Greetings! ScoreKeeper here announcing one of the supremely cool (and most expensive) items I've ever given away here at Ain't It Cool News. With the onslaught of fantastic new releases of older scores which have been graced upon us by the various labels, one can not overlook the pot of gold entitled THE MIKLÓS RÓZSA TREASURY (1949-1968) released earlier this year by Film Score Monthly. This marvelous collection (limited to 2000 copies) features twenty-four M-G-M film scores on fifteen CDs all composed by one of the premier titans of film music, Miklós Rózsa. I've had this collection now for the majority of the year and it's been my absolute pleasure experiencing every note. While there are scores in this set like QUO VADIS (1951), KING OF KINGS (1961), EL CID (1961), and MADAME BOVARY (1949) which should be familiar to the Rózsa enthusiast, there are many others which may not be as familiar like CREST OF THE WAVE (1954), SOMETHING OF VALUE (1957), TIP ON A DEAD JOCKEY (1957), THE RED DANUBE (1949), THE POWER (1968), and THE LIGHT TOUCH (1952).
The overall quality of these recordings are rock solid. Most sound so outstanding it's difficult to believe the recordings are more than fifty years old. There are a handful of tracks which contain some sound effects or analog artifacts due to the unavailability or poor condition of the original source material. For me this is a non-issue. My viewpoint has always been that I would rather have an inferior quality recording of a great score than none at all. This box set includes a forty-eight page booklet featuring abridged liner notes and complete track listings for each disc. For more detailed information about each score, FSM has elected to go with online liner notes (to keep costs down) written by Lukas Kendall, Alexander Kaplan and Rózsa scholars John Fitzpatrick, Frank K. DeWald, and George Komar. You can check those out for yourself HERE. For ease of printing, the notes are also available to download as a convenient PDF. In order to find a suitable home for this awesome set I'm going to do things a little bit differently than I have in the past. My goal is to award this set to a lover of film music who may have a particular affinity for Miklós Rózsa. This is a cherished treasure in my personal collection and I hope it will be for somebody else as well. So what do you have to do? Just drop me an email at scorekeeper@aintitcool.com using the subject: MIKLOS ROZSA TREASURY and include your name, mailing address, a valid email address, and answer the following questions listed below. Be thorough but also concise. I'll sift through the entries, extract worthy submissions, and place them into a pot. From this pot I'll randomly select the winner who will receive a brand new factory sealed copy of THE MIKLÓS RÓZSA TREASURY (1949-1968) courtesy of Film Score Monthly. The deadline for submission is Sunday, November 28th, at 11:59PM EST. Only one entry per person please. International entries will be accepted. Duplicates will be discarded. Here are the questions you must answer...

1). How long have you been collecting soundtracks? 2). How many soundtracks do you have in your collection? 3). What's your most prized possession in your soundtrack collection? Why? 4). What's your favorite Miklós Rózsa score? Why? 5). What film from the last ten years would you love to have heard Miklós Rózsa score if he were still alive today? Why? 6). If Film Score Monthly were to release another box set similar to this, which Golden or Silver Age composer should they focus on? 7). Do you already own THE MIKLÓS RÓZSA TREASURY (1949-1968)? 8). Which score contained in this box set are you most excited to listen to? Why? 9). How long have you been reading Ain't It Cool? 10). Who is your favorite writer at Ain't It Cool? Why?

Send in your entries today and good luck! For more information regarding this box set including ordering, audio samples and a complete track listing visit Screen Archives Entertainment. You can also read the complete liner notes online at FilmScoreMonthly.com.

ScoreKeeper!!!