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In this episode of Sync Music Matters I’m interviewing Jeanie Finlay
Jeanie Finlay is a documentary filmmaker.
She has made films for HBO and the BBC including four commissions for the acclaimed BBC Storyville strand such as BIFA nominated The Great Hip Hop Hoax and BIFA winning Orion: The Man Who Would Be King
She directed the Emmy Nominated Game of Thrones: Last Watch which was a behind the scenes look at the making of the final series.
Her most recent film, Your Fat Friend, is in cinemas now and is a documentary following author and blogger Aubry Gordon who writes about fat acceptance and anti fat bias.
During the course of this interview we also delve in to Jeanie's rich musical past and her general love of creating. -
Interview with Jed Kurzel
This week on Sync Music Matters I'm talking to Australian singer-songwriter, guitarist and film composer Jed Kurzel
Jed originally started out as the singer and frontman of the blues rock duo The Mess Hall before turning his attention to composing for film.
He won the Screen Music Awards Film Score of The Year for his debut film Snowtown. The film which gained international recognition, explores the relationships between the murderous gang members behind a spate of killings in Adelaide, Australia in the 1990s
Jed has since gone on to score feature films like The Pope’s Exorcist, The Babadook, Slow West and Macbeth to name but a few.
In this interview with Jed Kurzel we chat about his childhood obsession with sport and somewhat unplanned foray into scoring film.
Listen to Jed Kurzel on Spotify -
Fehlende Folgen?
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In this week’s episode of Sync Music Matters I’m talking to multi award winning composer, artist and producer Hannah Peel
Last year Hannah Peel won the Ivor Novello Best TV Soundtrack award for her score to Sky’s Midwich Cuckoos starring Keely Hawes.
Having previously won awards with the Royal Television Society and Music Producers Guild
She was Nominated for an Emmy for work on the documentary Games of Thrones - The Last Watch and is a regular collaborator with Paul Weller
She is currently collaborating with Anne Nikitin.
Also dabbles in a bit of theatre including productions at Sadler's Wells and as if that weren’t enough, she also presents the BBC radio 3 show Night Tracks
Often inspired by the connections between science and music, her solo record career includes the shortlisted 2021 Mercury Music Prize electronic album, Fir Wave; 2016's Awake But Always Dreaming, which became an ode to her grandmother’s mind as she lived with dementia; and connecting our brain neurons to stars in our solar system, the space-themedMary Casio: Journey to Cassiopeia, scored for synthesisers and a 30 piece colliery brass band.
A regular collaborator with Paul Weller, in 2018 she conducted and wrote all the orchestral arrangements for his shows at London's Royal Festival Hall and contributed to his new no.1 album ‘On Sunset’. A year later Peel composed and recorded the soundtrack for Game of Thrones: The Last Watch which earned her an 2019 Emmy nomination for ‘Outstanding Music Composition For A Documentary Series Or Special (Original Dramatic Score)’.
Hannah Peel Website
Jim Hustwit is a music producer and composer specialising in trailer music, production music and music for TV ads -
Cristobal Tapia de Veer is a Chilean-born Canadian composer and producer who shot to fame in 2013 with his score for the deliciously sinister and mysterious TV series Utopia.
Since then he’s scored the 2016 film The Girl with All The Gifts, Black Mirror’s Black Museum and of course White Lotus season 1 and 2 for which he won a ‘Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music’
Cristobal brings a real sense of irreverence to his scores and seems to delight in making the viewer feel uncomfortable.
If you listened to the first ever episode of Sync Music Matters when I interviewed Stephen Warbeck you might remember we talked about Cristobal Tapia de Veer and his score for the first White Lotus. So what a thrill to have the man himself to chat about
The White Lotus Soundtrack
You can follow Cristobal on Twitter @CristobalMusic
Jim Hustwit is a music producer and composer specialising in trailer music, production music and music for TV ads -
In this episode of Sync Music Matters I’m talking to Producer, Editor and Post Production specialist Stephen Haren about working on His Dark Materials and other award winning TV series and films.
Stephen wears a number of creative hats so I was keen to understand how that informs his application of music.
We go under the skin of His Dark Materials, the series based on the books by Philip Pullman.
Stephen talks about the active role he played in re-temping the series so that music had more gravity to it.
