The Little Mermaid: Original Walt Disney Records Soundtrack is the soundtrack to
the 1989 Disney animated feature film, The Little Mermaid. It contains the
songs from the film written by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, as well as the
film's score composed by Alan Menken. The score was orchestrated by Thomas
Pasatieri. The album received the Academy Award for Best Original Score
and Best Original Song, and the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score.
The soundtrack was first released by Walt Disney Records on October 13, 1989
on both CD and cassette tape. On November 22, 1994 the album was included
in a four-disc box set entitled The Music Behind the Magic: The Musical
Artistry of Alan Menken, Howard Ashman & Tim Rice. The box set included work
tapes and demos intertwined into the finished original soundtrack. The
soundtrack was re-released with different artwork, on October 14, 1997
and it was released internationally on October 31, 2000 in a double pack with
The Little Mermaid II soundtrack. On October 3, 2006, a new two-disc special
edition version of the soundtrack was released to correspond with the two-disc
Platinum Edition DVD release of The Little Mermaid. The first disc remains
identical to the original release, yet with remastered audio, while the newly
added second disc is composed of various newly recorded version of the film's
songs by different artists, such as Ashley Tisdale, Raven-Symoné, The Jonas
Brothers, and Jessica Simpson. It also included two music videos, as well as
new cover art. The Legacy Collection: The Little Mermaid was released as a
two-disc album on November 24, 2014, to coincide with the film's twenty-fifth
anniversary. Reception
As of February 2007, the album is certified 6x Platinum by the RIAA. In
2010, Rhapsody called it one of the all-time great Disney and/or Pixar
Soundtracks. Track listing
All music composed by Alan Menken with lyrics by Howard Ashman. All scores
composed by Menken. Unreleased songs/score
Several pieces of music from the movie remained unreleased in any format from
Disney until the release of "Walt Disney The Legacy Collection: The Little
Mermaid" in December 2014 according to the 25th anniversary of the film. A
fan-compiled complete score does exist and can be heard/seen on video sharing
websites. Fathoms Below [1:41]
Main Titles [1:34] Sebastian's Fanfare [0:06]
Daughters of Triton [0:36] Daughters of Triton [0:36]
Part of Your World [3:23] Part of Your World [3:23]
Part of Your World [Instrumental] [2:14] Under the Sea [3:11]
Poor Unfortunate Souls / Ursula’s Deal [2:15]
Poor Unfortunate Souls [1:14] Les Poissons [1:32]
Kiss the Girl [2:40] Vanessa on the Beach [1:00]
Poor Unfortunate Souls [0:32] Poor Unfortunate Souls [Instrumental]
[0:32] Interrupting the Wedding / Ursula's
Defeat [6:45] Happy Ending [3:10]
Happy Ending [3:10] Score composition and orchestration
Alan Menken's first songs-and-underscore project garnered him an Academy Award
for the Best Score of 1989. This would prove to give him a very high
nomination-to-win ratio of awards. Alan was originally hired for the songs only,
but after writing an underscore demo for the film's executives, his assignment
grew. The following are some details on the film's score overall:
Almost all of the score features a section of music in the key of G major.
"Tour of the Kingdom" alternated between G major and E major throughout.
In darker moments, and for Ursula's theme, the key of G minor is prominent",
most of "The Storm", "Eric to the Rescue" among others).
The French horn is used to symbolize King Triton, the oboe is used to
symbolize Prince Eric. Usually the brass section represents Ursula and the flute
almost always portrays Ariel's vocal aria. Clarinets represent Scuttle.
Synthesizers and electric pianos are used quite often in the orchestration,
but the grand piano is almost never used.
Scuttle's leitmotif can be heard in the beginning of "Wedding Announcement", the
scene after Ariel becomes a human and was the basis for "Beyond My Wildest
Dreams" in the 2007 broadway production. This theme is used as a variation for
the music when the animals are stopping Vanessa's wedding.
Ursula's leitmotif is most obvious in the track "Flotsam and Jetsam" but it
comes from the melody notes for the chorus of "Poor Unfortunate Souls". This
theme is also used while Ariel is being transformed, and it is played fast and
supported by a harsh brass section. Chart positions
See also The Music Behind the Magic
Walt Disney Records: The Legacy Collection
References