Bill
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Poster: Bill @ Wed Jun 09, 2010 1:58 pm
 Calling All Dawns is an album of orchestral and choral tracts written by the film, game, and television music composer Christopher Tin. The album is divided into thematic sections of "Day", "Night", and "Dawn" or as he writes "life, death, and rebirth." The album falls into the "world music" category, with each track sung in a different language. Already I know I've lost readership there and possibly a man card but for the most part the album isn't exotic for exotic's sake. As a side note the studio album does use a very large range; pianissimo can be almost inaudible where as fortissimo can be blasting.
Day
1. Baba Yetu - The disc leads off with what is Tin's most recognized work, as theme to the mega-hit Civilization IV (which is one of the many fantastic scores that have graced the franchise). Vibrant and memorable it's a great lead.
2. Mado Kara Mieru - A very rich and layered song.
3. Dao Zai Fan Ye - More restrained than the first two, a lovely duet.
4. Se E Pra Vir Que Venha - Lighter fare, solo with much lighter accompaniment. I can't help but feel this song was over orchestrated, and would be better if some sections where a capella.
5. Rassemblon-Nous - Tin adds in electronic. The only track in this section I'd consider bad, due largely to the lead vocalist.
Night
6. Lux Aeterna - Quite and introspective, a good transition to the second section.
7. Caioneada - A reverie, Tin pulls back the orchestra for good effect.
8. Hymn Do Trojcy Swietej - Operatic and classical sounding, contrasts well with Caioneada.
Dawn
9. Hayom Kadosh - Bit plain, not overly ambitions. Shortest track on the album not bad, but not memorable.
10. Hamsafar - Not really sure why this is a separate from Hayom Kadosh, both songs make more sense musically when played in order. Hamsafar is a more dense piece but it's forgettable.
11. Sula-Kresne - Probably my favorite track on the album. Slightly dissonant, perhaps the best blend of instrumental and vocal elements on the album.
12. Kia Hora Marino - Thematic reprisal of Baba Yetu. Great track to bring the record to a close.
All in all a good effort with four tracks I consider great, five tracks that are good, and three which are forgettable or bad. My main idea for improvement to Calling all Dawns would be for Tin to play more with dissonance and tempo or increase the non-western musical influence in the work. Based on this album I hope Christopher Tin gets a crack at breaking the same sounding grand orchestral scores that plague movies today, or continues to ply his craft in the far more dynamic realm of video game sound tracks.
My Rating: 2/3 - Listen to the album on the web, and if you like it support it by buying an album.
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