Planet Earth

Review by Thomas Glorieux:

With Blue Planet and Deep Blue George Fenton surely put his tone upon documentaries because everybody was wild about them, they were the most dazzling musical creations nature ever supported. Wild enough to even release within seconds of its announcement 2 CD's of the next documentary in line, namely David Attenborough's Planet Earth. The BBC however always supported its music, especially when it was supported by a great British composer and a fine performing group namely the BBC Concert Orchestra. And with 2 CD's of that documentary music we're ready to bring us back to the glory of Deep Blue. The score starts in that Deep Blue fashion 'Prelude' with a brief fanfare and gentle strings that mimic the same tone where we left the water spectacle last time, but soon you realize that everything is much calmer, softer and more ethereal for Planet Earth. 'The Journey of the Sun' with its warm sounds, the ethereal 'Stalactite Gallery' or the vocal led 'Diving into the Darkness' with a brief percussive rhythm. All lovely and nice but Fenton never or rarely stretches the limit he went for each time in Deep Blue. With the lovely waltz like 'Elephants in the Okavango', the suspension unnerving tones of 'Hunting Dogs' being the exceptions, the beginning is rather calm. 'Bat Hunt' goes to action suspense but I have the feeling Fenton leaves his orchestral voice for now away and here only the strings quirk up the action. However Fenton still lovely paints his softer pieces like 'Discovering Deer Cave' or 'The Snow Leopard' which is an extremely personal piece, very effective with just the solo vocal and piano supporting the main theme of the score. But it are still the moments like in 'Angel Falls' or 'The Snow Geese' which drive my blood more, in here Fenton just goes a little more bold out the door with his surging strings or brass fanfares. Watch also out for 'River Prediction' which has flutes ala Paycheck, a brassy midpiece and a sorrowful led violin finish, different but its extremely catchy and thereby a highlight. From the first CD the last moments that are worth remembering are 'The Earth's Highest Challenge' which has a hypnotizing solo violin play, 'Desert Winds / The Locusts' which is more ethnic with a light suspense air to it but with creative ideas all around and 'Namibia / The Lions and the Oryx' which has wonderful exotic strings and flute and the dying vocal that closes it of. The first CD is definitely a warming up CD, it doesn't contain a lot of highlights and the softer pieces are so mixed together you soon lose yourself through them, even though in the creative moments Fenton does more with a little tingle than a full brass blast, so the moments are still present.

The 2nd CD contains even 12 minutes more of Fenton's music (astounding) and immediately starts with 'Plains High and Low', a solo vocal and some free flowing strings and warm brass guide us into 'The Wolf and the Caribou', being mostly ethnic tinted but with the exception of a wonderful fanfare. However one of its finest moments is 'Surfing Dolphins' and the creative process between flute and piano starts to take on an orchestral ballet of divvying color. 'Dangerous Landing' holds more dangerous suspense to it than 'Mother and Calf / The Great Journey' which holds a personal piece for strings and rising brass, in the nicest Deep Blue tradition. The brass fanfare in 'Frog Ballet / Jungle Falls', the sinister flute in 'Hunting Chimps' or the funny mix towards a brass rising in 'Fledglings', they are all somewhat noticed. Especially the case for 'The Redwoods' which almost states the Blue Planet theme but suddenly doesn't. Its however clear that also this CD doesn't contain the magic moments ala Deep Blue, because the second part of the second CD isn't any stronger. Its more whispering its intentions either on flutes of solo vocal or with a piano or playful trumpet. The romantic strings in 'Seasonal Change' are nice, so are the flutes either soft in 'Discovering Antarctica' or dancing as in 'Everything Leaves but the Emperors' and the playful combination of the flute and trumpet in 'A School of Five Hundred'. But it just doesn't explode nor build upon a theme that is of graceful structure. Its all more personal music and if you ever wanted Deep Blue to return in double size, Planet Earth is just barely reaching those limits. So if people needed a rest after Deep Blue, I guess they will appreciate the nice breeze of relaxing air that Planet Earth more than delivers, those that want the exploding grandeur of both the soft themes as the fanfares will discover that Deep Blue just holds more riches. I know the riches are ever present in here, but I guess they are too mellow for me. Despite all that Fenton shows with a soft (Planet Earth) and a big one (Deep Blue) that the nature holds no secrets for him anymore.

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Tracks

Double Disc

Disk One: 60.42

1. Prelude (1.54)

2. The Journey Of The Sun (3.24)

3. Hunting Dogs (3.22)

4. Elephants In The Okavango (3.01)

5. Diving Into The Darkness (2.59)

6. Stalactite Gallery (2.23)

7. Bat Hunt (2.56)

8. Discovering Deer Cave (3.46)

9. Angel Falls (2.18)

10. River Prediction (4.06) Excellent Track

11. Iguacu (2.03)

12. The Snow Geese (1.56) Excellent Track

13. The Geladas (2.36)

14. The Snow Leopard (3.57)

15. The Karakoram (1.52)

16. The Earth's Highest Challenge (5.24)

17. Desert Winds / The Locusts (4.57)

18. Fly Catchers (1.40)

19. Namibia / The Lions And The Oryx (5.10) Excellent Track

Disk Two: 72.59

1. Plains High And Low (2.39)

2. The Wolf And The Caribou (3.46)

3. Tibet (Reprise) / Close (3.41)

4. Surfing Dolphins (2.39) Excellent Track

5. Dangerous Landing (3.17)

6. Mother And Calf / The Great Journey (5.13) Excellent Track

7. The Canopy / Flying Lemur (2.43)

8. Frog Ballet / Jungle Falls (2.33

9. The Cordyceps (2.53)

10. Hunting Chimps (4.04)

11. The Redwoods (4.36)

12. Fledglings (3.41)

13. Seasonal Change (5.34)

14. Discovering Antarctica (2.40)

15. The Humpbacks' Bubblenet (2.56)

16. Everything Leaves But The Emperors (2.24)

17. The Disappearing Sea Ice (3.43)

18. Lost In The Storm (1.11)

19. A School Of Five Hundred (3.35) Excellent Track

20. Giant Mantas (2.47)

21. Life Near The Surface (2.02)

22. The Choice Is Ours (3.13)

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=== Link to Composer Site: George Fenton ===