TheUlyssesian 2,478 Posted January 24, 2020 Share Posted January 24, 2020 The viral soundtrack is now out! There is a lot to dig into. I will try to post and exploration of the themes later on. But rest assured there is more to the score than the viral superhit Toss A Coin To Your Witcher. Yavar Moradi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MedigoScan 324 Posted January 24, 2020 Share Posted January 24, 2020 I am glad the most striking moment (to me) is on here: the whole 9minute Strigga fight juxtaposed with Yennefer's transformation. Yavar Moradi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Penna 3,694 Posted January 24, 2020 Share Posted January 24, 2020 Holy cow, that release is 3 hours long! That's astonishing for a new series with unknown composers. Yavar Moradi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Incanus 5,715 Posted January 24, 2020 Share Posted January 24, 2020 18 minutes ago, Richard Penna said: Holy cow, that release is 3 hours long! That's astonishing for a new series with unknown composers. I guess they can throw 3 hours at us in digital format pretty easily. Since I haven't seen the series I have no idea how the score is. I guess I'll have to take a listen to some of this soundtrack tonight. Yavar Moradi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not Mr. Big 4,639 Posted January 24, 2020 Share Posted January 24, 2020 The score's really good but I can't stand that coin song. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yavar Moradi 2,599 Posted January 24, 2020 Share Posted January 24, 2020 Lots of the trailers and promotional material for this show made it look kinda trashy, but I watched the whole season and actually it's quite good! I would have hoped for a couple more episodes in the season because one character's journey in particular felt very rushed (while another's was very drawn out), but overall I thought it was very good setup for greater things to come. And I really liked the scoring, overall, recognizing multiple repeating themes and motifs and some powerful musical moments. Re: the "Toss a Coin to Your Witcher" song -- it works better in context, as just something a silly character is making up on the spot, which makes me forgive its poor rhyme and meter. Yavar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Penna 3,694 Posted January 24, 2020 Share Posted January 24, 2020 Track 3 is really beautiful. From the first handful of tracks there seems to be a mix of really nice folky music and downright bizarre stuff with vocals and almost rocky percussion. The song is ok - it's not stuck in my head. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheUlyssesian 2,478 Posted January 24, 2020 Author Share Posted January 24, 2020 Here is the love theme for Geralt and Yennefer, 2 of the 3 main characters - OST 25. And here is a song rendition of the theme - Her Sweet Kiss (OST 7) It is quite a catchy theme. Yavar Moradi and Not Mr. Big 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dylanskie 104 Posted January 24, 2020 Share Posted January 24, 2020 Wow, more than three hours? I'll have to give this show a chance now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fabulin 3,514 Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 . Yavar Moradi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheUlyssesian 2,478 Posted January 25, 2020 Author Share Posted January 25, 2020 1 hour ago, First TROS March Accolyte said: Bizarre, but kind of great. Ha! Love this. In its variety and melodic and rhytmic competence, this Witcher score is like one of those really good videogame scores that "they don't make anymore", or Zimmer's pirate adventures. Violin solo that would make Anne-Sophie Mutter blush! The second one is memorable in context. Scores a scene of celebratory survival sex between the two leads. Can't place the first one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arpy 4,145 Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 Can't say I'm a fan of this, especially in context of the show where it sounds cheap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Incanus 5,715 Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 5 hours ago, Arpy said: Can't say I'm a fan of this, especially in context of the show where it sounds cheap. Yeah not my cup of tea either, for the most part, based on a sampling of the lengthy soundtrack album. