Soundtrack Review: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone Video Game (2001)

Posted by Jon Blough

July 20, 2009

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Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone This is a review of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone video game score by Jeremy Soule.

“Synths, abrupt cue cutoffs, anonymous…it’s best left alone”

I admit I need to diversify my collection of video game scores. The vast majority of such albums have been composed by those associated with the Medal of Honor franchise. One area of interest would be the scores for the Harry Potter video games. The most recent two by James Hannigan have received mainstream attention and praise in the wake of Nicholas Hooper’s disappointing scores for the films. However, Jeremy Soule’s scores for the first four games have received little press, mostly due to the majority of fans adoring the first four film scores. It seemed like a wise idea to explore all of Soule’s material, if for no other reason than satisfying idle curiousity. And initially, that was rewarded. The score starts very promisingly, with a whimsical, flowing theme boasting Williams-like brass bursts and a powerful choral backup in the middle of the opening cue. While not as inherently charming as any of the maestro’s themes, it is nonetheless a decent complement and a welcome surprise. “Quidditch Anthem” also throws in a bunch of peppy, soaring magic that one wishes lasted longer than a minute. With those two cues I the bag, most listeners will be convinced the album cannot be worse than decent.

Conclusion

Regrettably, the album takes a notable dip in quality after those tracks. The biggest culprit is short cue length. The best video game scores are able to transcend the situational constraints of the genre and provide extended, fully realized moments of grandeur, emotion, etc. With the exception of “Story Book” (probably the only decent remaining cue along with “Happy Hogwarts”) and the first cue, every track clocks in at around a minute. Additionally, parts of cues begin to rely on synths. The brass samples in “Malfoy Fight”, “Peeves Chase”, and “Remember All Chase” sound (ahem) cheap. I have nothing against electronics in music, but the complete abandonment of orchestra (probably for budgetary reasons) is inappropriate for a modern fantasy score, especially one for the Potter franschise. Appallingly, this release contains a number of abrupt cue cutoffs and transitions that are embarrassing for a commercial release. Action cues are snipped into suspense moments, darkness transitions instantly into light…it’s just too jolting to enjoy. Even game rips do a better job of transitions. The album also suffers from an underwhelming, anonymous feel, as both the menacing and relaxing cues fail to provide anything definitive. With all future Soule albums for the series being longer and significantly less populated by my above complaints, his score for the first film’s game is best left alone.

Album (21:42)
1.   Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone Theme (2:52)
2.   Quidditch Anthem (1:03)
3.   Chess Match (1:25)
4.   Green Cauldron (1:06)
5.   Malfoy Fight (0:56)
6.   Dark Hogwarts (1:07)
7.   Devil’s Snare (1:00)
8.   Flying Keys (0:55)
9.   Quirrell 2 (1:07)
10.   Hogwarts Neutral (1:03)
11.   Peeves Chase (1:04)
12.   Remember All Chase (1:01)
13.   Story Book (2:26)
14.   Troll Chase (0:59)
15.   Willow Boss Level 1 (1:09)
16.   Fluffy Intro (0:31)
17.   Quirrell 3 (1:00)
18.   Happy Hogwarts (1:06)