The soundtrack features a never-before-released a cappella version of “Over the Rainbow”
Sphere Entertainment Co. and WaterTower Music have announced the release of The Wizard of Oz at Sphere: The Soundtrack, featuring the original film score that was specifically re-recorded for the experience currently playing at Sphere in Las Vegas. In addition to the newly recorded score, the album also includes an a cappella version of Judy Garland singing “Over the Rainbow,” which has never been heard before.
The music in The Wizard of Oz at Sphere was created by separating the original vocal stems and re-recording the Academy Award-winning orchestral score to achieve an immersive musical experience unlike any other. While the music itself was re-recorded for the experience, the vocals for The Wizard of Oz at Sphere were untouched. As a result, Judy Garland’s “Over the Rainbow” – widely regarded as one of the best film songs of all time and the 1939 Academy Award winner for Best Original Song- is available for the first time as an a cappella recording.
“I am incredibly excited for everyone to hear my mother’s a cappella recording of ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow,’ which captures her incredible artistry at 16 years old. Since she recorded this song live in front of the orchestra, this is the first time anyone has been able to hear her isolated vocal,” states Lorna Luft. “This a cappella version highlights not only her incredible ability as both a singer and actor, but also how she brilliantly internalized the lyrics of E.Y. Harburg and the music of Harold Arlen. This song meant so much to her that it became her much-loved, legendary, signature song.”
To preserve the authenticity of the original score, the music was performed and re-recorded by a more than 80-piece orchestra on the historic scoring stage where it was initially recorded in 1939. The musicians used techniques common in the 1930s – from pizzicato strings to vibrato phrasing – in keeping with the period-accurate sound, even going as far as to source and play the same ocarina used in the original recording of “If I Only Had a Brain,” after being passed down through generations of musicians.
Inside Sphere, audiences experience the new recording in full spatialized sound, with every instrument placed precisely within the venue’s groundbreaking Sphere Immersive Sound system. The result is an all-encompassing, three-dimensional soundscape that brings the score to life and transforms the familiar melodies into an immersive journey, allowing audiences to quite literally step inside the music of The Wizard of Oz.
“At Sphere, audiences hear and experience the beloved score like never before – and now they can take a part of that experience home with them,” states Carolyn Blackwood, Head of Sphere Studios. “We were able to bring every detail to life with unprecedented fidelity for a listening experience that is unmatched – both at Sphere and at home.”
“’In The Wizard of Oz at Sphere: The Soundtrack,’ we’re able to hear things in the music that have never been heard before,” adds Julianne Jordan, Grammy Award-winning music supervisor of The Wizard of Oz at Sphere. “The original recording was captured on just a few microphones, and as a result, much of the nuance was lost. Now, whether listening at home or sitting inside Sphere, audiences can finally hear every single instrument and detail.”
The album also includes two binaural tracks – both for “Cyclone” and for the “I Am Oz” scene when Dorothy and her friends approach the wizard for the first time. These tracks, which feature spatial characteristics that can be heard via headphones, incorporate the sound design from the in-venue experience and offer a glimpse of what the audio environment feels like at Sphere.
The creative team for The Wizard of Oz at Sphere: The Soundtrack includes Grammy Award-nominated music producer/sound designer Paul Freeman (Spies); Grammy Award-winning music supervisor Julianne Jordan (A Star Is Born); Academy Award-nominated composer David Newman (Anastasia); and Academy Award-winning sound engineer Shawn Murphy (Jurassic Park).
The Wizard of Oz at Sphere: The Soundtrack is now available digitally, allowing everyone to bring home the timeless score.
1. Main Titles (The Wizard of Oz)
2. Trouble in School
3. Over the Rainbow
4. Miss Gulch
5. Leaving Home
6. Crystal Gazing
7. Cyclone
8. Arrival in Munchkinland
9. Munchkinland / Threatening Witch
10. Leaving Munchkinland
11. Good Fairy Vanishes / Follow the Yellow Brick Road / You’re Off to See the Wizard / The Cornfield
12. If I Only Had a Brain
13. We’re Off to See the Wizard (Duet)
14. The Apple Orchard, Pt. 1
15. The Apple Orchard, Pt. 2
16. If I Only Had a Heart
17. Witch on Roof
18. Lament / We’re Off to See the Wizard (Trio)
19. Into the Forest of Wild Beasts
20. If I Only Had the Nerve / We’re Off to See the Wizard (Quartet) / Poppies / The Spell
21. Optimistic Voices
22. The City Gates Open
23. The Merry Old Land of Oz
24. At the Gates of Emerald City
25. Magic Smoke Chords
26. The Haunted Forest / The Jitterbug’s Attack, Pt. 1
27. The Jitterbug’s Attack, Pt. 2
28. The Witch’s Castle, Pt. 1
29. Toto’s Escape
30. The Witch’s Castle, Pt. 2
31. Toto Brings News
32. March of the Winkies
33. Dorothy’s Rescue
34. On the Castle Wall
35. March of the Winkies (Reprise)
36. The Wizard’s Exposé / Emerald City Graduation / Fill-In Awards
37. Fill-In Awards / Balloon Ascension
38. I Hereby Decree / Glinda Returns
39. Delirious Escape / Delirious Escape Continued / End Title / End Cast
40. Over the Rainbow (A Cappella Version)
41. Cyclone (Binaural Version)
42. I Am Oz (Binaural Version)