He used temp score by the likes of Trent Reznor (The Social Network), Marco Beltrami (A Quiet Place) but also preprepared cue ideas provided by the series composer Lorne Balf.
Temping movies with the composers own score is something I chatted about with editor of The Crown, Paulo Pandolpho in Episode 8
We also go under the skin and talk about the very different approach to soundtracking Northern Soul, the Elaine Constantine film starring Steve Coogan. The soundtrack for which was made up entirely of original songs.
As with a lot of my interviews we talk about the lack of melody in modern film score. I chatted to Isobel Waller Bridge about it in episode 5 and Nanita Dessai in episode 8. Nainita offered directors’ reticence to commit emotionally as a reason. Stephen has some fascinating alternative theories!
We also chat about the pitching process for composers for major TV series and films, the revealing process of watching audience previews during the production process. And Stephen and I share our love for the epic guitar riffs of the late Dimebag Darrell of the band Pantera
Stephen Haren's Website
His Dark Materials Soundtrack
Some of Stephen Haren's Musical Influences
Logan Soundtrack
Social Network Soundtrack
Mindhunter Soundtrack
Northern Soul Soundtrack
Johnny Dankworth
The Good The Bad and The Ugly Filmscore
Bernard Herrman
Pantera - Vulgar Display of Power
Jerry Goldsmith - Alien (Original Score)
Jim Hustwit is a music producer and composer specialising in trailer music, production music and music for TV ads -
In this episode of Sync Music Matters I’m talking to Emmy Award Winning Michael Price.
Michael talks about his journey from the music department of WHSmith’s to composing for shows like Sherlock and Unforgotten.
He reveals the challenges of composing music over multiple series and how his creative approach changes when writing music as a solo artist.
He talks fondly of his time working with the late great Michael Kaman who apparently used to try and improvise action cues in a single take.
Several life milestones that have changed the ways that he wants to create and write music. In Episode 7 Danny Mulhern talks about improvisation and flow state which Michael also draws on heavily to be at his creative best.
Michael Price Biog
Emmy Award winning Michael Price has composed music for TV shows such as Sherlock, Dracula, and Unforgotten. He has received numerous award nominations and was recently nominated for a BAFTA and an Emmy for his work on Dracula with David Arnold.
His film scoring work includes films such as Eternal Beauty, Cheerful Weather and Just Jim
As well as being a master of music for TV and Film, Michael releases music as a solo artist.
His solo work takes the form of beautiful improvised piano works, as heard on albums like Diary, or via the more lush, grand orchestral work, that you might hear on critically acclaimed releases Entanglement (2015) Tender Symmetry (2018) from via Erased Tapes’
His lastest release, The Hope of Better Weather, is rooted in the piano world but also exists as a bridge crossing into new terrain, including reworks and remixes from the likes of Yann Tiersen, Bill Ryder-Jones and Eluvium
And his forthcoming album, Whitsun, is an exploration of the connection between sound and memory.
Michael Price's website
Some of Michael Price's Musical Influences:
Michael Kaman
Keith Jarret - Concert in Koeln
John Tavener - The Protecting Veil
Arvo Paert
Japan - Ghosts
Jim Hustwit is a music producer and composer specialising in trailer music, production music and music for TV ads
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In today’s episode of Sync Music Matters I’m talking to music producer and Creative Director of Evolving Sound, Jules Bromley
Evolving Sound is a UK trailer music label and their mission is to deliver unparalleled, dramatic music designed specifically for theatrical promotion.
Their tracks are custom-built to enrich, enhance, illuminate and contextualise awesome visual content
Recent syncs include, Jurassic World: Dominion, 1917, Last Night in Soho, and Don’t Breathe 2
Jules’ career began in dance production and remixing, with a host of remix credits for the likes of Texas, Bran Van 3000, and David Arnold. He spent many years writing production music and has written for 25 albums on the Universal Production Music Catalogue.
We go under the skin of Jurassic World: Dominion which was a recent custom trailer job they were involved with.
I ask Jules to break down the process of how trailers come into being from a studio starting a movie shoot to the final trailer that hits the screen and of course where the music fits into all of this. He also talks us through the structural nuances of trailer music and the 4 act structure
Jules also has a fascinating backstory as he studied Land Economy and foreign languages at Cambridge University before quitting his job in his late 20s to pursue music.
