Music – Page 2 – Below the Line

Raymond & Ray Composer Jeff Beal on Crafting a Trumpet Piece for Ethan Hawke, and His Actor-Friendly Approach to Scoring Films & TV Shows

January 12, 2023 Ian Spelling Comments Off

Jeff Beal is already a five-time Emmy Award winner, and the composer’s score for the Apple TV+ movie Raymond & Ray –which spans from jaunty and jazzy to heartbreaking — could have him in the hunt for another statue. A trumpet player since his youth, Beal seemed particularly suited to Raymond & Ray, as Ethan Hawke‘s character, Ray, is a trumpet player who reluctantly reconnects with his estranged brother, Raymond […]

Devotion Composer Chanda Dancy on Scoring Around the Sounds of War, and Incorporating a Corsair’s Dive Whistle Into Her Music

January 6, 2023 Danielle Solzman Comments Off

JD Dillard‘s Devotion tells the true story of naval aviators Jesse Brown (Jonathan Majors) and Tom Hudner (Glen Powell) as they fought in the Korean War. Brown was the Navy’s first Black aviator, and together with Hudner, both would become the most celebrated wingman in Naval history. Ultimately, Devotion is a film about loyalty and their friendship with each other. Composer Chanda Dancy worked closely with Dillard to develop the score […]

Animation

Academy Unveils Shortlists in 10 Oscar Categories, Including a Star-Studded Field for Best Song

December 21, 2022 Staff Comments Off

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced shortlists in 10 categories for the 95th Academy Awards, including Documentary Feature Film, Documentary Short Film, International Feature Film, Makeup and Hairstyling, Music (Original Score), Music (Original Song), Animated Short Film, Live Action Short Film, Sound, and Visual Effects. The Best Song category, in particular, is stacked this year, as artists who made the Academy’s shortlist include Rihanna, Taylor Swift, Lady […]

We Are Art Through the Eyes of Annalaura Director-Star Annalaura di Luggo on Highlighting Social Inclusion in Her Film Work and Music

December 13, 2022 Jeff Sneider Comments Off

Director, songwriter, and artist Annalaura di Luggo recently held a virtual chat with members of the Society of Composers and Lyricists to discuss her film We Are Art Through the Eyes of Annalaura, which is currently in contention for Best Documentary Feature and Best Song [“We Are Art”] at the Academy Awards. We Are Art Through the Eyes of Annalaura is one of three Italian documentaries from di Luggo, along […]

Babylon Composer Justin Hurwitz on Creating a Unique Jazz Sound for His Reunion With Damien Chazelle

December 13, 2022 Danielle Solzman Comments Off

Writer-director Damien Chazelle has been working on Babylon for more than a decade — that’s how long the movie has been living in his head. Oscar-winning composer Justin Hurwitz hasn’t lived with the project for quite as long, but he worked on the score for three years, and while his scores for Chazelle’s previous films run just over an hour, his Babylon score clocks in at around two hours, which […]

Thirteen Lives Composer Benjamin Wallfisch on Enhancing the Emotion and Tension of Ron Howard’s Rescue Drama

December 13, 2022 Edward Douglas Comments Off

At the relatively young age of 43 years old, British Composer Benjamin Wallfisch has already been nominated as Film Composer of the Year two years in a row at the World Soundtrack Awards, and nominated for a Golden Globe for composing the Hidden Figures score with Hans Zimmer and Pharrell Williams. He also earned BAFTA and Grammy nominations for the Blade Runner 2049 score he and Zimmer composed together. Wallfisch has […]

The Menu Composer Colin Stetson on Approaching the Culinary Thriller Like a Comedy, and How the Strings Tied the Score Together

December 8, 2022 Danielle Solzman Comments Off

The star-studded culinary thriller The Menu is a biting satire set in the world of fine dining. Ralph Fiennes stars as a revered chef who offers his guests a one-of-a-kind experience at his high-end restaurant, Hawthorne, which is located on a remote island. Anya Taylor-Joy and Nicholas Hoult play two lucky(?) diners who bite off a bit more than they can chew as Chef serves the rest of his guests […]

Men Composer Ben Salisbury on Scoring Alex Garland’s A24 Film With Portishead’s Geoff Barrow and How Jessie Buckley (and a Bird) Helped

December 7, 2022 Edward Douglas Comments Off

Composers and musicians Ben Salisbury and Geoff Barrow have scored all of filmmaker Alex Garland‘s work to date, including three features and the FX series Devs, but their score for Garland’s summer release Men is next-level — it’s music that’s as haunting and eerie as the film itself. For those unfamiliar, Barrow is one-third of the acclaimed British band Portishead, while Salisbury comes from a background scoring nature films and […]

Mad Max: Fury Road Composer Tom Holkenborg (aka Junkie XL) on Reuniting With George Miller for Three Thousand Years of Longing

December 6, 2022 Edward Douglas Comments Off

George Miller’s adaptation of Three Thousand Years of Longing flew under the radar when MGM released the film earlier this year, but it’s worth seeking out on VOD and digital platforms, as not only is it a visual feast, but it once again finds Miller working with Grammy-nominated composer Tom Holkenborg (aka “Junkie XL”), with whom he worked on Max Max: Fury Road. Holkenborg gives Miller’s latest film a rich score that’s […]

Composer Tyler Bates on Scoring Ti West’s X and Pearl, Two Killer Films That Couldn’t Sound More Different

December 5, 2022 Edward Douglas Comments Off

Musician and composer Tyler Bates has been making music for movies and television for many decades, but his work has become far more prominent working with the likes of Zack Snyder (300, Watchmen), James Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy), David Leitch (Deadpool 2, Atomic Blonde), Chad Stahelski (John Wick), and Rob Zombie (The Devil’s Rejects, Halloween). A few years back, Bates came on board to score filmmaker Ti West‘s yet-to-be-named […]