JOHN WILLIAMS WINS FIVE AWARDS FROM THE INTERNATIONAL FILM MUSIC CRITICS INCLUDING SCORE OF THE YEAR FOR “WAR HORSE”

The International Film Music Critics Association announces the winners of its eighth annual awards for excellence in musical scoring in 2011 with John Williams’ score for Steven Spielberg’s WAR HORSE topping the list, winning Film Score of the Year, Best Score for a Drama Film and Individual Cue for “The Homecoming.” Williams also wins Composer of the Year and Best Score for an Animated Film for THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN. French composer Ludovic Bource wins Breakout Composer of the Year for his score to THE ARTIST.

Cliff Martinez wins Best Score for an Action/Adventure/Thriller Film for Nicolas Winding Refn’s DRIVE. Best Score for a Comedy Film is given to THE RUM DIARY by Christopher Young. Michael Giacchino wins his 11th career award for JJ Abrams’ SUPER 8 in the Best Score for a Fantasy/Science Fiction/Horror Film category. Turkish composer Pinar Toprak wins Best Score for a Documentary Film for her score to THE WIND GODS.

In the non-film categories, Arnau Bataller wins Best Score for a Television Series for the Spanish telenovela ERMESSENDA. Veteran Japanese composer Joe Hisaishi wins Best Score for a Video Game or Interactive Media for the Level-5 / Studio Ghibli game NI NO KUNI: WRATH OF THE WHITE WITCH.

The Best Archival Release goes to the massive Warner Bros sixteen-disc, retrospective box-set THE DANNY ELFMAN & TIM BURTON 25TH ANNIVERSARY MUSIC BOX, which was housed in a Zoetrope box and included an exclusive historical book. The winner of Best Archival Re-recording goes to conductor William Stromberg and the Moscow Symphony Orchestra for their re-recording of Bernard Herrmanm’s THE BATTLE OF NERETVA and THE NAKED AND THE DEAD. Best Record Label of the Year goes to La-La Land Records, their second win in a row in this category, for such notable 2011 expanded release soundtracks as 1941, SPACE ABOVE AND BEOND, FAT MAN AND LITTLE BOY, COMMANDO and STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION COLLECTION VOLUME 1.

The Association is also bestowing a Special Award to SYMPHONY OF HOPE: THE HAITI PROJECT, a benefit recording collaboration between 25 film and TV composers, including John Debney, Christopher Young, Dave Grusin, Marvin Hamlisch, and Christopher Lennertz who produced with Steve Schnur. The recording is available as a download on itunes and Amazon among other outlets with proceeds going to Haiti Earthquake Relief. More information can be found at www.haitisymphony.com.

FILM SCORE OF THE YEAR
• WAR HORSE, music by John Williams

FILM COMPOSER OF THE YEAR
• JOHN WILLIAMS

BREAKOUT COMPOSER OF THE YEAR
• LUDOVIC BOURCE

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A DRAMA FILM
• WAR HORSE, music by John Williams

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A COMEDY FILM
• THE RUM DIARY, music by Christopher Young

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR AN ACTION/ADVENTURE/THRILLER FILM
• DRIVE, music by Cliff Martinez

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A FANTASY/SCIENCE FICTION/HORROR FILM
• SUPER 8, music by Michael Giacchino

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR AN ANIMATED FEATURE
• THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN, music by John Williams

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
• THE WIND GODS, music by Pinar Toprak

FILM MUSIC COMPOSITION OF THE YEAR
• WAR HORSE – “The Homecoming” (John Williams)

2011 Non-Film Categories

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR TELEVISION
• ERMESSENDA, music by Arnau Bataller

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A VIDEO GAME OR INTERACTIVE MEDIA
• NI NO KUNI: WRATH OF THE WHITE WITCH, music by Joe Hisaishi

BEST ARCHIVAL RELEASE OF AN EXISTING SCORE
• THE DANNY ELFMAN & TIM BURTON 25TH ANNIVERSARY MUSIC BOX, music by Danny Elfman; album produced by Danny Elfman and Tim Burton; liner notes by Jeff Bond and Danny Elfman; album art direction by Matt Taylor (Warner Bros Records)

BEST ARCHIVAL RE-RECORDING OF AN EXISTING SCORE
• THE BATTLE OF NERETVA/THE NAKED AND THE DEAD, music by Bernard Herrmann; conducted by William Stromberg; album produced by William Stromberg, John Morgan and Anna Bonn; liner notes by Jim Doherty and Kevin Scott; album art direction by Jim Titus (Tribute Film Classics)

FILM MUSIC RECORD LABEL OF THE YEAR
• LA-LA LAND RECORDS

SPECIAL AWARD
• A SYMPHONY OF HOPE: THE HAITI PROJECT

The International Film Music Critics Association (IFMCA) is an association of online, print and radio journalists who specialize in writing about original film and television music.

The IFMCA was originally formed in the late 1990s as the now-defunct “Film Music Critics Jury” by editor and journalist Mikael Carlsson, a former contributor to filmmusicradio.com and filmmusicmag.com, and currently the owner of the Swedish independent film music label MovieScore Media.

Since its inception, the IFMCA has grown to comprise over 50 members from countries as diverse as Australia, Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America.

Previous IFMCA Score of the Year Awards have been awarded to John Powell’s HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON in 2010, Michael Giacchino’s UP in 2009, Alexandre Desplat’s THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON in 2008, Dario Marianelli’s ATONEMENT in 2007, James Newton Howard’s LADY IN THE WATER in 2006, John Williams’ MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA in 2005 and Michael Giacchino’s THE INCREDIBLES in 2004.

For more information about the International Film Music Critics Association, its members and the list of past awards, please visit http://www.filmmusiccritics.org or contact press@filmmusiccritics.org.

MOVIE MUSIC UK CLASSICS

Original Review by Craig Lysy

Coming off his directorial success with Star Trek III, Leonard Nimoy again assembled our iconic crew for a thoughtful eco-story that spoke to humanity’s poor stewardship of the Earth. The film opens with a massive space probe of unknown origin en route to Earth. When it arrives it delivers a cryptic message in a language that seems unintelligible. In addition, its power system neutralizes the Earth’s power grid and begins to vaporize its oceans. The exiled Captain Kirk and his fugitive crew correctly determine that the message is directed not to humanity, but instead to an extinct species, the Humpback whale. As such, they resolve to time travel back to late 20th century Earth to recover two humpback whales, hoping to bring them back to the future so they can respond to the probe’s message. Set in 20th century urban San Francisco, this new adventure was comic, light-hearted and proved to be a huge commercial success, earning profits of more than five times it’s production costs.

First time director Nimoy was very candid that he wanted to employ his friend Rosenman for Star Trek III, but was over ruled by Paramount executives. After delivered on Star Trek III, he had sufficient gravitas to have his way with Paramount the second time around and so hired Rosenman. In discussing Rosenman Nimoy related” He was a wonderful intellect, full of great information and a passion for movies and music”. Rosenman said he was eager to take on the film stating, “I had always wanted to take a crack at one of these hardware pictures”. One notices immediately a shift in the tonality of both the film and score from the dark, dramatic and operatic narrative of the previous two films to a lighter and more upbeat sensibility focused on social commentary.

The score is multi-thematic and features four primary themes. The first is the heroic Kirk’s Theme replete with Rosenman’s customary vaulting horn figures. This energetic major modal theme, carried by horns, just abounds with unbridled optimism. It perfectly captures the bold and confident heroism of “Where No Man Has Gone Before”, which defines the Star Trek universe. It’s A phrase features a primary trumpet line with contrapuntal horns and potent percussion, while the B phrase is lyrical, string carried and adorned with sparkling glockenspiel. The theme speaks to our higher selves, is emblematic of our hero James T. Kirk and animates the film. The second theme is the ingenious and wondrous Whale Fugue, which was written in 12/8 time and imbued with a flowing waltz-like sensibility meant to express the whales musically. The third theme is the contemplative Spock’s Theme, which opens with a mysterioso violin sustain that transitions to a repeating four note line that shifts from French Horns, to trumpets, until finally closing with a plaintive woodwind diminuendo. Lastly, we have the dramatic Probe Theme, an ominous, tonal and repeating ascending four-note line with contrapuntal horn play and potent percussive force.

“Logo/Main Title” opens with ethereal strings and harp, which play against the Paramount logo. This ambient prelude ushers in a sterling horn fare declaration of the iconic Star Trek Theme by Alexander Courage. A bridge transition serves to launch Rosenman’s Main Theme, here expressed fully with both its A and B phrases. This cue features an extended expression of the theme in all its resplendent and unbounded glory, which plays against the backdrop of a bright and colorful nebula. Most importantly, it fully supported Nimoy’s vision to begin his film with music that emoted fun and adventure. I just get so inspired with every listen of the heroic theme.

We next begin a quaternary cue, which I will explore sequentially. “Starfleet Command” opens the sequence and takes place in the Federation Assembly Chamber. The Klingon Ambassador is seen railing against a video that displays the ‘murder’ of a Klingon crew by James Kirk who self-destructed the Enterprise. There is great irony here in that the Klingons were stealing the Enterprise! The cue opens with an ascending dramatic horn line that gives way to repeating ominous chords, which support a forceful bass line with suspenseful woodwinds and tremolo strings. At 0:28 we shift scenes to Vulcan and segue into “On Vulcan” where ethereal strings and textural flutes evoke a sense of mystery. Continuing on, at 0:49, we hear a forlorn Kirk’s Theme stripped of its vital energy as he addresses his exiled crew. At 1:02 in “Spock”, Spock’s Theme is introduced as Kirk sees a hooded Spock in the distance. The theme is well conceived and perfectly attenuated in that it imparts both mystery and separateness as Spock struggles to regain both his faculties and his place in life. At 1:23 we conclude the cue with a scene change in “Ten Seconds of Tension” as we see the massive probe approach the Star Ship Saratoga. This is a textural cue carried by eerie tonal strings and woodwinds. With “The Probe”, we see the probe incapacitate the Star Ship Saratoga via a complete energy drain. Rosenthal provides his forceful horn carried Probe Theme with an introductory array of complex string writing that features pizzicato, tremolo and sul ponticello techniques. Woodwinds join this tonal writing, which serves to raise the alarm as the Saratoga struggles to survive. This cue is really nicely done.

We begin another complex cue, which features extensive interplay of the Probe Theme and Kirk’s Theme that I will explore sequentially. In “The Probe-Transition” the Probe Theme continues on woodwinds as we transition to Vulcan where Kirk’s Theme enters as the crew begins preparations to return to Earth and face a summary court marshal. At 0:24 in “The Take-Off” we see the “Bounty” lift off and ascend over the Vulcan landscape. We hear Kirk’s Theme, now refortified, announced by solo trumpet and then taken up by lyrical strings. With a scene change at 0:50 we see the probe enter Earth orbit and incapacitate Star Fleet’s orbiting space docking complex. Again Rosenman employs dissonant woodwinds performing the Probe Theme replete with tremolo strings to create an ominous soundscape. At 1:11 in the “Menace of the Probe” the Probe Theme continues to dominate, raising the tension as it begins to vaporize the Earth’s oceans. As we cut away at 1:52 to the Bounty, Kirk’s Theme sounds on trumpets as they approach the Terran System. At 2:04 in “Clouds and Water” as the oceans continue to vaporize; eerie tonal violins join a dark rumbling bass line serving to further escalate tension. Trumpets lead a shift change to charged atmosphere at Star Fleet command. At 2:38 in “Crew Stunned” ominous tonal chords sound and evoke deep apprehension as Kirk and his crew hears a planetary distress call. This cue expertly supported the film’s narrative evoking growing alarm and desperation with a fine interplay of Kirk’s and the Probe’s Themes, which are strikingly dissimilar.

“Time Travel” features the Bounty warping into the Sun’s gravimetric field so as to propel itself into time warp. This is a discordant and tonal cue, which opens with tremelo violins and agitato trumpets joining to raise a growing tension as the crew journeys to an uncertain fate. As the slingshot point nears Kirk’s Theme tries to break out on trumpets but never succeeds. At 0:25 dark rumbling bass and groaning horns emote the surreal film imagery of the crew’s facial images as the Bounty succeeds in returning to the 20th century. At 0:45 sharp discordant tonal strings usher in an orchestral chord and ambient textures as the crew slowly awakens. This avant-garde cue was well-conceived and bold in its application.

