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SCORE: Planet Earth II (Music from the BBC Television Series)


Which episode do you think has the best music?  

2 members have voted

  1. 1. Which episode do you think has the best music?

    • Islands
      0
    • Jungles
      0
    • Mountains
    • Deserts
      0
    • Grasslands
      0
    • Cities
      0


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I love both this documentary series and its score, with a main theme by Hans Zimmer and music by Jacob Shea and Jasha Klebe, I am happy to own both the series and the score. Now it may not be popular here, but I highly recommend it. If you have seen it, start off by answering the poll. I will be reviewing by episode, in order. Share your reactions and comments. And go watch it!

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Islands

Planet Earth II Suite

This is the one that Zimmer is in on and it builds up the textures of the cello and wood winds. Then a super powerful statement at the end as a cap.

 

The Sloth

I love the climax of this one (where the sloth is swimming). I thought it was one of the better underscore moments in this episode.

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Home to Dragons

An interesting piece, with textures and rumblings to follow the Komodo dragons through the forests and to the kill, where some "epic" music comes in for the fight. The best part of this piece is the bom-bom-bom part.

 

Razor Snakes vs. Iguanas

This scene went viral and the music is fitting. The chase theme really builds.

 

 

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We loved the original Planet Earth.  Just started watching this series on Netflix to unwind before bed, are about halfway through the first episode (just saw a volcano explode).

 

At this point, the biggest surprise musically is that it doesn't seem too dissimilar from what was done before, sonically or quality-wise.  Certainly no clear Zimmerisms.  Kind of weird that they spent so much of their budget on getting a big fish like Zimmer when the end result was very similar.

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On 4/24/2018 at 1:28 PM, mstrox said:

We loved the original Planet Earth.  Just started watching this series on Netflix to unwind before bed, are about halfway through the first episode (just saw a volcano explode).

 

At this point, the biggest surprise musically is that it doesn't seem too dissimilar from what was done before, sonically or quality-wise.  Certainly no clear Zimmerisms.  Kind of weird that they spent so much of their budget on getting a big fish like Zimmer when the end result was very similar.

Well Zimmer composed the main theme (Planet Earth II Suite https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpgvmHBpatA  and Epilogue https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrNPgH97eoc) alongside Jacob Shea and Jasha Klebe. Everything else was the just the latter two. 

 

It is similar to Planet Earth by George Fenton, yet very different I find. I love Planet Earth, score and series, yet I feel Planet Earth II's recency makes it better in my mind.  I am happy to own both series on DVD as well as their scores. Glad you like them to! I was beginning to think no one on these forums knew what I was talking about.

 

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Yeah - very similar! 

 

We now watched "Islands," "Mountains," and half of "Jungles."  Islands was across-the-board very good - the sloths, the komodo dragons, the snakes/iguanas, etc.  All good.  Outside of the goats on the rocks, Mountains didn't really hold a lot of interest for me to be honest.  Jungles so far has been very much my speed.

 

Musically, my feelings so far are the same as the first - pleasant music, tense when it needs to be, but not something I tend to buy or listen to much outside of the documentary.

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2 minutes ago, mstrox said:

Yeah - very similar! 

 

We now watched "Islands," "Mountains," and half of "Jungles."  Islands was across-the-board very good - the sloths, the komodo dragons, the snakes/iguanas, etc.  All good.  Outside of the goats on the rocks, Mountains didn't really hold a lot of interest for me to be honest.  Jungles so far has been very much my speed.

 

Musically, my feelings so far are the same as the first - pleasant music, tense when it needs to be, but not something I tend to buy or listen to much outside of the documentary.

The opening sequence is similar but then Klebe and Shea add their own mark to it.

 

Islands is my favourite episode. Probably because it wasn't an episode in Planet Earth. Cities is interesting in that way too! Mountains was always a mediocre one to watch. Average. I don't quite like this Jungles as much as other episodes, but it satisfies.

 

I love the score. It is my type of soundtrack. It helps that I like the series too. I think I mostly prefer soundtracks from movies I like in the first place. That way everything is settled. I can also picture the scenes for some of my favourite scores, so listening to them is like a super awesome listening experience with the movie playing in my head!

 

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On 4/25/2018 at 7:48 PM, The Illustrious Jerry said:

 I am happy to own both series on DVD as well as their scores. 

 

You're watching these series in SD DVD?

 

I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry.

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Albatross Dance

This gentle and bouncy piece for the lonely albatross awaiting its mate is like natures waltz. The music has innocence when the penguins trot by the poor albatross, showing of their mates.

 

Chinstrap Penguins

This is a very powerful piece. The bloody and battered penguins returning from a treacherous fishing trip are truly moving, and the music accompanies the survivors gloriously as they crawl up to their chicks.

 

Singing Indri

Not a standout on this episode for me, but still a great work. The curiousity and simplicity of the lemurs is put to music, and this is what that is.

 

 

15 minutes ago, John said:

People still use DVDs?

Yes. 

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Jungles

Competing Hummingbirds

A very lively piece, bouncing along with some great string strikes. All this music is very befitting of the scene. The jitteriness (for lack of a better word) of this goes well with the quickly beating wings of the hummingbirds.

