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When one thinks of filmscores to American westerns, the names of Dmitri Tiomkin, Elmer Bernstein and Jerry Goldsmith should immediately come to mind. Their filmography for this genre is quite extensive and includes some of the classic scores of all time. Even Bruce Broughton should get an honorable mention for his contributions to the Americana and western-themed film catalogue with"The Ballad of Lucy Whipple", "O Pioneers", "Roughing It", "Silverado", "Tombstone" and "True Women".
Rosenthal's work in this genre tends to get overlooked. To be honest, there has not been much released commercially. And in fact, I wish I was more familiar with some of his credited work.
Ephraim Katz's Film Encyclopedia lists "Naked in the Sun", released in 1957 (same year as Goldsmith's "The Black Patch") as an early Rosenthal-scored western. Concerns the story of Indian tribes involved with slave traders. Can only imagine what the music is like, as I have never seen the film. Does not appear to be available in any format.
However, with "A Gunfight" (1971) starring Kirk Douglas and Johnny Cash as two aging gunfighters, we do have a chance to hear the music as the film has seen several DVD releases. The one bit of music I have heard, entitled Father and Son, presents a very Americana sound with a distinctive hoedown feel to it. This piece, with its Copland-like feel to it, makes me wonder how the rest of the score compares. Must seek the film out.
Another score that has yet to see a commercial release is to "Rooster Cogburn" from 1975. Again, we must be satisfied with listening as we take in the film. The main title is truly a winner, very lyrical yet very western-sounding; very much on par with some of Bernstein's best.
Thanks to FSM, we have "Return of a Man Called Horse" (1976), a lovely score. I love the gentleness of the main theme and the action sequences, like The Buffalo Hunt, are very original in construction IMO.
Rosenthal's TV work includes "Young Pioneers" (1976), about life in the Dakota Territory in the 1870's. Again one that is not commercially available in any format that I know of.
"Gore Vidal's Billy the Kid" (1989) starring Val Kilmer has been released on a promo CD. The main title starts out very softly with an almost fanfare-like opening on French horns and then seques into a more robust theme before closing out as it began. A beautiful piece of writing and the entire score is a valuable addition to my collection of western filmscores.
It's a shame that Rosenthal did not score more westerns. His main themes to "Rooster Cogburn", "Return of a Man Called Horse" and "Billy the Kid" are some of my favorites. All different, but very hummable and showing that he could compete with the likes of a Tiomkin, or a Bernstein or a Goldsmith when it came to scoring westerns. Even his work on "Mexico 1916" from the Young Indiana Jones Chronicles reveals a Hispanic flavor that is often found in western film genre music.
There have been many composers that have tackled westerns, some more successful than others. What Rosenthal lacks in quantity should in no way limit the quality of his work. His work in many different genres speaks of his talent, but for me, give me his westerns anyday.
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