Zanobard Reviews

Fantasy and sheer magic are at the heart of John Powell and Stephen Schwartz’s utterly gorgeous score for Wicked, with impeccable orchestrations soaring and musical references abound & seamlessly intertwined throughout its eighty minute runtime, which will blow past in an instant as you hit play and envelop yourself in this utterly enchanting musical world.

So I’m going to be taking a bit of a different approach to this review than what I would normally, for the very simple reason that Wicked is an absolute musical phenomenon with a significant following, but to my slight shame I know pretty much next to nothing about it. As such, this is going to be a very layman’s, newbie’s approach to the Wicked movie and the score that Stephen Schwartz and John Powell have composed for it, where the draw at least for me anyway has been the dazzlingly fantastic orchestral approach to the music and the utter magic it brings, rather than the dozens of thematic references to the original musical that I know for a fact are in here, that a multitude of fans I imagine are listening for. Don’t get me wrong, I will be making references to some of the themes as I hear them and the absolute highlights that I enjoy from my side, but if you’re coming into this review as a diehard Wicked fan expecting the most minute thematic breakdown of all the different musical references that are in here on a track-by-track basis – you might want to look somewhere else for that, I’m afraid. Not that you’re not welcome here though, because you absolutely are – and this is going to be a fun – if not slightly haphazard – exploration, that’s for sure. I felt it was worth doing even not as someone who knows Wicked well, primarily for those who perhaps are unsure how to approach this complex theme-filled score for the highly regarded musical, but want to appreciate it anyway. So for all reading, if you do decide to stay then bear with me, as we journey on a fantastical musical journey into the land of Oz with Schwartz and Powell as our guides, and uncover the utter musical magic that is Wicked for the very first time – at least for me, anyway.

The magic begins in “Arrival At Shiz University” with gentle strings, echoingly tranquil vocals and twinkling percussion starting things off before the full John Powell-ian orchestra starts to build and a lusciously upbeat crescendo thunders happily through at the forty second mark, hinting briefly I think towards the classic “Over The Rainbow” song from the original 1939 The Wizard Of Oz as it does so. With the wondrous burst of orchestra simmering back down, gentle strings then bring the opening cue to a quiet finish. A sudden burst of dramatic brass then opens “Our Heroes Meet”, with quieter, more serene strings simmering the tone down after for a playful few notes from Schwartz’s “No One Mourns The Wicked” song from the original broadway show. Like I said, I don’t know all the song references on this album and am sure to miss a few, but this particular one is quite prominent – it plays almost mischievously both here and in the subsequent and similarly upbeat “Nessarose”, both on strings. Twinkling percussion then starts to build magic again in the subsequent “Meet The Faculty” before another new motif makes itself known on sweeping orchestra – a warm, dazzling theme that plays loudly and wondrously here before the track then quietens to a gentle close. Loud brassy tensions then crash into centre stage in the first minute of “Elphaba’s Power” before the warmer “Faculty” motif from the prior cue reprises gently again, I think at this point perhaps a theme for Michelle Yeoh’s character Madame Morrible, Dean of Sorcery of the aforementioned “Faculty” at Shiz University. Happily upbeat strings and plinking percussion are then the focus of “How To Loathe Your Roommate” alongside some rather uplifting woodwinds.

I do just have to take a moment to say actually that the orchestrations so far here are absolutely fantastic. John Powell has always been great at manipulating an orchestra to dazzling effect – see How To Train Your Dragon for this – but him and Stephen Schwartz together feels like lightning in a bottle. The music just oozes magic and wonder constantly even when not a note of a theme is playing, and it never fails to make you smile in its sheer fun. Anyway though – “History Lesson” turns moody at first before wistful woodwinds start to seed a thoughtful tone, and strings then play several pensive renditions of the “No One Mourns The Wicked” motif. The Madame Morrible theme then returns in “Levitate The Coin” on rather serene strings, with this same stylistic and tonal wariness continuing into “All Around Something Bad” alongside worrisome piano notes. Hints toward “No One Mourns The Wicked” then elevate the tone somewhat in the more upbeat “Prince Fiyero Of Winkie Country” with grand surges of brass leading a powerful orchestral charge at just past the minute mark with chanting vocals. A happily upbeat pace then kicks off “The Book Place” with a magical ambience ensuing throughout the track’s two minute runtime. A short solemn hint towards “No One Mourns The Wicked” then opens “Elphaba At Ozdust” before some rather pensive vocals overtake for a minute or so, and downtrodden strings bring things to a gentle finish. Another recurring motif is then introduced towards the end of “Sharing Secrets”; an upbeat and happy piece that rises in hope, and after some research seems reminiscent of the backing instrumentation of “What is This Feeling?” from Schwartz’s original Wicked.