“In San Francisco” is a complex, multifaceted cue that musically animates each of the three-team missions created by Kirk. We open with a fine tête-à-tête between Kirk’s Theme and Spock’s Theme replete with muted snare drums as they attempt to navigate San Francisco and locate Humpback whales housed in the Cetacean Institute. As the scene shifts at 0:23, so does the musical flow as we hear playful woodwinds and a groaning bassoon imitate Scottish bagpipes as Scotty, Sulu and McCoy pursue their mission. At 0:54 we switch to Ohura and Chekov whose mission is to locate a nuclear reactor. Their comic melodic line is infused with a faux Russian flavor by use of a clarinet and bassoon. At 1:07 we switch scenes again as Kirk and Spock disembark at Sausalito. Carefree strings usher in their themes, which again interplay as they enter the Cetacean Institute. We conclude with a cue intended to support a later covert infiltration of Mercy hospital as they seek to rescue Chekov. Militaristic snare drums and comic woodwinds support their efforts. Although comic in tone this cue features some very creative writing. “Chekov’s Run” features his ill-fated escape from imprisonment aboard the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Enterprise. This wonderful cue is a spritely scherzo infused with a classic Russian sensibility. The dark chordal ending underscores Chekov’s fall and mortal injury.

In “Gillian Seeks Kirk” Gillian arrives at the institute and is devastated to find that her whales had been released into the wild without allowing her to say good-bye. Tense strings and woodwinds set the scene as we hear a plaintive oboe emote her pain of loss. After a bridge passage we hear Kirk’s Theme sound on woodwinds, a reflection of Gillian’s inner thoughts, which now impel her to seek him out so as to save her whales. This use of Kirk’s Theme to emote her inner emotional state is well conceived. As she speeds away, restless strings take us to a scene change at 0:50 where horn fare and strings join Kirk’s Theme as Sulu lowers the transparent aluminum from his helicopter into the Bounty’s hold. A new line emerges propelled by pulsatile timpani, pizzicato strings and a dolorosa bassoon as Gillian cries out for Kirk to help her. His theme sounds on muted trumpets as she is beamed aboard. Comic woodwinds play as Gillian takes in the ships interior. Well, this brings us to the most comic cue of the entire score, “Hospital Chase” where Kirk, McCoy and Gillian madly wheel Chekov on a gurney evading the police as they seek escape from the hospital. Rosenman described this cue as a “Charlie Chaplin” approach and damn of he delivers. He perfectly captured the spirit of that era with crazy woodwinds going up and down their scales, mad-cap strings and oompah tubas driving this silly piece to a grand conclusion with their elevator beam out declared by a concluding triumphant chord.

“The Whaler” is a tense and energetic rescue cue that plays as the Bounty accelerates on an intercept vector to harvest the whales before a pursuing whaler can harpoon them. The piece drives forth in an aggressive staccato rhythm propelled by horns, which sound Kirk’s Theme. As tension mounts, we hear interplay of Kirk’s Theme with aquatic ambient textures alight with glockenspiel as the scene shifts to and from underwater shots of the whales to the Bounty. This cue is nicely done and perfectly attenuated to the film’s imagery. Well, this brings us to “Crash” where Rosenman’s score culminates with a dramatic and fulfilling statement. We begin with the Bounty crash landing in San Francisco Bay, having successfully returned from the past. Rosenman begins with a tense staccato line led by trumpets sounding the alarm as the Bounty begins sinking. A discordant repeating ascending horn line sounds over the bass staccato amplifying the tension as Kirk orders Gillian and Scotty out of the ship’s hold. At 0:45 the Probe Theme returns with a scene change. The string carried staccato line continues as Kirk resolves to dive underwater in order to reach the release valve that will free the whales. At 1:55 trumpets sound over tremolo strings with xylophone accents as he begins his effort. A crescendo at 2:23 leads to Kirk’s Theme on trumpets, which signals success as the Bounty’s hold doors blow and release the whales. A bridge passage plays as Kirk surfaces to rejoin the crew, awaiting a sign that the whales have been saved. Yearning strings with trumpets bring the cue to a satisfying climax as the whale’s surface. At 3:50 an abstract textural string line emerges with tonal coloring provided by the orchestral that underscores the undecipherable conversation between the probe and whales. At 7:08 the probe desists in its conversation and a triumphant Kirk’s Theme sounds with trombones and strings. We segue at 7:30 into “Whale Fugue”, a magnificent score highlight that features the wondrous Whale Fugue Theme. The cue opens in celebratory fashion with a joyous statement that lifts the tension as the probe departs and the crew revels in their success. The melodic string dominant line flows as a classical dance, replete with celebratory trumpets, twinkling glockenspiel and ends with a sparkling flourish.

“Home Again” opens with a rapprochement between Sarek and Spock, which is supported by a reserved rendering of Spock’s Theme. At 0:27 strings brillante replete with sparkling glockenspiel play as Kirk and his crew travel by shuttle to their new ship. As the new Enterprise A is at last seen, Alexander Courage’s original theme sounds and propels our heroes on a new adventure as they warp out to again go “Where No Man Has Gone Before.” At 1:48 an ascending series of bright chords ushers in the “End Credits”, a ternary cue, which opens with a resplendent version of Kirk’s Theme that segues into the Whale Fugue Theme before concluding with a bravado reprise of Kirk’s Theme! This is just an outstanding suite!

“Main Title (Alternate)” is the rejected first version, which Nimoy felt was too serious and lacked the fun and adventuresome spirit he desired. I fully agree. The following cues all provide source music; “Market Street” and “Ballad of the Whale” are performed by the Yellowjackets and designed to provide a jazzy modern urban ambiance. While “I Hate You” is hard-edged explicit rock that plays as an obnoxious punk is subdued by Spock’s trademark nerve pinch. The remaining alternate cues are worthy of your exploration and feature different instrumentation and emotive sensibilities.

I must thank Lukas Kendall, and Douglass Fake and Roger Feigelson of Intrada for this world premiere release of the complete score to Star Trek IV. The sound quality is again pristine and the inclusion of alternate tracks and source music is greatly appreciated. While this score does not have the dramatic operatic power of many of the other franchise scores, it does provide a multiplicity of themes that are perfectly attenuated to the film’s imagery and expertly support the story’s narrative. We are provided one of the best Main Themes of the franchise, the beautiful fugue, exciting scherzos and some wonderfully inspired comedic writing. This is a fun and enjoyable score and I recommend it as a worthy addition to your collection.

Rating: ***½

Buy the Star Trek IV soundtrack from the Movie Music UK Store

Track Listing:

• Logo/Main Title (2:52)
• Starfleet Command/On Vulcan/Spock/Ten Seconds of Tension (1:40)
• The Probe (1:16)
• The Probe—Transition/The Take-Off/Menace of the Probe/Clouds and Water/Crew Stunned (3:08)
• Time Travel (1:28)
• Market Street (written by Leonard Rosenman, Russell Ferrante and Jimmy Haslip, performed by The Yellowjackets) (4:38)
• In San Francisco (2:01)
• Chekov’s Run (1:21)
• Gillian Seeks Kirk (2:42)
• Hospital Chase (1:14)
• The Whaler (2:00)
• Crash/Whale Fugue (8:38)
• Kirk Freed (0:44)
• Home Again/End Credits (5:39)
• Ballad of the Whale (Bonus) (written by Leonard Rosenman, Russell Ferrante and Jimmy Haslip, performed by The Yellowjackets) (4:59)
• Main Title (Alternate) (2:56)
• Time Travel (Alternate) (1:29)
• Chekov’s Run (Album Ending) (1:19)
• The Whaler (Alternate) (2:05)
• Crash/Whale Fugue (Album Track) (8:15)
• Home Again and End Credits (Alternate) (5:16)
• Main Title (Album Track) (2:40)
• Whale Fugue (Alternate) (1:05)
• I Hate You (written by Kirk Thatcher, performed by Edge of Etiquette) (1:59)

Running Time: 71 minutes 24 seconds

Intrada MAF-7114 (1986/2012)

Music composed and conducted by Leonard Rosenman. Orchestrations by Ralph Ferraro. Original Star Trek TV theme by Alexander Courage. Recorded and mixed By Dan Wallin. Edited by Else Blangsted. Album produced by Lukas Kendall, Douglass Fake and Roger Feigelson.

JOHN WILLIAMS RECEIVES 7 INTERNATIONAL FILM MUSIC CRITICS AWARD NOMINATIONS, INCLUDING TWO FOR FILM SCORE OF THE YEAR

The International Film Music Critics Association announces its list of nominees for excellence in musical scoring in 2011 with veteran composer John Williams leading the field with 7 nods including WAR HORSE (3 nominations) and THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN (3 nominations) for Film Score of the Year. Also nominated in this category are Ludovic Bource’s THE ARTIST (3 nominations), Mark McKenzie’s score to THE GREATEST MIRACLE (2 nominations) and Howard Shore’s HUGO (2 nominations).

Williams is short-listed for Film Composer of the Year along with Bource; last year’s winner, Alexandre Desplat (whose many scores include HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2, THE TREE OF LIFE, EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE, THE IDES OF MARCH, A BETTER LIFE); Michael Giacchino (SUPER 8, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: GHOST PROTOCOL, 50/50, MONTE CARLO, CARS 2) and Alberto Iglesias (TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY, LA PIEL QUE HABITO (THE SKIN I LIVE IN), TAMBIÉN LA LLUVIA, LE MOINE).

French composer Ludovic Bource has the rare distinction of also being nominated for Breakout Composer of the Year for Michel Hazanavicius’ silent film, THE ARTIST. The category has an international flair with nominations for Ireland’s Brian Byrne, recognized for his score to ALBERT NOBBS; the British electronic duo of Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons aka The Chemical Brothers for HANNA; British composer Michael Richard Plowman for A LONELY PLACE TO DIE, AGE OF HEROES and TREASURE GUARDS and Spanish Lucas Vidal for MIENTRAS DUERMES.

The British dominate the TV Score category with the popular ITV/PBS series DOWNTON ABBEY (John Lunn) nominated alongside DOCTOR WHO (Murray Gold) and SHERLOCK (David Arnold and Michael Price). Rounding out the category are the Spanish series ERMESSENDA (Arnau Bataller) and the American HBO series GAME OF THRONES (Ramin Djawadi).

The International Film Music Critics will announce the winners of its Eighth Annual Awards on February 23, 2012.

