The versatility of the fantastic theme for Tristan in
Legends of the Fall is confirmed in "Wild Horses/Tristan's
Return," the most optimistically heroic, hopeful, and spectacular moment
of relief in the story, dominating the scene in its placement. The "Wild
Horses" cue offers a bed of percussion as robust as Trevor Jones'
Last of the Mohicans and shakuhachi blasts to later inform
The
Mask of Zorro. The "Goodbyes" cue takes the flute of Tristan's theme
and layers it over Susannah's theme as confirmation of her passion for
him. A tender rendition of Tristan's melody at 2:21 is a subtle
highlight of the score, the romantic and savage aspects of the
character's music in subdued conflict. This material extends into
"Tristan's Quiet Heart," carried by oboe before beautifully reprising
the haunting shakuhachi version of the theme from "Tristan and
Susannah." Darkness awaits for the melody, "Isabel's Murder" ushering in
its tortured wartime mode on agonizing strings for the senseless killing
of Tristan's wife. Somber shades occupy the entirety of "Tristan Goes to
Jail/Last Visit," his theme mingling with minor-mode interpolations of
the Ludlows theme. The hints of the theme in the rhythms of "Revenge"
mature into the choral applications to open "Alfred, Tristan, The
Colonel, The Legend..." as a standoff commences with Tristan's enemies.
One final full rendition of the Tristan theme closes out the score in
his death scene. Other motifs meander throughout
Legends of the
Fall, many of them quite effective. The main and Ludlow themes have
playful interlude sequences that denote the softer side of the extended
family, including the Native American characters that help tend to the
Ludlow ranch. The first of these interludes comes at 3:02 into "Legends
of the Fall," though a far more expansive and wholesome interlude debuts
at 1:45 into "Susannah." The brightest and most yearning of this
supplemental phrasing in
Legends of the Fall comes at 2:31 into
"Susannah," and this idea returns at 3:33 into "The Ludlows" and several
times thereafter in the score. It becomes something of a theme itself by
"The Letter," which explores this innocent representation in its
entirety. The motif faintly informs "Susannah Stays On" but returns on
woodwinds in a variant in the middle of "Coming Home" and at the end of
"Tristan's Return," by this time becoming something of a de facto love
theme for Tristan and Susannah. These ideas intriguingly fail to recur
during the scenes in which the two characters encounter each other in
the Helena setting, the spotting of the music seemingly content to allow
the awkwardness of the situations to exist without further motific
development.
Other secondary motifs in
Legends of the Fall
deserve recognition, as they are stunningly effective more often than
not. The most noticeable in the score is the achievement motif, heard
twice as the Ludlows accomplish success for the sake of good. It's
Horner's "John Barry moment" in which the
Dances With Wolves temp
track truly bleeds through but is so effective that it can be forgiven.
The first rendition comes at 1:27 into "Off to War," the timpani and
chord progressions true to Barry at his best during this era.
Fascinatingly, Horner returns to this motif at 4:45 into "Alfred,
Tristan, the Colonel, the Legend," suggesting that the remaining three
family members have finally triumphed in conquering their enemies
despite the terrible cost. Far truer to Horner's typical form is his
death motif, a fluttering effect of spiritualism for piano and woodwind
that punctuates ensemble crescendos for a character's passing. (This is,
except for Tristan's wife, who does not experience a proper death as
anyone in the story would expect.) You'll hear Horner project this
connection to Native American mysticism at 5:21 into "Samuel's Death,"
1:16 into "Farewell/Descent Into Madness," 7:00 into "Alfred, Tristan,
The Colonel, The Legend...," and late in "Legends of the Fall (Extended
Version)." Less melodic and more rhythmic is Horner's application of
puffing shakuhachi for moments of suspense, revenge, and killing. He had
used the Japanese wood flute with interesting success in
Thunderheart a couple of years prior, and he extends the same
spirit to
Legends of the Fall. The score opens with a few bursts
of the ethnically propulsive, throaty rhythm that anyone might confuse
with
Thunderheart, and for two of the score's most prominent and
lengthy cues, this rhythm incorporates more of the streamlined pacing
and auxiliary instrumentation of
Patriot Games, a work that also
relied heavily on these sounds. At the end of "Revenge" and especially
in the pivotal start of "Alfred, Tristan, The Colonel, The Legend...,"
Horner adds synthesizer and solo female vocal effects that stand well
apart from the rest of the score. Given the consistently heavy ensemble
performances of themes in
Legends of the Fall, these rhythmic
cues are a welcome diversion. Still, one of the overall strengths of
Legends of the Fall is the fact that every moment of thematic
development is conveyed with the same sincere and often heavy heart. The
orchestration work of Thomas Pasatieri and Don Davis presents the London
Symphony Orchestra in a smooth form that eclipses the Americana spirit
of even the better-known
Dances With Wolves.
When you step back and admire the awe and magnificence
that Horner brought to
Legends of the Fall, you realize that the
score not only unfolds in convenient concert-like cues on album but is a
nearly perfect match for the film. The composer's common technique for
the final confrontation scene works wonders; while the story on screen
shifts between multiple positions with elegance, Horner's strong
progression doesn't attempt to jump along with it. The continuity that
his music provides the film, not only in this remarkable scene of
suspense but also in the broader, flowing melodies, is one of its best
assets. Another important point to consider with
Legends of the
Fall is that despite the connections to the shakuhachi rhythms in
Thunderheart and the brief reprises of overflowing lyricism in
subsequent dramas, this work remains relatively unique in Horner's
career. There are interludes for tinkling percussion and piano that
foreshadowed
The Spitfire Grill, the snare rips carry over from
Glory, and the opening of "Samuel's Death" mirrors the frantic
action of the "Master Alarm" cue in
Apollo 13. A later, more
harmonious line of action in the same cue resembles the finale of
Balto. But these similarities are not as obnoxious as they tend
to be in many of Horner's other large-scale scores, and the composer
never again reached this depth of resounding, simplistic grandeur. The
75-minute commercial album for
Legends of the Fall continued its
strangely "cult" status many years after its release, branching out well
beyond the normal Horner collector base in its appeal. An isolated DVD
score track added more material to the bootleg market. In 2020, though,
Intrada Records pressed a limited, 2-CD set that afforded the score the
treatment it deserves, adding several vital and lengthy cues to the
presentation. Among the highlights are several additional romantic
variants of Tristan's theme and fuller treatment of Susannah's identity.
The "Susannah" and "Coming Home/Tristan and Susannah" tracks are worth
the album alone, though the other newly provided cues flesh out score's
secondary themes as well. The bonus tracks aren't spectacular but do
offer a pair of intriguing alternates. The sound quality of the score is
phenomenal on Intrada's release. It's an essential album for any Horner
collector, amplifying much of the score's best material and thus easily
supporting the additional running time. The original commercial album is
highly recommended, too, for the highlights of
Legends of the
Fall are of such magnificence that even the shorter product can be
whole-heartedly recommended. This music competes favorably among
Horner's absolute career best.
***** @Amazon.com: CD or
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