Published on Feb 17, 2000
As any self-respecting fiction fan will tell you, the music is
incredibly important to create the proper mood for any TV show or
movie or play. Imagine
Star Wars without John Williams’ stirring music behind it. A
lot of the impact and power that the movies had is lost without the
music present. That’s true for not just science fiction, but for
every kind of work. Think of
Schindler’s List,
Rocky,
The Godfather… the list is nearly endless. We might not
remember every line of every movie, but we sure as heck remember
the music that surrounded every action. It’s to the point that
several composers are immediately thought of when the names of
their best known projects are called – Williams and
Star Wars, Morricone and
The Good, The Bad & The Ugly or Barry and the Bond
films.
Along those lines, we have Christopher Franke, former member of
Tangerine Dream, and his work on the hit TV show,
Babylon 5. Having recorded every piece of music the show
ever did – except for the pilot and the last tele-movie, “A Call To
Arms” – it’s his music that has stamped the show and given its
aura. Fans of
Babylon 5 clamored for his music that their record label,
Sonic Images, now releases his music to various episodes – not just
compilations. Nevertheless, if you were to ask me what album to get
first, it’s this one.
Compiled at the beginning of the fourth TV season, Franke
brought the music of the TV show onto one disc. One part of the
album is the opening themes that started the show. A thing to
notice how the music changes as the show progresses. The first
season theme – expanded here – is wide open and adventurous, the
music for a show about exploring and discovering. The second season
theme is less open, but still there is a sense of wonder to it.
However, season’s three theme – probably the best, in my opinion –
is more militaristic in nature. Gone is the hope of seasons one and
two. Along those lines, season four’s theme is very
action-oriented. No time for dreams, there’s a war going on.
The other part of the disc is made up of these long music
suites. Rather than taking the small cues from each episode and
just pasting them here by themselves, Franke unites them into four
large, ten minute, pieces. This makes for an interesting listen.
The first suite, the title track, is very action-packed, but ends
with this heroic piece at the end. “Z’ha’dum,” the second suite, is
filled with more desperation and determination – as it should, for
this piece deals with the main enemies of the show, the Shadows.
The third suite, “Severed Dreams,” is the longest one. Also packed
with action-pieces, there’s no sense of wonder here. Cool thing is
this suite ends with a small strings playing into a sense of
despair. Nothing is clear-cut or simple on this show and the music
on this suite exemplifies it.
The final suite is a piece of original music. Titled “Voices Of
Authority,” you may recognize the main cue as the first half of the
season five theme. Here you get not only the sense of wonder back,
but it’s also mixed in with a sense of heroism. Though the piece
flutters and moves, it always returns to this main theme. Only
gripe with it is that I don’t like the little flutter piece that
ends it. I would have just let the main cue fade out. But that’s
just me.
I have two small complaints. While using the suites as showcases
helps create a new mood and allows you to see the music in new
ways, it can get a bit daunting to sit there and listen to ten
minute pieces. At the same time, there’s no way for you to listen
to your favorite slices of each suite without working your way
through them again and again. For example, in the first suite, the
heroic and dramatic piece at around the eight-minute mark is one of
my favorite cues. There’s no way for me to just listen to it
whenever I want on a CD. I have to work through the whole piece to
get to it. That can get a bit annoying.
The second complaint is that there’s just 58 minutes of music
here. C’mon. Give us more. There was so much good music throughout
the whole show that to just give these four pieces and the four
themes may seem not enough.
Overall, this is the kind of music that is created to give off
the proper mood. If you are into great sci-fi music or even if you
just want to listen to new things, give Franke’s music a try. While
it may not be as operatic and thematic like most of today’s scores,
you could find yourself enjoying it for giving the right vibes to
the right moments. In the end, that’s what great score music is
meant to do.