2011 Film Categories

FILM SCORE OF THE YEAR

• THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN, music by John Williams
• THE ARTIST, music by Ludovic Bource
• THE GREATEST MIRACLE, music by Mark McKenzie
• HUGO, music by Howard Shore
• WAR HORSE, music by John Williams

FILM COMPOSER OF THE YEAR

• LUDOVIC BOURCE
• ALEXANDRE DESPLAT
• MICHAEL GIACCHINO
• ALBERTO IGLESIAS
• JOHN WILLIAMS

BREAKOUT COMPOSER OF THE YEAR

• LUDOVIC BOURCE
• BRIAN BYRNE
• THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS
• MICHAEL RICHARD PLOWMAN
• LUCAS VIDAL

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A DRAMA FILM

• THE ARTIST, music by Ludovic Bource
• JANE EYRE, music by Dario Marianelli
• SOUL SURFER, music by Marco Beltrami
• W.E., music by Abel Korzeniowski
• WAR HORSE, music by John Williams

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A COMEDY FILM

• PAUL, music by David Arnold
• THE RUM DIARY, music by Christopher Young
• TORRENTE 4: LETHAL CRISIS, music by Roque Baños
• A VERY HAROLD AND KUMAR 3D CHRISTMAS, music by William Ross
• YOUR HIGHNESS, music by Steve Jablonsky

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR AN ACTION/ADVENTURE/THRILLER FILM

• CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER, music by Alan Silvestri
• DRIVE, music by Cliff Martinez
• MISSION IMPOSSIBLE – GHOST PROTOCOL, music by Michael Giacchino
• REAL STEEL, music by Danny Elfman
• RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, music by Patrick Doyle

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A FANTASY/SCIENCE FICTION/HORROR FILM

• DON’T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK, music by Marco Beltrami and Buck Sanders
• HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2, music by Alexandre Desplat
• HUGO, music by Howard Shore
• PRIEST, music by Christopher Young
• SUPER 8, music by Michael Giacchino

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR AN ANIMATED FEATURE

• THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN, music by John Williams
• THE GREATEST MIRACLE, music by Mark McKenzie
• KUNG FU PANDA 2, music by John Powell and Hans Zimmer
• PUSS IN BOOTS, music by Henry Jackman
• RANGO, music by Hans Zimmer

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

• FROZEN PLANET, music by George Fenton
• HOLD AT ALL COSTS: THE STORY OF THE BATTLE OF OUTPOST HARRY, music by Larry Groupé
• JIG, music by Patrick Doyle
• RUSSLAND – IM REICH DER TIGER, BÄREN UND VULKANE, music by Kolja Erdmann
• THE WIND GODS, music by Pinar Toprak

FILM MUSIC COMPOSITION OF THE YEAR

• “The Adventure Continues” from THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN, music by John Williams
• “George Valentin” from THE ARTIST, music by Ludovic Bource
• “Captain America March” from CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER, music by Alan Silvestri
• “Final Round” from REAL STEEL, music by Danny Elfman
• “The Homecoming” from WAR HORSE, music by John Williams

Other 2011 Categories

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A TELEVISION SERIES

• DOCTOR WHO, music by Murray Gold
• DOWNTON ABBEY, music by John Lunn
• ERMESSENDA, music by Arnau Bataller
• GAME OF THRONES, music by Ramin Djawadi
• SHERLOCK, music by David Arnold and Michael Price

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A VIDEO GAME OR INTERACTIVE MEDIA

• CALL OF DUTY: MODERN WARFARE 3, music by Brian Tyler
• THE ELDER SCROLLS V: SKYRIM, music by Jeremy Soule
• L.A. NOIRE, music by Andrew Hale and Simon Hale
• NI NO KUNI: WRATH OF THE WHITE WITCH, music by Joe Hisaishi
• SOCOM 4: U.S. NAVY SEALS, music by Bear McCreary

BEST ARCHIVAL RELEASE OF AN EXISTING SCORE

• THE BLACK HOLE, music by John Barry; album produced by Randy Thornton and Douglass Fake, liner notes by Jeff Bond; album art direction by Steve Sterling (Disney / Intrada)
• THE DANNY ELFMAN & TIM BURTON 25TH ANNIVERSARY MUSIC BOX, music by Danny Elfman; album produced by Danny Elfman and Tim Burton; liner notes by Jeff Bond and Danny Elfman; album art direction by Matt Taylor (Warner Bros Records)
• DAYS OF HEAVEN, music by Ennio Morricone; album produced by Lukas Kendall and Craig Spaulding; liner notes by Lukas Kendall and Jeff Bond; album art direction by Joe Sikoryak (Film Score Monthly)
• GREMLINS, music by Jerry Goldsmith; album produced by Mike Matessino and Bruce Botnick; liner notes by Jeff Bond and Mike Matessino; album art direction by Joe Sikoryak (Film Score Monthly)
• MASADA, music by Jerry Goldsmith and Morton Stevens; album produced by Douglass Fake and Roger Feigelson; liner notes by Jon Burlingame; album art direction by Joe Sikoryak (Intrada)

BEST ARCHIVAL RE-RECORDING OF AN EXISTING SCORE

• THE BATTLE OF NERETVA/THE NAKED AND THE DEAD, music by Bernard Herrmann; conducted by William Stromberg; album produced by William Stromberg, John Morgan and Anna Bonn; liner notes by Jim Doherty and Kevin Scott; album art direction by Jim Titus (Tribute Film Classics)
• CONAN THE DESTROYER, music by Basil Poledouris; conducted by Nic Raine; album produced by James Fitzpatrick; liner notes by Frank K. DeWald; album art direction by GINKO DIGI (Prometheus)
• THE FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE, music by Dimitri Tiomkin; conducted by Nic Raine; album produced by James Fitzpatrick; liner notes by Frank K. DeWald; album art direction by James Fitzpatrick, Damien Doherty and GINKO DIGI (Tadlow Music)
• THE LORD OF THE RINGS SYMPHONY, music by Howard Shore; conducted by Ludwig Wicki; album produced by Jonathan Schultz and Howard Shore; liner notes by Howard Shore and Ludwig Wicki; album art direction by Alan Frey (HOWE Records)
• TARAS BULBA, music by Franz Waxman; conducted by Nic Raine; album produced by James Fitzpatrick; liner notes by Frank K. DeWald; album art direction by Damien Doherty (Tadlow Music)

FILM MUSIC RECORD LABEL OF THE YEAR

• FILM SCORE MONTHLY
• INTRADA
• LA-LA LAND
• MOVIESCORE MEDIA
• VARÈSE SARABANDE

The International Film Music Critics Association (IFMCA) is an association of online, print and radio journalists who specialize in writing about original film and television music.

The IFMCA was originally formed in the late 1990s as the now-defunct “Film Music Critics Jury” by editor and journalist Mikael Carlsson, a former contributor to filmmusicradio.com and filmmusicmag.com, and currently the owner of the Swedish independent film music label MovieScore Media.

Since its inception, the IFMCA has grown to comprise over 50 members from countries as diverse as Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America.

Previous IFMCA Score of the Year Awards have been awarded to John Powell’s HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON in 2010, Michael Giacchino’s UP in 2009, Alexandre Desplat’s THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON in 2008, Dario Marianelli’s ATONEMENT in 2007, James Newton Howard’s LADY IN THE WATER in 2006, John Williams’ MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA in 2005 and Michael Giacchino’s THE INCREDIBLES in 2004.

For more information about the International Film Music Critics Association, its members and the list of past awards, please visit http://www.filmmusiccritics.org or contact press@filmmusiccritics.org.

MOVIE MUSIC UK CLASSICS

Original Review by Craig Lysy

The immense worldwide success achieved by “Conan the Barbarian” lead, to the surprise of no one, to an inevitably sequel. Producer Dino De Laurentiis hired director Richard Fleischer to revisit the mythic Hyborean world and offer us the classic mythic adventure. In the tale we see that at the bequest of the evil Queen Tamaris of Zamora, Conan is promised that his dead lover Valeria will be resurrected if he would bring to her the sacred Horn of Dagoth. In reality the duplicitous Tamaris plans to betray Conan and sacrifice her niece Jehenna to reanimate the god Dagoth with whom she plans to mate and generate a new progeny of gods. A colorful and eclectic cast lead again by Arnold Schwarzenegger (Conan) was assembled and featured the fierce Amazon warrior Zula (Grace Jones), virginal Princess Jehenna (Olivia d’Abo), the wise wizard Akiro (Mako), the comic thief Malak (Jeff Corey) and the treacherous Bombaata (Will Chamberlain). A parade of directors and a truly feeble script soured Schwarzenegger as he chose to not return for a third film. Never the less, fantasy films were at their zenith in the 80s and the film was a commercial success, doubling its $18 million production costs.

Most interesting is that Poledouris, who was asked to reprise as composer, would later comment derisively “the film has a completely different attitude – a rather ridiculous one at best.” Much of this may be attributable to a betrayal of resources as he was forced to write for a much smaller orchestra that lacked a chorus. One notices immediately an alteration in the soundscape to a less operatic tone given the dubious shift in the story’s narrative. Despite being so encumbered, Poledouris never the less managed to write some inspiring music, although the listener will notice immediately a lack of thematic continuity from the first film. Most of the great themes are absent or at best return as mere fragmentary echoes of their greater selves. There are two primary themes, which animate the film; Conan’s Theme, a bravado and heroic horn laden statement for our hero and the contrasting Queen Tamaris Theme, a menacing minor modal melody performed alla marcia. Three secondary themes also support the film’s narrative; the mysterioso and tri-tonal Toth-Amon Theme, which features a repeating four note line embellished with sparkling percussion, the Crystal Palace Theme, which is featured only once during Conan’s epic battle with Toth-Amon, and Valeria’s Theme from the original film, which speaks to Conan’s torment of loss. Included with these themes are a number of motifs that interplay during the film. Lastly, disc two includes four film versions of key cues, which in my judgment are inferior due to film editing to those presented by Nic Raine. As such I offered no additional commentary.

As in the first film, Poledouris supports the film’s introductory spoken narrative through the use of a stark percussive soundscape. As the credits roll we see Bombaata leading horsemen and a cart across desert plains. Suddenly from out of the textural percussion erupts the potent orchestral force of the horn driven Hyborean Theme, which again serves to establish the soundscape of this mythic age. Propelled by pounding timpani with tambourine accents we segue with a scene change at 2:20 into a glorious restatement of the heroic Conan’s Theme, where we see our hero praying at an altar. This epic and heroic cue is just a tour de force and a score highlight!

“Net Fight” is an astounding multi-thematic action cue. We see Queen Tamaris and her troops attack with nets and attempt to capture Conan and Malak. Descending tremolo strings usher in a fierce percussive attack sequence that features tuba, pounding timpani and kindred percussion. Rousing horn fare rises to play the Hyborean Theme as Conan slays one attacker after the next. Poledouris then introduces the Queen Tamaris Theme carried by full orchestra over an unrelenting percussive ostinato to drive the cue to conclusion. Wow, this is an action lover’s dream come true. Bravo! In “Valeria Remembered” a duplicitous Tamaris uses sorcery to entreat Conan to take up a quest with the promise to resurrect his lost lover Valeria. Poledouris demonstrates his genius in understanding the film’s narrative by using the orchestra to impart an ethereal tone to this scene where we see Conan entranced by a fleeting vision of his dead lover. Dolorosa violins introduce a stirring reprise of Valeria’s Theme, whose melodic line is taken up by a plaintive solo oboe. Wondrous accents of sparkling glockenspiel, celesta, shimmering harp glissandi, crotales, tubular bells and chimes serve to create a stirring passage of uncommon beauty. This is one of my favorite cues of the score. Just magnificent!

In “Shadizar” grand heraldic fanfare reprises the glorious processional Mountain Of Power Theme from the first film as we see Conan and Tamaris’ party ride into the fortress city of Shadizar. As they enter the Queens court we hear an eerie and portentous piccolo trumpet, plucked bass and finger cymbals imparting a sense that all is not as it seems. As Conan and his party reach a small encampment in “Town Source Music” Poledouris imparts a medieval sensibility through the use of a small ensemble of flute, two oboes, bass clarinet, bassoon, harps, dumbeck and finger cymbals. This is nicely done.

“Zula – Bombaata Fight” is a complex cue that features a battle between Zula, who wishes to join the party, and Bombaata who rejects her offer. A sparkling ostinato and timpani set the stage for battle that when joined is supported by primitive percussion. Following her defeat, we hear her tender theme on solo cor anglais with tambourine accents as Conan accepts her offer to join the quest. A variant of the Hyborean Theme supports the party as they ride through the countryside. As they top a ridge and behold the Crystal Palace we hear an introduction to the tri-tonal Toth-Amon Theme, which features a repeating four-note line embellished with sparkling percussion. This mysterioso theme is decidedly otherworldly and perfectly attenuated to the film’s imagery. In “Bird – The Princess” Poledouris again employs a small ensemble consisting of flutes, oboes, glockenspiel, crotales, harps, celesta and suspended cymbals to create a wondrous mysterioso passage. We see the wizard Toth-Amon transform himself into a magical bird, which flies across the lake, captures Jehenna in his talons and then transports her to his palace. His ethereal tri-tone theme plays on harp with flute counters as he lays her to rest in a crystalline bedchamber. At 2:25 we segue into “Boating” where our party realizes Jehenna is missing and boards a boat to travel to the Crystal Palace and rescue her. An intimate small ensemble perform a mysterioso tri-tonal sound with low register ponticello strings, sparkling harp glissandi, celesta, vibraphone, bells and alto flute. I must say that these two fantasy cues are perfectly conceived and testimony to Poledouris’ genius.

