Search - Michael Whalen, Frederick Akuffo, Grace Addow :: Slavery and the Making of America (Original Soundtrack to the PBS Series)

You have to admire restraint in any composer for film, where too often the tendency is to fill up as much space as possible and deliver emotions with a flourish of trumpets and a wall of strings to make sure they're not missed. Perhaps Michael Whalen's restraint comes from being a solo artist in his own right, with albums that range from classical to ambient. But he spends most of his time scoring films and TV, especially documentaries like PBS's Slavery and the Making of America. And like most good soundtrack composers, Whalen can easily leap from one style to another. On Slavery, these leaps are from the chamber bluegrass of "Sold Down the River/The Plantation" to the African chants and percussion of "The First Eleven" and the minimalist moods of "The Immigrants." After the African tribal-derived sound of the first episode, the score turns largely orchestral. In Slavery, Whalen evokes, without specifically playing, work songs and folk styles, and finally presents a symphonic suite that looks back at those roots. But he speaks in a New World voice. Although, as with many soundtracks, it doesn't entirely work apart from the film, this is sophisticated scoring. --John Diliberto