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James Horner, 1953-2015
Composer James Horner has been killed in a plane crash. Horner died when the single engine S312 Tucano plane he was piloting crashed in the Los Padres National Forest near Santa Barbara, California. He was 61 years old.
James Roy Horner was born in Los Angeles in August 1953, the son of Harry Horner, an Oscar-nominated Hollywood production designer and occasional film director who emigrated from Austria. He attended high school in California and Arizona, but spent most of his formative years living in London, where he attended the Royal College of Music, and later completed his PhD at UCLA in Los Angeles. After scoring several short film projects for the American Film Institute in the late 1970s, and spending several years teaching, Horner joined the staff at Roger Corman’s New World Pictures, scoring several low-budget genre films, including the popular Battle Beyond the Stars (1980), and working with soon-to-be Hollywood bigwigs such as director James Cameron and producer Gale Ann Hurd.
Horner launched into the big time in 1982 with his score for the critically acclaimed and commercially popular science fiction sequel Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, and from that point on Horner quickly rose to become one of the most in-demand composers in Hollywood. In the 1980s and 90s Horner became known for his grand, large-scale, emotional orchestral works; he scored a succession of box office hit movies including 48 HRS. (1982), Honey I Shrunk the Kids (1989), The Pelican Brief (1993), Clear and Present Danger (1994), Apollo 13 (1995) and Ransom (1996), and wrote enormously popular scores for films such as Krull (1983), Cocoon (1985), Willow (1988), Field of Dreams (1989), Glory (1989), Legends of the Fall (1994) and Braveheart (1995), culminating in the massive Titanic in 1997, which remains one of the biggest-selling orchestral score albums of all time. Following the turn of the millennium Horner’s career continued apace, with scores for further box office successes such as How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000), The Perfect Storm (2000), A Beautiful Mind (2001), Avatar (2009) and The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) amongst his efforts. Read more…
Academy Award Winners 2014
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) have announced the winners of the 87th Academy Awards, honoring the best in film in 2014.
In the Best Original Score category French composer Alexandre Desplat won the award for his score for directed Wes Anderson’s quirky period comedy The Grand Budapest Hotel. In his acceptance speech, Desplat said:
“Merci. Merci beaucoup. Wes [Anderson], you’re a genius. This is good! You offered me a great view from the Grand Budapest. Thank you. It’s been a beautiful decade for me in Hollywood. I’ve worked with great directors and producers, and I’m very grateful. I need to thank Laura Engel, Mark Graham, Katz, my Greek mother. Solrey [Lemonnier], I met you long ago, for my first session, you played a violin, and you made everything happen for me. So, this is for you. Thank you”
The other nominees were Desplat again for The Imitation Game, Jóhann Jóhannsson for The Theory of Everything, Gary Yershon for Mr. Turner, and Hans Zimmer for Interstellar.
In the Best Original Song category, the winners were John Legend and Lonnie ‘Common’ Lynn for their song “Glory” from critically acclaimed civil rights film Selma.
The other nominees were Gregg Alexander and Danielle Brisebois for “Lost Stars” from Begin Again, Glenn Campbell and Julian Raymond for “I’m Not Gonna Miss You” from Glenn Campbell: I’ll Be Me, Shawn Patterson for “Everything Is Awesome” from The Lego Movie, and Diane Warren for “Grateful” from Beyond the Lights.
IFMCA Award Winners 2014
INTERNATIONAL FILM MUSIC CRITICS ASSOCIATION ANNOUNCES WINNERS OF 2014 IFMCA AWARDS; HANS ZIMMER, ALEXANDRE DESPLAT TAKE TOP HONORS
The International Film Music Critics Association (IFMCA) announces its list of winners for excellence in musical scoring in 2014, in the 2014 IFMCA Awards.
The award for Score of the Year goes to composer Hans Zimmer for his work on the Christopher Nolan-directed epic science fiction odyssey “Interstellar”. IFMCA member James Southall called the score “one of the most impressive creations of Zimmer’s career” and felt that the film “inspired him to create something unusually personal and about which he is understandably proud,” while IFMCA member Kaya Savas called Interstellar “one of Hans Zimmer’s finest accomplishments as a composer”. This is the third IFMCA Award of Zimmer’s career, and the first time he has been awarded Score of the Year.