In “Ice Palace” portentous tremolo strings and glockenspiel evoke trepidation as the party swims through an under water passage to gain entry into the palace. As they gain entry and begin their exploration a lyrical sting line emerges with harpsichord and glockenspiel accents. Slowly the melodic line deepens, becoming menacing until the ethereal Toth-Amon Theme emerges as we see him descend into the chamber of mirrors. “Chamber of Mirrors” is a dramatic and potent action cue, which features Conan battling a transformed Toth-Amon. As he enters the chamber a clock-like variant of the Toth-Amon Theme plays, reflecting his domain. In a repeating line the melody begins an ascent in register, serving to raise tension. Woodwinds play Conan’s Theme as curtains rise to reveal multiple images of Toth-Amon that emerge from their respective mirrors and coalesce into a single monstrous entity. At 1:46 horns signal the battle is joined and we hear the lumbering Chamber of Mirrors Theme, a slow, methodical and powerful low register repeating six-note line with a three note metallic echo. Horn counters for our hero interplay and crescendo at 3:28 when the monster proves impervious to Conan’s sword. At 4:38 as all seems lost, Conan discovers that breaking a mirror wounds the beast and so proceeds to smash all of them. His horn-laden theme is now ascendant with sparkling percussion as he turns the tide of battle. We slowly build to crescendo as Conan slays the beast. Doloroso woodwinds signal a mortally wounded Toth-Amon who has returned to his human form. As his life ebbs we hear his theme slowly fade to nothingness. Wow, what a classic piece and score highlight!

In “Eating the Elite” thundering timpani and potent low register bass emoting a strong repeating six-note motif signal the attack of the Queen’s guard who kidnap Jehenna. Conan pursues and wages combat with her kidnapper in an epic battle. Poledouris provides an aggressive interplay of Conan’s Theme, the six note-repeating motif of the guard and the Queen Tamaris’ Theme. It is a stunning piece abounding with great action writing! At 3:21 a percussive bowed tam-tam and vibraphone segue into “Crypt Rocks” where the party encounters a temple. The cue features a beautiful passage of rich Rozsa-esque string writing with a decidedly religioso sensibility. In “Door Lift” as the party navigates temple passageways there is tension in the strings with rhythmic glockenspiel accents. We hear echoes of the first film’s “Wheel Of Pain” in a toiling bass ostinato as Conan uses his strength to forcefully lift the massive door. At 2:20 we segue into “Dragon’s Head – Conan the Destroyer” as the party enters an inner chamber with a dragon’s head. We hear trepidation in the woodwinds, which now take up the melodic line that plays over a violin sustain with accents of block percussion. Lush strings with celesta now take up the increasingly lyrical melodic line as Jehenna moves to place the crystal in its mount. As she does, woodwinds join and the music builds with increasing emotional potency. At 4:47 as the dragon head lifts to reveal the chamber that houses the Horn Of Dagoth, foreboding bass, celesta and chimes sound and usher in the lyrical string line that builds to a stirring climax as Jehenna grabs the horn. We conclude the most lyrical passage of the score with woodwinds, which are joined by lush lyrical strings and sparkling percussion as she exits the inner chamber. This is no doubt a standout cue of sublime string writing and stunning beauty. Bravo!

“Cutlery Interruptus” features the party forced to battle the temple priest and his guard. Poledouris provides robust and primal action writing propelled by a pounding timpani percussion line joined by tuba, bass, a string ostinato and metallic percussive accents. At 1:58 we segue into “Akiro’s Magic” where he engages and wins a magical duel with the temple priest. Spritely woodwinds, a string sustain and an at times comic-light-hearted underscore for the scene. The cue concludes with fragmentary statements of Conan’s Theme that emerge from the melodic line as the party successfully escapes.

With “Dagoth Ceremony” Nic Raine chose to provide us with Poledouris’ original intent, which was to augment the orchestra with choir. Most interesting is the choice to support the film’s most dramatic scene with a reprise of his Bolero-like music from the original film’s “The Orgy”. The use of what is essentially a dance to support Jehenna’s sacrifice and Dagoth’s transformation runs askew of normal scoring convention and provides a fascinating example of playing music against film imagery. “Impaling the Guard” – “Dagoth’s Death” is a binary cue that supports the film’s culminating scene. Heraldic horn fare and a string ostinato signal the death of the High Priest from Zula’s spear. Pounding timpani and dramatic horn fare evoke the horror of the now reanimated and monstrous Dagoth who impales Tamaris – a well-deserved end! Poledouris did not score the final battle between Conan and Dagoth until Conan’s triumph, announced at 0:51 with a horn crescendo from which arises his theme. We conclude the film poetically with the very moving “Farewell Valeria”, much of which was regretfully excised from the film due to editing. The cue features an extended statement of Valeria’s Theme, which is presented as conceived in its unedited form. The music opens with dolorosa strings and a lonely echo of Conan’s Theme as Conan declines Jehenna’s entreaty to become her consort. A solo oboe takes up Valeria’s Theme at 1:19 for a most tender yet restrained expression until 2:21 when the melodic line swells to climax with heartbreak as Conan contemplates life without her. This is a magnificent piece that brings a quiver with each listen. Bravo! “Drum Postlude – End Credits” completes the film and features a fine suite. We open with Conan’s Theme, transition to Queen Tamaris’ Theme now fortified with a fierce string ostinato before an exotic bridge of woodwinds and percussion return us to Conan’s Theme. What a satisfying conclusion to the score!

Universal Studios conceived Sword and Sorcery: The Adventures of Conan as a stage show loosely based upon the mythic Conan the Barbarian character. The play features a skinny young man and a young woman intent on plundering a temple of its treasures. Although greeted by a good wizard, the woman steals a large red gem set in a statue there-by releasing a trapped evil wizard. The evil wizard summons his guards, who swordfight against the man and woman and good wizard. Our heroes seem to prevail, but the evil wizard resurrects his guards and the battle is renewed. When a fireball destroys the good wizard, the young man picks up a magical sword that turns him into Conan. Armed with his new strength and magic sword, Conan slays the guards, and then throws the evil wizard into a pit. Yet the evil wizard re-emerges from the pit as a giant, fire-breathing dragon, which Conan and the woman finally defeat.

“Introduction” opens with bright heraldic fanfare and glockenspiel, which ushers in lyrical woodwinds with horn accents. The tempo assumes a confident march like sensibility before ethereal woodwinds and twinkling glockenspiel herald the entry of our heroes into the magical realm. Poledouris evokes a sense of wonder and awe, especially at 2:26 when choir and twinkling percussion swell the melodic line and take the cue to a truly dramatic and glorious climax. Wow! “Winds of the Woods” opens portentously with a low register string sustain which surrenders to pastoral woodwinds and shimmering celesta and glockenspiel. Strings soon join and we bear witness to a lush and wondrous lyrical melodic line that is just breath taking. At 1:40 celli shift the lyrical flow with a sense of foreboding before restoring the shimmering melodic line that concludes dramatically. This is a sublime cue of uncommon beauty and a score highlight! “Mordor’s Four” opens with a repeating ascending woodwind line that plays over a lyrical string line with harpsichord accents. At 0:40 a repeating line of horns and sparkling percussion ushers in full choir. The melodic line, now supported by strings, shimmering glockenspiel and timpani percussion intensifies the repeating motif until a climax is achieved at 1:33. As the jewel’s theft releases the evil wizard, low register strings and horns introduce danger, now amplified by a returning chorus. A choral sustain initiates an aggressive counter melodic line carried by a string ostinato and horns, which dramatically restores the opening repeating motif. The music continues urgently and with dramatic power by horns and strings playing a repeating and escalating seven-note motif, which interplays with our heroes theme carried by violins. Poledouris continues to amplify the tension atop timpani, struck metallic percussion and potent horn play to close the passage. Wow, this is one dramatic cue.

The battle is joined in “The Fight” with pounding timpani and an ascending string ostinato propelling the music. A counter string ostinato ushers in repeating horn fare with woodwind flourishes, which intensifies the action. The opening timpani and string ostinato line returns and interplays with the now contrapuntal horn line. Pounding timpani joined by potent tuba, gongs and strings intensify to climax at 3:19 with an orchestral crash as the evil wizard is slain. I just admire how well Poledouris uses his percussion to power his action cues. Our heroes’ victory is short-lived as the evil wizard resurrects as a monstrous dragon in “The Dragon – Mordor’s Death”. Dark portentous bass full of foreboding open the cue and soon usher in an ethereal choir whose repeating statement is ended by an escalating series of sharp horn blasts. As our heroes’ theme sounds, trombones and snare drums usher in a choir, which chants with horn fare in an ascending line intensifying with dramatic power. As Conan battles the dragon we bear witness to an amazing choral powerhouse replete with astounding horn play. The melodic line continues to increase in potency and drama until climaxing at 3:02 with heroic trumpets, which announce victory! The cue concludes with a cacophonous choral and orchestral descent, which convey the dragon’s descent into the bowels of Tartarus. I am just awestruck by the emotional power of this cue! We conclude with “The Ending” where fanfare and strings perform a refulgent rendering of our heroes’ theme, which closes grandly with Conan’s Theme in a dramatic orchestral flourish. Bravo!

James Fitzpatrick, Nic Raine and the renown Prague Philharmonic have provided film score collectors a wondrous gift with this sterling world premiere recording of the complete score. The use of an orchestra of 90 musicians and chorale as Poledouris originally intended has served to at long last resurrect this score. I just cannot fully express my happiness nor contain my joy! The digital recording is pristine and of the highest order. Folks, while this score does not match the dramatic, epic and operatic power of “Conan the Barbarian”, it never the less provides us with several fine themes and motifs, which Poledouris weaves into a wondrous tapestry. The addition of an orchestral rerecording of “Sword and Sorcery: The Adventures of Conan” with chorus is also a most welcome gift. Shed of the dialogue and inferior quality of earlier editions, this complete recording is just stunning. While not directly referencing the “Conan the Barbarian” score except for the closing statement of the final cue, this work displays the awesome lyrical beauty and boundless power of Poledouris’ finest writing. I strongly recommend both scores as essential additions to your collection.

Rating: ****½

Buy the Conan the Destroyer soundtrack from the Movie Music UK Store

Track Listing:

• DISC ONE – CONAN THE DESTOYER
• Drum Prelude/Main Title (Original Version) (3:10)
• Net Fight (2:23)
• Valeria Remembered (1:34)
• Shadizar/Dream Quest (4:14)
• Akiro/Cavemen Fight/Elite Guard Riders (1:14)
• Town Source Music (1:54)
• Zula-Bombaata Fight (2:27)
• Bird/The Princess/Boating In (3:45)
• Ice Palace (3:37)
• Chamber of Mirrors (7:15)
• Princess Takes The Jewel/Forest Ride (1:28)
• Eating The Elite/Crypt Rocks (5:21)
• Door Lift/Dragon’s Head/Conan The Destroyer (7:11)
• Cutlery Interruptus/Akiro’s Magic (3:27)
• Dagoth Ceremony (Original Version With Choir) (4:41)
• Impaling the Guard/Dagoth’s Death (1:26)
• Pit Band (0:18)
• Farewell Valeria (3:13)
• Drum Postlude/End Credits (2:44)

• DISC TWO – SWORD AND SORCERY: THE ADVENTURES OF CONAN
• Introduction (3:19)
• Winds of the Woods (3:17)
• Mordor’s Four (4:41)
• The Fight (3:30)
• The Dragon/Mordor’s Death (3:32)
• The Ending (1:20)
• Main Title (Film Version – Bonus) (3:31)
• Akiro/Cavemen Fight (Film Version – Bonus) (0:55)
• Zula/Bombaata Fight (Film Version – Bonus) (2:27)
• Dagoth Ceremony (Film Version – Bonus) (4:41)

Running Time: 152 minutes 35 seconds

Prometheus XPCD-171 (1984/2011)

Music composed by Basil Poledouris. Conducted by Nic Raine. Performed by The City of Prague Philarmonic Orchestra and Chorus. Original orchestrations by Greig McRitchie, Jack Smalley and Steven Scott Smalley. Recorded and mixed By Jan Holzner. Album produced by James Fitzpatrick.