Evolving Sound Website
Some of Jules Bromley's Musical Influences:
Columbo "Rockabilly Bob"
Rimsky-Korsakov
Original Alien Trailer
Brian Transeau BT
Masters at Work
The Upbeats
Rush
Iron Maiden
About the host: Jim Hustwit is an award winning songwriter, composer and producer who writes trailer music and bespoke music for TV, film and ads. -
In this episode of Sync Music Matters, Paulo Pandolpho talks about his journey from making films with his dad’s VHS camcorder in Brazil to becoming an Emmy nominated editor on The Crown.
He has a particular love for everything music and sound so we dig into how he uses music. So for example in the initial stages of The Crown, he often creates a temp score using the composers own music. On the series Apple Tree Yard Paulo was given much more freedom to work creatively with the composers stems.
We discuss the importance and power of creative compatibility in a working relationship, the difference between cutting long form narrative vs cutting movie trailers and the pressure of working with someone looking over your shoulder.
Paulo reveals the influence that films like Jurassic Park and Psycho had on his creative journey and we touch on the the sterling work of Hollywood greats like Gerard Butler, Steven Seagal and Jean Claude Van Damme
Paulo Pandolpho is an Emmy nominated TV and film editor who is currently working on season 5 of The Crown, having previously worked on season 3 and 4.
His Emmy nomination was in the category Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing For A Drama Series - 2021 for The Crown season 4?
Other credits include BBC series Dracula, The Origin by Andrew Cumming, Tin Star starring Tim Roth for Sky Atlantic, Les Miserables and Apple Tree Yard
Paulo Pandolpho on IMDB
Stop Motion Animation of Jurassic Park Raptor Scene
Alessandra Casolari
Fernando Meirelles
Martin Phipps - Composer of The Crown
Midsommer Original Motion Picture Score by Bobby Krlic
Bernard Herman
Frankie Valli
The Killers
Jim Hustwit is a composer and music producer working in production music and trailer music. He also writes music for TV ads and podcast intro music
In Episode 10 I'm talking to Jules Bromley of Evolving Sound -
In this episode of Sync Music Matters I’m talking about composing trailer music with Rolf Krueger.
So the format of this episode is different than usual. It’s somewhere between an interview and a Musical Musing. Essentially I ask Rolf questions and he responds but I then expand on what he says and what learning we can take from it.
Rolf and I talk about succeeding in music without any formal training, where to find musical inspiration, how to switch off and relax. We also talk plugins and outboard gear.
Rolf Kruger started cutting his musical teeth back in 1993 working for the label Selected Sound - with whom he spent 20 years as one of their top composers.
In 2013 Rolf’s love of movies led him to the US based trailer music house X- Ray Dog founded by Mitch Lijewski.
Since then Rolf has been composing trailer music and has enjoyed trailer cuts with Avengers: Infinity War, Paddington, Mary Poppins Returns, Playing With Fire, Split, Fantasy Island, The Shallows
You may have heard his music in ads for The American Horror Story and The American Crime Story.
In 2018 rolf won Best Trailer Production Music Track - The Promise at the Production Music awards
Rolf is currently writing for the Atomic Overture catalogue and you can also hear a veritable plethora of Rolf's work with BMG and Universal Production Music.
You can listen to a selection of Rolf's Music here: Rolf Krueger Trailer Music -
In today's episode of Sync Music Matters I'm talking to TV, Film and General Media composer Nainita Desai
Nainita Desai Media Composer who you might be most familiar with for her extensive work in TV and Film
She is an RTS Winner a BIFA, Cinema Eye Honours and Ivor Novello nominee and is officially a BAFTA Breakthrough Brit. She was also IFMCA Breakthrough composer of 2020
Nainita’s recent projects include Netflix’s 14 Peaks - Nothing is Impossible (ASCAP Composer Choice nominee for best documentary score )
She scored the critically acclaimed Oscar Nominated film For Sama, The Sundance winning feature The Reason I Jump and American Murder - The Family Next Door Netflix’ most viewed documentary feature
We talk about her Love for Star Trek and Barbara Streisand - not necessarily together. We also discuss her fascinating route in to music via working as Peter Gabriel's Assistant and working as a TV foley artist.
