Demetrius and the Gladiators

The surprise is that, while The Robe eclipsed its successor in its day, decades later, it looks like Demetrius is, in fact, what screenwriter Philip Dunne called it: “a far better pure movie.” And one of the true pleasures of the film is Franz Waxman’s tantalizing score, which, while incorporating several of Alfred Newman’s incomparably majestic themes from The Robe, nevertheless manages to display a modernist élan and power all its own. Demetrius and the Gladiators was this fabulously versatile composer’s first Biblical epic; as usual, he adapted his talents to a new genre with superbly dramatic dexterity. Beginning with a pulse-pounding “Prelude” which twines Newman’s themes with his own, Waxman moves on to one stunning cue after another. 

Demetrius and the Gladiators has undergone a long overdue full digital restoration using the best that state-of-the-art audio technology can offer. Restoration and remixing was undertaken at 96k 24bit resolution. Sadly, three cues from the score had completely deteriorated by the time the original reels were transferred in 1997: “Kneel to Your God” (6m3/7m1), “Temptation” (7m2), and “The Kiss” (8m1). Using the original 4-track stereo audio for the film itself, we have rescued brief segments of these, which were unmarred by dialogue and sound effects and included them in the program in order to present as much of the score as possible. An additional excerpt of “Temptation,” with sound effects but no dialogue, is included as a bonus track. Also in the bonus section is the deteriorated stereo version of the cue “Claudius and Caligula,” while the main program features a more sonically palatable monaural mix. Every effort has been made to bring out its original brilliance so that, as a listening experience, Demetrius may take its rightful place beside recent musical restorations of other Fox Biblical epics of the period. 

1.   Prelude  

2.   Night in the Palace  

3.   Messalina  

4.   Claudius  

5.   The Catacombs  

6.   The Slave Market / Roman Police  

7.   Lucia  

8.   Claudius and Messalina  

9.   Wait  

10.   Torch Dancers / Egyptian Dancers  

11.   Caligula Enters  

12.   Gladiator March  

13.   The Victors  

14.   After the Fight  

15.   Messalina at Home  

16.   Temptation (excerpt)  

17.   At the Pottery / The Gladiator’s Party  

18.   The Kiss (excerpt) / Fanfare for Gladiator’s Entrance  

19.   Victory  

20.   Temple of Isis  

21.   Claudius and Caligula (mono source)  

22.   Messalina and Demetrius  

23.   Peter’s Return  

24.   Caligula’s Rage  

25.   Return to Faith  

26.   The Dungeon - Glycon  

27.   Caligula’s Death   

28.   Gloria  

BONUS TRACKS 

29.   Temporary Dance Track  

30.   Temporary Fanfares  

31.   Arena Fanfare  

32.   Caligula’s Death (unused percussion)  

33.   Claudius and Caligula (stereo - damaged)  

34.   Temptation (excerpt with sound effects)   

35.   Gloria (orchestra only)