Legend of the Guardians by David Hirschfelder

Legend of the Guardians by David Hirschfelder is a complexly orchestrated straight forward fantasy effort that should tide over the appetite of anyone that is a fan of the genre - at least until Alexandre Desplat's first score for a Harry Potter film next month.

As talked about in other reviews on this score there are some striking similarities to previous film works of the genre and their composers. John Williams, Elliot Goldenthal and Harry Gregson-Williams come to mind.

All this being said, the theme may not be the most original but the orchestrations are impeccable and needless to say, very interesting. I caught myself listening much more closely to this album than other recent scores just to hear what kind of textures and instruments I would "discover" next. There is a lot of fluttering of the woodwinds to represent the fluttering of wings. There is a dulcimer and duduk and an odd piano and string bass mixed into the story-telling at unexpected times, which helps to keep things unusual and moving forward.

I have not heard a lot by David Hirschfelder besides his score for Australia and Elizabeth, but I can firmly say that I hope to hear much more from him in Hollywood films to come. It is always refreshing to hear a modern composer - in the 2000's - that has such a great command of the acoustic, traditional orchestra.

Having listened to this score many times over, I can easily hear the good and the bad.

The good being the engaging textures and intriguing use of choir and instruments with a fairly memorable main theme. The bad being nearly every time the music becomes stunning and triumphant it almost always ends, either abruptly or just from the music being slightly frenetic in nature - following every action or situation on screen - though it isn't exactly "mickey-mousing".

This can be highly frustrating for score fans, based on the fact that most of us expect some kind of suite or complete musical story to be told from track to track, without leaving us hanging or asking the questions - "Where is the rest? Is that it?"

All in all, LOtG could have benefited greatly from a more expansive release of the action material and less of the jazz influenced and fluttering meandering - though I have to admit, it is all very well done. As an overall product, I have to say that Hirschfelder's latest entry into his musical career is regularly top notch, but shy of classic due to some unoriginal themes and the lack of complete battle music cues.

Overall Score Crave score: ****

Tracklist:

1) To The Sky - Owl City: N/A

2) Flight Home (The Guardian Theme): A well done opening title track. It accurately portrays the Guardian theme without the full development to come in latter tracks such as "The Boy Was Right". A good part of the horn section and fantasy music actually reminds one of a mid-90's James Horner fantasy score. ****

3) Taken To St Aggeles: Fluttering woodwinds and slightly ominous horns and strings start the cue. A jazzy piano and bass playing interrupt, playing the role of the evil yet somewhat dull owls taking the young owlets to St. Aggeles. A catchy and suspenseful string and woodwind ostinato pushes forward until the end. ***1/2

4) Welcome To The Pellatorium: The piano and bass are back, keeping things jaunty in the midst of some sinister and exciting music featuring choir and the woodwind and string ostinatos from the previous track. ***1/2

5) A Long Way To The Guardians: One of my favorite tracks of the score. It seemingly incorporates tastes of the styles and orchestrations of John Williams, Danny Elfman and Hirschfelder, himself. It really is wonderfully bombastic and exciting stuff. *****

6) You Know We’re Flying: A playful cue that gives a joyful rendition of the Guardian theme at the last moment. I found it entertaining, but brief. ***

7) A Friend Or Two: This is an extremely multi-faceted cue. It starts out a bit ominous, then bursts into a frenetic version of the main theme, which is thoroughly enjoyable for anyone who loves exciting action music. The strange thing is, the exact part that I mention actually sounds tremendously similar to John Williams' E.T. score. Thereafter, in the middle section of the cue it goes into a smaller ensemble sound, resembling some of Bruno Coulais' latest work. Finally, it ends in a more traditional manner, closing out the cue with horn calls of the main theme. ****

8) The Boy Was Right: One of the best cues on the album and as heard in the film, itself. The chorus is absolutely goosebump inducing when combined with the visuals. The Guardian theme is heard in all it's glory, thoroughly sumptuous and full of wonder.*****

9) Sharpen The Battle Claws: A great dramatic track. This could have be in any epic war film, which is a compliment, considering this is a children's film. The cello adds a lush compliment to the string section. ****

10) Follow The Whale’s Fin: This is a strong tension filled track which seems to be building to the battle action music. Whirling strings and osinato stir things up, but it's nothing you haven't heard before. ***

11) Into Battle: This cue sounds like Hirschfelder's take on a MediaVentures approach to battle music - it was interesting on how my ear actually was able to overlay certain music from recent Harry Gregson-Williams efforts such as Kingdom of Heaven and Chronicles of Narnia. After the first couple of minutes this track goes into fairly generic action music territory. ***1/2

12) Hello Brother - An atmospheric piece with a forbidding tone. The male choir dominates, making it much more interesting then it could have been. ***

13) My Soldiers My Sons - This cue is what I had expected from "Into Battle" - it features some electrifying moments, especially towards the end, with an all too short chanting choir. This will have score fans keeping a look out for a complete score release. ****

14) More Baggy Wrinkles - A nice closing to the score, reprising a fairly emotional take on the main theme, not dissimilar to the track, "The Boy Was Right". ****