You can find more about Nainita Desai here:
https://nainitadesai.com/
If you like to listen to some of Nainita Desai's influences, you can here:
Jean Michel Jarre
Brian Eno
Daniel Lanois
Peter Gabriel - The Last Temptation of Christ
Real World Studio
Dave Bottrill
BBC Radiophonic Workshop
John Barry
Stephen Sondheim
Ennio Mirricone
14 Peaks: Nothing is Impossible
The Reason I Jump
Colin Stetson - Hereditary
Gabriel Yarid
Michel Yared
Clint Mansel
Michael Nyman
Thomas Newman - Revolutionary Road
Trevor Jones - Last of the Mohicans
David Shire - The Conversation
Nicholas Britell - Don’t Look Up
Nicholas Britell - Succession
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In today’s episode of Sync Music Matters I’m talking to TV & Film composer and solo artist Danny Mulhern.
Danny is a very philosophical guy and we go pretty deep in today’s interview, exploring improvisation and flow state as a tool for creating music.
Flow state can be defined as:
“mental state in which a person performing some activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energised focus.”
We talk about overcoming procrastination or what Stephen Pressfield in the War of Art, refers to as “resistance”
And Danny generously shares about a difficult period in his life when he fell out of love with music. His love was ultimately rekindled through collaboration and ultimately the “human connection” which had been missing for some time.
We go Under The Skin with the movie What They Had and talk about a upcoming project about the Meaning Crisis cognitive psychologist John Verveake
Danny Mulhern TV & Film Composer and Solo Artist Biog
Danny Mulhern is a composer, multi-instrumentalist and producer who in addition to writing for TV and film, releases his own unique brand of instrumental music.
Much of his recent work has been with the London Contemporary Orchestra on records and film scores, including the critically acclaimed What They Had, starring Hilary Swank, Michael Shannon and Robert Forster.
Other Film and TV scores include long-running BBC forensic crime drama Silent Witness, BBC wildlife documentary The Natural World and entertainment shows with Derren Brown, Matt Lucas and Simon Pegg.
His own music is best described as contemporary classical with an ambient/electronic crossover. To my mind Danny’s music is wonderfully textural and he often plays with polyrhythms as he explores philosophical ideas around improvisation, intuition and collective intelligence
Look out for his forthcoming album Singing Through Others. Which is Inspired primarily by conversations around sense-making and the meaning crisis.
Some of Danny Mulhern's Musical Influences
Jimi Hendrix
Paul McCartney
John Lennon
The Beatles
Joni Mitchell
Brian Eno
Bob Dylan
U2 -
The Clash
Aztec Camera
Crowded House -
The Specials -
FKA Twigs
Max Richter
Jóhann Jóhannsson
Hans Zimmer
Rob Simonson
Some of the things which inspire Danny Mulhern:
Ian McGilchrist
Steven Pressfield -
Get Back (The Beatles Documentary)
John Vervaeke (Awakening from the Meaning Crisis
Rebel Wisdom (Youtube Channel)
The Social Dilemma
David Baddiel
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During the course of my podcast interviews, I keep coming across the notion that composers have a “unique voice”. Indeed this is true of any artist
In episode one Stephen Warbeck talks about your creative voice being a part of your personality that shines through in your music. Stephen tells the the story of director Phillip Kaufman requesting “music as mad as you are” of Stephen
In episode 2 Todd Baker talks about his days at college where he felt that certain students had a very distinct creative voice early on. He on the other hand, spent his college years perfecting the technical side of writing, producing and mixing and then went on to develop his unique voice.
Can You Ever Have a Truly Original Creative Voice?
Some people may question whether or not you can ever create a piece of music that is truly unique. After all there are only so many notes and so many combinations of those notes.
Creative coach Mark McGuinness believes that the art which we consume throughout our lives will go a long way to influencing how we create.
But everyone’s influences will be different and it’s actually the nuances between those influences and the way that we draw on them or combine them that ultimately creates something unique.
Is that unique combination of influences our creative voice?
There is a great quote from DeadMau5: “every music producer copies, good producers copy in new ways”
Finding vs Hearing Your Creative Voice
Creative coach Peleg Top introduced me to an interesting distinction.
“You don’t find your creative voice, you hear it.”
This really resonated with me because it reframes your creative voice as something that it is already within you rather than being something that you have lost or need to find.
