Keith Johnson typing.
When we first heard (and saw) the brilliant ZED at the Cirque du Soleil Theater Tokyo back in November, 2008 as part of CirqueCon 2008: Tokyo! we were enthralled by the beauty of the René Dupéré score. We hoped that when it was finally adapted for album it would contain as much of the power and emotion as we heard in Tokyo. When we heard “The World’s Meet” on the Cirque compilation set “25” (Cirque du Soleil Musique CDSMCD-10030-2, 2009) we were pleased and hopeful – the song fully managed to convey the power and beauty of one of the best moments in the show with a great arrangement and a stirring chorus finale.
But we were concerned that, as with the Dupéré score of KA, the CD wouldn’t include the ZED creation band and musicians, consisting of:
Kevin Faraci – Singer (characters Abraka & Kernoon) – United States
Johanna Lillvik – Singer (characters Noui & Erato)
Michel Cyr – Keyboards, Bandleader – Canada
Patrick Kelly – Guitar – Canada
Darrell Craig Harris – Bass – United States
Paul Lazar – Violin – France
Paul Hanson – Bassoon – United States
Mario Labrosse – Drums – Canada
Ron Wagner – Percussion – United States
But after talking with Cirque Musical Director Alain Vinet (see Fascination issue #67-August 2009) and hearing the Violaine Corradi-composed score for ZAIA (Cirque du Soleil Musique CDSMC-20029, 2009) we were encouraged they’d make the “right” decision and record the creation band for the album. We just had to wait and see, but the waiting was hard, especially after the originally announced release date came and went.
Finally, on October 13, 2009, the US will have its first opportunity to hear whether album producers Martin Lord Ferguson & Ella Louise Allaire succeeded. The album (Cirque du Soleil Musique CDSMC-20031, 2009) will later appear in Canada on December 8.
The album consists of the following tracks, along with the album times and the acts they go with:
1. First Incantation (2:14) – Show Opening
2. Birth of the Sky (5:37) – Bungee
3. Reaching Up (4:59) – Chinese Poles w/trampoline
4. Blue Silk (4:37) – Aerial Silks
5. High Temptation (4:55) –High Wire
6. Vaneyou Mi Le (4:34) – Banquine
7. ZED in Love (4:49) – Aerial Straps
8. Kernoon’s Fire (4:30) – Juggling
9. Mirror of the Two World’s (4:35) – Baton Twirling
10. The World’s Meet (6:36) – Hand to Hand
11. Fiesta (4:50) – Trapeze
12. Hymn of the Worlds (3:23) – Charivari and Show Finale
Total playing time: 55:50
All the songs were written by René Dupéré except “First Incantation,” “Vaneyou Mi Le,” “Kernoon’s Fire” and “Fiesta” which were written by: René Dupéré, Ella Louise Allaire & Martin Lord Ferguson.
Thanks to a kind source at Cirque (but no thanks to the Canadian and US Postal Services) we just got a copy in our hands, and are rushing this exclusive review out after several listenings.
First things first – is it the creation band? Happily YES! The fantastic ZED creation band plays throughout with only a few exceptions, interestingly enough having to do with vocalists. We’ll use the numbers from the official order above to make distinctions.
Singers Lillvik and Faraci sing lead vocals throughout. Exceptions are Ella Louise Allaire on 6 and 11, and in a signifigant exception Martin Lord Ferguson on 8, “Kernoon’s Fire.” Both add “additional vocals and vocal effects” to several tracks but these don’t distract from the front and center lead vocals. Throat singer Matt Becks sings in the introductions to 1 and 9. A 50-member choir adds to several of the songs. The childrens choir from FACE school chimes in on the finale “Hymn of the Worlds.”
To address a concern expressed by fans, I note that the lead vocals are clearand upfront in the mix and not overly diluted with effects or additional side vocals.
The only additional solo musician is Jean-Marie Benoit who adds classical guitar to 7. The Bel Canto de Bratislava string orchestra appears on 7 of the albums tracks adding a well-recorded full string section, sounding more like KA than ZAIA.
The album was a multi-national affair, with the ZED band and vocalists being recorded in Tokyo, the chorus in Canada and the orchestra in Slovakia.
Putting the songs into the order they appear in the show comes up with the playlist below. The approximate length of time the act takes in the show is listed after the act.
9b. Mirror of the Two Worlds (from 2:34-4:35) – Animation Music (5:00)
1. First Incantation (2:14) – Show Opening-2:00
*Combining of the two halves of ZED (1:00) has no known title, does not appear.
2. Birth of the Sky (5:37) – Bungee-4:15
* Birth On Earth – Lasso – This song does not appear on the CD-show length 8:00
* Clown act here (3:45) has no music
3. Reaching Up (4:59) – Chinese Poles w/trampoline-6:15
4. Blue Silk (4:37) – Aerial Silks-5:00
5. High Temptation (4:55) –High Wire-9:15
8. Kernoon’s Fire (4:30) – Juggling-6:45
* Going to Intermission clown act (1:00) has no music
* Entre’act (played for the last ten minutes of intermission) has no known title, does not appear.
