Soundtrack (Caprica pilot)

"Caprica Pilot Soundtrack" An album of the Caprica series
Album No.	5
Composer(s)	Bear McCreary
Artist(s)	{{{artist}}}
Producer(s)	{{{producer}}}
Label	La-La Land Records
Tracks	{{{tracks}}}
Running Time	{{{runtime}}}
Discs	1
Released	{{{released}}}
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Soundtrack (Season 4)	Caprica Pilot Soundtrack	Soundtrack (The Plan/Razor)
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The Caprica Pilot Soundtrack was released on June 16, 2009, following the pilot movie's broadcast, giving fans immediate access to Bear McCreary's score for the two-hour pilot. McCreary described this pilot score as "surprisingly restrained and melodic," making "immediate departures from the percussive bombast and world-music influence" of his Battlestar Galactica work.

Production Background

Compositional Approach

McCreary's approach for the pilot was designed to be "the polar opposite" of Battlestar Galactica. Since the events take place in Caprica City as "a familiar society at its most decadent and opulent peak," he stripped away the "urgent, tribal, primitive and mystical elements" that characterized the Battlestar Galactica soundtrack. Director Jeffrey Reiner described the setting as a city that "on the outside was modern, structured, and efficient," but "on the inside, things were rotten."

To achieve this tonal shift, McCreary concluded that to make the Caprica score more "different," he had to make it more "normal." The result was an intimate, contemporary chamber orchestra, recorded at the Warner Bros. Eastwood Scoring Stage in January. While ethnic percussion and solos occasionally appear in the texture, the score is fundamentally orchestral in nature. McCreary's harmonic language for Caprica is "far more lyrical and rich than the simple drones and dissonant clusters that permeate the majority of Galactica."

Recording Session

The pilot score was recorded at the Warner Bros. Eastwood Scoring Stage with McCreary conducting the chamber orchestra. Director Jeffrey Reiner recalled: "Bear sent me very complete demos against picture that worked great, but it wasn't until I sat in the scoring stage at Warner Bros., and heard the maestro conduct his orchestra, that I was blown away."

Musical Personnel

Key musicians who contributed to the pilot score include:

• JoAnn Turovsky - harp
• Chris Bleth - orchestral woodwinds, English Horn, and Chinese membrane flute
• Paul Cartwright - acoustic fiddle for the Tauron Theme
• M.B. Gordy - nagado daiko and ethnic percussion for Cylon test scenes

Musical Direction

The pilot soundtrack established the musical foundation for the Caprica series, introducing key themes that would continue throughout the show. The score featured two main thematic families: the Graystone Theme representing the Graystone family's world, and the Tauron Theme signifying Joseph Adama's connection to the Tauron mob and his ancestral lineage. These themes are held together with a series of ostinatos thematically connected to each family.

McCreary noted that some of his favorite tracks from this release, including "Grieving" and "A Tauron Sacrifice," had been trimmed for the pilot soundtrack and were later restored to their original lengths for the Caprica Series Soundtrack.

The score represented a significant tonal shift from Battlestar Galactica, reflecting the series' move away from military themes toward exploring digital identity, religious zealotry, and the risks of corruption in power.

Connections to Battlestar Galactica

Despite McCreary's goal of distancing Caprica from Galactica, the pilot includes subtle musical references to its predecessor. Most notably, the "Wander My Friends" theme appears when Joseph tells young Willy of his true last name and Tauron heritage—a moment McCreary felt was "too perfect to resist" since he first used this theme in "Hand of God" when Adama and Lee discuss Joseph's lighter.

For sequences featuring the U-87 (the Cylon prototype), McCreary brought in the full ethnic percussion ensemble he used for Galactica, but intentionally kept these cues small and used big taiko drums sparingly. He wanted the score to sound like prototype Battlestar music—more raw, edgy and unpolished.

Track Listing

The runtime of this disc is 54m04s. Audio clips of select songs are available in MP3 format, and are noted accordingly in the index below.

1. The Graystone Family (2:59)

   Audio Clip: mp3

   Note: This track introduces the Graystone Family Theme, described by McCreary as "the first thing I wrote when I began scoring the pilot" and the melody that "captures the complex characters and arcs in a single elegant melody." This theme would later evolve into the series' main title theme and serve as the de facto Caprica theme.

2. Terrorism On The Lev (3:11)
3. Grieving (3:43)

   Audio Clip: mp3

   Note: This track accompanies the montage immediately following the train explosion when the parents grieve the loss of their children. It was trimmed for the pilot soundtrack and later restored to its original length for the series soundtrack.