It’s intrinsic rather than extrinsic.
So now instead of looking for my creative voice and I’m listening for it.
But in listening for my creative voice the tendency is to listen to the end product. Trying to identify subtle nuances that define my voice but I wonder whether that is flawed.
I wonder whether hearing your creative voices is less about the final product and more about the way we approach being creative in the first place.
In episiode three Isobel Waller-Bridge reveals that she is rarely thinking of how the musical will sound in the end but rather what's her emotional staring point?
Creating from the Heart vs Creating from the Head
I have always said that writing music, whether it be for tv and film or commercial release is about eliciting emotion in the listener.
The more emotion that we can draw on when writing, the more likely that music is to move someone emotionally.
Look at Adele. Every album she releases goes to number 1. Aside from the fact that she has an incredible voice, what is it about her music that captivates listeners around the world?
I believe that when she writes and performs she channels so much emotion into her songs that it moves people on a different level.
Sure we can create intellectually and this is a very valuable skill but if that is combined with writing emotionally, then maybe that’s where we find the magic.
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In today’s episode of Sync Music Matters I’m talking to RTS Award winning Editor Mike Holliday. Mike has worked on plethora of high profile comedy productions including Horrible Histories for which he received a BAFTA on behalf of the production team, The BBC’s hit comedy Ghosts, CODE 404 for Sky, The BABY for HBO, Dead Pixels, Man Down, Yonderland, Drifters and The Reluctant Landlord to name but a few.
Editors are often auditioning music and making creative choices with regard to what, where and how music is used in any given TV production. As such I’m very keen to talk to them and understand their process.
Mike talks about how he auditions and uses music which is invaluable for anyone who has an interest in having their music used in TV and film.
He reveals some of the many parallels between composing and editing including the critical importance of rhythm and always being in service of the production as a whole. That and the fact that whether you are making music or editing footage we love revelling in the “nerdery” of it.
We go Under the Skin of Ghosts and Code 404 and talk about how bands like the Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Rage Against The Machine have shaped his musical perspective.
We also touch on the forgotten 80’s classic The Man with Two Brains, and the Rotheram Born comedy duo the Chuckle Brothers which he was editing when he first started out.
Ghosts
Lucrecia Dalt
Arthur Sharpe
Oli Julian
Ralegh Long
Rage Against the Machine
Red Hot Chilli Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik
Funky Monks Documentary
Guns N' Roses
Metallica
Jamiroquai
Stevie Wonder - Songs in the Key of Life
The Beatles
Loving is Easy - Rex Orange County
Rock n Roll is Cold - Mathew E White
Mistakes - Late Street Dive
TV Film and Directors that have Inspired Mike Holliday
Succession
David Fincher
Terry Gilliam
Stanley Kubrick
Eyes Wide Shut
Angel Heart
Jim Hustwit is a composer and music producer -
In this episode I’m talking to Award Winning TV, Film and Theatre composer and sound designer Isobel Waller-Bridge.
In this episode of Sync Music Matters Isobel reveals how she finds musical inspiration in anything but music. In fact when talking about inspiration, she references people like Francis Bacon, Tilda Swinton and Anne Carson.
But Isobel also shares her love for composers like Ennio Moriccone, Danny Elfman, Gustav Mahler and Wendy Carlos amongst others.
We also dig into the prevalence of drone based music in modern film score and her love for it... as well as Detroit Techno.
We go under the skin with her work on the Netflix series Munich: The Edge of War as well as her recent project with the Philharmonia as part of their climate change season.
We also talk about her electronic score for Vita and Virginia and how the instructions from director Chanya Button were “lazers and no piano!”
Isobel Waller-Bridge Credits
Isobel Waller-Bridge’s recent TV soundtracks include, Emma, Black Mirror - Rachel Jack and Ashley Too, Vanity Fair, Vita & Virginia, The Split and Fleabag. And recent theatre credits include Woyzeck at the Old Vic and Knives in Hens at the Donmar Warehouse
Isobel’s eclectic scores move seamlessly between sweeping orchestral and analogue electronica, often blurring the lines between music and sound design.
