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Scoring a Scott film can yield frustration for composers if they're not prepared for the eccentricity and butchering that can follow in the process for their work. In publicizing the soundtrack for Napoleon, a whole lot is said without actually saying anything meaningful about the music. Scott wanted Phipps to capture Bonaparte's outsider status in the demeanor of the score, so traditional aristocratic classicism wasn't an option. Rather, Phipps handled the work with a blend of classical waltz formations and Mediterranean folk, the rendering generally prickly and disagreeable in personality despite no real dominance of atonal dissonance. The era is captured by the use of accordion, harpsichord, and hurdy-gurdy, and Phipps certainly adheres to stereotypical classical figures at times, especially in "First Counsel." The prominent placement of two Corsican choirs in a handful of cues is meant to define the distinctive nature of Bonaparte, but their contributions are excessively foreign-sounding to fit evenly with surrounding material, striking a disparate tone too well for their own good. An abundance of snare and timpani, along with deep brass layers, is employed for the militaristic element, which is sometimes overpowering in force. At a few moments of suspense, as in "We are Discovered," electronic and brass manipulation are highly annoying. On the upside, the composer opens "Napoleon's Piano" with exactly that, a quick performance on a detuned-sounding piano once owned by the titular figure. The orchestrations and recording are remarkably crisp, especially in the reverb applied to the ensemble choir and percussion in a cue like "Soldiers of the 5th Regiment." This vibrance of sound helps infuse a sense of the larger-than-life feeling expected for the setting and topic, though the softer character cues typically shift back to a dry and intimate environment. Thematically, Phipps does employ an abundance of recurring ideas, and they are reasonably effective at serving their respective purposes. But nothing meaningful happens with any of them over the course of the narrative, the composer rarely mingling them and barely evolving each one for minimal development. This is not a score defined by its narrative arc but rather the performance inflection of the individual fragmentary lines that comprise its whole. Still, the five recurring themes in Phipps' score for Napoleon suffice, though most only prominently feature twice in the narrative.

The theme for Bonaparte himself is a quirky identity with more than a passing structural resemblance to the main waltz from Nino Rota's The Godfather, which is a little awkward given that the historical figure was from Corsica and not Sicily. Defined during all of "Napoleon's Piano" on a variety of instruments, this theme is also heard immediately on woodwinds and accordion in "Ladies in Waiting." Meanwhile, the theme for his wife, Josephine, is related to the figures of the main waltz but vitally left unresolved at the end of its performances. Explored at 0:36, 1:39, and 2:19 into "Josephine," this theme is slighter on piano at 0:42 in "Look Down," later shifting to a subdued accordion. On the flip side, there are three motifs representing the victories and losses of Bonaparte, whether personally or on the battlefield. There are two related conquest motifs, the first accented by two-note blurting in the bass (with some faint Zimmer foghorn emulation happening) and ascending five-note phrases on top. This motif starts immediately on low brass and ominous strings in "Toulon" and consolidates throughout the pounding, highly unpleasant "We are Discovered," eventually morphing into a strangely heroic choral, rhythmic crescendo in "Russia." The second conquest motif is a descending variant that retains a similar five-note structure. It emerges on choir at 2:13 in "Toulon," recurs at 0:41 into "Soldiers of the 5th Regiment," and is transformed into the score's most humorously bizarre cue: the chanting burps, string pulses, and harpsichord rambles in "Return to France." Finally, a four-note motif of defeat is conveyed with deep tones in "Austeritz Kyrie," an abrasive synthetic edge again inhibiting its character. This idea is reprised on brass at the outset of "Downfall" and carried on by frenzied layers of choir thereafter. The defeat motif isn't really tied closely enough to anything else in the work, and that's the overarching drawback. Phipps does bring fragments of multiple themes together (mainly the conquest motifs) in "Waterloo Requiem," but the remaining ideas that stumble into the score are comparatively singular. Descending prancing with strings and puffing choir provide a unique waltz in "Make the Rain Stop," the buoyant optimism and classical nobility in "First Counsel" is a diverting fanfare, and the folk performance in "Bonaparte's Lament" has a distinctly Latin American aspect to its flair. Together, Napoleon is one of the most interestingly unique, albeit brief scores to debut in this genre for many years. That alone earns it some goodwill, but its personality is too split, its discord too great for a recommendation on album.   @Amazon.com: CD or Download

• Music as Written for the Film:  ****
• Music as Heard on Album:  ***
• Overall:  ***

Total Time: 47:31