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dylanskie 104 Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 The score is actually pretty good, despite the show being a little wonky! I wish the album was in chronological order because it just doesn't make sense to me as it's presented--certain themes are completely developed, then five tracks later they're half-developed, and so on. I made a mostly chronological edit, if anyone would like to use it; the tracks I couldn't place are in their approximate positions, but it's probably not 100% accurate. I starred the tracks whose positions are uncertain. Spoiler 1. Today Isn't Your Day Is It 2. Geralt of Rivia 3. Blaviken Inn 4. Marilka That's My Name 5. Late Wee Pups Don't Get to Bark 6. The Curse of the Black Sun 7. Pretty Ballads Hide Bastard Truths 8. Would You Honor Me with a Dance 9. Battle of Marnadal 10. You Will Rule This Land Someday 11. Tomorrow I'll Leave Blaviken for Good 12. It's an Ultimatum 13. The End's Beginning 14. Four Marks* 15. Chaos Is All Around Us 16. He's One of the Clean Ones 17. Do You Actually Have What It Takes 18. The Great Cleansing 19. Rewriting History 20. Toss a Coin to Your Witcher 21. Shouldn't You Know When Someone Is Pretending* 22. Point Me to Temeria 23. Round of Applause 24. Giltine the Artist 25. You Lost Your Chance to Be Beautiful 26. A Gift for the Princess 27. You'll Have to Fight It Until Dawn 28. Yennefer of Vengerberg 29. You're in Brokilon Forest 30. Bread Breasts and Beer* 31. The Fishmonger's Daughter 32. Man in Black* 33. I'm Helping the Idiot 34. Lovely Rendez-vous à la Montagne* 35. Here's Your Destiny 36. Two Vows Here Tonight 37. The Law of Surprise* 38. Children Are Our Favourite 39. Djinni Djinn Djinn 40. Ragamuffin 41. Happy Childhoods Make for Dull Company 42. I'm the One with whe Wishes 43. They're Alive 44. The Last Rose of Cintra 45. The Pensive Dragon Inn 46. Gold Dragons Are the Rarest 47. Everytime You Leave 48. The White Flame Has Brought Us Together 49. The Knight Who Was Taught to Save Dragons 50. Her Sweet Kiss 51. Blame Destiny 52. The Time of Axe And Sword Is Now* 53. Bonfire 54. Battle of Soden 55. The Song of the White Wolf I think Four Marks is my favorite, especially the part with what I've been calling the main theme, from 3:00 onward: And that same theme shows up again in this track with a thrilling variation: Yavar Moradi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edmilson 7,470 Posted January 28, 2020 Share Posted January 28, 2020 I'm going to episode 7 of the show, and I'm liking the score so far. It's more varied, bold, interesting and "rock and roll" than Djawadi's Game of Thrones, specially on its first seasons. It's more in line with Tyler Bates' 300 (without copying Goldenthal, lol) on mixing old instruments with a more modern, agressive approach. I haven't heard all of the OST yet, but there's three themes I could identify, at least based on the music as heard on the show: -Main Theme /Geralt's theme - not only the theme for the opening titles, but also acts as an action theme when Geralt is kicking ass. Heard on the first track of the OST -Yenner's theme - used on the first episodes, usually on a oboe (?), when she is in that magic academy, learning how to be a mage. That's probably my favorite of the score, very exotic. Here: -Yennefer and Geralt love theme - also includes an oboe as a link to Yennefer's previous theme. I'm pretty certain that Ciri has a theme as well, but I haven't identified it yet. Yavar Moradi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MedigoScan 324 Posted January 29, 2020 Share Posted January 29, 2020 That list seems pretty accurate But it should be noted that 3 tracks seemed to be 2tracks stitched together (Curse of the Black Sun from 3:26 plays in episode 3 instead, it would go before `You Lost Your Chance to Be Beautiful`) (speaking of which, `You Lost Your Chance to Be Beautiful`'s 2nd part is used in episode 3, but the first segment (0:00-2:10) only shows up in episode 6, twice even) (also `Gold Dragons Are the Rarest` is divided in 2 segments as well during episode 6 at 2:54, the 2nd part plays before the first earlier in the episode) Also Axe and Sword makes an earlier appearance in episode 1, except there it has music tracked in from 'White Flame' (and neither scene seems to keep the singing voice) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dylanskie 104 Posted January 29, 2020 Share Posted January 29, 2020 26 minutes ago, MedigoScan said: That list seems pretty accurate But it should be noted that 3 tracks seemed to be 2tracks stitched together (Curse of the Black Sun from 3:26 plays in episode 3 instead, it would go before `You Lost Your Chance to Be Beautiful`) (speaking of which, `You Lost Your Chance to Be Beautiful`'s 2nd part is used in episode 3, but the first segment (0:00-2:10) only shows up in episode 6, twice even) (also `Gold Dragons Are the Rarest` is divided in 2 segments as well during episode 6 at 2:54, the 2nd part plays before the first earlier in the episode) Also Axe and Sword makes an earlier appearance in episode 1, except there it has music tracked in from 'White Flame' (and neither scene seems to keep the singing voice) Thanks. I wasn't planning on editing the individual tracks--I felt like that would