She won Best Composer at Underwire Film Festival and winner of Best Sound Designer at Off West End Theatre Awards
Film Scores by Isobel Waller Bridge
Munich - The Edge of War OST
Emma OST
Vita and Virginia OST
Have a listen to some of the music that has inspired Isobel Waller-Bridge
George Benjamin
Silvina Milstein
Let it Be - The Beatles
Emma
Atonement -
Ennio Moriccone
PJ Harvey
Danny Elfman
Danny Elfman - Edward Scissorhands (OST)
The Social Network
Thomas Newman - American Beauty OST
Hans Zimmer - Dune OST
Daniel Avery
John Hopkins
Bernard Hermman - Taxi Driver OST
Hildur Guðnadóttir - Joker (OST)
Mica Levy - Monos
Jóhann Jóhannsson - Sicario OST
Jóhann Jóhannsson - Arrival (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
John Williams - E.T. The Extra Terrestrial
Wendy Carlos - The Shining
Wendy Carlos - Clockwork Orange
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs -
In this episode I’m talking to Andrew Stannard, a senior producer at Universal Production Music (UNIPPM)
Andrew and I reveal our love for 80s TV themes and hark back to an era when big melodic hooks were an industry staple. We look at what makes a great production music track, from using unique sonic textures to splicing unexpected genres. Andrew brings some music trivia gold to the table with the revelation that one of Hollywood's biggest composers wrote a TV quiz show theme.
Andrew has worked in Production Music for over 20 years, starting off as a music supervisor for Zomba, moving into sales for BMG before joining the production department at Universal.
He’s produced countless albums in all manner of genres and has worked with seasoned media composers as well as beat makers, electronic producers, and specialist composers.
I know Andrew through my work on the Filmic Folk production music albums I did for Universal. Essentially combining traditional folk instrumentation with cinematic strings.
As well as producing new music for Universal Andrew Stannard looks after an archive of old recordings on the Bruton and Chappell labels. He has supplied samples to artists like Danger Mouse and Disclosure and through this, had a hand in the worldwide number on hit record ‘Crazy’ by Gnarls Barkley
I see production music as an unsung hero of the music industry. The composers don’t usually get the glory like TV and film composers but there is some incredible production music out there. When bespoke music written to picture isn’t an option, many companies will turn to trusty production music libraries like those of Universal.
Have a listen to some of the incredible music mentioned by Andrew Stannard
Fame Theme - Irene Cara
Going For Gold Theme Tune
The Buggles - Video Killed The Radio Star
Kylie Minogue - I Should be so Lucky
Alan Hawkshaw
Keith Mansfield - Grandstand Theme
Barry Stoller - Match of The Day
Aqualung
Andrew Skeet
Ollie Holmes
Golden Swagger (UNIPPM)
Inon Zur
Chariots of Fire - Abraham's Theme
Steve Reich
Vangelis
Claude Debussy
Thomas Tallis - Spem in Alium
Alexander Parsons
Mortimer and Whitehouse - Gone Fishing Playlist
Hans Zimmer - Dune (OST)
Knightrider Theme Tune - Stu Phillips
Harry Thuman - Sphinx
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In this episode of The Sync Music Matters Podcast I’m talking to Music Supervisor and Consultant Emma Middleton.
Emma is a film trailer specialist and was voted “Music Supervisor of the Year” in 2020 at AIM Sync. She was also a winner and finalist at the Music & Sound Awards for her work on trailers for The Crown Seasons 3 & 4.
I often talk about the important of irreverence in the creative field and Emma loves to try new and unexpected musical ideas. I love the fact that she has a ‘curveballs’ folder.
Emma and I talk about how she went from studying English literature to setting up her own Music Supervision agency.
We go under the skin on her recent projects working on The Witcher and The Crown where she provides insights into the world of both sourcing and writing music for movie trailers.
We discuss her love affair with the music of John Powell... and how she left behind the Javelin in favour of a career in music.
