| I just hope that they get Wendy Carlos to return for the score! |
I'm more of the mindset of bringing someone like James Horner or Elliot Goldenthal on board to do the score. As much as I love Wendy Carlos' original score I tend to feel that her music hasn't progressed as well with the times as other composers.
When Wendy first made a name for herself in the 60's she was on the cutting edge with her "Switched on Bach," and her timing was perfect for "A Clockwork Orange" which was a masterpiece soundtrack of the 70’s next to "Star Wars." Her crafty melding of synthesizer and classic orchestration helped fuel the futuristic, yet nightmarishly surreal world of Kubrick's vision. But, IMO, when she was signed on to do the score for "Tron" her style was already suffering from sounding slightly dated.
I had the original soundtrack on vinyl back in '82, and only being 12 years old there were times in the score that I felt sounded "silly" (for lack of a better word in a 12 year old's mind). I struck me, even then that there was better work being done with synthesizers in the contemporary pop music of the time, than in the score of the film (I was listening to a lot of Rush then). Looking back on it now (...add in the fact that I've been listening to the the Tron CD everyday for the past 2 weeks in my car) I have a better understanding of what bugged me about certain aspects of the Wendy's score. There is no denying her talent, but quite often I’m reminded of her work in "A Clockwork Orange"... which, as I already said, was perfect for 1971, but somehow lacking in development for 1982. And often when she incorporates synthesizers they seem to compete with the orchestra for dominance in a given piece instead of working with it, or accompanying it. My favorite piece on the Tron soundtrack is "Sea of Simulation." In this piece, above all others, I think that she has found the perfect balance between synthesizer and orchestra – there is no competition: when one element is strong the other is subdued… a perfect harmony (as it were). ...Not to mention I absolutely love the simple, yet dark and stealthy notes that dance around themselves as a repeating and growing motif in this piece. My next favorite piece is "Water Music And Tronaction." The balance is almost as solid as "Sea of Simulation," but still an excellent piece. I tend to like this piece because it weighs heavily on the use of the orchestra, and employs the synthesizer as almost a secondary element. Aside from these I tend to favor the moments that are dominated by the orchestra... especially "Break In (for Strings, Flutes, and Celesta)."
Yes, Wendy Carlos captured an essence of the video game saturated time of the early 80's with her score, but it echoes a little too often of work done nearly a decade prior. Which doesn't necessarily help propel the music into the future like the imagery on screen does. I can't help but feel that the use of someone like James Horner would only bolster the depth, grandeur, and vibrancy needed to flesh out a sequel. Wendy Carlos, may only further date the film to its predecessor.
...just my 2 cents...