be too counterproductive to the album! Any idea when Four Marks plays? I couldn't find the last minute or so in episode 2, but I also didn't look in any of the other episodes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheUlyssesian 2,478 Posted January 29, 2020 Author Share Posted January 29, 2020 What is the timestamp for Blaviken Inn #1? I can't hear it in Episode 1. Other music plays in the inn but I can't place this particular bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MedigoScan 324 Posted January 29, 2020 Share Posted January 29, 2020 I could have sworn it did play in the Blaviken Inn Then again I also think Bonfire played in episode 1 instead in that Inn, now that I think about it. I also at the time felt like the 2nd part of Four Marks played in episode 2 when Ciri meets Dara, just edited slightly But now I am not so sure anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dylanskie 104 Posted March 5, 2020 Share Posted March 5, 2020 I got back into this score and can still say that it's really good. The oboe really, really sounds like Yennefer's voice to me, especially in "Happy Childhoods Make for Dull Company." Perfect choice of instrument for her Yavar Moradi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edmilson 7,470 Posted June 22, 2020 Share Posted June 22, 2020 Season 2 will resume production in August: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,372 Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 The Witcher Season 2 Filming Continues Without Henry Cavill Due to Minor Injury Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,372 Posted December 3, 2021 Share Posted December 3, 2021 Was it known before that Joseph Trapanese is taking over scoring duties for season 2? Quote First Track from Joseph Trapanese’s ‘The Witcher’ Season 2 Score Released Milan Records has released the first track from the soundtrack for the second season of the Netflix original series The Witcher. Available to stream/download now on all major digital music platforms is Power and Purpose written by the new season’s composer Joseph Trapanese (Shadow and Bone, Oblivion, The Greatest Showman, Straight Outta Compton, Lady and the Tramp, The Raid: Redemption, Project Power). Listen to the full track after the jump and check back on this page for the full details of a full soundtrack album. The Witcher is created by Lauren Schmidt Hissrich based on the book series by Andrzej Sapkowski and stars Henry Cavill, Freya Allan, Anya Chalotra, Mimî M Khayisa, MyAnna Buring, Anna Shaffer, Eamon Farren, Mahesh Jadu, Joey Batey and Royce Pierreso. Season 2 will premiere on December 17 on Netflix. MaxTheHouseelf 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dylanskie 104 Posted December 3, 2021 Share Posted December 3, 2021 1 hour ago, Jay said: Was it known before that Joseph Trapanese is taking over scoring duties for season 2? Yes. I haven't heard why, though... Sonya and Giona seemed very committed to the score. Just look at their website: https://www.belousova-ostinelli.com/ I'm probably not the only one who's mildly annoyed about the change. MaxTheHouseelf 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheUlyssesian 2,478 Posted December 3, 2021 Author Share Posted December 3, 2021 Oh no! Why. Will they throw out the themes. Season 1 had several well established themes for several of the characters and concepts. Why do franchises today do this. If the actor can't be discarded wily nily and replaced (nor the showrunner) then neither can be the composer or at the very least the musical themes. So disappointing! Edmilson and crumbs 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not Mr. Big 4,639 Posted December 3, 2021 Share Posted December 3, 2021 The score was one of the standout features of the first season. Very disappointing. I bet they'll have no problem bringing back that "Toss a Coin" song though... TheUlyssesian 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MedigoScan 324 Posted December 3, 2021 Share Posted December 3, 2021 Maybe they figured that they wanted a sound closer to the games? Hell if I know a better reason for why they did it. But this sounds a lot more generic and safe and ugh I dont like it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheUlyssesian 2,478 Posted December 5, 2021 Author Share Posted December 5, 2021 So thankfully at least some of the main themes are returning even with a new composer. Specially Geralt's theme and the main theme. I think the main theme is a keeper. It is a very good theme. Full soundtrack coming Dec 17, same day as the series, it will have 32 tracks and an hour 42 minutes of music. Jaskier will perform 3 new songs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knight of Ren 789 Posted December 5, 2021 Share Posted December 5, 2021 4 hours ago, TheUlyssesian said: There's something really odd about all this. Because they replaced the original composers, but this video clearly shows that their themes are going to be used again in the new season, so why didn't they just keep the composers to score Season 2? Scheduling problems? Some contract-related problem? And what's weird is that Sonya Belousova, one of the original composers, is teasing something on her instagram page that really looks like The Witcher, and is associated with Sony, who recently released that Trapanese track https://www.instagram.com/sonya_belousova/ I don't know what this means, and I'm disappointed they are not keeping the original composers as I think they did afabulous job, but at least their themes will not be lost and replaced like I first feared. Yavar Moradi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post TheUlyssesian 2,478 Posted December 6, 2021 Author Popular Post Share Posted December 6, 2021 2 hours ago, Knight of Ren said: There's something really odd about all this. Because they replaced the original composers, but this video clearly shows that their themes are going to be used again in the new season, so why didn't they just keep the composers to score Season 2? Scheduling problems? Some contract-related problem? And what's weird is that Sonya Belousova, one of the original composers, is teasing something on her instagram page that really looks like The Witcher, and is associated with Sony, who recently released that Trapanese track https://www.instagram.com/sonya_belousova/ I don't know what this means, and I'm disappointed they are not keeping the original composers as I think they did afabulous job, but at least their themes will not be lost and replaced like I first feared. Not to get all political but there are relatively fewer female composers getting big, juicy, scoring gigs. And this is undoubtedly a big scoring gig - a megahit adult fantasy show for Netflix. Don't know why they didn't just keep her. I am sure she would have liked to come back, I really doubt she's getting assignments as big as this in scale and reach. Edmilson, Yavar Moradi and Knight of Ren 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knight of Ren 789 Posted December 6, 2021 Share Posted December 6, 2021 Which makes me sad, because I think she achieved a unique soundscape in the first season that, at times, really elevated some scenes, and really felt like it could have come out of The Witcher universe. And I like some of Trapanese' works, but it looks like he's going to update that sound to fit into more modern scoring sensibilities, which is just generic and bland. Anyway, I will not judge it until I've heard the whole thing and how it works in context, but my expectations are low. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Penna 3,694 Posted December 6, 2021 Share Posted December 6, 2021 I liked the odd cue from the first season's score; never saw the show though. Definitely didn't get the appeal of that song that everyone loved :\ A potential, charitable explanation - the original composers knew they had a hit, and wanted more money than Netflix was prepared to pay? Or maybe Netflix decided to play it safe with the music now they nad a hit. If it's neither of those two, then it's anyone's guess why. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dylanskie 104 Posted December 7, 2021 Share Posted December 7, 2021 On 05/12/2021 at 10:58 AM, TheUlyssesian said: So thankfully at least some of the main themes are returning even with a new composer. Specially Geralt's theme and the main theme. Wow, I'm surprised that they were able to keep the major themes of the show—especially Yennefer's theme, though the oboe player for the new rendition in that video doesn't sound as good as Rodion Belousov (the previous oboist). 12 hours ago, Richard Penna said: A potential, charitable explanation - the original composers knew they had a hit, and wanted more money than Netflix was prepared to pay? While I'm biased to give Sonya and Giona the benefit of the doubt, this is certainly a possibility, and a pretty reasonable one, too, if they haven't publicly stated that they were "wronged" by not being asked to compose for the second season. I hardly care about the show—it seems to be just a blend of five other TV shows, much like Stranger Things—but the score is noteworthy and memorable, and it'll be the reason I watch the second season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Knight of Ren 789 Posted December 8, 2021 Popular Post Share Posted December 8, 2021 After reading the replacement news, I revisited the score and decided to do a little write-up on the themes that develop throughtout the first season's score, masterfully crafted by Sonya Belousova and Giona Ostinelli. The score of the show is a great example of leitmotivic writing, with several themes