Customer Reviews

Xena: Warrior Princess - Original Television Soundtrack

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"Xena: Warrior Princess" is a compilation of music composed by Joseph LoDuca for the syndicated television series of the same name. This is an excellent CD; the music is rich in excitement and emotional texture, and is performed with passion by both musicians and vocalists.

Although the CD has considerable variety, the overall effect is that of tribal, exotic, female-powered, strongly percussive music with a definite Middle Eastern/Mediterranean flavor. Female vocals (both solo and group) are incorporated into many of the best tracks.

Beginning with the show's main title theme, the disc is full of superb tracks. Just a few of the best selections include "Darfus," with great percussive effects; the haunting "Burial," with its outstanding vocal solo; the playful yet sensuous "Gabby Dance"; and the colorful "Quarterman's Festival." Fans of the TV show will definitely want this disc. But even if, like myself, you aren't a regular viewer, you may find yourself enchanted by this music. Alternatingly thrilling and tender, LoDuca's music is a triumph of television scoring.

This is really the best of the Xena soundtracks--it has all the classical themes (The Gauntlet, Glede Ma Glede, The Wrath of Callisto, just to name a few), as well as showcasing the voices of the Bulgarian Women's Choir. If you like Xena, you will LOVE this CD...

THIS CD IS A DREAT MIX OF CLASSICAL, TRADITIONAL AND CULTURED MUSIC IT CONTAINS OVER 25 TRACKS FROM THE FIRST SEASON OF XENA:WARRIOR PRINCESS THE HIGHLIGHTS ARE: "BURIAL" (FROM THE EPISODE "THE PATH NOT TAKEN"} WRITTEN AND PERFROMED BY LUCY LAWLESS. "THE WARRIOR PRINCESS" (FROM THE HTLG EPISODE WARRIOR PRINCESS) "GABBY'S DANCE" (FROM "HOOVES AND HARLOTS") AND THE FUNERAL PYRE (ALSO FROM HOOVES AND HARLOTS). PLEASE LISTEN TO OTHER COMPOSITIONS BY XENA AND HERCULES COMPOSER JOSEPH LO DUCA

I have wanted this soundtrack for months and now that I finally have it I am at a loss for words. Every single song on this CD only reminds me what a cool show this truly is. Though I am fairly new to it (I started watching late in the fourth season) I have not missed a single episode since I first watched it. The best songs on this CD are of course the Main Title, The Warrior Princess, Glede Ma Glede, Quarterman's Festival, and Calisto's Wrath. Any one who loves Xena would love this CD, and even people who aren't neccesarily die hard fans might get some enjoyment out of it, since the music is compeling and haunting even if one has never seen the show before.

While the "warrior" part was self-evident, I was never quite able to figure out through the entire run of the show what made Xena a "princess" (not mention why characters in Renaissance, Medieval and Hell's Angels garb would be mingling with Greek Gods and Julius Caesar ...). Nonetheless, two things near and dear to my heart--the music and the martial arts--drew me in as a viewer and helped me overlook the historical discrepancies. And in the process, Joseph LoDuca became one of my favorite soundtrack composers! He does a wonderful job of combining esoteric world-music influences with standard soundtrack fare to produce a rich tapestry sound, culture and emotion--something that really stands out from "same old." His striking main title for the Xena series is like a cross between Basil Poledouris' intricately percussive soundtrack for "Conan the Barbarian" and the dissonant music sung by female choirs in Bulgaria, both of which are majorly cool to begin with. Blended together, such styles are truly stunning. The other, widely-varied tracks on this album are everything you'd expect from a saga about a kickass warrior woman - intense, distinctive and often exotic. They're also as eclectic and anachronistic as the show itself, but all in good fun. Any soundtrack music, particularly the short snippets required for TV scenes, can result in a choppy, disjointed listening experience. But that's the fault of the medium, not the music. And despite the varied musical styles within LoDuca's score, his instrumentation and theme repetition makes for a definite sense of continuity through these thirty tracks. This CD is the first of at least six albums which feature LoDuca's efforts to bring the many moods of Xena to life, and is a great sampling of his work. If you like this album, you may enjoy his other soundtracks too, such as those for the companion "Hercules" series, and the movie "Brotherhood of the Wolf." If you're intrigued by that dissonant female singing, check out the real thing in CDs such as "Voices of Life" by the Bulgarian Women's Choir and Angelite, "The Magical Voices of Bulgaria" by the Bulgarian National Folk Ensemble, "Le Mystere Des Voix Bulgares" by the Bulgarian State Radio and Television Female Vocal Choir, and "The Great Voices of Bulgaria" by the Women's Choir of Sofia. And of course, don't miss Basil Poledouris' sountrack to the movie "Conan the Barbarian," the granddaddy of all fantasy soundtracks!

I'm a fan of Xena's and I loved the exotic music on the cd . It was performed very well and had very good sound quality. The song "Burial" was one of my favorites and it was sung by Lucy Lawless. If your a xena fan or like to listen to exotic music I recommend buying it.

This is an excellent cd! It's great to listen to for hours on end. This volume has many more vocal selections than volume 2. They are very native sounding. If you prefer more instrumental works, I suggest volume 2. Both are absolutely wonderful to listen too. The music is mellow yet powerful. A must have - even for someone who isn't a huge Xena fan!

This CD is absolutely wonderful! It has a nice variety of songs that can create intense emotions and that are also a reminder of the Xena television show. If you like chants, foreign instrumentals, or moving music, you will LOVE this CD! (P.S., I paid $ for my CD, you get if for only $! Go for it!)

J. Lo'Duca has ABSOLUTELY *outdone* himself on this one. INCREDIBLE tracks!!!! 1, 2, and especially 7 give you SUCH an adrenaline rush, 4 is *great* mood music, 5 is haunting, mysterious, and enigmatic, 6 is a triumphant, exultant piece, and 17 and 22 conjure up memories of either 'Hooves and Harlots' or, from which *I* remember them particularly well, 'End Game'. Last, but most *certainly* not least, track 20 is *PERFECT* if you need an energy jolt. FANTASTIC music!!!! PERFECT!!!! I've played the CD enough in two weeks to wear out the batteries on my CD player twice!!!! I can say no more than this: If you're a fan of the show, or even if you're not, this is *the best* CD you can own. If you can turn off the show long enough, BUY THE CD!!!!

This is great tribal music for the most part from the show. I only wish some songs were longer, Burial, which Lucy Lawless composed and sings, had the words to it, and more credit was given to all the vocalists. It is a great CD to do yoga to.