Soundtrack Review - DW S4
Initial thoughts on the Doctor Who Series 4 soundtrack… you can currently purchase an electronic-only copy at Silva Screen, U.K..
It’s amazing to listen to these soundtracks back to back and see how the music has developed and grown over time. Where Series One was active and playful, for the most part it didn’t have much depth, focusing on so much synth and simplified rhythms (a few melodies and songs being the exception). It resembled his sountrack in Casanova in style to me - a tad tinny. Ben Foster’s collaboration has helped the development of these soundtracks tremendously - and I think the pair of them work wonderfully together.
What I notice for the most part in the Series Four soundtrack is how the majority of the themes soar and sweep. They’re broad and emotional - reminding me a lot of the classic movie soundtracks from the 30s and 40s that were elegant and extravagant. It does remind me of Series Three's soundtrack in scope, although I notice a lot more broad choral work this time around.
Oddly the other thing that keeps coming to mind is Harry Potter - there’s a weird twinkling of magic in it that likens it to the movie soundtracks. Maybe it’s all the finger chimes.
Doctor Who soundtracks, I imagine, are tricky to put together since so many of the themes are actually short cues, batched together to some form of cohesion. Take Series 3’s “The Doctor Forever,” which is actually just a batch of the same cue in different variations from throughout the series. The fact that they manage to create songs of these cues is impressive to begin with.
Here are my thoughts on the ones that stand out to me:
A Noble Girl About Town - I adored this bouncy music to start the series, and I’m glad it showed up here, as a twist on Donna’s Theme. I will admit that a couple of the instruments sound off-count to me later in the song, much as the first few brass notes of “All the Strange, Strange Creatures” does to me from last year. It’s undoubtedly just me, though.
Songs of Captivity and Freedom - haunting. I adore this kind of music, and the singer’s voice is just beautiful. It’s interesting to place both songs side by side here… only quibble I have is that I think they blend a bit too suddenly.
The Doctor’s Theme Series 4 - I’ll be honest. I adore this version. The original is beautiful, but there’s something about this… the song itself just seems to reflect that time has passed, that the Doctor has managed to heal the somber, lonely voice from the original Doctor’s Theme. He’s regained some of the passion for the universe to explore, to save others - and I think this theme reflects that.
Voyage of the Damned Suite - If for no other reason, I’m glad the music from the scene where the Doctor steers the ship above Buckingham Palace (that gleeful, carnival rolling theme), and the final scene with Mr. Copper… that wistful, holiday-filled daydream. Add to that “The Doctor Forever” theme that opens so broadly (from the scene with Doctor ascending with the angels). It connects nicely to Series Three’s music. It’s interesting to me, but while they disappear for a lot of the series, some of the melodies and phrasings sneak back in for The Greatest Story Never Told. It’s subtle, but it’s there.
All in the Mind - it’s so silly and quirky and so different than anything else on the soundtrack… just made me giggle. And see the scene perfectly in my head. I’m convinced it will be one of those themes that gets STUCK in the head, too. Under the right conditions, it could be horribly distracting and annoying.
The Greatest Story Never Told - The blending of “All the Strange, Strange Creatures” and “The Doctor Forever” is just beautiful. I love how this sweeps via the choral voices picking up the rhythms. It’s easily my favorite song on the album because it just captures that heroic making-wrong-right idea that I connect with Doctor Who .
Midnight - Oooh, so dark and tense. I still maintain this is one of the best episodes of the show I’ve ever seen, simply because it’s so complex and carries its emotion so incredibly. The music reflects it well, although I have to say that unlike some songs (This is Gallifrey…, for example)
A Pressing Need to Save the World - again, blends rhythms of Season Three nicely. “All the Strange, Strange Creatures” blends with the fast-paced “busy working” rhythms from “Utopia” (as the Doctor, Jack, Martha, and Yana prepare the rocket). I might be wrong, but I don’t recall them being on the soundtrack from last series - and that driving rhythm is one thing I did miss.
Song of Freedom - Like the original rendition above, it’s beautiful. For some reason, it doesn’t seem to have the impact as I expected. When I saw the episode, the music just sounded joyous. Here it oddly sounds a bit slow and ploddy, and I’m not sure why - perhaps it’s just the mix? Or maybe it’s just that I don’t see everyone grinning around the TARDIS console as I did watching the episode, helping to influence my music interpretation.
What I felt was missing:
Above all, I’m disappointed that the slow, somber bassoon variant of This is Gallifrey… from The Doctor’s Daughter didn’t show up - it was a lovely variant. But I suppose there wasn’t enough of it, and perhaps not enough to match it to in order to create a “song” like was done with other music cues.
I also felt that The Unicorn and the Wasp was under-represented on the album, and would like to have heard some more from that episode.
