After a recent new edition of his breakthrough soundtrack work, composer Hans Zimmer is the subject of not one but two film score reissues released this month.

La-La Land Records announced for April a dramatic expansion of Zimmer's score for Gladiator. A modern take on sword-and-sandal epics released in 2000, Gladiator told the story of Maximus Decimus Meridius, a dedicated Roman general whose world is turned upside down by the murder of emperor Marcus Aurelius at the hands of his son, who proceeds to murder Maximus' family and cast him into slavery. The warrior plots his revenge while rising through the ranks of the empire's greatest fighters. Directed with gusto by Ridley Scott of Alien and Blade Runner fame, Gladiator was both a critical and commercial smash, becoming that year's second most financially successful film and the winner of five Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Australian actor Russell Crowe as Maximus. (Co-stars included Joaquin Phoenix in a memorable villainous turn and the final performance of British actor Oliver Reed, who died during production.) Scott released a sequel last year, with Paul Mescal starring as the grown son of Maximus and Denzel Washington as the villain.

Gladiator's score, which also garnered an Academy Award nomination, has all the hallmarks that make Zimmer such a controversial figure in film scoring, alternately praised and cursed by listeners. It combines traditional orchestral sounds with layers of synthesizer, was largely composed by a team of associates (vocalist Lisa Gerrard of Dead Can Dance worked enough to be named co-composer, and four others, including Klaus Badelt and Nick Glennie-Smith, receive writing credits throughout the package), and draws heavy influence from classical works by Wagner and Holst (whose estate eventually accepted an out-of-court settlement after suing Zimmer's team for copyright infringement). Nonetheless, it was quite popular, yielding not one but two albums' worth of score material not long after its release. This 3CD set builds greatly upon those releases (most recently reissued as one set in 2005 and 2020), bringing together the film's complete score and a healthy dose of alternates - including eight early "sketchbook" recordings from the earliest writing sessions for the film. Best of all, the set improves upon the fatal flaw of the original soundtracks, which frequently overlaid film dialogue over the score cues for dramatic effect. The Gladiator reissue was produced by Stéphane Humez and edited and mastered by Maxime Marion under Zimmer and Gerrard's supervision; the pair contributed new liner notes to the accompanying liner notes essay by Kaya Savas, while LLL stalwart Dan Goldwasser designs the set's packaging. It's limited to 3500 copies.

Intrada jumps backward in Zimmer's timeline with another key early work: his music for the period sports comedy A League of Their Own. Loosely based on the real-life All-American Girls Professional Baseball League that ran in the period during and after World War II, actor-turned-director Penny Marshall delivered a funny, moving film featuring a terrific ensemble including Geena Davis, Lori Petty, Rosie O'Donnell and Madonna as the members of the Rockford Peaches and Tom Hanks as the crusty alcoholic ex-slugger tasked with coaching them. League was a critical and commercial smash that was inducted into the Library of Congress' National Film Registry in its 20th anniversary year, and was adapted for the small screen twice: once for CBS in 1993 (a short-lived series that featured several of the cast members reprising their roles, including Jon Lovitz, Garry Marshall, Marshall's daughter Tracy Reiner and Megan Cavanaugh), and a new adaptation for Amazon Prime in 2022 (starring Broad City co-lead Abbi Jacobson).

Zimmer's score - a fun mix of jazzy comedy and semi-grandiose respect for "America's pastime" (a game the German composer admitted he knew little about until Marshall guided him) - was first highlighted in part on a soundtrack album that mostly focused on new covers of period songs and Great American Songbook standards by the likes of Billy Joel, James Taylor and The Manhattan Transfer as well as the new original "Now and Forever." (Absent from the album was "This Used to Be My Playground," a dramatic ballad from co-star Madonna that played over the closing credits and became her tenth career No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.) Now, Intrada offers a disc with nearly an hour's worth of newly restored score from the film. Once again, Zimmer's team of producer Humez, editor/engineer Marion and liner notes by Savas complete the package.

Both scores can be pre-ordered at the links below!

