Children of Dune
Brian Tyler
" Ethnic Television score suddenly stops repeating the goods after 8 tracks "Written by Thomas Glorieux - Review of the regular release
Brian Tyler's second weekly release of March 2003 was Frank Herbert's miniseries Children of Dune, a sequel to the 2000 miniseries Frank Herbert's Dune. Having received one of the highest ratings ever on the sci/fi channel, Children of Dune was not only a success on the television network, but also for the soundtrack label Varèse Sarabande. One of the best selling albums of the record label, it was the inevitable proof that the young hot shot composer Brian Tyler was here to stay, permanently. Even to this day, people consider Children of Dune to be among his best works.
As always, I disagree.
The problem with Children of Dune is not its music, it is its running length, it is its repetitive nature of the presentation, it's the fact every loud piece of music is discovered in the first 8 tracks (apart from one cue discovered in the middle of the album), making the 77 minute listening experience another example that not every piece of music makes for the most entertaining listening experience. Because don't get me wrong, what Tyler delivers in those first 8 tracks is indeed some of his best work yet.
Opening the album is the powerhouse main theme of Children of Dune, a typical rousing footnote that sounds equally lovable when heard softly over a faint duduk or guitar. The examples of these soft versions are endless throughout the score ("Dune Messiah", "I Have Only Now", "The Ring of Paul", "The Preacher at Arrakeen", "Children of Dune"), but the loudest version definitely comes in "The Jihad", recreating the opening track's potential and remembrance.
Besides this powerful main theme, we discover the Atreides House theme proudly in "Main Title (House Atreides)", and yet sadly that's the last you'll hear of it. But don't be saddened, because the crowning achievement of Children of Dune is "Inama Nushif (Montage)". That it shares a lot of resemblance with Hans Zimmer and Lisa Gerrard's song "Now we are Free" of Gladiator is completely true, you'll discover that for yourself. But the thing that mesmerizes people the most is the wonderful authentic quality of the song. Sung entirely in the fiction language Fremen, it is Tyler's own creative combination of the words that makes the song so wonderful and magical. It soars wonderfully with the vocal in track 8, and without the vocal in "Farewell". It is as said by many to be one of the crowning achievements of Brian Tyler's career.
But then, for whatever reason the album simply stops with all this goodness. For the next 50 minutes, you're left with lovely, sometimes suspenseful but above all ethnic material that doesn't differ much from one another after a while. The song theme occasionally wanders through the score, aided by more frequent passages of the main theme, but except for "War Begins" (which was featured in the first trailer of Star Trek) and the powerful main theme in "The Jihad", you're left with soft ethnic material that never equals the epic sound of the first 8 tracks. It is as they say underscore abound after the 10th track, all the way to the end. That people forget to see this as a hindrance is still is a mystery to me.
Because even to this day, people continue to praise Children of Dune with a highly remarkable 5 star rating. Meaning 5 stars which is given to scores like Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Independence Day, The LOTR, meaning legendary classic scores. For me, it could have received this, IF Tyler kept delivering us more of the quality of the first 8 tracks in the latter cues as well. Now you're left with a lovely if albeit completely unsatisfying middle and end that truthfully sounds remarkably the same after awhile. Meaning too much of the same can kill an experience, especially if people continue to mention it is 5 star worthy (which in my part is ludicrous and unbelievable). Sad really because the first 8 tracks are 5 star quality indeed.
Tracklisting
1. Summon the Worms (3.49) Excellent track
2. Dune Messiah (2.39)
3. Main Title (House Atreides) (1.36) Excellent track
4. The Revolution (2.00)
5. Fear is the Mind Killer (2.44)
6. The Arrival of Lady Jessica (3.07)
7. Leto Atreides II (2.44)
8. Inama Nushif (Montage) (3.52) Excellent track
9. War Begins (1.08)
10. Battle of Naraj (3.15)
11. Rya Wolves (1.34)
12. I Have Only Now (3.12)
13. The Impossible Wager (3.00)
14. Face Dancer (1.03)
15. The Throne of Alia (1.20)
16. Trap the Worm (3.03)
17. Salusus Secundus (1.04)
18. The Jihad (2.02) Excellent track
19. The Ring of Paul (3.50)
20. Exiles (1.28)
21. Sins of the Mother (1.24)
22. Irulan's Regret (1.11)
23. My Skin is Not my Own (1.22)
24. Reunited (2.28)
25. The Golden Path (2.10)
26. Child Emperor (1.18)
27. Sign of the Bene Gesserit (2.08)
28. The Preacher at Arrakeen (2.32)
29. The Desert Journey (1.36)
30. The Ghola Duncan (1.37)
31. Leto and Ghanima (1.16)
32. The Fremen Qizarate (1.42)
33. Farewell (3.25)
34. Children of Dune (1.16)
35. Horizon (1.34)
36. End Title (1.30)
Total Length: 77.24
As always, I disagree.
