Experimental Band Music: Frank Zappa

When mentioning the words "experimental band music" what is the first musician you think of?
Well to my mind, it would definitely be the legendary Frank Zappa.

"His work could be experimental, mind-bending, avant-garde—and so could his children’s names. But it’s his desire to pursue the lesser trodden musical paths, his outsider status, and iconoclastic music, that have ensured his influence on a variety of music genres like heavy metal, funk, noise music, classical, and the tradition of satirical rock songs."
(Holmes, 2012)

With his non-conventional jazzy rhythms (and often lack thereof) as well as his use of the electric guitar within the big band format, Zappa is well known as a pioneer within the experimental music genre.

With his first album The Mother Of Invention - Freak Out Zappa created a full hour of pandemonium infusing intense blues, psychedelia interspersed with doo-wop and lyrics that singled out the flaws within the pop culture at the time; breaking any and all musical conventions at the time.


Zappa since went on to release another 61 (yes you read right) albums during his lifetime and in doing so changed the face of music forever.


To my mind, Zappa was an absolute nut, however his influence within the experimental genre has in turn forced society to re-examine its musical standards and pushed the boundaries of music to where they are today. If it wasn't for character's such as Frank Zappa the world might yet be stuck listening to music of the 70's; instead we have so many new and exciting genre's as well as sub-genres to broaden our musical variety.

Bellow lie some examples showcasing some of Zappa's more experimental compositions.

In conclusion then, the world would not be as musically diverse if it wasn't for pioneers like Frank Zappa, so thank you Frank, you shall live on a legend.

Reference Links:
http://thecreatorsproject.vice.com/blog/original-creators-avant-garde-rocker-frank-zappa

Interstellar OST Review

It is time I think, for another film score review! Something a little more up to date though, today I tackle an absolute gem within the science fiction genre; Interstellar (2014).

First then, lets as per usual start with a brief synopsis of the film!

"Interstellar follows humanity’s last-ditch effort to find a new habitable planet – after Earth is ravaged by environmental catastrophe. When former NASA pilot-turned-corn farmer Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) finds the coordinates to a top secret government project, he’s brought in on the secret that the government has secretly been working to send a crew through a recently discovered wormhole in the hopes that humankind can find refuge in a new galaxy. However, in order to help save the remaining people on Earth, Cooper must leave his own family behind – and journey into unknown regions of space."
(Kendrick, 2014)

Onto the films' score now!

Hans Zimmer has done it again!
From the beginning of this beautiful movie right up to the credits Hans has created music that not only encapsulates the audience but adds to and characterises the vast soundscape that is space!

Starting with an almost dreamlike opening theme consisting mainly of pads, Hans draws us (the audience) in and almost lulls us into a trance before bringing forth the absolutely massive pipe organ playing a beautiful ostinato and building (as Hans does) into an epic soundscape; reflecting the vast expanse that is space.

”Dreaming of the crash”, “Cornfield chase” and “Dust” are beautiful and haunting echoes of what’s going to follow. Hans Zimmer is building this imaginary world with the first three cues… He’s drawing the sky, the stars, the oceans, the life. The biggest organ in the world starts flapping its wings slowly. That organ is the sun that sustains life in the world of the Interstellar score. In the beginning it is gentle and soft, like rain in that sunny world. It brings a little sadness and a feeling of deep loneliness. “Day one” is like listening to your own heartbeat after many days of complete loneliness. 


(Manduteanu, 2014)

This score is all about contrast; Hans uses the unmistakable grandeur of the pipe organ (combined with the usual epic horns) and contrasts this with the almost desolate sound of pads and piano. Reason being I believe, is to create a sense of awe within the audience as well as emphasise the cold and unforgiving nature of space travel.

Furthermore Zimmer brings to life the element of time within the film, particularly within his theme Mountains. Hans begins with the sound of wooden metronome, that gradually (but EVER so gradually) builds into possibly the most insane climax in the history of film scoring! (Rivalled only by Hans' theme for inception Time)

"Anything can become a musical sound. The wind on telegraph wires is a great sound; get it into your machine and play it and it becomes interesting." Hans Zimmer


In essence then, I truly believe that Hans' score makes this movie. His use of the ordinary to create the extraordinary has astounded me within this film and I definitely believe this is some of his best work to date! This film score has taken me on an emotional journey on its own, reflecting the intimacy of being alone in a world so vast it is at times incomprehensible.