developing through the season, and interacting with each other as the characters storylines mingle with each other. What makes it also especially interesting it’s the instrumentation, unique to each of the themes, which sometimes transfers to another theme to further explore the relationships between the characters. Geralt’s Theme (Main Theme) Spoiler The main theme of the show, is usually applied to Geralt himself, and has two separate identities which are harmonically related. The main idea is a powerful, heroic melody which plays over all the title cards in the first season. Here are a couple of great straightforrward variations of the theme:Geralt of Rivia (0:10) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== Blame Destiny (4:21) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== But in that opening track, the very first thing we hear it’s in fact the other idea, an ostinato-like motif which sometimes serves as an action motif for Geralt. You can listen to it more clearly in this two tracks: Geralt of Rivia (0:24) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== Blame Destiny (3:58) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== Both themes go through lots of different variations and change in instrumentation, sometimes interacting with the other two title themes. One of my favorite iterations of Geralt’s main theme is when it uses Yennefer’s instrumentation, the oboe played beautifully by Rodion Belousov, in a couple of scenes where they interact with each other, showing their emotional connection: Happy Childhoods Make for Dull Company (0:00) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== You Lost Your Chance to be Beautiful (1:07) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== In each title card, the Main Theme gets a different variation, representing the episode’s location or the characters that appear. Of special interest are the ones that make use of the Doppler’s voices in Children Are Our Favorite (2:54) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== or how in the Striga episode, the theme uses some instrumentation that will latter represent the Striga itself, and even uses the female screaming-like idea that is associated with the creature, like in Point Me to Temeria data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== The Ostinato idea, has a really emotional variation in Here’s Your Destiny (2:33) where it plays in a hurdy-gurdy building up a breathtaking climax, along with the female choir, and even some hints of Geralt’s main theme on a gorgeous violin solo (2:59). data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== But the theme has two really stand out variations which are between my favorite moments of the whole score. The first one is the action variation of the theme on The Knight Who Was Taught How to Save Dragons (4:04) where a female voice sings the Main Theme together with the idea associated with the Dragon Quest. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== And probably my favorite moment in the entire score, and the emotional climax of the season is The Time of Axe and Sword Is Now. The theme starts to play on a female voice at 1:54, and culminates at 3:00. This leads to a build up which climaxes in an epic, breathtaking solo violin statement of the theme at 3:12, played with great ability by Lindsy Deutsch. The track ends up with a statement, of the Ostinato motif to finish the track. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== Epic! Ciri’s Theme Spoiler Ciri’s theme is at first much lighter and delicate, reflecting the young princess persona, but her link to Geralt is quickly evidenced by the strong relation between their themes, especially in the harmonic progression. One of the first times you listen to it, it’s actually playing together with Geralt’s theme on something that sounds like a flute in Late Wee Pups Don’t Get to Bark (0:52) and then again by itself on a medieval harp (1:37): data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== We get similar variations on her melody in Four Marks (1:41), then we hear her theme on the usual flute, with Geralt’s main theme playing on top by a female singer (3:02): data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== And in You Lost Your Chance to Be Beautiful (0:52) for example, here the theme plays with Yennefer’s characteristic instrumentation, the oboe. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== My favorite variation on her theme is the twisted iteration that forms the track The Last Rose of Cintra. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== It incorporates the theme in a really dark and menacing arrangement, with distorted voices and some sound effects which sometimes represent the Doppler, before incorporating Declan de Barra’s voice, almost narrating the lyrics of the song, relating of the tragedy surrounding Ciri’s character, and how her fate is linked to Geralt’s. It gets reprised in a similar way in the first half of The Time of Axe and Sword is Now. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== This is one of the main examples that makes the score for the season sound so unique and personal to the show, and which for me, really showed the ability of the composers to create something that feels epic without resorting to the usual cliches of some other more modern sounding scores nowadays. Yennefer’s Theme Spoiler This is the last of the three main themes that will appear during the first season, this time representing the beautiful sorceress. It’s introduced the same time as her character, in a gorgeous rendition in her characteristic instrument, the oboe, which is usually played by Rodion Belousov: Her theme I think is the one with the least development and which goes under less variations out of the three main themes, and most of the times is played on an oboe solo. Her theme sometimes serves as a peaceful interlude in the middle of a loud, action track Battle of Sodden (0:18) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== or You Have to Fight It Until Dawn (5:23 / 6:02) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== or sometimes plays with magical orchestrations, with chimes and voices, like when she finally transforms in episode 3, offering a gorgeous rendition of her theme in Yennefer of Vengerberg (2:13), which is probably my favorite iteration of her theme thus far data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== The magic she uses has a motif which gets played around a couple of times during her time at the school and later, sometimes in relation with her teacher, Tisseia: Chaos Is All Around Us (0:29) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== Yennefer of Vengerberg (2:52) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== Nilfgaard’s Theme Spoiler The evil kingdom of Nilfgaard gets an ominous theme, which right from the start reveals their wicked intentions. The theme does not change much during the season, but serves as a strong identity to represent them, and has some interesting touches of instrumentation (distorted voices, aggressive percussion, manipulated sound effects, etc) to make it at least interesting. You can listen to one of the fullest statements in Battle of Marnadal (0:58) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== or in The White Flame Has Brought Us Together (2:39) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== Renfri’s Theme (Song of the White Wolf) Spoiler This is a particularly interesting idea, as it starts as Renfri’s theme on the first episode but develops into a song representing Geralt’s fate. We hear it first on Tomorrow I’ll Leave Blaviken for Good: data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== and in an action variant on It’s an Ultimatum (1:16) and more tragic later on (2:01) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== This the develops the idea into A Gift for the Princess data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== and the opening of Yennefer of Vengerberg, which transforms the melody a bit, but I think maintains the same idea. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== This culminates at the end of the season with the Song of the White Wolf, with Declan de Barr’as powerful singing and emotional lyrics, which culminates Geralt’s journey to meet his fate, Ciri. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== My interpretation of this is that Renfri’s character is the one that sets Geralt going on his journey at the beginning of the season, which ends with him finally meeting Ciri. It’s one of the most intelligently developed motifs of the season and goes to show the thought that goes behind the construction of the score, offering emotional development as the season goes on, and as the characters journey’s keep going. Some episodes have some standalone ideas that relate to places or characters that only appear in one episode Standalone Themes / Motifs Spoiler In the Striga episode, the horrendous creature Geralt faces has a couple of sonic ideas that represent the monster and collide with Geralt’s themes. The first is a screaming motif, which kind of sounds like a distorted electric guitar You Have to Fight It Until Dawn (3:04 / 4:34) This is usually played along with some Mad Max-like apocalyptic drums (4:20) And finally, you have a manipulated female voice, which usually plays with lot of reverb. This serves to explain the background behind the hideous creature, which in fact is just a beautiful princess under a terrible curse (2:59 / 4:19) The Law of Surprise episode explains a bit of the connection between Geralt and Ciri, and does so with variations of both of their