- LUDOVIC BOURCE for The Artist
- ALBERTO IGLESIAS for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
- HOWARD SHORE for Hugo
- JOHN WILLIAMS for The Adventures of Tintin
- JOHN WILLIAMS for War Horse

It looks like Bource’s award to lose. Having already won this year’s Golden Globe for the same score, and with John Williams’ double-nomination for his two Steven Spielberg scores looking almost certain to cancel each other out, the young French composer is almost guaranteed to take home the gong for his excellent work on director Michel Hazanavicius’s excellent film about the end of the Hollywood silent film era. Howard Shore, for Martin Scorsese’s HUGO, and Alberto Iglesias, for the spy thriller TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY look to be the rank outsiders – in fact, Iglesias wasn’t on many people’s radar at all this year, despite having been nominated several times before.

Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’s work on THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO is the most unexpected omission - with them having picked up nominations for the Golden Globes and the Critics Choice Awards, they looked certain to pick up a second nomination. Similarly, Alexandre Desplat couldn’t pick up any love for any of his eight scores from 2011 – I expected his score for EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE to be nominated, and his score for HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2 was very good too.

Other scores notable for their omission include Abel Korzeniowski’s W.E., which was nominated for a Golden Globe, Cliff Martinez’s DRIVE, which was nominated for a Critics Choice Award, and two of the Best Picture nominees, which often pick up score nominations purely for being a good film: Thomas Newman’s THE HELP and Mychael Danna’s MONEYBALL.

In the Best Song category, the Academy decided to honor just two songs with nominations:

- “Man or Muppet” from THE MUPPETS by Bret McKenzie; and
- “Real In Rio” from RIO  by Sergio Mendes, Carlinhos Brown and Siedah Garrett

The omission of several excellent songs - ”Star Spangled Man” from Captain America, “Lay Your Head Down” from Albert Nobbs, “The Living Proof” from The Help, “Coeur Valent” from Hugo, “Hello Hello” from Gnomeo and Juliet, the rest of the songs from The Muppets, and all the songs from Winnie the Pooh – is inexplicable to say the least, and throws into doubt the future validity of the entire category. Nevertheless, I’ll be cheering for The Muppets.

Hugo led the overall nominee field, with 11 nominations; The Artist has 10, Moneyball and War Horse 6 each, and The Descendents (which had no original score) and The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo 5 apiece.

The Oscar ceremony will be held on Sunday, February 26th.

Original Review by Jonathan Broxton

Even though, technically, I was born when Harold Wilson was Prime Minister, I grew up in Margaret Thatcher’s Britain. All of my earliest memories of major socio-political stories – the Falklands War with Argentina in 1982, the Brighton hotel bombing of 1984, the miner’s strike and general industrial unrest of 1984 and 1985, the Poll Tax riots of 1990, and various international issues involving the IRA and the former Soviet Union – all occurred during her tenure. Whether you love her or loathe her (and many people do genuinely loathe her and what she did to the country), there is no escaping the fact that she was a massively influential and important person: the first woman ever to be Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the seventh-longest serving Prime Minister in history, and the longest serving since Queen Victoria was on the throne.

Phyllida Lloyd’s film, The Iron Lady, charts the life and career of Thatcher, from her working-class birth in the small town of Grantham in 1925 and her early career as both a chemist and a barrister, to her entry into political life as a Member of Parliament in 1959, and her rise to power during the late 1970s, before eventually being removed from office in 1990 – all from the point of view of framing story examining the increasingly debilitating effects of the dementia afflicting the now 86-year-old Baroness. Meryl Streep plays the leading role, and is supported by a host of British acting talent, including Jim Broadbent as her husband Denis, as well as Anthony Head, Richard E. Grant, Roger Allam, Julian Wadham, John Sessions, Nicholas Farrell and Michael Pennington as the various other politicians who defined the era.

The music for The Iron Lady was originally due to be composed by English composer Clint Mansell, but for reasons yet to be disclosed his score was thrown out fairly late in the day, and was replaced with one by Thomas Newman. These days, Newman is a frustrating composer, for two reasons – firstly, because I know what great music he is capable of writing (The Shawshank Redemption, Little Women, Meet Joe Black, The Horse Whisperer and so on), and secondly because he so rarely writes it anymore. The Iron Lady is Newman’s fourth score of 2011, following The Adjustment Bureau, The Help and The Debt, none of which greatly grabbed my attention, but thankfully The Iron Lady bucks the trend, mixing his now-familiar contemporary rhythmic style with several warm and emotional cues that recall his excellent earlier work.

In parts, Newman’s music recalls that which Alexandre Desplat wrote for his films about contemporary British political life, The Queen and The Special Relationship. Cues such as the opening “MT”, and later cues such as “Grocer’s Daughter”, the second half of “Swing Parliament”, “Nation of Shopkeepers” and “Statecraft” have a bustling, energetic aspect, with pizzicato strings and various metallic chimes and shakers giving Thatcher’s life a musical echo of the sense of forward motion and destiny that defined her rise to power. A main theme of sorts, a rising string motif, appears in “Grocer’s Daughter” and “Nation of Shopkeepers” amongst others, but is really the only recurring thematic content in a score which otherwise tends to present itself as a series of musical vignettes, looking back on a life in much the same way as the film presents the key events in Thatcher’s past in flashback format.

Elsewhere, there are a few moments of rousing British patriotism that William Walton or Edward Elgar would be proud to call their own, from the soft and warm nobility of the lovely first half of “Swing Parliament”, the classically refined “The Great in Great Britain”, and the wonderfully stirring and flag-waving “Discord and Harmony”, which features that Thomas Newman rarity, a chorus! The delicate harp performance in “Denis” attempts to capture the unusual, much misunderstood relationship between Thatcher and her devoted husband, while the all-too-brief “Airey Neave” illustrates the warm relationship between the young politician and her ill-fated mentor, murder by an IRA car bomb in 1979.

These cues are offset by much more abrasive contemporary pieces such as “Crisis of Confidence” and “Community Charge”, which evoke the changing landscape of modern Britain, as well as the increasing dissatisfaction with Thatcher’s political policies, with a gritty electronic element, churning cello ostinati, and urgent, almost frantic rhythms. To cap it all, an excellent militaristic piece for prominent snare drums, piano and electronics features in “Exclusion Zone”, giving musical voice to the Falklands conflict that dominated much of her early years in power, and cemented her reputation as a woman not to be trifled with.

Although hardly groundbreaking, The Iron Lady does represent something of a return to form for Newman, whose recent lackluster output had begun to frustrate long-time admirers of his work such as myself. The more large-scale pomp-and-circumstance cues are excellent pieces of effective pastiche, and Newman cleverly captures the duality of Thatcher’s time in power with music that is appealing and optimistic on one hand, but gritty and dramatic when it needs to be. The classical and show tune interludes that depict Thatcher’s own musical tastes are generally well-chosen, effectively complementing the score, and resulting in album that is an enjoyable diversion for fans of Newman’s writing.

Rating: ***½

Buy the Iron Lady soundtrack from the Movie Music UK Store

Track Listing:

• Soldiers of the Queen (written by Leslie Stuart, performed by The Military Band of the Queen’s Regiment) (0:50)
• MT (0:49)
• Grocer’s Daughter (2:18)
• Grand Hotel (0:46)
• Swing Parliament (3:42)
• Eyelash (1:45)
• Shall We Dance? from The King and I (written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, performed by Deborah Kerr, Marni Nixon and Yul Brynner) (4:24)
• Denis (1:55)
• The Great in Great Britain (2:21)
• Airey Neave (0:48)
• Discord and Harmony (2:35)
• The Twins (1:04)
• Nation of Shopkeepers (1:45)
• Fiscal Responsibility (1:48)
• Crisis of Confidence (4:04)
• Community Charge (2:02)
• Casta Diva from Norma (written by Vincenzo Bellini, performed by Maria Callas with Orchestra del Teatro alla Scala, conducted by Tullio Serafin) (5:34)
• The Difficult Decisions (1:33)
• Exclusion Zone (4:14)
• Statecraft (3:41)
• Steady the Buffs (4:51)
• Prelude No.1 in C Major, BWV 846 (written by Johann Sebastian Bach, performed by Olli Mustonen) (1:53)

Running Time: 54 minutes 42 seconds

Sony Classical SK-91434 (2011)

Music composed and conducted by Thomas Newman. Orchestrations by J.A.C. Redford. Recorded and mixed by Simon Rhodes. Edited by Bill Bernstein. Album produced by Thomas Newman and Bill Bernstein.

MOVIE MUSIC UK CLASSICS

Original Review by Craig Lysy

Conan The Barbarian is based on the Conan stories penned by author Robert E. Howard. The movie adaptation tells the story of a young Conan who lives in the mythic Hyborean Age and suffers grievously at the hands of an evil ruler of the Snake Cult, Thulsa Doom, who kills his parents and sells him into slavery. Eventually after much suffering he gains his freedom and trains to become a mighty warrior. He then sets out to solve the riddle of steel and avenge his parent’s death. As such, this is a classic morality tale with an unambiguous hero and villain. The film was a commercial success, which spawned a sequel and served to reinvigorate the fantasy genre.

Producer Dino de Laurentiis initially wanted Ennio Morricone to score the film and even at one point contemplated a pop score. Director John Milius however who had previous collaborated with Poledouris for “Big Wednesday” lobbied hard and succeeded in changing de Laurentiis’ mind. He asked Poledouris to provide an “operatic” quality to support the epic nature of the film. Poledouris responded by writing a classical leitmotif based score for a massive full orchestra and chorale that both exceeded Milius’ expectations and nearly brought down the recording venue!

“Prologue” is a stark and portentous cue that opens darkly in the low register with bass drums and metallic strikes as the film’s narrative unfolds. At 1:02 “Anvil of Crom” introduces the first of the score’s four primary themes, the Hyborean Theme, meant to emote the essence of this primitive mythic age. We hear the orchestra erupt with a fortissimo statement born boldly by horns and powerful percussion as we see Conan’s parents forge the mighty Atlantean sword, their legacy and ironically the instrument Conan will some day wield to avenge their deaths. At 1:56 strings and French horns introduce Poledouris’ second theme, Conan’s Theme, a lyrical and heroic statement that underpins the entire score. As the melody drives forward it swells with irresistible force for a stunning bravado statement. Folks, this piece abounds with just a stunning array of percussion that includes anvil strikes, metal sheets, cimbalom, hard mallets, timpani and bass drums. It is just breath taking and a score highlight!

“Riddle of Steel” expands upon the Conan’s Theme, which is introduced by ethereal strings and woodwinds. Born exquisitely first by solo oboe and then by solo cor anglais and violins, we are treated to a tender rendering of the theme as Conan’s father mentors him in the strength of steel. A dark bass chord at 1:28 portends the approach of the Thulsa’s Riders of Doom, which will soon sack the village and kill Conan’s parents. In “Riders of Doom” Poledouris introduces his third and most powerful theme, the Riders of Doom Theme. Some have argued that Poledouris adapted Carl Orff’s “Carmina Burana”, but I disagree. While the open fifths and modal harmonies are kindred, I believe the cue’s construct, pacing and development are original and not an adaptation. Belying the approaching danger, the cue opens with gentile woodwinds, strings and harp. At 2:10 chorus enters and the theme slowly gains in both potency and horrific power as we see the village sacked. Adding to this extraordinary passage are its compelling Latin lyrics that drive the piece and are voiced with dramatic power. Folks, I quiver with every listen of this cue, which in my opinion is a masterpiece cue that gains Poledouris immortality. In “The Gift of Fury”, we behold the murder of Conan’s parents. Opening with regal fanfare as Thulsa Doom enters, we hear a religioso chorale from which ascends Conan’s Theme. Taken up by strings, a lamentation unfolds and renders the Dies Irae Theme which is classically used to convey death and The Day Of Judgment. At 2:30 his mother is beheaded and religioso chorale returns as an inconsolable Conan’s stands alone and devastated. The music for this cue is superb and perfectly conceived!

