Composed and Conducted by MAURICE JARRE
INTRADA Special Collection Vol. 281
Premiere release of dynamic, intense Maurice Jarre soundtrack for epic sci-fi tale of sun flare-up threatening all life on Earth, efforts to detonate an anti-matter bomb on sun’s surface in response. Charlton Heston leads, with support from Tim Matheson, Peter Boyle, Jack Palance. Produced by Richard Edlund, financed by Japan publishing house Gakken alongside NHK Enterprises, less than successful project finds Richard A. Sarafian withdrawing credit as director after post-production tampering, assigning credit to familiar Director’s Guild pseudonym “Alan Smithee”. Score by Jarre also gets considerable tampering with during post-production, dropping cues, repeating others, moving them about, severely trunctating Jarre’s strong musical architecture. (Some sequences were even re-scored by Michael Boddicker.) Intrada CD presents all of Jarre’s cues intact. Many of them were composed with key structure, motivic material designed to flow from one sequence to the next, allowing for lengthy sequences with strong musical continuity. Orchestration is unique: Brass, percussion plus electronics get spotlight, with electronic valve instrument (EVI) creating very striking solo color. Hot, blazing, exciting! Highlights are many but somber, elegiac “Meek’s Demise” stands out with solo cello over orchestra adding intense level of emotion. Capturing the biggest applause is magnificent finale to the action (“Alex Sees The Light”) with pulse-quickening Orff-like chorus added to massive orchestra. Stirring “End Credits” brings everything to powerhouse finish! Intrada CD presents score from original digital two-track stereo session mixes. Jim Lochner offers insights to production, music, Joe Sikoryak wraps everything in handsome packaging. Maurice Jarre conducts.
For the 1990 film Solar Crisis, the filmmakers chose a composer by then known for his unique blend of synthesizers and acoustic instruments. With such varied projects as Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, Solarbabies and Enemy Mine in his recent canon, Jarre seemed a logical choice for another big-budget sci-fi fantasy like Solar Crisis. But the score as heard in the film often bears little resemblance to the score as it was originally recorded. Because post of production tinkering, scenes were either rearranged or cut, disrupting Jarre’s original musical intent. In addition, entire sequences, including the film’s opening, were re-scored by Michael Boddicker. All of this makes finding Jarre’s vision (which is presented on this disc in its original order) within the film an exercise in futility. But certain moments stand out—some for their inclusion and some for their exclusion. One of the biggest omissions occurs right at the beginning—Jarre’s original “Prologue.” Jarre’s contribution sets up numerous musical elements that will be used throughout the score—an ominous low brass theme, trademark oscillating French horn chords, and a C-minor theme for clarinet and bassoon that comes to full orchestral fruition in the finale’s majestic choral passage.
Even in its truncated form within the film, Jarre’s distinctive musical voice still manages to shine through. But heard on CD in its complete, original form, Jarre’s score can be discovered for what it is—a prime example of his period blend of acoustic and electronic instruments, and a unique musical vision that shines in its originality. This premiere release of the score is presented from the two-track stereo session mixes of the print takes made by Shawn Murphy and preserved on two DATs
In the film, when a solar flare threatens Earth’s destruction, Captain Steve Kelso (Tim Matheson) leads a mission to detonate an anti-matter bomb within the sun before it’s too late. Along for the ride are Kelso’s admiral father (Charlton Heston), a test-tube hottie (Annabel Schofield), an evil corporate mogul (Peter Boyle) set on sabotaging the mission, and the HAL-like Freddy the Bomb (voiced by Paul Williams).
TRACKLIST
01. Prologue (4:05)
02. Hear That Note? (2:34)
03. Skytown (4:38)
04. Helios Docking (4:54)
05. Desert Oasis (0:57)
06. Kelso Dropships (3:04)
07. Permission Granted (3:37)
08. Alex (0:38)
09. It’s Your Pick (2:51)
10. Meek’s Demise (5:49)
11. Concentrate On Living (2:27)
12. Pursuit (7:31)
13. Cancel Manual Detonation (1:40)
14. Alex Sees The Light (8:48)
15. End Credits (6:35)
The Extra
16. It’s Your Pick (Alternate) (2:49)