4. Lacey (sic) and Zoe-A (4:05)

   Note: Features the Graystone Ostinato that frequently underscored Zoe-A's conversations with Lacy Rand and Daniel. Later expanded for the series soundtrack as "Lacey and Zoe (Expanded Version)."

5. Cybernetic Life Form Node (3:12)

   Note: One of the sequences where McCreary brought in the full ethnic percussion ensemble to pay homage to Battlestar Galactica, representing "prototype Battlestar music."

6. Zoe's Avatar (3:01)

   Note: Features the four-chord progression that became known as the "Zoe Chords," first heard when Lacy Rand discovers Zoe-A in the V-Club.

7. Daniel Captures the Code (2:25)

   Note: Features the Daniel Ostinato representing his transformation "from grieving father to a crazy Dr. Frankenstein figure." Later expanded for the series soundtrack as "Daniel Captures the Code (Expanded Version)."

8. A Tauron Sacrifice (2:42)

   Note: Features the Tauron Ostinato during the montage when Sam kills the defense minister. Director Jeffrey Reiner recalled this as the first piece he heard: "The score drove the scene, while evoking the intimacy of love, the rage of a gangland killing, and the struggle with ethnic identity." One of McCreary's favorites that was trimmed for this release and later restored to its original length as "A Tauron Sacrifice (Expanded Version)" on the series soundtrack.

9. Amanda Graystone (3:02)

   Note: Features the Amanda Theme, described as "a unique set of ascending scales," most prominently during the montage where Daniel and Amanda make love while Sam kills the defense minister.

10. Joseph and Daniel (4:15)

    Audio Clip: mp3

11. Tamara's Heartbeat (1:39)
12. Delivering the Message (2:53)
13. Monotheism At The Athena Academy (3:31)
14. Children of Caprica (2:26)
15. Irrecoverable Error (2:44)
16. The Adama Name (1:36)

    Note: Features the subtle statement of "Wander My Friends" when Joseph tells young Willy of his true last name and Tauron heritage—a moment that gave McCreary chills when he saw it completed.

17. Zoe Awakens (2:19)

    Audio Clip: mp3

    Note: Features the Zoe Chords as the U-87 with Zoe's data installed sputters to life before Daniel's eyes.

18. Caprica End Credits (3:37)

    Audio Clip: mp3

    Note: Contains most of the major themes from the pilot. The first sound is Paul Cartwright's solo fiddle playing the Tauron Theme, followed by the chamber orchestra with the Graystone Theme at 0:25. At 1:02, the low strings enter with an ominous version of the Graystone Ostinato. At 1:22, a harp begins the Tauron Ostinato, and at 1:30 a solo flute introduces the Tauron Theme with the orchestra building cascading variations. At 2:44, the strings and bassoons burst into an energetic version of the Daniel Ostinato.

Critical Reception and Album Quality

The album represents virtually every minute of score McCreary wrote for the pilot and serves as a companion piece to the Battlestar Galactica: Season 4 CD. McCreary just signed off on the final mixes and mastering before release, and admitted that "the album sounds wonderful."

Director Jeffrey Reiner praised the final result: "Bear is a talented man with a strange name. I can't imagine the movie without his score."

Legacy and Series Soundtrack

While this pilot soundtrack provided immediate access to McCreary's score, the composer later created what he called "the ultimate Caprica soundtrack" for the series release. The series soundtrack included the best pilot tracks alongside new material from the full series, with many pilot cues restored to their original lengths or expanded versions.

McCreary expressed particular satisfaction with several pilot tracks that were enhanced for the later release, noting that the series soundtrack represented "the most satisfying collection of cues" rather than a literal complete collection.

Press Release

From the product listing:

Presenting the original soundtrack to the special Sci Fi Channel television event, CAPRICA, the new BATTLESTAR GALACTICA spin-off prequel starring Eric Stoltz (SINGLES, PULP FICTION, MASK) and executive-produced by BATTLESTAR GALACTICA'S Ron Moore and David Eick. Acclaimed GALACTICA composer Bear McCreary fashions another spellbinding, breathtaking all-new music score that brings us back to the very beginning of the GALACTICA saga. McCreary's inventive approach to science fiction music makes yet another amazing sonic leap forward.

External Links

• "The Themes of Caprica" - Bear McCreary's detailed analysis of the pilot's musical themes
• Blog entry of Bear McCreary about the Caprica pilot soundtrack.
• Bear McCreary's blog entry about the Caprica series soundtrack