“Column of Sadness” emotes the dread of a forced labor march as the children are driven north to Thulsa Doom’s mill. The piece is a dirge scored simply with tom-tom percussion, woodwinds, strings and chain sounds. At 1:20 in “Wheel of Pain” we see Conan condemned like Sisyphus to toil without hope as he pushes the mill wheel in an unending circle. Poledouris brilliantly conceives a toiling bass ostinato that rises and falls to illustrate Conan’s struggles against the mill wheel whose relentless revolutions mark the passage of time. The piece is accented with lyrical strings, male chorus and horn play to perfectly emote Conan’s unrelenting pain and suffering. After referencing the Hyborean Theme, the cue concludes with an unexpected madrigal like sensibility. “Pit Fights” reveals Conan being sold into slavery to fight as a gladiator where he thrives with a frightening efficiency and brutality. The piece is clearly Rozsa-esque and draws inspiration from his “Roman Galley” cue from “Ben Hur” where we hear a repeating trumpet line playing over a bass ostinato. Slowly and inexorably we are treated to a remarkable trumpet accelerando that builds to a stunning crescendo as Conan is seen slaying one opponent after another. Bravo!

“Atlantean Sword” reveals Conan, now a free man, stumbling into the tomb of an ancient Atlantean king where he finds the famed Sword of Power. This cue is a masterful creation with a moving religioso quality. It opens mystically with sul ponticello strings that progress to vibrato, glockenspiel, subtle percussion and woodwinds. At 1:06 a trumpet blast and deep bass chords introduce the religioso passage born by strings and horns with accents of glockenspiel, harp and woodwinds that reference his theme. The music slowly builds with reverence to a beautiful revelatory climax as Conan discovers the legendary sword. This music is perfectly conceived, attenuated to the film’s imagery and it is just an outstanding cue.

In “Theology” Conan befriends Subotai who discuss their respective gods over a campfire. As they talk, we hear the Civilization Theme, a wonderful Madrigal like woodwind line with harp, glockenspiel and tambourine accents. At 0:58 as the scene shifts to morning, we see them running cross-country with the theme’s main line now born by lyrical strings. At 1:27 horns announce the city of Zamora and in “Civilization” Poledouris continues thematically with the music now carried by dancing woodwinds, playful strings, tambourine and finger cymbals, all of which impart an ethnic flavor to the locale.

In “The Tower of Set/Snake Attack” a third member, Valeria joins the party as they scale the citadel wall to discover a ritual human sacrifice unfolding below. A scene shift shows Conan battling and defeating a giant snake guarding “The Eye of the Snake” jewel and a snake god amulet. Most interestingly, Poledouris juxtaposes the pagan ritual and snake battle with source music, “Las Cantigas de Santa Maria” a classic 13th Spanish piece. This is a most pleasant Renaissance flavored cue carried in dancelike fashion by six violas, Persian drum, darbuka, congas and wordless female chorus.

“The Wifeing” introduces the Love Theme that plays as Conan and Valeria make love. The cue opens tenderly and hesitantly with viola. A repeating string line joins, ushers in and plays beneath a solo oboe that takes up the melody. This in turn transitions to a lush string statement, which references Conan’s Theme as the themes, intertwine while they embrace. It is a wondrous and stirring synergy and a gorgeous cue. “Conan Leaves Valeria” is an achingly beautiful cue and a score highlight. The scene reveals Valeria entreating Conan to forgo his revenge and to stay with her. Poledouris expands upon the Love Theme that enters with solo clarinet, which is then passed to flute. Emoted now with longing, it plays in duet against his theme. At 1:44 we bear witness to a glorious ascent of strings, which rise to climax as Conan eyes the hated image of the Thulsa Doom snake standard and realizes he must leave her. The cue closes with a scene change to morning which opens with harp, solo oboe, strings and cimbalom playing the love theme, now full of mourning, as Valeria wakes to find herself alone. The scene shifts again to “The Search” which stands as a truly sumptuous cue of uncommon beauty, which brings a quiver and a tear. At 2:56 a sad solo cor anglais plays as we see Conan traveling to Doom. The music swells on lush strings that reference his theme until eventually joined by full orchestra for a wondrous statement that mirrors Conan’s inner state of regret for having left Valeria. The cue concludes with cyclic strings and a repeating three-note horn motif as Conan approaches The Mounds, an abandoned temple.

“The Mountain Of Power And Capture” is a complex and powerful cue that plays as Conan, disguised as a priest, enters the temple complex only to be discovered and captured. The music opens as an up tempo march alight with sparkling fanfare and strong rhythmic percussion. At 1:31 the march is interrupted for a gentile interlude of violins, piano, celesta and harp accents as Conan speaks to the High Priestess. But the march returns in force and builds with fortissimo power until King Osric’s daughter appears and Poledouris introduces the precursor of the Orgy Theme. The music is a lush string carried statement with dramatic horns that diminishes until shattered by dissonant tri-tone horn blasts with pounding percussion, which signal Conan’s discovery and capture. The cue concludes with a mysterioso passage of glockenspiel, celesta, crotales and vibraphone as Thulsa and Osric’s daughter gaze down with remote expressions.

“The Tree Of Woe” reveals Conan condemned to die by crucifixion upon the Tree Of Woe. As he lies dying, we hear dissonant strings supported by wordless female chorus and ethnic percussion. At 2:00 as Subotai appears in the distance, the Civilization Theme emerges on harp and strings as we see him and Valeria come and rescue Conan. There is a heavy sadness in the strings as they cut down Conan and take him to a wizard so he may be healed. We segue at 3:28 into “Recovery” which is a cue that deeply inspires and stands as another score highlight. As Conan finally opens his eyes to a longing Valeria, she confesses her undying love as we hear Conan’s Theme rise slowly, yet with nobility on cor anglais doubled with clarinet. Soon the theme fills in with strings, trumpet and lastly with reverent wordless chorus that takes the cue into the realm of the sublime.

In “The Kitchen” our three heroes enter Mount Doom by way of the kitchen as the staff prepares a gruesome cannibalistic feast. We hear a less kinetic variation of the Riders of Doom chant that also lacks the martial bravado heard earlier in the score. At 2:13 “The Orgy” begins as our heroes enter the great hall where Thulsa presides over a primal orgy, Poledouris unfurls his stunning Orgy Theme, which sustains play throughout the rest of the scene. This lyrical and repeating theme is in reality a dance with a strange and mesmerizing quality. We note that at 2:51 he introduces a counter melody carried by bassoon, which adds complexity to the piece. With each repeating cycle the music gains intensity until it achieves a deafening conclusion.

“Orgy Fight” is a fight scene where King Osric’s daughter is rescued. The piece is multi-thematic as Poledouris opens with the potent horn lead and percussive Hyborean Theme that gives way at 1:32 as guards arrive to the equally powerful Riders Of Doom Theme, which is emoted without chorus. “Funeral Pyre” is the highlight of the score and a masterpiece cue. It is filled with a terrible pathos of grief, despair and desolation. In the tragic scene Valeria dies from a poison arrow shot from Thulsa’s bow. Conan holds her as she passes and then sets her atop a funeral pyre where he stands vigil, inconsolable. The cue opens with a descending and slowing string line as Valeria’s life ebbs. At 1:04 low register strings mark her passing. From a plaintive oboe the Love Theme emerges and is taken up with reverence by French horns before returning again to oboe. As fire consumes her body the theme becomes heart rending, ascending on strings over pedal bass with dramatic counterpoint by horns doubled with chimes until it achieves a breath-taking climax. Tutti strings carry the final passage and achieve a secondary bi-tonal climax before yielding to a forlorn cor anglais, which concludes the cue with finality.

“Battle Preparations” displays Conan and Subotai preparing for the final battle with Thulsa Doom. A primitive percussive cadence opens the cue. Sustaining the primitive sensibility are the horns that augment the main line, which now receives counterplay from a lyrical violins. A delightful interlude of woodwinds and pizzicato strings highlight Subotai’s conjuring of weapons and armor as they arm themselves. At 2:06 as the men see the approach of Thulsa Doom the orchestra lead by strings and heraldic horns announce the coming battle. Single note repeating piano percussion, syncopated timpani and violin ostinato join to raise the alarm. Religioso chorus and trumpets join as we see await the coming battle. A contemplative interlude of woodwinds and violins reveals Conan praying for victory. An ascent of horns that rise in their register and intensity announce at 4:35 with “Battle of the Mounds Part I” that the battle has been joined. The music explodes into the fury of battle as we bear witness to Poledouris setting the Riders of Doom Theme against the Dies Irae Theme playing in counterpoint. This passage is pure genius and simply astounding!

In “Battle of the Mounds Part II” the battle continues with pizzicato strings while trumpets and trombones counter in harmony with the Dies Irae Theme. Soon French horns playing in their lowest register blast forth over syncopated timpani as the fighting intensifies. The music continues to shift as pizzicato strings return and are joined by rumbling bass and trumpet blasts. The Civilization Theme on woodwinds joins but is short-lived as Subotai fumbles in battle. The cue closes with strings playing over a percussive line. “Battle of the Mounds Part III” sustains the battle and opens with drum roll and a repeating line of horns playing over bass drums. A lamenting solo trumpet call set to tremolo strings heralds a vision of Valeria. This serves to potentiate blood lust in Conan who proceeds to slay Rexor as strings and timpani propel the confrontation. Strings playing Conan’s Theme announce victory over Rexor as horns blast a fragment of the Love Theme while religioso chorus sings a lamentation for her inspiration. As we segue into “Night Of Doom” at 1:55 Thulsa flees and gathers his followers for a last stand at Mount Doom. Wordless chorus, glockenspiel and gentle percussion open the passage, giving way to lamenting strings as our heroes pursue Thulsa.

“Orphans Of Doom” is a stunning score highlight. The music is a transcendental homage of sublime beauty to Conan’s triumph as he rescues Osric’s daughter and frees the children of doom from servitude. The cue features a religioso tenor with woodwind arpeggios, harp and female chorus singing the Dies Irae Theme. At 1:19 in “The Awakening” as Conan reflects upon his victory we hear a tender clarinet and harp line play over kindred woodwinds and high register violins. When Conan takes a lantern and hurls it at the temple to begin a cleansing conflagration he achieves an apotheosis. Glorious French horns exalt him as Deliverer as tremolo strings and solo flute commence the inexorable build up to the finale, which Poledouris declares with heraldic French horns at 3:29. We follow with solo piccolo, which plays over tremolo strings rising in intensity that are joined by kindred woodwinds. A solo flute prelude at 5:06 unleashes major modal horn play that ushers in a stunning, bravado, full orchestral affirmation that is simply glorious.

“Epilogue” begins with a reprise of the “Prologue” cue. At 1:00 the “End Titles” begin with bravado statements of the Hyborean Theme and Conan’s Theme. After this we are treated to the three motifs of the Riders of Doom Theme and the Dies Irae Theme as we conclude this epic passage. As for the bonus cues, all feature slight variances in instrumentation and tempo, which I invite the reader to explore. The last cue, “Riders of Doom – Orchestral Version” omits the chorus and indulges my curiosity, however I believe it results in an inferior rendering of the theme.

I must applaud James Fitzpatrick and Tadlow Music for a most impressive reissue of a complete version of this historic and classic score. The sound quality is excellent and of the highest standards. In my view this score is Poledouris’ crowning achievement, his career’s apogee and his Magnum Opus. His music is supremely lyrical, abounds in wondrous chorus, hosts a multiplicity of themes and motif expressions, and bears an uncommon beauty. Indeed this score will echo through time and gain Poledouris immortality. This is an essential, must have score for any serious collector. I cannot understate the beauty, power and glory of this score, which I assign my highest rating.

