The Settlers -Heritage of Kings- Original Soundtrack

	Album Title: The Settlers -Heritage of Kings- Original Soundtrack
	Record Label: Ubisoft
	Catalog No.: N/A
	Release Date: February 18, 2005
	Purchase: Buy Used Copy

Overview

If you were looking for proof that city/nation-building simulations with a period flavour are among the most popular computer game genres in Germany, you wouldn’t have to look further than The Settlers. With the series’ first game released in 1993, the franchise is still going strong in 2010, which saw the release of The Settlers 7: Paths to a Kingdom. The games’ light-hearted atmosphere and their generic medieval setting have become their trademarks, apparently without losing any of its appeal during the years. While phenomenally successful in Germany, the Settlers franchise never quite achieved the same standing and prestige on the other side of the Atlantic, where games like SimCity or Caesar remained more popular.

In 2005, the Settlers franchise made the jump into the third dimension with its fifth instalment, The Settlers: Heritage of Kings. Along with the graphical changes, modifications were also made to the series’ well-established gameplay. This time, less emphasis was put on the complex trading and production processes necessary to generate resources. Instead, the gamer was busy keeping her workers happy by providing them with a house to live in, enough food and so on. Musically, The Heritage of Kings marked an important change as well, with German game music production company Dynamedion taking over composing duties; this was obviously to the developers’ satisfaction, considering that Dynamedion went on to create the music for following Settlers games as well. The soundtrack for The Heritage of Kings was published only as part of the game’s limited Gold Edition and thus remains a collector’s item.

Body

Looking at all the three Settlers soundtracks that Dynamedion would create — Heritage of Kings, Rise of an Empire, and Paths to a Kingdom — it’s certainly interesting to identify traits that all these works share, as well as those elements that give each work its particular identity. If there’s one thing that all of Dynamedion’s Settlers soundtracks share, it’s their pastoral sound and laid-back atmosphere. Apart from some battle cues and generally darker material, on these albums the world is a sunny, inviting place that charms the listener into staying for a while — a characteristic that duly mirrors the fact that The Settlers franchise has always been more about building cities and empires, rather than combat and confrontation. Heritage of Kings is no different in this regard, and a track like “Mary de Fortfichet” with its gentle melody and orchestration, relying on lighter instruments such as acoustic guitar and solo flute, perfectly highlights these sonic qualities.

Looking beyond this fundamental similarity, it becomes obvious that Heritage of Kings and Rise of an Empire (or The Settlers 5 and The Settlers 6, if you want) have quite a bit more in common with each other than with The Settlers 7, which shouldn’t come as a big surprise, considering that these scores created by Michael Pummell, while a whole team of Dynamedion composers was responsible for The Settlers 7. For example, both of the earlier titles have as their foundation a main theme that is quite a bit more long-winded than what is often found in both game and film soundtracks. And in both cases, Pummell puts the theme to good use by taking bits and pieces of it and inserting these into a number of tracks throughout the soundtrack to ensure thematic coherency. On Heritage of Kings, this theme is presented in the album’s opening track of the same name, and its multifaceted qualities are presented in a similar manner as on Rise of an Empire. The long-winded melody is first carried by a solo flute, and after this lyrical introduction exposes its more imposing side when the theme is taken over by the strings in an orchestral outburst that turns the melody into a clarion call to adventure. And similarly to that later Settlers title, the opening track’s rich instrumentation (here mostly synthesised though) is a first taste of the orchestral goodness to come.

As mentioned, this main theme continues to reoccur throughout the album, most obviously in the closing track, “The Settlers”, which also highlights the melody’s dual qualities, this time as a stately dance tune and as the base for a brassy orchestral climax. Other notable incarnations of the main theme are found on two of the soundtrack’s chillier tracks, which both turn out to be standouts. “The Snow Castle” and “Frozen Time” rely on common musical elements to convey an icy climate, for example all sorts of chiming and tinkling sounds, but the compositions intriguingly marry these with light, medieval-sounding dance rhythms, courtesy of a tambourine and other hand percussion. On top of this alluring mixture, the main theme is placed as a dignified dance melody that gently propels the tracks along. All these elements come together perfectly, and on “The Snow Castle”, the mood even turns mystical through a tinkling, distant piano.