Reference Links:
http://www.soundtrackdreams.com/2014/11/soundtrack-review-interstellar-hans-zimmer-2014/
http://www.soundtrackgeek.com/v2/soundtrack-review-interstellar/
http://screenrant.com/interstellar-ending-spoilers-time-travel/
http://www.movie-wave.net/interstellar/

Film Scoring According to Michael Giacchino

Michael did it again!
The link below contains information on how to compose a "killer" score by none other than Michael Giacchino himself!

http://www.vulture.com/2013/10/michael-giacchino-how-to-score-a-movie.html

A Tribute to the Inspirational Michael Giacchino

Michael Giacchino, Michael Giacchino, Michael Giacchino, the more I say it the more excited I get!
This fantastic composer is responsible for bringing to life some of my favourite films of late.
Such films include Up, Ratatouille, Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol & Cars 2 to name but a few.


As such I feel it is only right to acknowledge this man, where he came from and why he his who he is today.

Michael Giacchino (pronounced "Juh-keen-oh") was born on the 10th of October in the year 1967.
He was born in the City of New Jersey and grew up in nearby Edgewater Park.
He first ventured into the world of film at the age of 10, creating stop motion animations on his brothers pool table and according to him, found adding music to the film the most enjoyable part of the process.


After finishing school, Michael studied at the School of Visual Arts in New York where he majored in film production. During this time he took an unpaid internship at Universal Pictures and on top of this, worked a second job in order to pay his rent.
Graduating from SVA in 1990, Michael furthered his musical career at the world famous Juilliard School. Furthermore, he worked at the publicity offices for Universal and Disney and later moved to Disney Studios in Burbank.

 His work at Disney proved fruitful however, as Michael came to the realisation that producers hired composers; thus Michael started producing for Disney interactive in order to "hire himself". Thus he began his career within the film industry, however after being presented with the opportunity to score Steven Spielberg's Jurassic park video game (which happened to be the first video game with a live orchestral score), Michael went on to score for many well known video games including: Medal of Honour & Call of Duty.

Through his extensive work within the video game genre, Giacchino was approached by none other than JJ Abrahams who asked Giacchino to transition into TV. Michael jumped at the offer and went on to be Abrahams chosen composer on many of his films (including blockbuster Super 8).



Michael, further went on to work with Brad Bird and in doing so scored the likes of The Incredibles, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, & Cloverfield.
His greatest accomplishment, however turned out to be Pete Doctor's multiple award winning animation; Up. Giacchino won two Grammy's, a Golden Globe, a Bafta as well as the esteemed Oscar for his score.

Below is a video interview with Giacchino about his journey into the film industry. Enjoy!



In conclusion then, Michael Giacchino is an amazing composer that has worked insanely hard to be where he is today and should really be an inspiration to us all!
He certainly is to me!

Reference Links:
http://www.michaelgiacchinomusic.com/biography.html
http://www.soundworkscollection.com/videos/giacchino
http://www.empireonline.com/features/film-studies-101-michael-giacchino-composer

Inspiration

A little bit of inspiration courtesy of my favourite composers!

TIME to go forth and SUCCEED!!

The Legend That Is The Lion King OST

OK, so I have decided to pay tribute to the legend himself Hans Zimmer, in this review of his ONLY academy award winning score for the Lion King (1994).

Firstly, incase those of you reading this have either been living under a rock, or are simply too young (but how could you ever be really) here is a brief synopsis of the film itself:

One of the most popular Disney animated musicals, The Lion King presents the story of a lion cub's journey to adulthood and acceptance of his royal destiny. Simba (voiced first by Jonathan Taylor Thomas, then by Matthew Broderick) begins life as an honored prince, the son of the powerful King Mufasa (voiced by James Earl Jones).
The cub's happy childhood turns tragic when his evil uncle, Scar (voiced by Jeremy Irons), murders Mufasa and drives Simba away from the kingdom. In exile, the young lion befriends the comically bumbling pair of Pumbaa the warthog (voiced by Ernie Sabella) and Timon the meerkat (voiced by Nathan Lane), he and lives a carefree jungle life. As he approaches adulthood, however, he is visited by the spirit of his father, who instructs him to defeat the nefarious Scar and reclaim his rightful throne. Borrowing elements from Hamlet, classical mythology, and African folk tales,
(Judd Blaise, Rovi)

Onto the review itself.
In my opinion the score for Lion King is possibly one of the best pieces of film music created to date. Hans' collaboration with Sir Elton John as well as  Sir Timothy Rice within the film is absolutely extraordinary, as the film score not only lends itself to the child-orientated animation, but also carries the complexity and large soundscape of a full blown epic.
"For "The Lion King," the filmmakers brought
together a trio of musical talents to create one of  the most integral,sophisticated and delightful collaborations in the studio's history."