Rating: *****

Buy the Conan the Barbarian soundtrack from the Movie Music UK Store

Track Listing:

• Prologue (Film Version)/Anvil of Crom (3:38)
• Riddle of Steel/Riders of Doom (5:23)
• The Gift of Fury (3:25)
• Column of Sadness/Wheel of Pain (4:09)
• Pit Fights (2:45)
• Prologue (Original Version) (1:03)
• Atlantean Sword (4:00)
• Wolf Witch (3:21)
• Theology/Civilization (3:04)
• The Street of Deviants/Hopefuls at the Tower of Set (1:28)
• The Tower of Set/Snake Attack/Las Cantigas de Santa Maria (5:21)
• Infidels (1:03)
• The Tavern (1:51)
• The Wifeing (2:20)
• In The Court of King Osric (1:13)
• Conan Leaves Valeria/The Search (6:03)
• The Mountain of Power/Capture (4:00)
• The Tree of Woe/Recovery (6:04)
• The Kitchen/The Orgy (co-written by Zoe Poledouris) (6:23)
• Orgy Fight (2:53)
• Funeral Pyre (5:15)
• Battle Preparations/Battle of the Mounds (Part I) (5:59)
• Battle of the Mounds (Part II) (2:11)
• Battle of the Mounds (Part III)/Night of Doom (5:56)
• Head Chop (0:53)
• Orphans of Doom/The Awakening (6:30)
• Epilogue/End Titles (5:13)
• Theology/Civilization (Alternate Version) (3:27)
• The Tower of Set (Alternate Cue) (3:37)
• Battle of the Mounds (Part II) (Original Version) (2:11)
• Chamber of Mirrors from “Conan the Destroyer” (7:16)
• Riders of Doom (Orchestral Version) (4:05)

Running Time: 122 minutes 00 seconds

Prometheus XPCD-169 (1982/2010)

Music composed by Basil Poledouris. Conducted by Nic Raine. Performed by The City of Prague Philarmonic Orchestra and Chorus. Original orchestrations by Greig McRitchie. Recorded and mixed By Jan Holzner. Album produced by James Fitzpatrick.

Original Review by Jonathan Broxton

A variation on the classic Black Beauty tale about of the life of a heroic horse, filtered through the cinematic lens of director John Ford, War Horse is director Steven Spielberg’s adaptation of the well-regarded novel by Michael Morpurgo about the adventures of a horse named Joey during World War I. The action moves from rural Devon, where young Joey is raised as a plow horse by Albert Narracott (Jeremy Irvine) to work on his father’s farm, to the battlefields of central Europe after he is sold to the British Army upon the outbreak of war and is adopted by a kindly cavalry officer as his personal mount. Moving from adventure to adventure, Joey makes his way through the mire of The Great War, serving on both sides of the conflict – and all the while young Albert, now himself serving in the trenches, never gives up hope of being reunited with his equine friend. The film co-stars Peter Mullan, Emily Watson, David Thewlis, Niels Arestrup, Tom Hiddleston and Benedict Cumberbatch, and of course has a score by the venerable John Williams, his second score of 2011 after several years away from the podium.

In his liner notes for the album, Steven Spielberg talks about the beauty of the score, and about the “earth speaking through” Williams, emerging as music, and this really is the case. There is a real sense of a connection with nature in Williams’ score, in much the same way as there is in the classical work of Ralph Vauhgn-Williams, a solidness and a trustworthiness, allowing Williams to give the horse, his friendship with Albert, and the overarching spectre of war a profound and potent musical voice. There are hints of his score for Jane Eyre from 1970 in some of the orchestrations, which clearly allude to Williams’s musical depiction of the English countryside, as well as nods and winks to pieces as varied as Far and Away and Born on the Fourth of July.

Much like The Adventures of Tintin earlier in the year, there is no single strong thematic identity in War Horse, which instead chooses to develop three or four primary motifs as the score progresses, often playing against each other in counterpoint in the same cue, before receiving larger-scale statements later. Beginning with a pastoral, inviting theme for the lush Devon setting in the opening cue, “Dartmoor 1912”, the music gradually emerges from a delicate, flighty flute solo into a warm and enveloping string refrain of the first theme, which seems to represent the tranquil location of the film’s opening reel. The theme is classic Williams, with all the positive connotations that implies, and grounds the score in a sound which is period-appropriate and emotionally powerful.

Eventually, this theme gives way to the score’s “proper” main theme, which represents the enduring relationship between Albert and Joey, and the bond they share. With its vaguely Irish-sounding melody, prominent horn countermelody, and a grand sweep, the score’s most emotionally poignant moments tend to feature this theme prominently; it appears on hesitant flutes in “Bringing Joey Home and Bonding”, with a more forceful string presence in “Learning the Call”, with a sense of freedom and whimsy in “Horse vs. Car”, and with a sense of relief and accomplishment in the superbly cathartic and emotionally fulfilling “Plowing”. There’s also a jig-like dance motif which seems to represent Joey’s cleverness and mischievousness, which builds around a call-and-response structure between violins and cellos, and features prominently in parts of “The Auction”, at the beginning of “Bringing Joey Home and Bonding”, and in “Learning the Call”. In fact, much of the score’s first third is built around these three themes – the Dartmoor theme, the Friendship theme, and Joey’s mischievous motif – representing the two driving forces in the lives of both man and horse: their relationships with each other, and their mutual relationship to the land.

Things change with the onset of war, however, and the music changes too, with “Ruined Crop and Going to War” taking the music in a much more serious direction. Lonely brass layers and militaristic snare drum writing, which will remind some listeners of the similar-sounding parts of Born on the Fourth of July, reflect the solemnity and tragedy of war, and the hardships suffered by every one, on both sides of the conflict, both human and animal. The action music in cues such as “The Charge and Capture”, and later in the superb “The Desertion” and the relentless “No Man’s Land”, is rhythmic and propulsive, mimicking a horse’s galloping stride in the percussion section, but adding in multiple layers of orchestral dissonances, cavalry-charge horn calls and flutter-tongued trumpet lines to excellent effect. Cleverly, “No Man’s Land” also manages to include a re-orchestrated, almost unrecognizable variation of the Dartmoor motif for heroic horns – Joey’s final, desperate push for home. The four note ‘misery of war’ motif reoccurs frequently in subsequent cues, notably the harsh and anguished “Pulling the Cannon” (parts of which recall the darker moments of Revenge of the Sith, especially in the phrasings in the trumpets), as well as the devastatingly tragedy-laden “The Death of Topthorn”.

However, as in all good stories, redemption comes in the finale, and the last three cues on the album – “The Reunion”, “Remembering Emilie and Finale” and “The Homecoming” – see Williams return to the poignant thematic writing of the score’s first third, with the emotional content turned up to the max. Stirring and powerful statements of both the Dartmoor theme and the Friendship theme give War Horse a majestic musical conclusion, and stand as some of the most beautiful pieces of heartwarming sentiment Williams has written for many years. Gloria Cheng’s piano performance in “Remembering Emilie” is simply sublime, and worthy of special praise.

Hearing scores like War Horse, and The Adventures of Tintin earlier in the year, gives the film music world a reminder of why John Williams is held in such high esteem. Contrary to accusations in the mainstream press of his music being passé, pushy and over-wrought, I personally find Williams’ work here to be amongst the best of the year. He provides Joey – who is, obviously, incapable of conveying human emotion – with a voice and a heart, and allows the film to tell the story of his life with scope, grandeur and an epic sweep, but which is also not afraid to convey a sense of intimacy when required. It also shows Williams to be a master dramatist, expertly pushing the audience’s buttons in all the right places with a score that is beautiful to the ear, intellectually stimulating to the brain through its thematic complexity and narrative flow, and stirring to the soul.

Rating: ****½

Buy the War Horse soundtrack from the Movie Music UK Store

Track Listing:

• Dartmoor, 1912 (3:35)
• The Auction (3:43)
• Bringing Joey Home and Bonding (4:48)
• Learning the Call (3:42)
• Seeding and Horse Vs. Car (3:32)
• Plowing (5:57)
• Ruined Crop and Going To War (3:33)
• The Charge and Capture (3:21)
• The Desertion (2:34)
• Joey’s New Friends (3:28)
• Pulling the Cannon (4:58)
• The Death of Topthorn (2:47)
• No Man’s Land (4:32)
• The Reunion (3:52)
• Remembering Emilie and Finale (5:05)
• The Homecoming (8:03)

Running Time: 65 minutes 31 seconds

Sony Classical 8869775282 (2011)

Music composed and conducted by John Williams. Orchestrations by Eddie Karam. Recorded and mixed by Shawn Murphy. Edited by Ramiro Belgardt. Album produced by John Williams.

Original Review by Jonathan Broxton

There’s a lot of discussion going on in film music circles these days about the direction the art is taking, and a lot of it stems from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’s Oscar win for their score for The Social Network last year. Amongst many mainstream film critics, Reznor and Ross’s ambient drones are seen as ushering a newer, better way of scoring films, one that moves away from the “schmaltzy emotional manipulation” written by the likes of John Williams and James Horner, and instead embraces a cold, clinical musical style that is more akin to sound effects than traditional film music. In his review of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Variety film critic Justin Chang said the score “blends dread with driving momentum, establishing a richly unsettling mood with recurring dissonances, eerie wind chimes and pulsating reverb effects”. In his simultaneously-published review of War Horse, he criticized the film for “a cloying strain of bucolic whimsy driven by John Williams’ pushy score”, so you see what we’re up against.

Unsurprisingly, my personal opinion is directly opposed to Chang’s. In an interview I gave to film music journalist Tom Hoover for his book Soundtrack Nation in 2010, I said “I understand that not all films require big, bold themes, and that there is a definite place for understatement, but you have to remember that film music, at its core, is all about emotion. I think it was Alfred Newman who said that 80% of the emotion you feel while watching a film is directly attributable to the music, so it stands to reason that if the music is being intentionally diminished to the point where you can’t tell whether it’s music or not, then you’re not going to get the same emotional reaction from the film.”

Of course, a film like The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo doesn’t require a great deal of orchestral histrionics. It’s a dark, brutal story of murder and violence set in the snowy wastes of northern Sweden. Based on the exceptionally popular novel by the late Stieg Larsson, the film stars Daniel Craig as investigative journalist Mikael Blomqvist, who is hired by wealthy industrialist Henrik Vanger (Christopher Plummer) to investigate the disappearance of his niece, Harriet, some 40 years previously. Meanwhile, punk computer hacker Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara) has been hired by another company to monitor Mikael’s activity, and contacts Mikael when she solves some of the puzzles that Mikael could not; working together, the unlikely pair find out more about the Vanger family than Henrik intended, involving generations of corruption and murder.

Trent Reznor has, of course, been the recipient of a great deal of praise and acclaim for his work with his industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails, and rightly so: they were a groundbreaking group in their time, and I like a great many of their songs. Atticus Ross has been Reznor and NIN’s producer for many years, and as such also deserves our respect and acclaim. Unfortunately, much like The Chemical Brothers and their score for Hanna earlier this year, the pair have virtually no understanding of the narrative requirements of film music, the subtleties and nuances of which seem to be completely beyond them. Hanna, of course, was named Best Score of 2011 by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association – of which our friend, the aforementioned Justin Chang, is secretary.

In the film, Reznor and Ross’s score veers between understated nothingness and outright inappropriateness. In one scene set in an apartment building, one of the characters walks past a man using a buffer to polish the floor, and almost immediately Reznor’s music begins to mimic the sound of the buffer, for no apparent reason, and continues to do so for several pointless minutes. Elsewhere, in a scene set in an office conference room, Reznor underscores the important expositional dialogue with a low, irritating hum and a series of inexplicable electronic bleeps, which took me completely out of the film, to the point where I looked up at the cinema’s speakers to check whether they were broken and emitting smoke (it’s heard on the album in “People Lie All the Time”).

When the score isn’t jarringly distracting, it’s virtually inaudible or indistinguishable from the film’s sound effects, begging the question of why the music is there in the first place. I would argue that if the score does nothing to enhance the emotion of the film because it’s either too low in the sound mix, or is written in such a way that it’s virtually indistinguishable from source music and sound effects, then what purpose does the score serve? What is its basic function? If you can’t hear it, and can’t feel it, why is it there?

On CD, in general terms, the score is little more than a series of ambient drones, overlaid with various industrial sound effects and staccato rhythms – de-tuned piano chords, plucked bass notes, and the like. The six-track promo released by Reznor earlier in the year includes the cues “Hidden in Snow”, “People Lie All the Time”, “What If We Could?”, “Oraculum”, “Please Take Your Hand Away” and “Under the Midnight Sun”. Running for just over half an hour, it provides a satisfactory overview of pretty much everything the score has to offer for anyone interested in seeing what all the fuss is about. The three hour complete score released on Reznor’s personal label, Null Corporation, is barely tolerable, and should be reserved only for those who actually enjoyed the score in context (i.e., masochists) or the hard of hearing.

