Hello and happy June to everyone!Â
As we're both aware, it's been a good while since my last post, but I'm thrilled to be back with a new entry! I decided a while back that doing these posts are only truly motivated and relevant when I'm stirred enough by a piece of music to actually want to engage in a written dialogue about it. Unfortunately, (or fortunately?), this doesn't happen too often. When those few and far between stand outs do come along however, it makes blogging about them all the more enjoyable for both parties.Â
Bearing that in mind, the song above is the perfect example of one of those pieces of music. I knew the moment I heard this little gem that I'd adopt it into my foster home for needy and unloved soundtrack cues that are destined to fade into the maelstrom of movie scores past. I just couldn't let that happen without at least an honorable mention. So here goes nothing.Â
The cue in question; "Path of Destruction". We're already off to a good start. I'm a huge fan of self assured art. In other words, art that knows exactly what it is, and has no airs about being just that. In the case of this cue, it's certainly not afraid in the slightest to be brutally, unashamedly evil in almost an arrogant way. The truncated runtime of the song only bolsters this effect, creating the musical equivalent of a 5 hour energy drink, condensing an operatic Wagnerian movement into a concentrated dose of villainy. That's the beauty of film scores that sometimes is lost on more lofty classical arrangements. Often, the constrictions of the film dictate the length and intensity of the cue. The scene that this song accompanies in the film is very short and powerful, but to the point (Maleficent rising to power and assuming her evil throne, crowning herself queen of the Moors). As such, the cue needs to get it's point across in a very short window of time, forcing the composer to dive right into the thick of the thematic material, instead of priming the audience first. In this case, I think that condensation aids the cue tremendously, it makes it's statement and it's over. Almost like an elevator pitch for orchestral movements ("Here's what I can do, hire me?").Â
This cue is brought to us by the veteran composer James Newton Howard. Howard is an interesting egg as composers go, because unlike many of his contemporaries that have singular stylistic giveaways, James has no such "singular trademark" stamps, but rather has about 5 of them that alternate between scores, tones and themes of the movie he's scoring. If one listened to the lush Maleficent score, they may or may not correlate that this is the same man who wrote the chilling "Sixth Sense" creepers or the moving violin eulogies of "The Village". Interestingly enough however, there is still an imperceptible quality to a James Newton Howard score that permeates all of his work, but it's not something I can effectively put into words. If I had to spitball terms that all of his scores have in common, I would start at "1/2 steps, full orchestra, organic, interrupted phrasings, soft piano motifs and interludes, brass fanfare, rapidly shifting key signatures etc" but those are all vague and nebulous qualifiers at best. Perhaps, for lack of a better term, all of his scores are simply, undeniably, him. Yet, strangely he has still managed to become one of the most versatile composers in the business, adapting and shifting according to each project. Almost like a method actor, Howard disappears somewhat into whatever movie he's writing for. This sometimes works to his detriment because his score might sound unmotivated or perfunctory, but it can also work to his benefit in many cases because on occasion, he'll fully embrace the thematic palette of his current project and in turn, will lift it to new, unexpected musical heights. That, in my humble opinion, is certainly the case with his masterful score to Maleficent (which is in many ways a return to form for him). Some composers (Hans Zimmer, another favorite) attend the church of themselves. Though it sounds derogatory, it only means that they bring their skills and pallet to each project, and deliver something that's very recognizable as "their" work within a certain bracket. Some of the best scores we have were birthed from this methodology, so no complaints there. James Newton Howard however, is not one of those composers. Back to "Path Of Destruction".Â
This cue has so many small moving parts, that there are considerably more sections I'm going to break it in to than your average 1 minute 48 second cue.Â
0:00 - 0:07 - Classic Newton Howard build up, dissonant trilling strings and faint voices act as audible harbingers of doom, warning the listener that something nefarious is coming.Â
0:07 - 0:16 - I like to call this the "Jaws" section. Very reminiscent of Williams and his previously mentioned "JAWS" overture, only adding one additional note, creating these rapid, foreboding triplets on the bass cello, accented on the 4th beat by massive percussive hits.Â
0:16 - 0:24 - We're now hearing the beginning of a conversation between brass and vocals. The brass speaks first here, reinforcing the still plodding bass cello rhythm.Â
0:24 - 0:33 - The second part of the "call and response" is answered by the voices, summoning all the powers of hell with their decaying, melodious chanting.Â
0:33 - 0:41 - Brass and voices come in together now talking in unison.Â
0:41 - 0:42 - Brief flirtation with the kay of F major before leaving it just as quickly.Â
0:42 - 0:43 - F minor key shifting upwards to G maj also very briefly. (make note, that's 3 key changes in the last 3 seconds. That a key change per second).Â
0:44 - 0:55 - SLAMS in epic fashion into a hard hitting orchestral E minor chord, supported by a C major shortly there after. Many composers come to mind here, most notably Danny Elfman. There is a heavy, macroscopic orchestral gusto, yet it's still very intimate and in close range. The bravura is almost operatic as the listener is bombarded with brass, voices, percussion and strings all playing to full capacity here in perfect concert with one another.Â
Still with me? Keep track of the ground we've covered, and we're not even at the minute mark yet.Â
0:56 - 1:05 - Pure, unadulterated Wagner. Those ascending brass notes are right out of "Ride of the Valkyries" (I haven't heard James doing anything with this much gusto in years. Again, so unashamed to be pure evil. And we're not even to the most diabolical section yet. That's next).
1:06 - 1:15 - A modern equivalent to the "duh duh duh!" paradigm. I absolutely adore it. It's the distilled essence of what it means to be villainous, powerful and corrupted. No subtlety is present because no subtlety is needed.Â
1:16 - 1:28 - Yet another key change ushers in the final punch of this roller coaster. It comes in the form of a strict 4/4 time, accenting every beat. The listener literally gets the sensation of being beaten over the head with the orchestra, which is honestly an effect I'm not wholly accustomed to, but thoroughly love. A brave compositional choice.Â
1:31 - 148 - A final crescendo returns us almost home, to E natural, whereas we started on E flat. This song took us all over the map musically and it's even more disconcerting that we never returned to our starting point in terms of key signature. Yet another facet that might subconsciously unnerve the listener.Â
Alas, who would've thought a Disney film about forgiveness could foster such powerful music? Surely not I. Maleficent's score as a whole is a lush and cinematic experience of the likes we haven't heard in a while. It has reminded me why I love big, bold, sweeping cinema music, which is in many ways a breed all it's own. This score is just packed with cues I almost did a post on. Honorable mentions here are "Maleficent Flies", "The Army Dances", "The Christening" and "Maleficent is Captured" and last but certainly not least, "The Maleficent Suite".Â
Since classical symphonic movements aren't being composed with the regularity that they used to be, movie scores serve in many ways as our final outlet into that type of music. They are contemporary, modern day symphonies composed by masters of their own time. Makes me wonder what a film score composed by Bach would sound like.Â
As always, thanks for reading, and be on the lookout for more entries in the near future!Â
Yours in music,Â
JustinÂ
Maleficent OST on AmazonÂ
http://www.amazon.com/Maleficent-James-Newton-Howard/dp/B00HZVX1C6/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1404078601&sr=8-12&keywords=maleficent
Maleficent FliesÂ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJvY7um-9Tk
The Army Dances
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fA_StwAgDTo
The ChristeningÂ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KgesosFIROE
Maleficent is Captured
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nL0RAveRzA
The Maleficent Suite
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HpiZsUt_ym8
Ride of the Valkyries
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V92OBNsQgxU






















