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A veteran of almost a dozen animated projects since the late 1990's, Powell has always provided workmanlike music for the genre. Ranging from proficient to outstanding in his tackling of these assignments with personality and style, these scores are often hyperactive and abundant in the creativity department. Usually, however, they lack focus and a consistent flow, likely by necessity. You have to go back to his collaborative efforts for Antz and Chicken Run to be able to assemble listening experiences that tell a fluid narrative on album and feature highlights of significant length. Building off of the majesty and greater continuity exhibited in X-Men: The Last Stand, however, Powell has finally managed to create a well rounded and more easily digestible variation on his typical mannerisms for How to Train Your Dragon. The score's employment of both rhythm and brass layers will be extremely familiar for any enthusiast of Powell's music, as will some of the progressions in the composer's many themes for the film. A sense of exuberance in the score's lighthearted portions is especially reflective of the composer's previous works, as is his affinity for using rhythm-setters of light percussion to carry the momentum of a cue. But the film's longer narrative format, absent the lurching, unwieldy slapstick nonsense and quick cuts that have plagued DreamWorks films for several years, allowed the composer to explore themes with long lines (and sometimes interludes) and develop them throughout the score in satisfactory fashion. He not only clearly establishes these identities, but manipulates them in ways that James Horner masterfully accomplished in his animation projects of the late 1980's and early 1990's, twisting them with slower tempos and excruciating performance emphasis, for instance. There are four consistently applied themes in How to Train Your Dragon, the first three conveniently revealed in snapshot succession in the first two minutes of the score's opening piece, "This is Berk." The third one is actually the title theme, embodying a sense of high adventure that takes buoyant progressions from the swashbuckling days of Erich Wolfgang Korngold and accelerates them to a hyperactive pace and frenzied depth of instrumentation. Often conveying a spirited Scottish flavor (more on that below), this theme is as memorable in its enthusiastic conveyance as it is in its repetitive insertion to represent the story's overarching adventurous personality. This theme explodes in "New Tail", "This Time For Sure," and "Astrid Goes For a Spin" and is eventually reduced to hints as part of the piano solo in "Where's Hiccup?"

The two major secondary themes in How to Train Your Dragon are heard in the first minute of "This is Berk," beginning with the one representing the redemption and excitement of flying. This theme receives perhaps the most manipulation in the score but is best summarized by "Test Drive." The other is a romantic idea for Hiccup and his female companion, and you'll immediately hear similarities in progression and rendering between this theme and that of the princess in the Shrek scores. Its most cohesive presentation comes in "Romantic Flight," complete with longing fiddle and soothing choir. A simple and key-rooted fourth theme, reflecting the mystique of the dragons, emerges in "The Dragon Book" and culminates in the ominous "Dragon's Den." As attractive as the thematic constructs in How to Train Your Dragon is Powell's extremely organic spread across the dynamic range of instruments. He defies all of the formulas that cripple the scores of other Zimmer associates by using a blend of live and sampled specialty sounds to breathe vibrant life into the tone of his thematic performances. The marimba and xylophone effect in "Forbidden Friendship" combines with ethereal female voices and sleigh bells to create an extremely unique ambience. A remarkable cue is "See You Tomorrow," which raises memories of Chicken Run while highlighting the score's strange but consistent use of Scottish instruments (bagpipes, fiddle, and penny whistle) in conjunction with harpsichord and tapping snare. This tone is given muscular depth in the following "Test Drive" with the assistance of large varied drums and even an electric guitar. Anyone tired of hearing how Ramin Djawadi and other lesser Zimmer associates abuse electric guitars in their orchestral scores needs to pay attention to how well Powell employs the instrument as purely a bass enhancement that infuses a cue with just a slight hint of coolness without overpowering even a penny whistle. The dynamic spread of the soundscape emphasizes treble elements without sacrificing satisfying bass; this technique extends to the choir, which includes brawny male vocals to represent the pride and power of the Vikings (in ways that resurrect shades of Jerry Goldsmith's The 13th Warrior, not surprisingly) while also extending to the high female ranks to crank up the intensity of the fantasy element in the battle cues later on. Fans of clearly recorded and mixed solo performances by woodwinds and strings will find much to like in this score, all the way to the conclusive "The Vikings Have Their Tea," which, like several other cues before it, addresses the levity of a scene without resorting to even faint hints of typical cartoonish ensemble hits and slapstick pacing of stuttering movement.

Overall, How to Train Your Dragon is an extremely well developed score for the animated genre. It's technically superior to all of Powell's previous endeavors in this area and is arguably the most satisfying listening experience of this nature since his past collaborator Harry Gregson-Williams' Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas in 2003. It's also refreshing to hear Powell able to expand upon some of the general ideas in his previous scores and give them full-fledged identities. His best scores typically feature extraordinary highlights but suffer from continuity issues often beyond his control. The format of this film allowed him to really play with his themes and explore dense instrumental balances not usually heard anywhere in film music. There are, however, a couple of detractions to the score that are blatantly obvious. The first issue is with the ethnicity of the work. It wouldn't be surprising to learn that the casting of some Scottish actors in lead roles for the voices led to a similar influence of that ethnicity on the score. There's really no reason whatsoever for bagpipes, fiddles, and whistles to have such a prominent place in a score for Vikings. They do sound pretty, of course, and that was probably a determining factor. But there's a lingering distrust of the application of Scottish and Irish tones that James Horner has perpetuated through the years, and to hear such elements in How to Train Your Dragon may irritate (or at least baffle) some listeners. Powell does make a few nods to traditional Viking tones, especially with the horn call and percussion at the outset of "Dragon Battle," but none of it approaches Mario Nascimbene territory. Secondly, there is no doubt that while the foundation of this score, as well as its dynamic orchestral flourishes, will appeal to Golden Age film music collectors, Powell still doesn't take his foot off the gas for very long in his works. Cues like "Forbidden Friendship" and "Romantic Flight" are absolutely necessary respites from the level of bombastic activity in this music. The suite of final five cues is appropriately exhausting and jettisons some of the thematic cohesion earlier in the score for outright explosive symphonic rambling. It's glorious material, but for those who have never been able to tolerate the extroverted personality of Powell's previous animation scores, it could be daunting to navigate. Another final downside of the album is the Icelandic-styled rock song provided by Jonsi, which drains all the enthusiasm out of the environment created by Powell. Despite the curious and potentially damaging aspects of his score, it's easy to get the impression that this recording is about as fine as the composer's animation style can get. It's the best such ruckus since Chicken Run and, for setting itself apart from its peers (both in this genre and in the realm of one-time Zimmer associates), How to Train Your Dragon hurls enough fire to earn the highest rating.  *****   @Amazon.com: CD or Download

Bias Check:

For John Powell reviews at Filmtracks, the average editorial rating is 3.18 (in 45 reviews) and the average viewer rating is 3.11 (in 47,469 votes). The maximum rating is 5 stars.

Total Time: 72:06