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While "Heart and Soul," which is translated into a fabulously swinging and accelerating, larger ensemble performance by Shore for the "End Titles" of the film, steals the hearts of most audience members, Shore's score is a more diverse composition than you might expect. His task included the realistic merging of music for the concepts of light romance, New York, boyhood fun, and, of course, a creepy carnival. The result of his efforts may not be overwhelming for the listener, but Shore adequately hits every note, standing on set during the shooting of the film and repeatedly rescoring scenes until the desired effect was achieved. The light jazz band tones, orchestral romance, and thematic adaptations are all well performed, though they never lose sight of the genre of hopelessly optimistic comedy for which they were written. Thus, Big is a lightweight score with a tremendous heart. The piano is the central element of the work, performing a central theme for the boy that accomplishes two interesting feats; first, the theme alternates between major and minor keys in its self-answering phrases (pitting boyhood against adulthood) and, second, starting with a simple four-note motif and expanding it in length as the boy quickly learns about adult life. Even as presented finally on a generous, hour-long album by Varèse Sarabande, it is difficult to take Big seriously, though judging from the alternate takes, Shore did originally have a more dramatic score in mind, including some choral layers for a sense of wonderment in "Waking Up" and "Visiting Home." While some of the magic transfers over from the film onto the album, don't expect to be blown away by the soundtrack by itself. The album is a Club release, with only 3,000 in circulation, and unless you are swept away by light comedy efforts (and, in this case, a desire to hear that walking piano in full glory), then think twice before putting this album on your shelf next to your other Shore albums. It's a contemporary score with pleasant themes and an often playful attitude, but be sure to hear the score in the film before investing in the higher-priced limited album. For others, though, the album was guaranteed to scratch another much needed score off of that CD want list, and, unlike most other major modern titles in Varèse's Club series, Big didn't sell out within the first six years of its release.  ***   @Amazon.com: CD or Download

Bias Check:

For Howard Shore reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.56 (in 25 reviews) and the average viewer rating is 3.32 (in 101,260 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.

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