The Matrix: Original Motion Picture Score
Musically avant-garde elements have been utilized in film scores for decades, usually as shock elements to denote horror or the otherworldly. In recent times, modern composerPhilip Glasshas enjoyed varying degrees of success adapting his minimalist techniques to film scoring. Given that background, Don Davis's powerful, innovative score to the Wachowski brothers' 1999 sci-fi hitThe Matrixhas all the makings of a landmark. Utilizing his extensive interest and training in the avant-garde, Davis has composed what's been touted as the first "New York school postmodern" film score, a jarring departure from his hugely successful work as an orchestrator of such populist fare asTitanic,Pleasantville,A Bug's Life, andToy Story.The Matrixweds Davis's mastery of musical detail and coloration to a largely atonal postmodern concerto that's complex, dark, and unrelenting. Many film scores have driven tonal writing and heroic motifs into the ground; Davis's deft, sparing use of them here places them in stark, effective relief.The Matrixoffers up a rewarding orchestral challenge that may just be a decade--or two--ahead of its time.--Jerry McCulley