Barry's rejected work is an extension of Dances With Wolves, among others, and thus reflects the magnificent scope of the Montana setting without addressing the intricate relationships in the story. Newman's more dynamic blend of traditional orchestral sounds of Americana with his trademark folksy rhythms and instrumentation, however, covered both bases and is arguably more appropriate for the picture. Ironically, however, while Newman succeeded in providing the flair of character and intimate delicacy that Redford was likely seeking, he lost some of the epic grandeur that the film could have used. Newman's work for The Horse Whisperer is rich with the instrumental diversity that his listeners have come to expect, with an extra emphasis on the Western elements of acoustic guitar and fiddle (along with mandolin, piano, and the synthetic sounds of nature). Despite expectations that Thomas Pasatieri's orchestrations would yield a score similar to James Horner's Legends of the Fall, listeners are instead given the unpredictable and imbalanced ambience of The New World. A few of the folksy rhythms will remind of Danny Elfman's Black Beauty, as will Newman's jubilant, primary theme. Much of the score, surprisingly, meanders in the depths of barely audible dissonance or colorful solos, seeming disorganized and uncommitted to either the heart and personality of the solo accents or the occasional majestic bursts of the orchestral ensemble. The latter parts are more likely to appeal to fans of The Shawshank Redemption and Little Women, and (at the time) was one final venture into that realm before the composer delved into more ambient, experimental sounds. The soft, but never uninviting continuous orchestral murmuring that sustains the "whispering" effect throughout the background of the entire score never becomes too heavy. Nor do its frivolous moments continue so long that they distract from the whole.

Newman offers a main theme that is a knockout, but it's badly underutilized. Heard in full only during about five minutes combined in "The Rhythm of the Horse" and "End Title," this relatively simple minor-key theme is among the most attractive creations of Newman's career. Carried by solo flute before yielding to the full ensemble over elegantly strumming guitar and light percussion, these performances are alone worth investigating the entire album. Newman's failure to adapt this theme well into the fabric of his score's softer moments is a definite curiosity and disappointment. His remaining large-scale orchestral outbursts, highlighted by "Montana," offer string and French horn ideas that never relate to form any cohesion with other similar cues. The singular theme in "Montana" could remind Golden Age listeners of Max Steiner's 1963 score for Spencer's Mountain, one of the composer's final works. The late cues "The Very Act of Being" and "The Vast Continent" take their sweeping string crescendos in unique directions, forming distinctly individual high points in The Horse Whisperer that don't leave much of a memorable impression once the score is finished. What the listener will remember from the score is Newman's warm specialty instrumentation and orchestrations, both of which are standard in his career. Overall, however, while the low-key personal temperament of Newman's music may be appropriate for the characters of the film, the score as a whole is not as inspiring as the setting of Montana would suggest. An album of cues presented out of film order doesn't aid in the lack of cohesive core in the music, though any fan of the composer will easily be delighted by a half dozen of the lengthier cues. It may be impossible to compare exactly how John Barry's expansive sound would have complimented the film differently that Newman's replacement work, but it's likely that either score would ultimately have done the job.  ****   @Amazon.com: CD or Download