Warner Classics releases world premiere recording of Maria Newman’s Rhapsody by Slatkin & LA Film Orchestra, marking first single from Pictures at an Exhibition: The Paintings of Bob Peak

Bringing together music, visual arts, and the world of cinema, Pictures at an Exhibition: The Paintings of Bob Peak is due for release by Warner Classics next spring. Following the concept behind one of Mussorgsky’s greatest works, producer Robert Townson and the Abu Dhabi Festival will present the Los Angeles Film Orchestra and Leonard Slatkin in the world premiere recordings of new works by ten contemporary composers, each of whom draws inspiration from a different artwork by American illustrator Bob Peak (1927–92). Meanwhile, the first single from the project, Maria Newman’s Rhapsody for a Golden Age (1937 Academy Players Directory), is now available here.

It is unlikely that any film enthusiast has failed to set eyes on an image by Bob Peak. Born in Colorado in 1927, Peak designed his first film poster in 1961 for the musical West Side Story, which became the year’s highest grossing film and broke Academy Award records. He went on to create artwork for films including My Fair Lady (1964), Camelot (1967), The Spy Who Loved Me (1977), Superman (1978), Apocalypse Now (1979), Excalibur (1981), and all five of the first Star Trek movies (1979–1989), becoming known as “the father of modern movie posters.” However, his talent extended far beyond Hollywood. Peak also received commissions from the United States Postal Service, the United Nations, the 1984 Summer and Winter Olympics, for the covers of 45 issues of Time magazine, and many more.

Pictures at an Exhibition: The Paintings of Bob Peak sets out to create a soundtrack for these other masterpieces. Robert Townson, a celebrated film music producer, took inspiration for the project from Modest Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, composed more than 150 years ago. Townson explains:

“Much as I loved Mussorgsky’s original piece, my idea was to create a new Pictures at an Exhibition for a new age. To have original music composed and have the inspiration for all the new music be the paintings of Bob Peak. Not his film paintings. They already have music attached to them. His other artwork. He did almost everything.”

Each movement of Townson’s Pictures has been conceived by a different and equally notable composer. The tour opens with the familiar “Promenade” from Mussorgsky’s suite, performed as a piano solo by Robert Thies, the only American pianist to win first prize in a Russian piano competition (St. Petersburg’s International Prokofiev Competition) since Van Cliburn’s 1958 triumph in Moscow. Next follows Maria Newman’s Rhapsody for a Golden Age, written to capture Peak’s painting for the “1937 Academy Players Directory.” The piece is dedicated to Maria’s father, Hollywood legend Alfred Newman.

The Rhapsody is the first of ten new musical depictions of Bob Peak originals. As well as works by Ihab Darwish, Jeff Beal, Marco Beltrami, Michael Abels, and Don Davis, there are contributions from icons of the film industry, including “Two Girls with Sparklers” by Harry Gregson-Williams (The Chronicles of Narnia, Gladiator II, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Shrek); “The Great Bridge” by Bill Conti (the Rocky series, For Your Eyes Only, The Right Stuff); “A Song about Audrey,” inspired by Peak’s portrayal of Audrey Hepburn, from Marc Shaiman (When Harry Met Sally, Sister Act, Sleepless in Seattle); and a musical rendering of Peak’s “Mother Teresa of Calcutta,” painted for Timemagazine in 1975, by Mychael Danna (500 Days of Summer, Moneyball, Life of Pi). While film music itself is not the prime focus, its influence can be heard in each of these vivid and strikingly cinematic pieces, which tell a collective story through ten distinctive voices.

Pictures at an Exhibition: The Paintings of Bob Peak was premiered live at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles on June 14, 2024. The production was co-produced by the Abu Dhabi Festival, with whom Townson had previously collaborated on Symphony of Three: Peace – Love – Tolerance (also featuring composer Ihab Darwish, as well as David Shire and John Debney). As on the upcoming world premiere recordings, Leonard Slatkin, celebrating his 80th birthday that same year, conducted the Los Angeles Film Orchestra.

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Pictures at an Exhibition: The Paintings of Bob Peak

Label: Warner Classics
Format CD & digital
International release date: March 6, 2026

MUSSORGSKY: “Promenade I” from Pictures at an Exhibition (piano solo: Robert Thies)
Maria NEWMAN: Rhapsody for a Golden Age, 1937 Academy Players Directory (with Robert Thies, piano)
Mychael DANNA: “Mother Teresa” (with Azam Ali, vocals)
Harry GREGSON-WILLIAMS: “Two Girls with Sparklers”
Ihab DARWISH: “Curva Grande”
Jeff BEAL: “New York World’s Fair 1964–1965”
Marco BELTRAMI: “The Spirit of Sport: Jack Nicklaus”
Michael ABELS: “Unbound: Jesse Owens,” 1936 Olympics
Marc SHAIMAN: “A Song About Audrey,” Audrey Hepburn (with Marc Shaiman, vocals)
Don DAVIS: “Golden Eagles”
Bill CONTI: “The Great Bridge,” Brooklyn Bridge 100th Anniversary