All in all, another good round from the team. :) Hooray... more mood writing music!
It’s amazing to listen to these soundtracks back to back and see how the music has developed and grown over time. Where Series One was active and playful, for the most part it didn’t have much depth, focusing on so much synth and simplified rhythms (a few melodies and songs being the exception). It resembled his sountrack in Casanova in style to me - a tad tinny. Ben Foster’s collaboration has helped the development of these soundtracks tremendously - and I think the pair of them work wonderfully together.
What I notice for the most part in the Series Four soundtrack is how the majority of the themes soar and sweep. They’re broad and emotional - reminding me a lot of the classic movie soundtracks from the 30s and 40s that were elegant and extravagant. It does remind me of Series Three's soundtrack in scope, although I notice a lot more broad choral work this time around.
Oddly the other thing that keeps coming to mind is Harry Potter - there’s a weird twinkling of magic in it that likens it to the movie soundtracks. Maybe it’s all the finger chimes.
Doctor Who soundtracks, I imagine, are tricky to put together since so many of the themes are actually short cues, batched together to some form of cohesion. Take Series 3’s “The Doctor Forever,” which is actually just a batch of the same cue in different variations from throughout the series. The fact that they manage to create songs of these cues is impressive to begin with.
Here are my thoughts on the ones that stand out to me:
A Noble Girl About Town - I adored this bouncy music to start the series, and I’m glad it showed up here, as a twist on Donna’s Theme. I will admit that a couple of the instruments sound off-count to me later in the song, much as the first few brass notes of “All the Strange, Strange Creatures” does to me from last year. It’s undoubtedly just me, though.
Songs of Captivity and Freedom - haunting. I adore this kind of music, and the singer’s voice is just beautiful. It’s interesting to place both songs side by side here… only quibble I have is that I think they blend a bit too suddenly.
The Doctor’s Theme Series 4 - I’ll be honest. I adore this version. The original is beautiful, but there’s something about this… the song itself just seems to reflect that time has passed, that the Doctor has managed to heal the somber, lonely voice from the original Doctor’s Theme. He’s regained some of the passion for the universe to explore, to save others - and I think this theme reflects that.
Voyage of the Damned Suite - If for no other reason, I’m glad the music from the scene where the Doctor steers the ship above Buckingham Palace (that gleeful, carnival rolling theme), and the final scene with Mr. Copper… that wistful, holiday-filled daydream. Add to that “The Doctor Forever” theme that opens so broadly (from the scene with Doctor ascending with the angels). It connects nicely to Series Three’s music. It’s interesting to me, but while they disappear for a lot of the series, some of the melodies and phrasings sneak back in for The Greatest Story Never Told. It’s subtle, but it’s there.
All in the Mind - it’s so silly and quirky and so different than anything else on the soundtrack… just made me giggle. And see the scene perfectly in my head. I’m convinced it will be one of those themes that gets STUCK in the head, too. Under the right conditions, it could be horribly distracting and annoying.
The Greatest Story Never Told - The blending of “All the Strange, Strange Creatures” and “The Doctor Forever” is just beautiful. I love how this sweeps via the choral voices picking up the rhythms. It’s easily my favorite song on the album because it just captures that heroic making-wrong-right idea that I connect with Doctor Who .
Midnight - Oooh, so dark and tense. I still maintain this is one of the best episodes of the show I’ve ever seen, simply because it’s so complex and carries its emotion so incredibly. The music reflects it well, although I have to say that unlike some songs (This is Gallifrey…, for example)
A Pressing Need to Save the World - again, blends rhythms of Season Three nicely. “All the Strange, Strange Creatures” blends with the fast-paced “busy working” rhythms from “Utopia” (as the Doctor, Jack, Martha, and Yana prepare the rocket). I might be wrong, but I don’t recall them being on the soundtrack from last series - and that driving rhythm is one thing I did miss.
Song of Freedom - Like the original rendition above, it’s beautiful. For some reason, it doesn’t seem to have the impact as I expected. When I saw the episode, the music just sounded joyous. Here it oddly sounds a bit slow and ploddy, and I’m not sure why - perhaps it’s just the mix? Or maybe it’s just that I don’t see everyone grinning around the TARDIS console as I did watching the episode, helping to influence my music interpretation.
What I felt was missing:
Above all, I’m disappointed that the slow, somber bassoon variant of This is Gallifrey… from The Doctor’s Daughter didn’t show up - it was a lovely variant. But I suppose there wasn’t enough of it, and perhaps not enough to match it to in order to create a “song” like was done with other music cues.
I also felt that The Unicorn and the Wasp was under-represented on the album, and would like to have heard some more from that episode.
All in all, another good round from the team. :) Hooray... more mood writing music!