La Vergine di Norimberga
Horror Castle

Quartet Records and Gruppo Sugar present an expanded, two-disc edition of the classic score composed and conducted by Riz Ortolani (Danza Macabra, The Yellow Rolls-Royce, Madron, La ragazza dal pigiama giallo, Valentina) for the Gothic horror film La vergine di Norimberga (aka Horror Castle), directed by Antonio Margheriti in 1963.

The film stars Rossana Podestà as Mary Hunter, an American woman who recently moved to Germany to be with her German husband. The castle holds many secrets, including memories of war crimes, mutilated corpses and a mysterious ancestor named The Punisher. The film is notable for featuring the legendary Christopher Lee in a bit part as Erich, a family associate who knows the dark secrets hidden within.

Riz Ortolani provides the original score with his usual assured approach to finding the right tone for a most unusual subject. A brassy, big band sound creates a clever association with the gold-tainted iron maiden, while other segments use the sound of the organ to create suspense for each gruesome discovery. Juxtaposing contemporary jazz music with past atrocities (both medieval and World War II) allows the music to be fresh and incredibly lively for such a dark subject matter.

This Quartet Records release includes for the first time the entire score presented in dynamic stereo sound. The first disc contains the remastered original album program, and the second disc features the complete score, all mastered by Claudio Fuiano from first-generation master tapes courtesy of Gruppo Sugar. Package includes an 8-page booklet with notes by Gergely Hubai discussing the film and the score.