As on Rise of an Empire, there’s more thematic material though than just a main theme. Heritage of Kings’s protagonist Dario receives his own theme on “Dario’s Theme”, performed on solo flute. It’s a simpler, more playful melodic idea than the main theme, and it’s reprised occasionally, but less frequently than its structurally more important counterpart. “Dario’s Heritage”, after presenting a variation of the main theme on acoustic guitar, features a rendition of Dario’s theme on flute against the full orchestra, and “The Heroes Go South” reprises the melody in a more audacious, full-bodied version. The latter track is one of the few that features more exotic instruments — in this case castanets, which foreshadow Rise of an Empire’s more prominent use of ethnic elements. Unfortunately though, here the castanets are placed way too backwardly in the sound mix and actually distract from what is a captivating variation of Dario’s theme. Another (sub) theme that rears its head once in a while is a melody that accompanies the tireless efforts of the workers who the gamer controls. They are represented by another period-flavoured dance tune that is livelier and catchier than similar incarnations of the main theme. The melody first pops up on solo violin on “Work And Bild”, which appropriately underscores the chore of tirelessly working with string pizzicati and slightly more insisting hand percussion than most other cues. “A Winter’s Work” then manages to seamlessly wrap the theme in a wintry coat that consists of layers of tinkling chimes and some light choir later on.

Both Heritage of Kings and Rise of an Empire imbue many of their compositions with a structure and sense of direction not only through quotations of themes. The format that the majority of cues on these soundtracks follow is that of variations of a melody that is presented at the beginning of each composition. Not only does this heighten the album’s feeling of consistency, but it also ensures that each track goes through a number of permutations, so that the music never feels dull or monotonous, particularly during those pieces that rely on a richly layered, lush orchestral sound. However, despite all these similarities, Heritage of Kings sets itself apart from its successor in one regard. While the later soundtrack spices its classically-oriented orchestrations with various ethnic elements, Heritage of Kings draws its inspiration from the game’s medieval setting. As hinted at above, the result of this approach is music with a distinct period touch that also permeates other Dynamedion soundtracks, such as Drakensang and The Guild 2. Light dance rhythms, the frequent use of hand percussion (particularly the tambourine) and melodies usually carried by either a solo harp, flute or acoustic guitar make for a soundtrack with a sometimes smaller scale, earthier sound. These trademarks are most obvious on a number of tracks that underscore both the majesty and busyness of a royal court: “Welcome to Cleycourt”, “The Old Castle” and “The Royal Court” all rely on those gallant dance tunes that have already been mentioned, but variety is provided for through the melody being passed between the different solo instruments, and the effective inclusion of orchestral elements, such as the surging violins in the second half of “Welcome to Cleycourt.”

It remains open to discussion in how far the focus on these solo instruments was purely an artistic decision, and in how far it was driven by financial concerns. Heritage of Kings’s soundtrack is an example of Dynamedion’s “Mixed Mode Music”, which pairs live recorded solo instruments with orchestral samples. In any case, it seems only logical that the majority of the album’s melodies would be given to the live instruments. Only a handful of cues deviate from this rule, but they do so to great effect. “Village in Ruins” opens with a passionate, rather desperate flute melody, but not surprisingly, mournful largo strings form the orchestral backdrop, and at 2:20, a solo violin gets to shine with a touching solo. “Restful Havens” is the soundtrack’s most romantic cue, with a beguiling opening string melody and a fanfare-like motif for brass later on.

Particular mention must be made of the prominent role that the light choir — in most instances female — plays in the soundtrack’s period style orchestrations, given that this ensemble isn’t part of what is generally considered a medieval sound. But it’s exactly this mix of rarely combined, yet beautifully harmonising elements that is one of Heritage of Kings’ greatest strengths. Making its first mark on “Heritage of Kings” and almost always inserted cleverly, the choir particularly benefits the more ambient compositions, such as “Forecasted Shadows” and “The Black Knight”. Especially the oppressive, rather nondescript textures of “Forecasted Shadows” gain quite a bit of colour when adorned with the ethereal sounds of the female choir, which also beautifully complements the moody woodwind chords and nervy acoustic guitar on “The Black Knight”. Through similar means, appealing textures are created on “Dario’s Heritage”, when the same choir is pitted against a metallic sounding acoustic guitar. Revealing a more intimidating side of the vocal elements on the soundtrack, the ghostly male choir on the fittingly titled “Close to the Evil” creates a palpable sense of dread, together with an ominously fluttering flute over heavy, droning deep strings. Even in a rather ambient, haunting composition such as this, the listener will find the same light dance rhythms as in other tracks, seamlessly incorporated and now performed by the timpani. Only on “Norfolk Theme”, another merry-go-round cue, do the dainty choir sounds feels misplaced and tacked on.