French composer Alexandre Desplat was named Composer of the Year, for his astonishingly accomplished work on a half dozen scores spanning multiple genres; his work in 2014 included the blockbuster monster movie “Godzilla,” director Wes Anderson’s quirky comedy “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” the critically acclaimed biopic of British code breaker Alan Turing “The Imitation Game,” and the George Clooney-directed WWII drama “The Monuments Men,” all of which were nominated in their respective genre categories. The score for “The Grand Budapest Hotel” was also named Best Score for a Comedy Film. These are the tenth and eleventh IFMCA Awards of Desplat’s career, and it marks the fourth time he has been named Composer of the Year, following his previous wins in 2006, 2007, and 2010. Read more…
BAFTA Winners 2014
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) have announced the winners of the 68th British Academy Film Awards, honoring the best in film in 2014.
In the Best Original Score category composer Alexandre Desplat won the award for his score for director Wes Anderson’s critically acclaimed quirky comedy The Grand Budapest Hotel. In his acceptance speech, Desplat said:
“Thank you. Merci beaucoup, I am very moved and honored to be here. It all goes back to Wes [Anderson]. Wes is unique. His world looks like nobody else’s. He is not here tonight but I am sure he is watching TV. I am not sure actually. But we will send him a video. There are many people involved, of course, the great musicians, Mark Graham, my agent Laura Engel, but I would like to share it with the best musician I have ever met, Solrey [Lemonnier], this is for you.”
The other nominees were Jóhann Jóhannsson for The Theory of Everything, Mica Levi for Under the Skin, Antonio Sanchez for Birdman, and Hans Zimmer for Interstellar.
IFMCA Award Nominations 2014
INTERNATIONAL FILM MUSIC CRITICS ASSOCIATION AWARD NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED; COMPOSERS JAMES NEWTON HOWARD AND ALEXANDRE DESPLAT DOMINATE
The International Film Music Critics Association (IFMCA) announces its list of nominees for excellence in musical scoring in 2014, for the 11th annual IFMCA Awards. The most nominated composers are American James Newton Howard and Frenchman Alexandre Desplat.
Howard received seven nominations, including nods for Score of the Year, Composer of the Year, Best Action/Adventure/Thriller score, and Best Fantasy/Sci-Fi/Horror score, all of which were split between his two main works of 2014: the action adventure sequel “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part I,” and Disney’s reimagining of the Sleeping Beauty story, “Maleficent”. Howard also received an unprecedented three nominations in the Film Music Composition of the Year category, including one for the song “The Hanging Tree,” which he co-wrote with Jeremiah Fraites and Wesley Schultz of The Lumineers, and Hunger Games book series author Suzanne Collins, and which was performed by the film’s lead actress, Jennifer Lawrence. Howard has previously been nominated for a total of 23 IFMCA Awards, winning six of them, including Score of the Year in 2006 for “Lady in the Water”. Read more…
Movie Music UK Awards 2014
It’s been an outstanding year for film music in 2014. I managed to get experience over 350 scores this year, both by watching movies and listening to their soundtracks independently,and I strongly feel that the soundtrack industry is thriving. Looking at the big picture, on a global scale, outstanding music is coming from all corners of the globe: this year, I have nominated works from China, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Norway, Poland, South Korea, Spain, and Venezuela, as well the USA and the UK. If you look outside the mainstream, you can still find a lot of outstanding work being written for under-the-radar projects that demand our attention.
As such, narrowing down my choices for the best of the year has been a very difficult task – one of the most difficult in recent memory. However, I’ve finally been able to put everything into some sort of logical order – so, for your reading and listening pleasure, I present the 2014 Movie Music UK Awards!
Academy Award Nominations 2014
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) have announced the nominations for the 87th Academy Awards, honoring the best in film in 2014.
In the Best Original Score category, the nominees are:
- ALEXANDRE DESPLAT for The Grand Budapest Hotel
- ALEXANDRE DESPLAT for The Imitation Game
- JÓHANN JÓHANNSSON for The Theory of Everything
- GARY YERSHON for Mr. Turner
- HANS ZIMMER for Interstellar
These are the first Oscar nominations for Jóhannsson and Yershon, although Jóhannsson won the Golden Globe earlier this year for The Theory of Everything. These are the 7th and 8th Oscar nominations for Desplat, and the 10th Oscar nomination for Zimmer, who previously won in 1994 for The Lion King.
In the Best Original Song category, the nominees are:
- GREGG ALEXANDER and DANIELLE BRISEBOIS for “Lost Stars” from Begin Again
- GLEN CAMPBELL and JULIAN RAYMOND for “I’m Not Gonna Miss You” from Glen Campbell… I’ll Be Me
- JOHN LEGEND and LONNIE LYNN (COMMON) for “Glory” from Selma
- SHAWN PATTERSON for “Everything Is Awesome” from The Lego Movie
- DIANE WARREN for “Grateful” from Beyond the Lights
The winners of the 87th Academy Awards will be announced on February 22, 2015.