The minute-long “Look At You” brings warmth and optimism in gentle strings-based form, before “Replacement Teacher” brings back the Madame Morrible motif alongside rapidly rising strings. This orchestral rapidity then continues into the subsequent two minute “Cub Rescue” with flurries of strings and wondrous bursts of brass and percussion playing before a dramatic vocal crescendo closes things out. The pace then slows for the much gentler and more serene “Forest Feelings” with twinkling percussion and thoughtful strings at the forefront, before “Ozian Invitation” releases hope and wonder back into the music with sweeping vocal and string flurries and reprisals of both the “No One Mourns The Wicked” and Madame Morrible themes – the latter in particular gets a grand flourish towards the end. Some very Powell-ian upbeat orchestra then opens “Galinda Becomes Glinda”, with a loud hopeful burst of impeccable wonder – perhaps a motif for Glinda herself – crescendoing happily over the first thirty seconds of the track. Standout Cue “Train To Emerald City” then takes this wonder and simply runs with it, with the resulting fast-paced brass-heavy Powell style and impeccable Schwartz musical reprisals – “What Is This Feeling?” and “No One Mourns The Wicked” being prominent – seeding pure musical magic throughout this frankly fantastic track’s two minute runtime. “No One Mourns The Wicked” then opens “Hall Of Grandiosity” in a more wary, strings-based rendition with ominous vocals before the music quietens somewhat, and a short woodwinds reprisal of “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” briefly plays before the track fades to a close.

Noble brass is the stylistic opener of “A Wizard’s Plan”, with serene strings and gentle vocals then taking over for much of the track’s four and a half minute runtime. With the album overall starting to approach its end, “The Grimmerie” then opens with a rather wondrous rendition of the Madame Morrible motif before eerie vocals start to take over. The eight minute “Transformations” then continues the rather wary tone initially though now with strings and gentle woodwinds, before the vocals return at around ninety seconds in for a worrisome crescendo. A two minute long burst of tense action thunders through at this point before “No One Mourns The Wicked” reprises pensively alongside Madame Morrible at just past four minutes in, with both themes then warily circling one another for the track’s now much tenser remaining runtime. Frenetic action is then centre stage in “Monkey Mayhem”, with imposing string loops playing background to surges of increasingly dramatic brass and shrill vocals. This surging adrenaline-fueled action continues all across the track until “No One Mourns The Wicked” then thunders almost heroically in right as the track crashes to a percussive close. Final cue “All Around Defying Gravity” then features notational elements from the titular Wicked song of the same name alongside reprisals of “No One Mourns The Wicked”, with a rather triumphant crescendo being reached at the three and a half minute mark before noble brass and wondrous strings then bring the track – and the score – to a grand finish.

Overall, John Powell and Stephen Schwartz’s score for Wicked is nothing short of amazing, with the marrying of Powell’s exquisite orchestral skillset and Schwartz’s recognisable musical elements making for pretty much the ultimate score accompaniment to the iconic songs. The sheer wonder that the very Powell-ian orchestrations evoke all across this eighty minute album is truly something to behold, and while it is a bit ambient at times – presumably because of working around the songs – the brassy and percussive highlights in “Arrival At Shiz University”, the sweeping strings through “Train To Emerald City” and the heroic powerhouse of “All Around Defying Gravity” for example are impeccable illustrations of this fantastic compositional style at work, so the score has plenty to offer all by itself. Schwartz has of course included an absolute abundance of references to the original musical all across it too, and while I can’t name every single one – as there are just so many – the emotional power that the prominent “No One Mourns The Wicked” and “What Is This Feeling” motifs in particular evoke here is fantastic, with the latter theme in particular elevating Standout Cue “Train To Emerald City” to soaring heights. And if you’re not already sold, for those who are a bit daunted by the history of the music here and whether or not they have to listen to the songs as well, don’t worry – Wicked is a really solid fantasy score at its heart with excellent recurring themes, so no prior listening is required for enjoyment; though of course, having now started to listen to the musical myself as a result of this score; I will say it is pretty damned good.

Score: 8/10

Standout Cues: Train To Emerald City/All Around Defying Gravity

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