Hans Zimmer & Lisa Gerrard, Gladiator (Music from the Motion Picture - 25th Anniversary Expanded Edition) (La-La Land Records LLLCD 1670, 2025 - original film released 2000)

Disc I: Score presentation

1. Opening - Fields
2. The Wheat (Film Version) *
3. The Battle (Film Version)
4. Commodus - After the War
5. Marcus & Lucilla
6. Tell Me About Your Home **
7. Lucilla & Maximus
8. Patricide (Film Version)
9. Emperor is Dead **
10. A Soldier's Death - Home
11. The Bodies **
12. To Marrakesh ++
13. I Salute You
14. Rome
15. The Greatness of Rome
16. Six Man Fight
17. Win the Crowd
18. Reunion **
19. Slaves to Rome (Film Version)
20. He Sleeps So Well ***
21. Afraid of Dark
22. Walk to Colosseum
23. Maximus & Lucius Meet **

Disc II: Score presentation continued

1. Barbarian Horde (Film Version) +++
2. I Think I'll Meet Him
3. I'm Vexed
4. I Knew a Man Once
5. Tiger Fight - Waiting for Judgment
6. You Simply Won't Die
7. Figurines (Film Version) *
8. They Love Maximus
9. We Will Lie Still °°
10. Wish of a Dying Man °
11. Secrets (Film Version) **
12. The Kiss
13. Busy Bee ***
14. The Trap - Escape Fails
15. Am I Not Merciful? (Film Version)
16. Flashback **
17. Elysium (Film Version) **
18. Honor Him
19. Now We Are Free ***

Disc III: The Gladiator Sketchbook (1-8) and Additional Music (9-22)

1. Duduk of the North
2. Gladiator Waltz (Demo)
3. Rome is the Light ***
4. After the War
5. Opening Soldiers (feat. Lisbeth Scott)
6. Sister Theme
7. Roman & Spanish ++
8. After the War (Guitar Variation)
9. The Wheat (Alternate) *
10. The Battle
11. The Bodies (Alternate) +
12. To Marrakesh (Alternate Opening Version 1) ++
13. To Marrakesh (Alternate Opening Version 2)
14. Marrakesh Marketplace †
15. Win the Crowd (Alternate) **
16. Afraid of Dark (Alternate) ***
17. Figurines +
18. Figurines (Alternate)
19. Busy Bee (Alternate) **
20. The Trap - Escape Fails (Alternate)
21. Now We Are Free (Alternate Version 1) ***
22. Now We Are Free (Alternate Version 2) ***

All tracks written by Hans Zimmer except:

* written by Lisa Gerrard
** written by Lisa Gerrard and Klaus Badelt
*** written by Hans Zimmer, Lisa Gerrard and Klaus Badelt
+ written by Hans Zimmer and Lisa Gerrard
++ written by Hans Zimmer and Djivan Gasparyan
+++ written by Hans Zimmer and Nick Glennie-Smith
° written by Hans Zimmer and Klaus Badelt
°° written by Klaus Badelt
† written by Jeff Rona

Portions previously released on Gladiator (Music from the Motion Picture) - Decca 289 467 094-2, 2000 and Gladiator (More Music from the Motion Picture) - Decca 440 013 192-2, 2001

Hans Zimmer, A League of Their Own (Original Motion Picture Score) (Intrada ISC 520, 2025 - original film released 1992)

1. Prologue
2. Newsreel
3. Sibling Rivalry
4. Plucking Cows
5. Marla's Goodbye
6. Tryouts
7. Take Me Out to the Ballgame/Jimmy Manages
8. Black and White Into Color
9. Batting Practice
10. Mixed Signals/No Crying
11. Life Magazine Montage
12. Not Happy/Kit's Frustrated
13. Telegram
14. Dottie Leaves/Newsreel Montage
15. The Prayer
16. Final Game
17. Locker Room
18. Hall of Fame
19. Final Goodbyes and Hellos

Portions previously released on Columbia CK 52919, 1992