Golden Globe Winners 2014
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) have announced the winners of the 72nd Golden Globe Awards, honoring the best in film and American television of 2014.
In the Best Original Score category Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannsson won the award for his score for The Theory of Everything. In his acceptance speech, Jóhannsson said:
“Well, this is a great honor. When you’re given material like The Theory of Everything to work with it feels like my job is very easy. A great script, wonderful performances, and all expertly directed by James Marsh who I want to thank especially for inviting me to be a part of his team. I want to thank the Hollywood Foreign Press, I want to thank Eric Fellner and Tim Bevan, Working Title, Universal, Focus Features, my wonderful team, Tim Hughes, and Kevin Korn and all at GSA, my family in Iceland and Denmark, and I want to share this with the musicians and technicians who helped create the score. Thank you so much.”
The other nominees were Alexandre Desplat for The Imitation Game, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross for Gone Girl, Antonio Sánchez for Birdman, and Hans Zimmer for Interstellar.
In the Best Original Song category, the winners were John Legend and Lonnie Rashid Lynn Jr. (aka Common) for their song “Glory” from the civil right drama Selma.
The other nominees were Elizabeth Grant (aka Lana Del Rey) for “Big Eyes” from Big Eyes, Greg Kurstin, Sia Furler and Will Gluck for “Opportunity” from Annie, Patti Smith and Lenny Kaye for “Mercy Is” from Noah, and Ella Yelich-O’connor (aka Lorde) for “Yellow Flicker Beat” from The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part I.
BAFTA Nominations 2014
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) has announced the nominations for the 68th British Academy Film Awards, honoring the best in film in 2014.
In the Best Original Music category, which is named in memory of the film director Anthony Asquith, the nominees are:
- ALEXANDRE DESPLAT for The Grand Budapest Hotel
- JÓHANN JÓHANNSSON for The Theory of Everything
- MICA LEVI for Under the Skin
- ANTONIO SÁNCHEZ for Birdman
- HANS ZIMMER for Interstellar
These are the first BAFTA nominations for Jóhannsson, Levi, and Sánchez. It is the 7th BAFTA nomination for Desplat, who won the award in 2011 for his score for The King’s Speech, and the 7th BAFTA film nomination for Zimmer.
The winners of the 68th BAFTA Awards will be announced on February 8, 2015.
Golden Globe Nominations 2014
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) have announced the nominations for the 72nd Golden Globe Awards, honoring the best in film and American television of 2014.
In the Best Original Score category, the nominees are:
- ALEXANDRE DESPLAT for The Imitation Game
- JÓHANN JÓHANNSSON for The Theory of Everything
- TRENT REZNOR and ATTICUS ROSS for Gone Girl
- ANTONIO SÁNCHEZ for Birdman
- HANS ZIMMER for Interstellar
These are the first major film music award nominations for both Jóhannsson and Sánchez, although Sánchez has won four Grammy awards for his work as a jazz musician. This is the 7th nomination for Desplat, who won the Globe in 2006 for The Painted Veil, the 3rd nomination for Reznor and Ross, who won the Globe in 2010 for The Social Network, and the 12th nomination for Zimmer, who previously won Globes for The Lion King in 1994 and Gladiator in 2000.
In the Best Original Song category, the nominees are:
- ELIZABETH GRANT (LANA DEL REY) for “Big Eyes” from Big Eyes
- GREG KURSTIN, SIA FURLER and WILL GLUCK for “Opportunity” from Annie
- JOHN LEGEND and LONNIE RASHID LYNN Jr. (COMMON) for “Glory” from Selma
- PATTI SMITH and LENNY KAYE for “Mercy Is” from Noah
- ELLA YELICH-O’CONNOR (LORDE) for “Yellow Flicker Beat” from The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part I
The winners of the 72nd Golden Globe Awards will be announced on January 11, 2015.
Introducing Throwback Thirty
I have decided to introduce a new feature here at Movie Music UK, which will feature reviews of classic scores from my own childhood and one of my favorite periods for film music – the 1980s. Inspired by the “Throwback Thursday” idea from Facebook, in which people post old photos of themselves every Thursday, I have decided to call this feature Throwback Thirty!
My plan is that, every Thursday, I will debut a brand new review for a score from a film which was in theaters exactly thirty years ago (roughly – there will be a bit of leeway here and there), meaning that for the rest of the year I will be looking at scores released in 1984.
The first review will debut tomorrow; I hope you enjoy it, and I hope you enjoy the series going forward!