The problem with Children of Dune is not its music, it is its running length, it is its repetitive nature of the presentation, it's the fact every loud piece of music is discovered in the first 8 tracks (apart from one cue discovered in the middle of the album), making the 77 minute listening experience another example that not every piece of music makes for the most entertaining listening experience. Because don't get me wrong, what Tyler delivers in those first 8 tracks is indeed some of his best work yet.
Opening the album is the powerhouse main theme of Children of Dune, a typical rousing footnote that sounds equally lovable when heard softly over a faint duduk or guitar. The examples of these soft versions are endless throughout the score ("Dune Messiah", "I Have Only Now", "The Ring of Paul", "The Preacher at Arrakeen", "Children of Dune"), but the loudest version definitely comes in "The Jihad", recreating the opening track's potential and remembrance.
Besides this powerful main theme, we discover the Atreides House theme proudly in "Main Title (House Atreides)", and yet sadly that's the last you'll hear of it. But don't be saddened, because the crowning achievement of Children of Dune is "Inama Nushif (Montage)". That it shares a lot of resemblance with Hans Zimmer and Lisa Gerrard's song "Now we are Free" of Gladiator is completely true, you'll discover that for yourself. But the thing that mesmerizes people the most is the wonderful authentic quality of the song. Sung entirely in the fiction language Fremen, it is Tyler's own creative combination of the words that makes the song so wonderful and magical. It soars wonderfully with the vocal in track 8, and without the vocal in "Farewell". It is as said by many to be one of the crowning achievements of Brian Tyler's career.
But then, for whatever reason the album simply stops with all this goodness. For the next 50 minutes, you're left with lovely, sometimes suspenseful but above all ethnic material that doesn't differ much from one another after a while. The song theme occasionally wanders through the score, aided by more frequent passages of the main theme, but except for "War Begins" (which was featured in the first trailer of Star Trek) and the powerful main theme in "The Jihad", you're left with soft ethnic material that never equals the epic sound of the first 8 tracks. It is as they say underscore abound after the 10th track, all the way to the end. That people forget to see this as a hindrance is still is a mystery to me.
Because even to this day, people continue to praise Children of Dune with a highly remarkable 5 star rating. Meaning 5 stars which is given to scores like Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Independence Day, The LOTR, meaning legendary classic scores. For me, it could have received this, IF Tyler kept delivering us more of the quality of the first 8 tracks in the latter cues as well. Now you're left with a lovely if albeit completely unsatisfying middle and end that truthfully sounds remarkably the same after awhile. Meaning too much of the same can kill an experience, especially if people continue to mention it is 5 star worthy (which in my part is ludicrous and unbelievable). Sad really because the first 8 tracks are 5 star quality indeed.
Tracklisting
1. Summon the Worms (3.49) Excellent track
2. Dune Messiah (2.39)
3. Main Title (House Atreides) (1.36) Excellent track
4. The Revolution (2.00)
5. Fear is the Mind Killer (2.44)
6. The Arrival of Lady Jessica (3.07)
7. Leto Atreides II (2.44)
8. Inama Nushif (Montage) (3.52) Excellent track
9. War Begins (1.08)
10. Battle of Naraj (3.15)
11. Rya Wolves (1.34)
12. I Have Only Now (3.12)
13. The Impossible Wager (3.00)
14. Face Dancer (1.03)
15. The Throne of Alia (1.20)
16. Trap the Worm (3.03)
17. Salusus Secundus (1.04)
18. The Jihad (2.02) Excellent track
19. The Ring of Paul (3.50)
20. Exiles (1.28)
21. Sins of the Mother (1.24)
22. Irulan's Regret (1.11)
23. My Skin is Not my Own (1.22)
24. Reunited (2.28)
25. The Golden Path (2.10)
26. Child Emperor (1.18)
27. Sign of the Bene Gesserit (2.08)
28. The Preacher at Arrakeen (2.32)
29. The Desert Journey (1.36)
30. The Ghola Duncan (1.37)
31. Leto and Ghanima (1.16)
32. The Fremen Qizarate (1.42)
33. Farewell (3.25)
34. Children of Dune (1.16)
35. Horizon (1.34)
36. End Title (1.30)
Total Length: 77.24