MRH: There was a period where it was vogue to create a hit single for a series, usually to play over a key romantic moment when two of a show’s most popular characters finally bedded, or married, or reconnected after years of avoidance. The concept of developing and positioning a hit single or customized song was tied to feature films (especially during the 80s and 90s), and it was often the song that was released individually or as part of a themed song album rather than showcasing a score.

The market has obviously changed over the past 20 years, and yet the fans have always been supportive of a show’s music, as evidenced by the Dark Shadows LPs and subsequent CDs.

Why do you think it’s taken this long for the DOOL music to finally get its own release? Was it the fans who wanted more music, or the composers who felt their music shouldn’t be treated any differently than a CD for a prime time series?

DBN: We released an album back in 1998 that did very well for a score album. A lot of the songs that have been attached to couples over the past 20 years were always licensed songs that anyone could get outside of the original music for the show, so we never tied them to soundtrack releases. What has taken so long for this release was the overwhelming amount of material to sort through and pull together. The longer we waited, the lager the volume became thus making it an even longer process. We could’ve put out a CD with the “Princess Gina” story  (we had about 45 cues with live choir that had been created over an 18 month period). We could’ve released another one for the “Franken-Black” story with over an hour of live orchestral score. We could put one out now featuring all the new “Nighttime Hope” bayou-sounding cues.

MRH: Were the rights issues for the DOOL set more complex than a conventional film or prime time TV release?

DBN: No. It is actually simpler. We’re non-union. We just put it out. That’s it.

MRH: I imagine the hardest step wasn’t deciding what music to put on the CD, but how to present it, since the set is organized into a pair of very distinct albums. Besides showcasing main themes, what are some of the steps you discovered that saved a great deal of time and labor in distilling a massive library of music down to 2 CDs?

DBN: Having Ric Kohlbeck put this together saved us an immense amount of time. As a fan he was able to grab the cues that had the most impact for the listener and as a score aficionado was able to compile and present a coherent record.

MRH: Few composers work almost exclusively for a single production. What makes the show challenging for Ken Corday and D. Brent Nelson after so many years?

DBN:There is always something new to compose for. The writers give us the inspiration and I’m more enthused now than I have ever been. We are going to be broadcasting in HD soon and possibly mixing in 5.1 surround. I love working with new technologies and discovering the hidden magic in our modern tools. I love recording live soloists, orchestra, and vocals… You name it.  We’re finding new ways of doing the same thing every day, constantly searching for unique sonic signatures. It’s like being on 5 different shows at the same time. And with over 2 hours of music used each week, there is no limit to what we can create and deliver.