Book of Mormon Score

[sweeneytodd2]

Posted: 2/4/12 at 7:14pm

I saw the first preview of the Book of Mormon and I had a great time, but the whole thing kind of washed over me because I was so excited to be there. Last night I finally listened to the OBC recording and I was really bummed out by the excessive use of pastiche. I know it's considered by some to be clever, but is it really necessary to the degree they used it? Why did the salt lake city song have to be such imitation of "Somewhere That's Green"/"Part of That World?" Couldn't they have written a song in the same vague Menken ballad style without being so on-the nose, and achieve the same effect? I had the same thought when listening to the Shrek recording. Why did the Donkey's plea for Shrek to stay with him ("Dont Let me Go") have to be a reference to "Take Me or Leave Me" from Rent? What is the point?! What the heck does Rent have to do with Shrek? I hate to sound bitter/snarky but I really think the tendency for pastiche is due to the lack of imagination of today's composers, and it saddens me that this is considered the best Broadway has to offer. GRRR!

[staunchcharacter]

Posted: 2/4/12 at 8:34pm

I completely agree. I think the show is pretty good, but I LOATHE that score. Bland and unoriginal.

[ChenoKahn]

Posted: 2/4/12 at 9:03pm

I think it's just okay. In my opinion Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown and The Scottsboro Boys had superior scores.

Updated On: 2/4/12 at 09:03 PM

[sweeneytodd2]

Posted: 2/4/12 at 9:29pm

I also find the orchestrations very bland and I think better ones would elevate the whole score tremendously. I know they won the Tony, but I'd wager most Tony voters don't really have an ear for that kind of thing. And while on the topic, BOM is a hit show with relatively low running costs. They could definitely have sprung for a bigger orchestra.

[AADA81]

Posted: 2/4/12 at 9:41pm

I think that, like "The Producers", the score is the weakest part of this show. It's derivative, uninspired and full of false rhymes that show a lack of basic craft. But the real problem, for me at least, was that it just wasn't as funny as it should have or could have been given the subject matter.

[michellek45]

Posted: 2/4/12 at 10:05pm

The only song I left the theater humming was "Hasa Diga Eebowai." I also think the score (and the show, really) relies too much on shock value for laughs, like "We said c***! Isn't that funny!"

[ljay889]

Posted: 2/4/12 at 10:07pm

VERGE, SISTER ACT, AND SCOTTSBORO are far better scores. In my opinion, MORMON was truly the weakest score in the category.

[sweeneytodd2]

Posted: 2/4/12 at 10:11pm

The cheapest humor in the show is its references to other musicals. "This song sounds like it's from Wicked, I get that reference, arf arf!"

[staunchcharacter]

Posted: 2/4/12 at 11:01pm

AADA81, I actually really like the score for the producers. Im in the minority that likes brooks as a songwriter. But I defiantly see why people have a disdain for his scores.

and in truth I really don't like BOM I just said I did for fear of a flame war. People really love that show and will defend it to the grave.



Updated On: 2/4/12 at 11:01 PM

[broadwaydevil]

Posted: 2/4/12 at 11:50pm

You think pastiche is due to "lack of imagination?" You should probably talk to Sondheim about Follies then.

Many musical comedies (like the producers, The Book of Mormon, Spamalot) use the fact that they are musicals as part of the humor constantly referencing and mocking musicals. No, perhaps it's not groundbreaking, but it's the sense of humor. I think BOM is a solid show that's probably a bit overrated but I agree the book far surpasses the score.

[darquegk]

Posted: 2/5/12 at 12:00am

I did not mind it because not only was it more or less what I expected, it was more or less what I WANTED for this project.

Parker and Stone are pastiche comics. Their entire style, from their first work all the way up to BOM, depends on taking an element of something else and gradually riffing on it, adding in more things for unexpected juxtapositions, and eventually inflating it as far as it can go until the jokes are unable to sustain themselves.

A score with a completely original sound would not be able to sustain the Parker and Stone comedic style, for better or worse. The South Park the Musical score is a series of stylistically-unrelated pastiche numbers, and though not everyone liked the movie, everyone admitted that the score was pretty good- Sondheim himself loved it.

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 2/5/12 at 12:08am

I love the score. I thought Women on the Verge was far superior (best score of the season IMO), but I love the score for Book of Mormon.

[sweeneytodd2]

Posted: 2/5/12 at 12:09am

Broadwaydevil, the use of pastiche in Follies is completely justified. Of course the characters sing in those classically theatrical styles, it's essential to who they are. Going back to the Sal-Ta-Lay-Ka City number, what point did it resembling "Somewhere That's Green" so closely have? What did it have to do with the character? What does Little Shop have to do with Book of Mormon in the slightest?

