Encanto (Bande Originale Francaise du Film)

A Disney animated musical fantasy about a widow and her family who dwell in a sentient house that imparts magical powers, Encanto opened in movie theaters in late 2021. Stephanie Beatriz (In the Heights, TVs Brooklyn Nine-Nine) stars as Mirabel Madrigal, a granddaughter without powers. Featuring songs by Broadway and Disney alum Lin-Manuel Miranda and a score by Germaine Franco (Coco, Dora and the Lost City of Gold), its accompanying soundtrack includes well over an hour of music from the film, including eight original songs. (One of them, "Dos Oruguitas," is reprised in English.) While focusing on Colombian-infused melodic fare such as vallenato, cumbia, and bambuco, Miranda sneaks in some of his trademark hip-hop fusion on the chart-topping comedic cast number "We Dont Talk About Bruno" (Disneys first number one U.S. single since 1992s "A Whole New World" from Aladdin). The bulk of the soundtrack consists of over 20 score tracks that navigate acoustic folk music, rousing symphonic material, quiet poignancy, and tense atmosphere. Franco herself performed Latin and orchestral percussion as well as keyboards on the score. The soundtrack spent multiple weeks at number one on the Billboard 200 and was nominated for Best Original Score and Best Original Song at the 94th Academy Awards. ~ Marcy Donelson