Children of Dune
Like Tolkien'sLord of the Ringscycle, Frank Herbert's epicDunesaga has found its road to the screen a difficult one. This follow-up to the Sci-Fi Channel's modestly budgeted, yet warmly received first mini-series installment profits greatly from the unabashedly epic score of budding young film scorer Brian Tyler. The composer begins with a strong symphonic foundation, utilizing themes whose melodic power is straightforward, yet often suitably Wagnerian in their dynamic and execution. Tyler then gracefully interweaves a variety of ethnic instruments and modalities to give his cues a rich, if deceptively exotic sense of time and place. It's an epic score that belies its cable roots, yet one that remains masterfully restrained and informed by a dedication of purpose that's even inspired the composer to translate the lyric of his gorgeous, ethereal  vocal piece, "Inama Nushuf" into the language of novelist Herbert's native Fremen people. This is the sound of a confidant young musician meeting a daunting dramatic challenge, and then some.--Jerry McCulley