Mariusz Smolij and the Budapest Symphony Orchestra MAV deliver some fine performances. Zador had the skill to write extensive works, and the ability to guide the listener along. This release should appeal to anyone interested in the tonal side of the 20th Century.

Eugene Zador: Celebration Music
Chamber concerto; Suite for Horn, Strings, and Percussion
Budapest Symphony Orchestra MAV; Mariusz Smolij, conductor
Naxos 8.574262