So grab yourself a brew, sit back and enjoy this fascinating and insightful chat with Emma Middleton
The trailers, music and companies that we discuss are all linked in the show notes below
Emma Middleton's website and work
Rubato Music
The Witcher Season 2 - Trailer (Rubato Music)
The Crown Season 3 Trailer (Rubato Music)
Companies mentioned by Emma Middleton
Create Ad agency
Audio Machine
Music that has inspired Emma Middleton
John Powell - How To Train Your Dragon OST
John Powell - Should I Know You (How To Train Your Dragon 2 OST)
Murray Gold composer
Gustavo Santaolalla composer
Turin Breaks
Turin Breaks - Ether Song
Doves
Elbow
In Episode 4 of The Sync Music Matters Podcast I'm talking to Universal Production Music's senior producer Andrew Stannard
Jim Hustwit
In Podcast
16 – Working with Composers on Game of Thrones – Last Watch and Your Fat Friend with Jeanie Finlay
In this episode of Sync Music Matters I’m interviewing Jeanie Finlay Jeanie Finlay is a documentary filmmaker. She has made films for HBO and the BBC including four commissions for…
Read More
Jim Hustwit
In Podcast
15 – Making People Feel Uncomfortable with Award Winning Jed Kurzel
Interview with Jed Kurzel This week on Sync Music Matters I’m talking to Australian singer-songwriter, guitarist and film composer Jed Kurzel Jed originally started out as the singer and frontman…
Read More
Jim Hustwit
In Podcast
14 – Hannah Peel (Ivor Novello Winner) – Challenging yourself creatively and drawing on personal experiences
In this week’s episode of Sync Music Matters I’m talking to multi award winning composer, artist and producer Hannah Peel Last year Hannah Peel won the Ivor Novello Best TV…
Read More
Jim Hustwit
In Podcast
13 – Happy Accidents and Scoring White Lotus with Cristobal Tapia de Veer
Cristobal Tapia de Veer is a Chilean-born Canadian composer and producer who shot to fame in 2013 with his score for the deliciously sinister and mysterious TV series Utopia. Since…
Read More
Jim Hustwit
In Podcast
12 – His Dark Materials – Finding the Musical Tone with Stephen Haren
In this episode of Sync Music Matters I’m talking to Producer, Editor and Post Production specialist Stephen Haren about working on His Dark Materials and other award winning TV series…
Read More
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In this episode I’m talking to Composer and Sound Designer Todd Baker.
When we think of music and visuals we generally think of TV and Film but audio plays a pivotal role in creating an immersive gaming experience. And as I found out in this interview, the music often serves the kind of complex narrative you would find in film.
Todd likes to blur the line between music and sound design with a view to creating a more immersive gaming experience.
Todd Baker’s unique sound can be heard on BAFTA-nominated games such as Monument Valley 2 by Ustwo Games, Media Molecule’s Dreams and Tearaway on the PS4 and Alto’s Odessy from Team Alto.
Todd was even commissioned by Google to provide the music for a Google Doodle for Earth Day 2020.
As well as being a master of composition and sound design, Todd is also a phenomenal guitarist and co-founding member of the prog-jazz-funk-pop quartet The Lydian Collective.
Todd and I discuss:
How one person can change your life
Getting into the game composing industry
blurring the line between music and sound design
Overcoming self doubt and imposter syndrome
The impact personal life on professional life
Top Gun
Listen to the Music of Todd Baker
Todd's Website
Early Conceptual Works - Sound Circle
Monument Valley 2 - Original Soundtrack
Lydian Collective (Todd's Band)
Listen to Music that has influenced Todd Baker
Ben Walker - Folk Guitarist
Green Onions - Booker T. and The M.G.s
Limbo & Inside - Martin Stig Andersen
Steve Vai - Passion and Warfare
Steely Dan
Leftfield
Howie B - Limbo
Cliff Martinez - Solaris (OST)
Catriona Mckay
Heromi - A Place to Be
Video Games Companies
Blitz Games
Media Molecule
UsTwo
In Episode 3 of The Sync Music Matters Podcast I'm talking to Trailer Music Supervisor Emma Middleton
Jim Hustwit
In Podcast
16 – Working with Composers on Game of Thrones – Last Watch and Your Fat Friend with Jeanie Finlay
In this episode of Sync Music Matters I’m interviewing Jeanie Finlay Jeanie Finlay is a documentary filmmaker. She has made films for HBO and the BBC including four commissions for…
Read More
Jim Hustwit
In Podcast
15 – Making People Feel Uncomfortable with Award Winning Jed Kurzel
Interview with Jed Kurzel This week on Sync Music Matters I’m talking to Australian singer-songwriter, guitarist and film composer Jed Kurzel Jed originally started out as the singer and frontman…
Read More
Jim Hustwit
In Podcast
14 – Hannah Peel (Ivor Novello Winner) – Challenging yourself creatively and drawing on personal experiences
In this week’s episode of Sync Music Matters I’m talking to multi award winning composer, artist and producer Hannah Peel Last year Hannah Peel won the Ivor Novello Best TV…
Read More
Jim Hustwit
In Podcast
13 – Happy Accidents and Scoring White Lotus with Cristobal Tapia de Veer
Cristobal Tapia de Veer is a Chilean-born Canadian composer and producer who shot to fame in 2013 with his score for the deliciously sinister and mysterious TV series Utopia. Since…
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Jim Hustwit
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12 – His Dark Materials – Finding the Musical Tone with Stephen Haren
In this episode of Sync Music Matters I’m talking to Producer, Editor and Post Production specialist Stephen Haren about working on His Dark Materials and other award winning TV se... -
In this episode of The Sync Music Matters Podcast I'm talking to Oscar winning Stephen Warbeck who is one of the UK’s most successful TV and Film composers.