Introducing the Fathers of Film Music series
As you all may be aware, I have an unabashed passion for Golden Age film scores. I was very happy to join Movie Music UK in 2010 and be given the opportunity to review the wonderful scores from this era. Sometime ago I had an idea to enhance the MMUK experience by providing our readers with more insight and knowledge of this era. I offered to provide a new series where I would explore the biographies, style, filmography, masterworks, awards and legacy of the great film score composers of the past.
It seemed to me from my discussions at different film score community sites that for many members, while there was an understanding and appreciation of modern film scores, much of its earlier history and works for the most part remained unexplored, the proverbial terra incognita. As a student of film score history, I believe that to better understand and appreciate the present, you must first understand the past. As any archeologist can attest, there are great treasures of the past just waiting to be discovered. It is my sincere hope that I can serve as a your guide on a personal quest of discovery of some of the greatest composers and scores ever written.
I am very pleased to launch this series with an exploration of how it all began, with none other than the true Father of Film Scores, a film score Titan, and one of my favorite composers, the legendary Max Steiner. The first article will go live on Tuesday April 1st, and will continue with a new article on the first of each month from now on.
All the best!
Academy Award Winners 2013
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) have announced the winners of the 86th Academy Awards, honoring the best in film in 2013.
In the Best Original Score category British composer Steven Price won the award for his score for the critically acclaimed action/science fiction/drama Gravity. In his acceptance speech, Price said:
“Thank you, thank you Academy, thank you so very much. Alfonso [Cuarón], I share this with you, you inspired every frame of this film, and certainly every note that I ever wrote. Thank you for this remarkable opportunity. To all the musicians and friends who lent their talents to this score, thank you. I get to stand here but this really belongs to all of us. Thank you to all at Warner Brothers, thank you to GSA, everyone on this film for their incredible support. One of the most amazing things about working on this film is that, in telling the story of Ryan Stone, we got to ultimately bring her home and celebrate life, and this is dedicated to the people with whom I share my life – my family. Thank you Mum, Dad, Jenny, sorry I made so much noise when I was growing up. My wife Gemma, our lovely children Amy and Eva, thank you so much, everyone.”
The other nominees were William Butler and Owen Pallett for Her, Alexandre Desplat for Philomena, Thomas Newman for Saving Mr. Banks, and John Williams for The Book Thief.
In the Best Original Song category, the winners were Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez for the massively popular “Let It Go” from the hit Disney animated film Frozen, performed by Idina Menzel.
The other nominees were Paul Hewson (Bono), David Evans (The Edge), Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. for “Ordinary Love” from Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom; Karen Orzolek and Spike Jonze for “Moon Song” from Her; and Pharrell Williams for “Happy” from Despicable Me 2.
IFMCA Award Winners 2013
INTERNATIONAL FILM MUSIC CRITICS ASSOCIATION ANNOUNCES WINNERS; COMPOSERS FROM POLAND, SPAIN, DOMINATE
The International Film Music Critics Association (IFMCA) announces its list of winners for excellence in musical scoring in 2013. This year’s awards have a real international flavor, with the top awards going to composers primarily from Poland and Spain, but also from France, Japan and Argentina.
The award for Score of the Year goes to Polish composer ABEL KORZENIOWSKI for his beautiful score for director Carlo Carlei’s new cinematic version of the classic Shakespeare story of tragically doomed love, ROMEO AND JULIET. IFMCA member Christian Clemmensen called the score an “epic romance”, and felt that the film “inspired greatness out of the right composer”, while IFMCA member Jon Broxton said that Korzeniowski “is a composer who is not afraid to bring out the deeper sentiments in a film through his music, and it’s so refreshing to hear music from a man who so clearly understands what good film music can achieve”. Read more…
BAFTA Winners 2013
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) have announced the winners of the 67th British Academy Film Awards, honoring the best in film in 2013.
In the Best Original Score category composer Steven Price won the award for his score for the acclaimed sci-fi action movie Gravity. In his acceptance speech, Price said:
“Thank you, thank you so much BAFTA. My daughters once told me if I was incredibly nervous and terrified at any point I should say their names, so I’m going to do that first. Thank you Amy, thank you Eva. I share this with Alfonso [Cuaron], you inspired every second of this, and its been a huge honor to tell this story with you. I want to thank all of the musicians who played on this score and gave the music it’s heartbeat. Everyone at Warner Brothers, everyone at GSA, all the people on this film who’ve been so supportive. Thank you to my mum and dad for having such a great record collection when I was a kid and starting this whole thing off. But most of all thank you Gemma, my wife.”
The other nominees were Henry Jackman for Captain Phillips, Thomas Newman for Saving Mr. Banks, John Williams for The Book Thief, and Hans Zimmer for 12 Years a Slave.
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