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West Side Story (1961) 6-Track Restoration

02.08.10

February 2010 - Original 6-track Mix Recovered and Restored for West Side Story.

West Side Story, the musical adaptation of William Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet set against the youth gang scene of New York in the 1950s, won ten Academy Awards® including best picture for producer/director Robert Wise. Released in 1961 in both 35mm and 70mm Super Panavision, the film helped to establish 6-track stereo sound for the 70mm format, yet the original ground breaking 6-track soundtrack has not been heard in the past 30 years.

According to Hollywood lore, legendary sound mixer Murray Spivak convinced director Robert Wise to adopt the new 6-track sound format L, Lc, C, Rc, R, S (Left, Left-center, Center, Right-center, Right, Surround) for the film, even though a 4-track LCRS (Left, Center, Right, Surround) mix had already been started. Wise took Spivak’s recommendation, and the result was a soundtrack that won the Oscar® for best achievement in sound. However, audiences have not heard the original Academy Award winning 6-track mix since 1981...

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