Is all well then on the soundtrack of Heritage of Kings? Unfortunately not. The album has only one significant drawback, but it’s a big one: the sound recording and mix. As highlighted in other reviews of Dynamedion soundtracks that relied on the “mixed music mode”, convincingly bringing live solo instruments and orchestral samples together in one, naturally-sounding recording is quite a challenge, and Heritage of Kings clearly fails the mark. Most problematic is the fact that the solo instruments are given a much too resonant, echoey sound that stands in direct contrast to the period feeling that they’re supposed to evoke. The acoustic guitar on “Welcome to Cleycourt”, the beautifully layered harp lines on “The Royal Court” are supposed to sound warm and intimate, but instead, they feel cold and almost synthesised. There’s a number of cues where such a sound is appropriate. “Close to the Evil”, with its otherworldly feel, or those cues representing wintry locations, which only benefit from instruments that sound as if they resonate from walls of ice. But for the lighter, dance-like material, or the soft, pastoral compositions, this sound is a serious misfit. “Do Not Despair” suffers particularly badly: it emanates a moving feeling of desperation, but those echoing notes solo flute and piano play almost sound distorted. The same goes for the female choir in the middle section of “The Reign of Evenlance”. And when the tambourine enters the fray on a number of occasions, it often sounds as if it’s played deep in a cavern behind the rest of the ensemble.

This resonant, washy sound wreaks havoc on the orchestral material as well. Often enough, instrumental details within the dense compositions are clouded, and especially the deep strings way too often sound like an unrefined, deep buzz, and not like actual instruments playing discernible notes, as witnessed on otherwise attractive tracks like “Work And Build” and “The Summer Fields”. “The Heroes Return” is another track whose quality is diminished by a particularly messy sound mix, and in the end, the listener is left with a number of compositions whose quality she has to guess rather than actually experience and enjoy.

Summary

Ultimately, The Settlers: Heritage of Kings is a frustrating listening experience. The musical material is top notch, and while it doesn’t reach the stellar heights of Paths to a Kingdom, composition wise Heritage of Kings outclasses Rise of an Empire, which suffered from an overabundance of prosaic action material and some clichéd writing for ethnic instruments. Heritage of Kings, on the other hand, features an equally rich and instrumentally diverse sound palette that stays closer to home (if you happen to live in central Europe). Essentially, its sound is a combination of romantic-style orchestral material and medieval period touches that inject the music with lightheartedness and character. The decision to let solo harp, flute and acoustic guitar carry most of the melodies is refreshing and keeps the musical textures relatively lean. The music’s tunefulness and thematic coherency only add to its appeal.

But all this is partly undone by a sound recording and mix that is seriously lacking. Constantly too resonant, the album’s sound robs the solo instruments of much of their warm timbral qualities on which this soundtrack relies so much. The orchestral details, just like composer Michael Pummell’s good ideas and intentions, are often veiled by a washy sound mix that particularly makes the deep strings look bad and turns them into an obtrusive drone. Albeit completely unlikely, an orchestral re-recording of the music for The Settlers: Heritage of Kings would most certainly deliver spectacular results. In the current form though, this soundtrack is merely a diamond hidden beneath a solid layer of coal.

Posted on August 1, 2012 by Simon Elchlepp. Last modified on August 1, 2012.

About the Author

Simon Elchlepp A former German film student now living in Melbourne, Australia and working at the University of Melbourne's Architecture faculty - and a passionate music lover with an eclectic taste. Specialising in Western game music, I'm here to dig out the best scores Western video games have produced in the last thirty years.

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