Buy it... if you have enjoyed other modern (post-1993) compilations from this ensemble on Telarc and have a fond place in your heart for their usual array of sound effects.

Avoid it... if synthetic choral accompaniment and an occasional "pop" sound to some cues deters you as much as the often overwhelming sound effects that could conceivably blow out smaller speaker systems.

The Big Picture: (Compilation) After several years of producing compilations of film music that were aimed at specific genres in Hollywood, Erich Kunzel and The Cincinnati Pops began mirroring Varèse Sarabande's "Hollywood '9x" series by arranging their performances based on current spans of time. First, "The Big Picture" was released in 1997 and contained music mostly from 1995 and 1996, and subsequently "Mega Movies" was released in 2000 and contained themes from 1997 to 1999. While the Telarc label had been experimenting with the inclusion of sound effects on their albums for many years (on all but their very early compilations), these late-1990's products began to get serious with them. Sound quality of the recordings was always a significant consideration for Telarc, and in the early compilations, their superior quality of sound was often the selling point for their collections. A trend has been noticed through the years by many avid collectors of these Telarc albums, and that is changing style of The Cincinnati Pops under Erich Kunzel's direction. In their early days, they won awards for their classical recordings, and their recordings of film music were always faithfully symphonic in sound. In more recent years, however, the "pop" in The Cincinnati Pops has stepped forward far more often, with percussion sometimes too contemporary in sound for the performances at hand. This is a phenomenon that began with the group's recording of Disney musicals from 1989 to 1994 a few years later and manifested itself in several places in "The Big Picture" in 1997. Additionally, the ensemble began attempting more selections that had used a chorus in their original form, and instead of utilizing the services of a choral group, Kunzel seemed content using a synthesized chorus instead. In places, this decision works, but in others, it nearly ruins the performance.

As mentioned before, though, Kunzel excels when a jazzy pop-based rhythm is called for, and for Mission: Impossible, the ensemble lets rip after some fuse-related sound effects. This is the new Kunzel at his best. The suite of themes from Batman Forever that follows is decent, though the arrangement and performance on Varèse's "Hollywood '95" is far superior, especially in the percussion section. Original voice recordings of the Apollo 13 mission and some rocket sound effects lead into an enjoyable performance of the finale from Apollo 13, though the synthetic choir does detract from the overall effect. The album stumbles significantly here, with mundane bus stop sound effects leading to a rendition of the opening titles from Speed with an obnoxious snare mix that distracts from the rest of the ensemble. The following "Roll Tide" cue from Crimson Tide is thankfully given life by a real chorus, and the deep male performances of the voices is strong. Unfortunately, Kunzel has "popified" the percussion and electronic base of the cue, losing the bass power and graceful force of the original theme. It's an odd, odd result. After some impressive fighter jet effects, a strong performance of Independence Day follows. The traditional suite format is treated with a synthetic choir at its own finale, and while the original is still preferable, the effect seems to work in this version. A lackluster performance from Braveheart once again features synthetic elements. The suite of themes from Cutthroat Island is a surprising and welcomed inclusion (given the film's immense failure... it seems that only film score nuts remember this movie), and it covers all the bases competently. Nothing will beat the original on that score, however, so keep your expectations low.

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One thing that Telarc has always done well in their sound effects is the atmosphere of storms (and lightning in particular), and they mix it well into their stirring Twister performance. Like Cutthroat Island, it's hard to imitate a grand Trevor Jones theme, and the performance of the titles from Last of the Mohicans here once again lacks the sincerity of the original. One score that is aided well by the synthetic choir is Dragonheart, for which the Pops offers one of their fantastic performances. The ensemble also captures Jerry Goldsmith's militaristic phase of the mid-1990's well for "The Remora" from Executive Decision. Lacking power and a necessary choral presence is the finale from Stargate. It's hard to fathom why so much of Jumanji made it onto this album, but the performance of the frenetic action material from the James Horner score is actually frightfully accurate and impressive. Their attempts to generate the sound of the shakuhachi flute are quite decent. The sound effects leading into this cue include a whole range of animal sounds from the jungle, and this stampede sound effect has proven itself useful through the years as a tool for tormenting neighbors, roommates, and pets. Anytime Gettysburg is transferred out of Randy Edelman's painfully misplaced synthetic realm (for the subject matter), the result is typically strong, and the performance here is grandiose and memorable. The album ends with a sort of tribute to a tornado in 1996 that tore the roof off of the Telarc label's headquarters and reportedly took some nearby livestock hostage. The effect includes the sounds of a tornado sucking up some protesting cattle, which is a great way to end any album. Overall, while some of the performances on this album could cause some head-scratching and many others simply can't stand up to the originals, the compilation is extremely strong in its selections and arrangements. The Cincinnati Pops may not be able to compete in symphonic force with its European competitors on many themes, including those that require a choral presence, but they still have a knack of being entertaining on the whole. ****   Amazon.com Price Hunt: CD or Download