And sometimes the pastiche in BOM is just too specific to even be considered homage. The beginning of "I Believe" is almost identical to the beginning of "I Have Confidence" from The Sound of Music. I know this is on purpose, but is that cool now? To re-purpose large chunks of music from older shows and call it an original score? Why do we approve of this more than of jukebox musicals?

[bobbybaby85]

Posted: 2/5/12 at 12:21am

Updated On: 2/19/18 at 12:21 AM

[Kad]

Posted: 2/5/12 at 12:36am

I never thought of "Sal Tlay Ka Siti" as a direct parody of "Somewhere That's Green" at all. I saw it more as a take-off of that Ashman I Want ballad overall. "Somewhere That's Green", "Part of Your World"... "Sal Tlay Ka Siti". Female characters wanting something more in life. What makes the song work is the dissonance between how it sounds and what's being said. It's very much in the style of Parker and Stone, as darquegk noted. They even compared Nabalungi to a Disney princess-type character.

I never once questioned why the characters were singing a certain type of song in Mormon. It's a pop culture amalgamation that works. And yes, there are moments in it that deliberately reference other musicals. But most of the songs are parodies of types of songs rather than parodies of certain songs specifically.

[Kad]

Posted: 2/5/12 at 12:38am

...and honestly, there's a ton of pastiche and references in older musicals that no longer function as pastiche or references because the things they are referencing are no longer common knowledge.

[sweeneytodd2]

Posted: 2/5/12 at 12:42am

Fair enough, but they didn't HAVE to take off a musical theater "I Want Song." I do think it's an important and touching moment in the show, but I still don't think it was necessary to make the pastiche SO specific. Being reminded of the parallels to Little Shop didn't make the moment more profound for me personally. It just felt like an easy in-joke for theater fans and an easy model for the writers to emulate. Just my opinion, I know other people appreciate it more than I do.

[sweeneytodd2]

Posted: 2/5/12 at 12:46am

I'm sure that's true, Kad. And I know that all composers steal, I'm just a little tired of so many musical scores being purposefully derivative. It definitely can be very funny and does have its place, but I do wish it wasn't so much of what's being produced.

[Kad]

Posted: 2/5/12 at 1:25am

The moment isn't supposed to be really touching and profound.
Parker and Stone operate on the Rule of Funny.
If it's funny, and it fits in, it's put in. That's why Hitler and Uhura are in the show.

[adamgreer]

Posted: 2/5/12 at 1:34am

I never found the score to be particularly clever, and always thought it was the weakest of the 4 best score nominees that year. The simple melodies, rhymes you see coming from a mile away lyrics, and the lack of complexity did it for me.

Then again, I'm in the minority that doesn't think the show itself is all that good. The whole enterprise underwhelmed me (possibly because I saw it after the reviews came out, and as such, was expecting the second coming).

[pinoyidol2006]

Posted: 2/5/12 at 1:59pm

Loved BoM score.

I thought the score to Sister Act was pretty boring. The score to WoTV was bold, but I didn't think it was good except for "Invisible." I'm not convinced that Scottsboro Boys was a good score. I guess it works better after you've seen the show.

[kidmanboy]

Posted: 2/5/12 at 2:54pm

Not to say that Book of Mormon's score is perfection or exactly what I desire every musical score to be, but it is extremely compatible to the show. The show is a satire, and that continues to the score. "Sal Tlay Ka Siti" referencing a classic I want song is pointing to the juxtaposition of what we may want in our comfy American lives and what this African girl wants....which is that which Americans take for granted. This is the purpose of satire - defined as:

1. The use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of...
2. A play, novel, film, or other work that uses satire.

[Gaveston2]

Posted: 2/5/12 at 3:21pm

I loved "I Believe" on the Tonys and then was rather shocked at how dull and repetitious I found the rest of the score on CD.

sweeneytodd2 uses the term "pastiche" correctly, but to me there's a big difference between imitating a bygone style for dramatic purposes and actually quoting another song. I trust those of you who say the quoting works in BOM, but as with the same device in AVENUE Q, I find it a cheap form of humor.

[sweeneytodd2]

Posted: 2/5/12 at 3:30pm

That is exactly what I mean. Employing familiar musical styles is great, they carry pre-formed associations and help convey setting and character. A show like Bat Boy trades in this type of pastiche, and to me, it's funny and feels like an original and distinguished score. Constantly reminding you of specific songs from other musicals doesn't do as much for me. It feels lazy and makes me feel like I've heard all the music before.

[Ejm105989]

Posted: 2/5/12 at 8:34pm

I love the BOM score. I play the soundtrack like crazy (I have found that "Man Up" is a great inspiration when on the treadmill)