This can be heard through the contrasting pieces of music such as "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" with the dark and epic "Elephant Graveyard".  This contrast I believe, is what takes this already stunning narrative and pushes it to another level!



The film score also carries the cultural relevance within the film through Hans' instrumentation.
The prominent use of xylophones, marimbas, pan flute and African choir's within the film place the audience within the beautiful landscape which is the African Savanah.

To get the African feeling, Hans used everything from native African instruments to pieces of old drain pipe that he tossed together to make great spooky noises. He says, "I used the marimba, which is like a wooden xylophone. 
"I like it because it sounds like clonking bones. I use it in a lot of chase scenes. I also used a little thumb piano called the kalimba. It's made out of a piece of wood with metal spokes on it. You pluck the spokes with your fingers and they make a haunting racket." Hans Zimmer
(Alicia Miller, undated)

This combined with the use of epic instrumentation such as french horns, large string ensembles and grand percussion (taikos etc) left me as an audience member enthralled with the events playing out on screen.

"One of the remarkable aspects of this score is how the African and Western influences, the latter extending to somewhat sickly waltz movements for suspenseful moments (another connection to Zimmer's past), don't conflict with each other.

(Filmtracks, 1996)


In conclusion I feel that the multi-functionality of the film score (amplifying not only the action being seen on screen but also the child-like nature of the animation) allows the audience to immerse themselves fully in the glory that is The Lion King

Reference Links:
http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/lion_king.html
http://www.lionking.org/text/review6.txt

Inspiring advice on how and why to score!

WOW!!

Found a really interesting article on film scoring thought I'd give it a share!

http://gettingthescore.com/

My Weakness: Procrastination!

SOOOO, whilst struggling to finish this MONSTROSITY of a treatment I've come to realise my  biggest weakness!

I PROCRASTINATE! Wow, as good as it feels to be done with this treatment I really should have started MUCH earlier! Time for a lifestyle change I think, because while I've come to be really good at these all-nighters, I feel like taking two 5-hour Energy's a day for two days is unhealthy (Sigh).

Showreel Thus Far

Below you shall find some of my more recent achievements with regards to composing:

This is a piece I created for the fun of it and showcases the genre I have come to know and love; Epic.

This Short Film titled Joburg's Finest showcases work I did on a Second Year film last year and is my take on the thriller / suspense genre.



This next example is a comedy that I scored and makes use of multiple genres in order to bring out the humour within the film.





Lastly is the trailer for the 3rd year experimental film I was a part of in my second year at AFDA.

Post by Forever and Never Changing.

The importance of film music today!

Film scoring started with humble beginnings; from the Silent Film Era of film, to the immense film scores heard today, film scores have changed the way in which we as the audience view films. 

As such below lies an article on the importance of a film score and its impact on the audience.

http://losangelesbrass.com/the-importance-of-music-in-film/

Who am I?

OK! So my first blogging experience.. WOW where to start!
Firstly, I am a young South African composer studying at AFDA film school in Johannesburg.
I have a passion for EPIC scores that derived mainly from my mentor; Geo Hohn (a well known South African film composer).

I have been classically trained on piano from the young age of 7 (15 years) and I suppose this is where the root of my passion for music lies.


Originally I wanted nothing to do with film music; focusing rather on popular music production  than film composition.
Whilst I still persue said dream within the popular music industry my focus has changed however to becoming a leading film composer within the industry.


I think the film that first captured my attention, with regards to the film score, was Pirates of the Caribbean, A beautiful score by the legendary Hans Zimmer.
Hans' ability to create these huge soundscapes through his simplistic yet moving melodies and countermelodies truly inspires and drives me within my own compositions.

I am driven by perfection, and whilst I know that nothing can be truly perfect my aim for this year is to create two scores that suite their accompanying films PERFECTLY.
With regards to the experimental medium I have learnt (and am currently learning) a great deal about experimental music. I hope to further my knowledge and apply said knowledge to my compositions.
My ultimate goal for this year however, is to create music worthy of my showreel.
Being a student, a lot of the projects we do are purely done with the intent of a passing mark (or distinction in my case). However, this year is my year to make something worthwhile that I can be proud to call my own!

Soooo, i suppose this sums me up in a nutshell! A young composer with BIG aspirations, gaining both knowledge and experience to replicate that which excites me; epic film scores.

Find below the link to my Mentors' website to get some insight into my inspiration!
http://www.geohoehn.com/