A couple of years back I reviewed a score for a Swedish made movie entitled, BERKEBEINERNE which was a soundtrack filled with so many themes and epic sounding passages, the composer Gaute Storaas fashioned an atmospheric and passionately powerful work which left a lasting impression on me. I am pleased to say tht the composer has returned with another commanding and emotively haunting work for HALVDAN VIKING. It is also a work that is crammed full of rich and vibrant thematic material and also one that is inspiringly entertaining.
This is a truly driving and relentlessly moving score, full symphonic and also strings with harpsichord flourishes, woodwind and laden with a richness and wealth of mesmerising themes and tone poems. The composer makes effective and effecting use of the string section throughout the soundtracks running time and augments and bolsters brass that is it self at times underlined and given support by percussion. This is an appealing and attractive work that harkens back to the days of fully symphonic film music, the composer creating lilting and lingering melodies that invade the listeners mind and stay in their sub-conscious. HALVDAN VIKING will probably not get a theatrical release outside of Sweden, which is a shame because from looking at various scenes and also trailers it looks to be a great adventure movie. At the moment it looks as if the music is only available on digital platforms such as Spotify and I Tunes, but hopefully it will get a compact disc release in the not too distant future. The rich and lush sound created by Storaas is mesmerizing and hypnotic the dramatic and elegant thematic content washing over the listener. This is one that I recommend you check out.
MOVIE MUSIC INTERNATIONAL. (MMI) . 