Stephen is perhaps best known for his score for Shakespeare in Love for which he won an Oscar. He subsequently went on to score films like Captain Corelli's Mandolin and Billy Elliot.
More recently Stephen scored DNA, which received a César Award nomination for Best Original Score, Uncle Vanya starring Toby Jones and Richard Armitage, and The Children Act starring Emma Thompson and Stanley Tucci.
Stephen also composes for theatre and I first met him at the National Theatre where we worked together on This House, a play by Jeremy Herrin.
During the course of our conversation Stephen generously shares his thoughts on:
Having work rejected
Getting fired before you’ve even started
Dealing with… direct French directors
Bringing a unique personality to music
The Beatles vs The Rolling Stones
What he plans to do should he reach 80 years of age
If you’d like to discover some of Stephen’s incredible music or the works that have inspired him, then see below:
Listen to Stephen Warbeck’s Music
The Man in The Hat - Stephen Warbeck (Original Score)
ADN - Stephen Warbeck (Original Score)
Making The Coffee - Stephen Warbeck
The Kippers (hKippers)
Listen to Inspiration and References from Sync Music Matters Podcast with Stephen Warbeck
Alex van Warmerdam
Cristobal Tapia de Weer
The Mourning of a Star - Keith Jarrett
Gustav Mahler
Blackbird - The Beatles
Baglamadaki (small Bouzouki) Playlist
Nicola Piovani - La vita e bella
In episode 2 of The Sync Music Matters Podcast I'm talking to game composer and sound designer Todd Baker
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Welcome to Sync Music Matters, a podcast that explores the beautiful relationship between music and the moving image.
My name is Jim Hustwit and I’m your host on this journey as each week I chew the fat with industry professionals who, on a daily basis, work with music and visuals.
Now you might immediately assume I’m talking about composers but I’m also talking about the editors, the music supervisors, the directors and anyone else who’s involved with the synchronous process of pairing of audio and visuals.
My mission is to get under the skin of their recent projects, understand their relationship to these magical media and glean insights into what makes them tick and what makes them great at what they do.
I’m all about understanding the people and understanding the process.
This podcast is for anyone who would like to pull back the curtain and take a look behind the scenes of what it takes to compose music for an BAFTA winning game, place music in an Emmy winning series or edit an Oscar winning movie.
I’ll have my guests regale us with tales from the front line, provide practical tips and give us hot tips on new movies, series and soundtracks to look out for.
As a composer and music producer I have a very close relationship with music. And given that 99% of the music I create is for use in TV or film I have a close relationship with the moving image.
That and the fact that from a young age I was seduced by the magic of the movies. As an 8 year old I pretty much wore out an old VHS recording of Star Wars that I recorded off the television one Christmas.
But what I perhaps didn’t realise at the time, is that the music of John Williams played a critical role in my love for this film.
There is powerful emotional synergy when the right music is paired with the right visual.
And whilst most people will tell you that they intellectually ‘get’ the importance of music in TV & Film, I still feel it’s underestimated.
As human beings, sight is our dominant sense, so it stands to reason that the focus is on the aesthetic. But music is easily 50% of the experience.
In the first episode of Sync Music Matters I interview Oscar winning composer Stephen Warbeck
