Hero

1	Hero, film score~Hero: Overture / Itzhak Perlman 4:22
2	Hero, film score~For the World - Theme Music / Itzhak Perlman 4:19
3	Hero, film score~Warriors / Itzhak Perlman 3:44
4	Hero, film score~Gone with Leaves / Itzhak Perlman 3:28
5	Hero, film score~Longing / Itzhak Perlman 4:20
6	Hero, film score~At Emperor's Palace / Itzhak Perlman 3:58
7	Hero, film score~In the Chess Court / Itzhak Perlman 4:02
8	Hero, film score~Love in Distance / Itzhak Perlman 4:54
9	Hero, film score~Spirit Fight / Itzhak Perlman 4:32
10	Hero, film score~Swift Sword / Itzhak Perlman 3:36
11	Hero, film score~Farewell, Hero / Itzhak Perlman 3:00
12	Hero, film score~Sorrow in Desert / Itzhak Perlman 2:33
13	Hero, film score~Home / Itzhak Perlman 1:16
14	Hero, film score~Above Water / Itzhak Perlman 1:45
15	Hero, film score~Snow / Itzhak Perlman 1:06
16	Hero, film score~Yearning for the Peace / Itzhak Perlman 3:29

Barnes & Noble

Tan Dun's Oscar-winning score for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon blended traditional Eastern styles and instruments with Western orchestral techniques to underscore brilliantly the romance and fantastical effects of Ang Lee's film. Bolstered by the expressive cello of Yo-Yo Ma, the soundtrack proved nearly as popular with listeners as the movie itself. The Chinese-born Dun returns to his winning formula on Hero, a similar martial-arts epic set in the distant time of the Qin Dynasty and directed by Zhang Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern, Ju Dou), mixing Eastern and Western elements to create another hauntingly beautiful film score. The atmospheric "Overture" begins with the earthy tones of a violin fitted with silk strings, played by the great Itzhak Perlman, as pointed exclamations from low brass and a distant chorus and orchestra provide unsettling accompaniment. Perlman takes the lead again in the lyrical main theme "For the World," now on traditional violin; vaguely suggestive of moments from Holst's The Planets, the expressive melody establishes a sense of agelessness with modal tonality. Japanese Kodo drums and guttural, throaty chanting add to the elemental feeling of the music on "Warriors," while a sweet-toned female voice tugs at the heartstrings with the gentle melody of "Gone with the Leaves." (The lovely voice belongs to You Yan, a Chinese woman who worked part-time cleaning Dun's New York office; a chance audition led to her fairytale-like appearance on the soundtrack.) Further tracks build on these elements to fashion a sonically and emotionally rich score, a worthy successor to Crouching Tiger. And although Dun's concert music may appeal primarily to adventurous new-music fans (try the off-the-wall Water Passion after St. Matthew), his colorful and often strikingly beautiful film music ranks Dun as one of today's most creative and accessible composers for the big screen. EJ Johnson

Philadelphia Inquirer

Hero requires high-caliber music that captures the film's ancient Chinese milieu and shrewdly fulfills the singular needs of a film that's out to blur genres. In other words, this is an assignment for Tan Dun.... The score turns the film into a pageantlike series of hot, MTV-like variations on a heroic theme. David Patrick Stearns