To move away from tongue-in-cheek flippancy, the album does have some cues of note. The cover version of Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song” by Karen Orzelek of The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, which was remixed by Reznor and Ross and plays over the film’s outstanding opening title sequence, is excellent, and stands as the musical high point of both film and CD, with its location-specific lyrics and primal scream chorus. Similarly, the cover version of Bryan Ferry’s “Is Your Love Strong Enough?” by How To Destroy Angels features a soulful vocal performance by the group’s lead singer, Reznor’s wife Mariqueen Maandig, that is also very good.

A few of the 37 score cues do merit some mention for a brief musical moment of worth: the opening “She Reminds Me Of You” has a child-like metallic motif that jingles in a bizarre, almost Christmassy way over a synth drone; “Pinned and Mounted” has an insistent, urgent percussion rhythm that underscores the terrible ordeal Lisbeth endures at the hands of her guardian; “What If We Could?” and “I Can’t Take It Any More” reprise the chilly piano/celesta motif in a cue of unexpected tonal quality, the latter with a female vocal effect by Maandig down in the mix; “A Thousand Details” and “Great Bird of Pray” have a roaring electric guitar that adds to the contemporary setting, as well as Lisbeth’s own musical tastes.

Elsewhere on the album, “An Itch” pits a detuned piano beat against a bed of pulsating synth rhythms and squeaky industrial dance-music effects in a way that is s unexpectedly engaging; “A Pause for Reflection”, “While Waiting”, “Millennia” and “A Pair of Doves” work chimes, bells and the female vocalist back into the equation, giving the score an isolated, chilly demeanor. “The Seconds Drag” mimics a ticking clock, “Parallel Timeline with Alternate Outcome” and “Revealed in the Thaw” feature the briefest semblances of an actual theme performed on a solo piano – two of the score’s few melodic high spots – while the driving “Infiltrator” has a high energy rhythm that at times is quite engaging, despite the 1980s computer game sound effects that appear half way through the track.

Beyond these few moments, though, the score is for the most part worthless, providing little more than various percussive rhythms and sub-industrial drones that go on and on and on over the course of three mind-numbing hours. It’s not that I can’t tolerate scores that are predominantly synth-based – many of my recent reviews dispel that myth. It’s more that the almost total lack of structure, depth, or actual musical intellectual language flies in the face of everything I love about film music. Praising scores like this, which are superficial by design, is an insult to all those composers who have spent years honing their craft, learning technique and orchestration and counterpoint and harmony, and who don’t get the acclaim or reward they so deserve. You only have to think about the scores written by David Fincher’s previous musical collaborators for his earlier films – Howard Shore on Se7en and The Game, Elliot Goldenthal on Alien 3, even David Shire on Zodiac – to get a sense of what kind of a score this film could have had. Orchestral and thematic and tonal doesn’t have to mean happy and pretty; dark, brutal, brooding, menacing music perfect for Lisbeth Salander could very easily have come from the pen of any of these men, and the music would have had a much more rich and fulfilling compositional language at the same time.

Even Reznor’s composing process is radically different from the norm: whereas most composers will write music with a specific scene in mind, tailoring it to fit the emotional needs of the film at any given time, referring backwards and forwards to musical points elsewhere in the movie to create a tapestry that links concepts, characters and locations together, Reznor presents his director with “big chunks that are three-or eight-minute suites. They go from here and travel around the corner and go underground and come back up and wind up over there. We do not have 30 15-second beats of sound.” While other composers have written music in this way before – notably Gustavo Santaollala on Brokeback Mountain and Hans Zimmer on Inception – Reznor’s approach really crystallizes what I feel is wrong with his scores. He’s not really writing film music; he’s writing a series of instrumental textures that just happen to accompany a movie, and which are needle-dropped into place by the director whenever he thinks he needs music, with no regard for any conceptual specificity, no thought about the ‘bigger picture’, no structure, and no way of giving the audience any cues as to the emotional intent of the scene.

This obsession with not spoon-feeding the audience emotional content via music is one of the most bizarre and misguided opinions of recent years; film is all about audience manipulation, making them empathize with the characters on screen. Directors have no qualms about manipulating the audience’s emotions by, for example, using colored filters in the cinematography, or by using a quick-cut editing style, so why is the music singled out as being as a scapegoat for the Hollywood schmaltz machine? When I watch a movie or listen to its score, I WANT to be moved, to be scared, to be exhilarated, to feel the joyous rapture of love, and a million other emotions. That’s the whole point.

I didn’t want to turn this review into a rant against the direction contemporary film music is going, but I care deeply about this genre, and I couldn’t help it. I’ve spent half my life listening to, and loving, and championing this music and its composers, and to see it stripped down and under-valued in this way affects me on a personal level. With their Oscar win for The Social Network and the immense acclaim their score for The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo has received, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross are clearly on the forefront of contemporary film scoring, and are likely to prove influential to other film makers in future who want to recapture the vibe and mainstream popularity they encompass. This disturbs me greatly, because it marginalizes and trivializes everything I have loved about film music for the past 20 years, shoving it into a box marked “old fashioned” and “sappy”. Call me elitist, call me snobbish, call me out of touch, I don’t care. I know what I love, and The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo is not it.

Rating: *

Buy the Girl With the Dragon Tattoo soundtrack from the Movie Music UK Store

Track Listing:

• Immigrant Song (written by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, performed by Karen O with Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross) (2:47)
• She Reminds Me of You (4:25)
• People Lie All the Time (4:10)
• Pinned and Mounted (5:04)
• Perihelion (6:01)
• What If We Could? (4:08)
• With the Flies (7:41)
• Hidden in Snow (5:19)
• A Thousand Details (3:58)
• One Particular Moment (7:00)
• I Can’t Take It Anymore (1:48)
• How Brittle the Bones (1:49)
• Please Take Your Hand Away (6:00)
• Cut Into Pieces (4:03)
• The Splinter (2:32)
• An Itch (4:09)
• Hypomania (5:47)
• Under the Midnight Sun (7:01)
• Aphelion (3:33)
• You’re Here (3:29)
• The Same as the Others (3:08)
• A Pause for Reflection (4:11)
• While Waiting (2:17)
• The Seconds Drag (4:33)
• Later Into the Night (4:55)
• Parallel Timeline with Alternate Outcome (6:32)
• Another Way of Caring (7:02)
• A Viable Construct (3:15)
• Revealed in the Thaw (2:47)
• Millennia (1:19)
• We Could Wait Forever (4:21)
• Oraculum (8:31)
• Great Bird of Prey (5:19)
• The Heretics (5:20)
• A Pair of Doves (2:02)
• Infiltrator (7:03)
• The Sound of Forgetting (2:30)
• Of Secrets (3:25)
• Is Your Love Strong Enough? (written by Bryan Ferry, performed by How To Destroy Angels) (4:30)

Running Time: 173 minutes 59 seconds

Null Corporation 2 (2011)

Music composed, arranged and performed by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. Special vocal performances by Mariqueen Maandig. Recorded and mixed by Alan Moulder, Michael Patterson and Blumpy. Edited by Marie Ebbing and Jonathan Stevens. Album produced by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross.

Original Review by Jonathan Broxton

As a general rule, and if I can help it, I don’t engage in hyperbole on Movie Music UK. A recurring cliché is that predominantly web-based reviewers are prone to proclaim every new thing “Best Something Ever” or “Worst Something Ever”, with no real sense of the history of whatever they are reviewing, and it’s a difficult stigma to overcome. Having said that, and with those points in mind, you will understand what it means why I say that Tyler Bates’ score for The Darkest Hour is one of the worst film scores I have ever heard. The last time I wrote something along these lines was when I reviewed Geoff Zanelli’s awful effort for the film Gamer in 2009. In my review of it I posted a picture of a polar bear with a migraine to illustrate how it made me feel; as such, here is a similarly illustrative visual representation of how I felt after listening to The Darkest Hour:

The Darkest Hour is a science-fiction action thriller directed by Chris Gorak and produced by Timur Bekmambetov, the director of the critically acclaimed 2008 action film Wanted, and the popular Russian sci-fi movie Night Watch from 2004. It stars Emile Hirsch, Olivier Thirlby, Max Minghella, Rachael Taylor and Joel Kinnaman as a group young Americans who, while visiting Moscow, become unwitting participants in the resistance fighting a group of invisible, deadly alien invaders who have attacked Earth through its electrical power supply.

It’s difficult to convey exactly what The Darkest Hour sounds like. In its hopelessly optimistic press pack, the score is described as “largely electronic – comprised of a palette of modular synthesizer experiments and propulsive rhythms featuring a vintage Synare at its core. Its atonal voice is an extension of the eerie electrical sound design that often makes one’s hair stand on end”. Bates himself says that his decisions to use nontraditional instrumentation without the aid of choir and brass melodies required him to “delve deep into the complexity of the non-orchestral aspect of the music in effort to convey the essence of Moscow’s desolate streets through sound and music. The vast expanse of a micro-waved Moscow, void of human life, allowed for emotional themes to be stated entirely with solo instruments.”

While this all sounds fine in theory, the end result is a score which is, more or less, an hour’s worth of incredibly loud, incredibly annoying sound effects. My esteemed friend and colleague James Southall described the score with a series of expressive onomatopoeia noises of the ‘squeak, whizz, boom, bang, blip, bloop’ nature, and I have to admit I can’t really think of a better way to put it myself. The majority of the score really does sound like a series of industrial sound effects – humming noises, grating and grinding, various bass-heavy rumbles and metallic scrapings. There’s virtually no melody, no recurring thematic presence, almost nothing to latch on to in an emotional sense. Occasionally you can hear a vaguely sinister wash of string sustains underneath it all, briefly giving the impression that someone alive and coherent was involved in its production, but beyond that it sounds like someone left a recording device running in a room full of machinery, and walked away.

Every now and again, a more recognizable percussion rhythm kicks in, giving cues such as the quite exciting “Night Club Attack”, the latter half of “They’re Inside”, and parts of “Holy Shit!”, “Dusted” and “Train Yard Battle” more structure. Occasionally the score takes on a little of the tone Brad Fiedel used on his original Terminator score back in 1984, especially the melancholic “Here’s Our Mission”. Later, in “Say Goodbye”, a more conventionally tonal piano melody adds a tone of dreamy reflection and remembrance, while in the finale, “Looking Forward”, Bates introduces what sounds like a sampled balalaika and a bed of rock guitars into his electronic palette, and presents a more hopeful and positive piece which actually contains a recognizable theme. However, these moments are few and far between, and amount to barely enough to give the score any recommendation whatsoever.

As I said in my review of Conan the Barbarian earlier this year, of all the composers working on major Hollywood productions today, Tyler Bates’ rise to the top is the one I find most inexplicable. I always feel really bad for continually coming down so hard on his scores, because he’s an extremely nice man, and he clearly puts a lot of time and effort into creating these outlandish sonic palettes for his films, but it’s part of my job to be honest when I review a score, and in all honesty, like far too many of his scores, I found the vast majority of The Darkest Hour to be an unlistenable mess.

Rating: ½

Buy the Darkest Hour soundtrack from the Movie Music UK Store

Track Listing:

• I Like That (written by Richard Vission, performed by Richard Vission and Static Revenger feat. Luciana) (5:08)
• Москва [Moscow] (written by Igor Pustelnik, performed by Marselle) (3:22)
• Space (2:31)
• Northern Lights (2:39)
• Night Club Attack (3:01)
• The Bridge is Out (1:47)
• Crashed (1:05)
• They’re Inside (2:42)
• Now What? (2:17)
• Moscow Streets (1:55)
• Holy Shit! (2:45)
• Here’s Our Mission (1:42)
• Dusted (2:47)
• Metro Shred (3:35)
• Say Goodbye (2:39)
• Man Overboard (2:12)
• Train Yard Battle (4:01)
• Fighting Back (1:28)
• Looking Forward (2:32)

Running Time: 50 minutes 18 seconds

Lakeshore Records LKS 342452 (2011)

Music composed by Tyler Bates. Conducted by Adam Klemens. Orchestrated by Tim Williams. Recorded and mixed by Wolfgang Matthes and Nick Baxter. Edited by Darrell Hall. Album produced by Tyler Bates and Wolfgang Matthes.