 Award-winning
composer Sam Cardon partners with writer David Pliler to create a
musical based on the Book of Mormon. This eleven-track album contains
a selection of songs from the musical that is expected to premiere
live in 2004.
Anyone
who has read the books of Mormon and Moroni in The Book of Mormon
is aware that Mormon and Moroni’s lives did not end on a happy
note. The liner notes include a synopsis of the musical’s story,
which has some fictional elements to help propel the drama along.
For example, the mothers take slightly more prominent roles in the
musical than the ancient writings detailed.
As one
would expect from a musical, the songs are performed by an ensemble
of vocalists, a choir and an orchestra. A glance through the names
reveals several reliably good voices and studio musicians. The album
doesn’t disappoint. It tantalizes just enough to make the listener
desire to see the whole musical performed live.
The
first track, titled “Prologue,” is essentially the instrumental
overture. Performed by an orchestra, the mood of the music is at
once somber and ominous, with swells that make the heart soar and
yet dread what is to come at the same time.
The
second track is a duet between Mother and Mormon, sung by Jenny
Jordan Frogley and James Conlee respectively. It successfully evokes
the tenderness between a mother and son, while forecasting the strife
her son is likely to face as a servant of the Lord.
Track
three is “I Rely” in which the fictional character Zenephi,
a friend of Mormon’s and captain in the army, strives to lead
the army into thinking its victories were their own rather than
the Lord’s. The tone is appropriately angry and prideful, with
lyrics such as “We rely upon the I” showing exactly where
he stands on the subject. Marvin Payne is the voice of Zenephi.
“Beneath
the Throne of Heaven,” sung by Joy Gardner as the wife of Mormon,
discusses their spiritual relationship with the Lord. A quiet, reflective
piece, it speaks of the great relationship between husband and wife
as well.
When
the healed Mormon heads out to the land of Desolation, he hears
the “Whispers” of the formerly great nation of Jaredites.
This is a truly creepy piece. You can almost feel the ghosts of
people whispering around you. The words are spooky enough, but the
music definitely sets the mood with its haunting melody in minor
keys. Sung masterfully by Frogley, Gardner and David Tinney as Mormon,
this one stays with you even though you might wish otherwise.
Mormon
shares a moment with son Moroni when they talk about their ancestor
Captain Moroni in “There Was a Man.” Brian Neal Clark
provides the voice of Mormon in this track, which has a chest-beating
type of quality to it. Definitely intended for the stage, this piece
builds and builds up to the lines “You are a man/Just like
that extraordinary man,/That man like you.”
The
fictional character Zenephi enters the story again in this piece
about the call to “Avenge” the deaths of wives and children.
A clear march complete with war drums beating a rhythm, the song
ends with the chorus to “Fight! Avenge!”
“Echo”
is a marvelous song depicting the young Mormon and his childhood
friends following their teacher Ammaron through the examples from
scriptures that “Echo, echo/Echo from another time/Round and
around and/Spinning to the sound/ Echo, echo/Echo for another day/Following
the sound and/Rising from the ground.” This has a tune that
gets the toe tapping and definitely perks up the ears of little
children who happen to be listening. James Arrington is the voice
of Ammaron in this outstanding number.
Clark
lends his voice again as the voice of Mormon as he prays for his
son Moroni in “Encircle Him.” A soft ballad that pleads
with the Lord to “Keep him safe/Through the storm,/Encircle
him,/Encircle him.” This song successfully shows the love between
father and son, even though the son is silent.
Tinney
and Conlee perform “Fallen,” the lamentation of a nation
that realizes it’s in its last days. In a counterpoint between
a choir, voices fill the airwaves with grief: “Fallen. The
last of a people./Fallen. The last of our name./Fallen nation. The
last eyes to witness./Fallen. The last of our days./Beaten. Fallen
from heaven./Driven. Fallen from grace./Fallen. Fallen nation.”
The
final track is Moroni’s bittersweet yet uplifting resolve to
be “Firm in the Fire.” Tinney performs as Moroni in this
strong resolution of the pent-up emotions that were built upon by
the previous musical numbers. Backed by a choir, Moroni sings “Firm
in the fire of life./Firm in the strength of His might./Steady and
strong, we fight on./Firm in the fire!/Firm in the fire!”
Overall,
the album is strong in musicianship, production and lyrics. As mentioned
earlier, it provides enough of an overview of the musical to encourage
the listener to seek out the live production. Whether this is the
best musical ever written about Book of Mormon events remains to
be seen. It’s certainly among the first and shows promise.
A good purchase if you’re a musical fan. Not a great purchase
if you’re looking for something warm and fuzzy.
------------------------
Dacia
A. Blodgett-Williams
|
