I wonder, what's your (Mike's) opinion of film composers like Philip Glass, or Michael Nyman. Or, for that matter, Andriessen, Stockhausen or any other number of composers whose music reduces the complexity of one, some, or all of the elements of music to allow a listener to greater appreciate what's left. Steve Reich's early music, for example, sounds incredible not because of what was played, but because of what wasn't.
I see this score as a decent execution of compositional minimalism in film. A few very effective melodic motifs which essentially contain the main themes of the film (the growth of Kirk, the growth of Spock, and the vengence of Nero), upon which the instrumental arrangements can organically grow. And in this, the score is incredibly successful. While there are points that don't particularly appeal to me (the one scene that particularly comes to mind is the choral execution of the Kirk theme when the Jellyfish collides with the Narada), these moments are relatively few - and even then, they reinforce my points.
Unlike yourself, I'm not a full time film composer (though of the forty full-time staff in the company that I'm Director of, more than half, including myself, have Bachelor or Masters degrees in Music Composition), so my criticisms and comments are somewhat academic. Still, I believe that in practice, this score works incredibly effectively. It might be my minimalist bias, but I feel that its compositional foundations are incredibly, and refreshingly strong, and that the score brilliantly complements and enhances the story.
I see this score as a decent execution of compositional minimalism in film. A few very effective melodic motifs which essentially contain the main themes of the film (the growth of Kirk, the growth of Spock, and the vengence of Nero), upon which the instrumental arrangements can organically grow. And in this, the score is incredibly successful. While there are points that don't particularly appeal to me (the one scene that particularly comes to mind is the choral execution of the Kirk theme when the Jellyfish collides with the Narada), these moments are relatively few - and even then, they reinforce my points.
Unlike yourself, I'm not a full time film composer (though of the forty full-time staff in the company that I'm Director of, more than half, including myself, have Bachelor or Masters degrees in Music Composition), so my criticisms and comments are somewhat academic. Still, I believe that in practice, this score works incredibly effectively. It might be my minimalist bias, but I feel that its compositional foundations are incredibly, and refreshingly strong, and that the score brilliantly complements and enhances the story.