La Maja Desnuda

Digitmovies, in collaboration with Gruppo Sugar, issues on double CD set the complete OST by Angelo F. Lavagnino for the dramatic movie“La Maja desnuda” (aka “The naked Maja”) directed in 1958 by Henry Koster and Mario Russo and starring Ava Gardner, Anthony Franciosa, Gino Cervi, Amedeo Nazzari, Lea Padovani, Massimo Serato. After witnessing the passing of a young witch who is led to the stake, the Duchess of Alba (Gardner) went with some friends at a tavern where you can dance and sing. Here the noble lady meets Francisco Goya (Franciosa), a young painter from passionate temperament, which takes up the defense of the Duchess, insulted by a drunk customer, and in the incident he is wounded. Between the two young ones a romantic relationship develops, born of mutual sympathy, which later is truncated as a result of misunderstandings. Goya became court painter, enjoying the friendship of King Charles IV (Cervi), while the Duchess, fallen out of favor with the queen, is sent into exile by the evil prime minister Godoy (Nazzari). But Goya cannot resist away from the woman he loves and reaches despite the ban. The Duchess, to prevent Godoy also hurts the artist, wants to move away from him and to the intent, she pretends to betray him. The painter, desperate, almost insane, runs away and became seriously ill. When the betrayal of Godoy opens the doors of Spain to Napoleon's army, the people rises and, fighting desperately, contends invader every corner of their soil. The Duchess sits at the head of the revolutionaries, but Godoy, worried about her political influence, makes her poisoned. Francisco Goya, realizing that the beloved woman sacrificed herself and her feelings to her salvation, he runs to her and arrives just in time to pick up her last words of love. At the time, in Italy, a vinyl album on the label Fonit Cetra (LP.281) was released and with partially different selections on the United Artists LP (UAS 5031) issued in America that, despite did feature the writing stereo on the sleeve was absolutely in mono. Only in 1997 C.A.M. issued a CD (CAM 493270-2) containing 23 selections (43:17). For our double CD project we had access to master tapes in mono of the original recording session with conducting of Carlo Savina. In addition to the material of the previous CD (now taken from first generation master tapes without using the Denoiser and dolby surround) that have sequenced with the film music sequence with the "finale" rightly at the end of the tracks list, we have discovered fabulous inedit material (64:42); as movie versions, alternate takes, the beautiful song "Embrujado" and even the short theme for the Titanus emblem, before the "Titoli". In about 108 total minutes of orchestral OST, the listener can really reallize the greatness of Angelo Francesco Lavagnino who, for this film, has created one of the most intense love themes of his long career and that the composer alternates with fanfares, court music, Spanish dance both instrumentals and vocals, atmospheres of tension and mystery. In short, a true masterpiece that with relentless passion we wanted to pay homage due to a proper digital remastering and a de-luxe digipack graphic.