themes, and the use of a new theme, which resembles a bit the main theme from the videogame of The Witcher III. It’s used during the Law of Surprise sequence, involving Geralt and Ciri’s mother, and cleverly uses Ciri’s instrumentation and hints of her theme along with some gorgeous voices in Here’s Your Destiny (1:16) or in The Law of Surprise (2:54) The Dragon Hunt episode presents new characters with some secrets and a couple of really interesting themes. One of them is a gorgeous duduk melody, which reminded me of Ramin Djawadi’s material for Daenerys in early seasons of Game of Thrones Golden Dragons are the Rarest (4:01) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== The Knight Who Was Taught How to Save Dragons data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== The other idea is much more rhythmic and serves as a motif for the Dragon Quest. It has some similarities to Geralt’s thematic ideas, but played in a more straightforward heroic sound Golden Dragons Are the Rarest (0:45) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== The White Flame Has Brought Us Together (3:02) That episode also introduced a new song, which doubles its use as a love theme for Geralt and Yennefer. You can listen to the Jaskier song in Her Sweet Kiss data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== and an instrumental variation of the theme on Everytime You Leave. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== This theme has the potential to develop as the relationship between these two characters gets expanded There is a sound effect which usually plays along with Nilfgaard’s theme that in one particular episode got associated with the Doppler Children Are Our Favorite (2:10) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== A similar idea plays in some scenes in the Brokilon Forest You’re in the Brokilon Forest (0:57) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== The Man in Black which appears in episode 4, gets a two-note motif which stands out because of the male-singer statements that go with every one of his on-screen appearances Man in Black (3:21) data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== So this is it. There are a lot of different motifs that play through the season and I hope that Trapanese can expand at least some of these, and I really hope that he can maintain at least some of that energy that the score for the first season has. Whether it be the catchy main Geralt theme, the emotional developmentof Ciri's theme or the beauty in the simplicty of Yenenfer's theme, I think the composers crafted a score that really delivered on what the show needed to stand out, at least in terms of its musical tapestry. And I must say that it's one of my most listened scores of the past few years, especialy because of the pure entertainment value of it. Altough I must say thatt¡ the album situation is quite a mess and really needs some trimming down and some rearranging of the tracks, but it's still quite a great listening experience, which I highly recommend. Enjoy the write-up and feel free to leave any comment or correction. Yavar Moradi, JNHFan2000, TheUlyssesian and 1 other 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not Mr. Big 4,639 Posted December 9, 2021 Share Posted December 9, 2021 On 06/12/2021 at 8:56 AM, Richard Penna said: Definitely didn't get the appeal of that song that everyone loved :\ It's truly terrible Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dylanskie 104 Posted December 13, 2021 Share Posted December 13, 2021 I think the score for season 2 will be more like season 1's than I thought. Joseph Trapanese will do a good job, I think: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaxTheHouseelf 324 Posted December 14, 2021 Share Posted December 14, 2021 New The Witcher Suite by Sonya Belousova & Giona Ostinelli Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLUMENKOHL 1,068 Posted December 16, 2021 Share Posted December 16, 2021 Everything about Season 2 (music, effects, make up, editing) is more refined, polished, and perfect. It’s like the whole production has been put through auto-tune and a quantizer. I’m not sure how I feel about that. Trapanese is awesome and will do a great job…but why did we need him to begin with? Sonya and Gion brought a more formula-breaking approach that was refreshing. The charm of season 1 was that it felt like a group of amateur filmmakers with no preconception of how a big-budget Netflix production should be like had stumbled on a boatload of money and had fun with it. On 25/1/20 at 4:20 AM, Incanus said: Yeah not my cup of tea either, for the most part, based on a sampling of the lengthy soundtrack album. This score has a lot of intricate thematic development going on. If you’re into that sort of thing, I’d invite you to do more than sample. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dylanskie 104 Posted December 16, 2021 Share Posted December 16, 2021 Here's the tracklist for season 2. Note the three tracks with Sonya and Giona—and it's not just giving credit for the themes they composed for season 1. They're new collaborations. 1. The Golden One – Joseph Trapanese & Joey Batey (3:23) 2. Nilfgaard Attacks (2:38) 3. Nivellen (3:28) 4. Some Wounds Can’t Be Healed (1:32) 5. Kaer Morhen (1:43) 6. Leshen (6:10) 7. Power and Purpose (4:42) 8. Aretuza Loses Another (1:35) 9. The Pendulum – Joseph Trapanese, Sonya Belousova & Giona Ostinelli (2:17) 10. Witcher Training (2:11) 11. Myrapod Chase (3:12) 12. Stay With Me (3:11) 13. Who Did This to You? (1:46) 14. The Key to the Future (1:44) 15. Done Dealing in Debts (4:50) 16. Burn Butcher Burn – Joseph Trapanese & Joey Batey (2:39) 17. Remembering Cintra – Joseph Trapanese, Sonya Belousova & Giona Ostinelli (4:39) 18. Elder Blood (2:43) 19. Chernobog (2:14) 20. Melitele (4:02) 21. Fire Fucker (4:53) 22. Whoreson Prison Blues – Joseph Trapanese & Joey Batey (2:07) 23. Sworn to Protect – Joseph Trapanese, Sonya Belousova & Giona Ostinelli (4:36) 24. Elves’ Allegiance (1:34) 25. I Believe in You (2:33) 26. Pain and Desperation (5:20) 27. Tell Me What You Want (3:19) 28. Basilisks (6:59) 29. We’re Your Family (3:01) 30. You Belong With Us (1:36) 31. The Wild Hunt (2:25) 32. The White Flame (2:48) https://filmmusicreporter.com/2021/12/16/details-for-the-witcher-season-2-soundtrack-album-revealed/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yavar Moradi 2,599 Posted December 17, 2021 Share Posted December 17, 2021 How do you know they’re actual collaborations? Yavar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JNHFan2000 2,967 Posted December 17, 2021 Share Posted December 17, 2021 I have watched the series. Trapanese used a lot of pre-existing themes from Season 1. The music is very much in the same soundscape, but for me personally a bit more polished and easier to listen to. The score album is very strong on it's own. Great work! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dylanskie 104 Posted December 23, 2021 Share Posted December 23, 2021 The score for season 2 is okay; it has plenty of decent moments, especially the theme for Ciri using magic ("Power and Purpose," "I Believe in You"). If Joseph Trapanese had scored season 1, I think I'd like it way more. I just can't get over how well Sonya and Giona used and developed themes and created masterpieces like this: Maybe there's a tiny chance they'd return for season 3 Yavar Moradi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLUMENKOHL 1,068 Posted December 28, 2021 Share Posted December 28, 2021 Season 2 was the show sitting with the popular kids and dressing in popular kids clothing and listening to popular kids music. The charm of the first season is lingering by a thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,372 Posted October 29, 2022 Share Posted October 29, 2022 Liam Hemsworth replacing Henry Cavill beginning with Season 4 dylanskie and TSMefford 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dylanskie 104 Posted October 30, 2022 Share Posted October 30, 2022 3 hours ago, Jay said: Liam Hemsworth replacing Henry Cavill beginning with Season 4 I've never seen Henry Cavill as a good actor. But this headline sounds like fanfiction. I can't get over it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,372 Posted April 25, 2023 Share Posted April 25, 2023 Season 3 teaser Yavar Moradi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,372 Posted May 30, 2023 Share Posted May 30, 2023 ‘The Witcher’ Renewed for Season Five Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JNHFan2000 2,967 Posted May 30, 2023 Share Posted May 30, 2023 And season 3 hasn't even come out yet. Hahaha. Honestly, I think I'm gonna stop watching after Season 3. I am not interested in Liam Hemsworth taking over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,372 Posted June 9, 2023 Share Posted June 9, 2023 Season 3 trailer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JNHFan2000 2,967 Posted June 29, 2023 Share Posted June 29, 2023 The Witcher: Season 3, Vol. 1 (Episodes 1-5) Wooow. This is the best the show has been in my opinion. Much more streamlined to one overarching story than all the seperate stuff from before. Episode 5 is very cool. It's completely set at a party with layers of layers revealed. Different conversations, twists and turns. I really enjoyed it. It's a shame that it's Cavill's last season, because he's so good in the role. The action scenes with him are mostly long takes and he has some great moves. I'm looking forward to the last 3 episodes next month. Yavar Moradi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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