Life in the Canopy

The raw beauty and sheer genuineness of this track is great, as a loving father spider monkey saves its offspring from climbing to high in the trees. Soo sweet and pure. Humans need to look at this and say "We should be this kind".

Jungle Weather

Same story here. It sounds like raindrops, as is shown during this scene, and the underlying vocals give texture and add beauty to this track.

Night Crawlers

My favourite track out of Jungles. Very quick and exciting, supporting the fast moving insects creeping about the forest floor.

World of Bioluminescense

A majestic piece symbolizing the beauty of bioluminescent organisms. Not my favourite, but good.

Wilson's Bird of Paradise

Not much to say about this one. It's alright. Again, Jungles isn't my favourite episode score-wise.

Something Worth Protecting

Very nice. It is moving and inspiring, and sort of uses hints of that theme from the suite.

 

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3 hours ago, mstrox said:

I enjoyed the Cities episode of Planet Earth 2.

Agreed. I would probably say from PEII I like Islands and Cities the best, mostly because they were unexplored in the first PE. On Blue Planet, I am excited for Coasts!

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7 hours ago, Jurassic Shark said:

Have you guys seen the BBC series Hidden Kingdoms? I was entirely captivated by it. Too bad it only has three episodes.

Wow. Never heard of it. Looks awesome. Thanks Shark!

 

Blue Planet II: One Ocean

Just a quick update on my viewing of BP2. I watched Ep. 1 last night: One Ocean. It was sublime. There was everything from super smart dolphins, to crazy trevallies hunting birds, and even transgender fish!

 

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Blue Planet II: The Deep

Wow. This one sadly put me to sleep. Rather boring and quite simply not my cup o' tea. 

Blue Planet II: Coral Reefs

This was back on pace for me. Colorful and exciting. Everything from symbiotic octopus, to fish that go nuts and then release all their sperm into the open water. Really crazy. But fun...sort of. 

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Blue Planet II: Green Seas

Seals, octopus, sharks, more of the same.

Blue Planet II: Coasts

By far my favourite. They've been underwater too long. The land aspect of aquatic environments is far more engaging to me, however oxymoronic that may sound. Turtles, sea lions, crabs, insane eels. It's fun and compelling!

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@The Illustrious Jerry You might enjoy this page from the Royal Albert Hall website, following the recent live in concert presentations of Planet Earth II.

 

https://www.royalalberthall.com/about-the-hall/news/2018/may/exclusive-photos-planet-earth-ii-in-concert-at-the-royal-albert-hall/

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Wow @Omen II! That looks like it was a spectacular event. Thank you very much.

 

Continuing the review by taking a look at the soundtrack to Mountains, and the rest to follow this week.

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Honestly, I do not have much to say about Deserts, episode or soundtrack. Deserts always puts me to sleep. Not very exciting.

Lions vs. Giraffes has a strange electric flare of chase music too it. Feels weird, but somehow works.

Wild Horses is by far the best track out of Deserts. It befits the strange fight for the right to mate between wild horses. It's pretty good.

 

Mountains -best score episode

Roof of the World

0:53 is not enough for this track. A beautiful and inspiring twist on the main theme. Absolutely breathtaking. It gets me every time.

Peaks of North America

Quite nice, exciting. One of my favourite tracks.

The Ibex

A startling scene at the insane life of these cliffside antelope. The music is very lively and ambitious.

The Himalayas

Some amazing deep strings bounce and thump throughout this one. It is awesome!

 

More on the way...

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Just now, toothless said:

Just bought the 4K BR (imported it from UK). Can't wait to put images on a score I regularly listen to.

Word of advice mate. Watch them in the order they appear on the discs.

 

Islands will blow you away to start, especially in 4K. You can see every scale on the iguanas and every speck of water as the penguins emerge from the sea. It is my favourite epsiode!

Mountains is just that. Mountains. There's not too much more to explore there than has already been with the first Planet Earth. Still great, with the best part of the score too!

Jungles is just bursting with colours. It'll probably be the most vivid and blooming experience.

Deserts is a bit of a kick-off-the barrel episode. It's sand. I hate sand. It's coarse and even David Attenborough's incredible voice cannot liven it up. You will watch it, but I doubt it will change your life.

Grasslands is back on the right level. There are some neat shots, epic even. Although if you have seen PE before, you might feel some scenes are the same. You'll see.

Cities is very enlightening. I am quite glad that they expanded with the two new ones since the original series. I was surprised how much content varied, seeing as where I live we only get raccoons and squirrels. There is one crazy scene that blew me away in this one. I'd hate to spoil it. 

 

Enjoy! I'm glad there is a common appreciation for these things.

 

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I received my new LG C8 yesterday morning and installed it last night. Unfortunatelly I did not have time to set up my BR player yet (with proper image quality settings). I don't want to rush and watch this with defaults settings ! In fact I just had the time to check Lost In Space in Dolby Vision on netflix (and it looked great). I plan on starting to watch PEII this week end :)

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  • 3 weeks later...

I'm kind of disappointed the music is not more forward when there is no voiceover. But other than that, it's a documentary worth paying for. Images, voiceover and storytelling are truly outstanding ! They realy nailed every moment of calmness and rush/danger, etc.

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