6. Vaneyou Mi Le (4:34) – Banquine-9:15
7. ZED in Love (4:49) – Aerial Straps-5:45
9a. Mirror of the Two World’s (0:00-2:34) – Baton Twirling-3:00
10. The World’s Meet (6:36) – Hand to Hand-8:15
* The clown act of playing with the Shaman’s pole (3:00) has no known title, does not appear.
11. Fiesta (4:50) – Trapeze-10:45
* Closing of the Storybook (4:15) has no known title, does not appear.
12. Hymn of the Worlds (3:23) – Charivari and Show Finale-6:35
The track order of the CD follows the show pretty closely, with little missing music. The arrangements sound full and complete and hit all the major sections of the pieces (which can be played multiple times in performance to fit the act on stage).
We wonder why the lasso act music was omitted – it is a major part of the first act of the show. On the other hand, the music for the Entre’act is more of a jazz instrumental that is played while the audience is returning to their seats after intermission and really isn’t vital to telling the show’s story. Still, the 55 minutes music on the CD leaves the possibility of 20 or so minutes more (as shown by the recent ZAIA soundtrack), so the songs could easily have been included. I’m always in favor of filling out a CD, especially in the case of soundtracks, so this disk gets a “C” (average) on the Value scale.
The packaging is similar to ZAIA, a tri-fold cardboard package with the booklet in the left-hand pocket and the CD (Johanna in her outfit from “Birth of the Sky”) on the right. Blue is the predominant color. There are also messages from the composer and producers.
The Program Book credits Dupéré as Composer and Arranger, with Martin Lord Ferguson as Musical Director and Co-Arranger. Ella Louise Allaire handled Orchestrations and Arrangement for the Chorale.
So how does the music match up to the powerful show? Pretty well, in this reviewers opinion. A quick run-down of the albums tracks with some notes:
“First Incantation” brings in the main theme carried by bassoon, with throat singing to begin. “Birth of the Sky” is Johanna’s showpiece and she sings clearly throughout, with strings adding power to the theme. “Reaching Up” has some nice jazz solo breaks, but some compression artifacts detracting from the climactic finale. “Blue Silk” puts its emphasis on the guitar and the blending of the duet vocals. With “High Temptation” the orchestra adds a lot, perhaps too much, diluting the band of much of its punch. The fast pacing of the tune reflects the fleet footing of the performers on the high wire.
“Vaneyou Mi Le” has producer Allaire singing lead in a switch, but her voice seems out of place here compared to Johanna’s clear tones. “ZED in Love” is a slower finely crafted piece. “Kernoon’s Fire” is a puzzlement. It’s out of place from the order of the show and includes Ferguson’s vocals instead of Kevin’s. Again, the lower tones of the singers vocals here seem out of place compared to the rest of the album.
My biggest complaint with the musical arrangement comes next, with “Mirror of the Two Worlds.” In performance this song comes full-force with powerful drumming from the beginning. It is also short – the baton twirling act it accompanies is only about 3:00 long – and when the song and act come to an end so soon you almost feel let down. When the chorus comes out of the surround speakers in the theater it’s a chilling moment of power and wish could be longer.
The CD plays it straight with the arrangement of the song though reducing the sound of the drums in the mix. The appearance of the chorus is still chilling (the first chilling moment we had listening to the CD), but you really want the song to be expanded upon. It’s not like there wasn’t time available on the CD, I really would have preferred another couple of minutes of arrangement here. Though it reflects the show pretty closely I think it was a missed opportunity.
On the same track is a bit of the music from the Animation, which could be considered the “Overature.” I would have preferred this as it’s own separate track, perhaps arranged with the music from the “Entre’act.”
“The World’s Meet” is exactly the same as it appears on “25.” Though now I notice that percussive consonants in the vocals make a distracting slapback sound in the vocal reverb. We love the tinkling wispy ending, but it isn’t long enough, it could have taken more time to fade. “Fiesta” sets up a nice groove that stays there and cooks throughout.
The better of the two ZED pieces to appear in the Cirque Audition Kit MP3’s was, to me, “Charivari,” which morphed to become one of the sections of the show finale. I really enjoyed the lead and chorus vocals as presented there, which the final version omits. However, the chorus at the beginning of “Hymn of the Two Worlds” is the second chilling moment of the album. It has a beautiful choral sound and brings the album to a powerful close. Though note to the producers; it would be OK if you left more low-frequency subwoofer rumble to big booms at the end of songs – it would really be fun to feel the boom as you do in the show.
Bottom line: Yeah, I have my nits to pick, but overall they got this one RIGHT. The brilliant music of this brilliant show has been pretty accurately translated to this disk. The enhancements to the creation band sound are interesting and, I feel, appropriate. My wife and I are seriously considering whether this CD replaces “O” as our favorite Cirque soundtrack.
After some time trying other musical avenues (Varekai, Zumanity, remixes, Delirium) Cirque is coming back to their core. ZAIA, ZED, and the compilation “25” signal a back-to-basics approach that this Cirque fan applauds.
