THE ART OF NOISE ONLINE www.theartofnoiseonline.com

POLDARK - Music From The TV Series

ANNE DUDLEY

Film and television soundtrack albums can be disappointing affairs, on one hand some are nothing more than compilation albums of hit songs used throughout the visual work with no depth or any thematic importance, on the other, some are selections from original scores that can come across as dull, too subtle or just boring as they don't work as a separate entity away from the narrative of the feature film or series from which they belong.

As someone that hasn't seen Poldark, I have approached this album for a different perspective to that of the viewers of the series.

The thing I always enjoy about Anne Dudley's music is that one never knows what to expect and this album reiterates that statement wholeheartedly. Like all of her previous soundtrack albums, this stands up as an individual piece in its own right and doesn't require that the listener needs to watch the acclaimed BBC series based upon the historical novels by Winston Graham. The melodies, moods, atmospheres and subtleties work perfectly throughout the entire duration of this compelling body of work and should never be listened to as background music as it is definitely not orchestrated muzak.

Unlike many notable composers Anne doesn't conform to the notion of musical boundaries. If one listens close enough it is possible to detect some modern day electronic sounds that wouldn't normally be expected to be heard alongside harps, violins and orchestrations of a score set to an 18th Century story that occasionally features themes based upon Cornish folk music. For anyone reading this that is unfamiliar her work could be forgiven for thinking that there is no way that this should work, but it does perfectly. It is not intrusive and doesn't detract from any of the nuances within the music itself. This is a great example of her musical intellect and why she has been one of the most sort after composer/arrangers for over the past 30 plus years. She is without doubt one the Britain's best modern day composers, if not the best, with Poldark - Music From The TV Series being the latest addition to an impressive career.

- KM Whitehouse, May 2015