- What made you want to compose scores for horror/thrillers? What makes you like it better than say, composing a romance score?
Horror and thrillers are certainly my favorite genres of movies on a whole. The fear factor is an important element of the film and certainly can be enhanced by an original film score. I like the idea of keeping the audience on the edge of their seats in horrors.
Although I must say even though I prefer writing horrors, I love writing music for films in general; all genres included. The reason I favour working with horror and thriller movies is because the writing of the score comes a lot naturally; Maybe because I watch a lot more horror and thriller films than anything else.
- What was the first score you did that made you choose to go in the horror direction? Can you tell me about it?
To be honest I haven't entirely strayed to the horror direction. In fact horror is just one of the many genres of films I have worked with in the past; even though it is more appealling for me. As said before, horrors are my favourite mainly because of the impact and enhancement that a musical score can have on the film.
Recently I have composed for; comedies such as the short silent film Scrabble (Endboard Productions), adventure films such as The Pirate's Curse (Location Thailand) and several video game scores which require subtle and simple background music.
You have to keep your options open in the film and video game world. Once established as a top composer, then you can specialise on certain genres. However, you can always go too far as well; as a lot of musicians also work with sound design and audio editing.
- How do you begin the process of composing a score for a film or video game? Are there certain things you must do before others? Do you get a scene from the film or game and then create music around it or vice versa? Can you please explain?
The process of scoring a video game is started by researching about the game and viewing a lot of different videos and concept art based on the game. Generally I think it is harder to score a video game compared to a film because in the score you have to compose numerous possibilities. A film is completely set and the storyline is already written. However, with a video game you create the story whilst playing and you need to compose music for levels and important points in the game which radically alter the story.
Regarding film work, the score is composed after the film is complete. So this would be in the post production stage. This is always the best way to work as the composer can relate directly to the film rather than using imagination only.
When I score a film I always view the full film several times and write lots of notes. This builds the foundations of the score and the structure is worked out from beginning to end. I can then vastly expand on this; choosing the type of score which is required.
- Do you play every instrument in your scores? Or do you direct a group? Tell me the advantageous and disadvantageous of working by yourself or having to work with others to achieve the vision you have for a piece.
For most scores I work with professional sample libraries on my Mac Pro. I use a number of the world's best sample libraries to get the best sound for my scores. East West and Project Sam are two companies which in my opinion have the best samples available.
I have also worked with real live orchestras. This is a much harder process as you have to rely on the instrumentalists to perform the music very quickly and correctly. This can be very time consuming but conducting your own score can be a really enjoyable process.
Working alone is great process in itself. You get to work for how long you want, and when you want. The freedom is very fulfilling and works very well with my lifestyle. I like to compose up to ten hours in a row rather than having breaks, so I like the idea of being able to do that. You do not have to compensate or compromise for another musician so the composing process is a lot swifter. Saying that, I have worked with other composers in the past and it is also very enjoyable. However, I always prefer to work alone if the opportunity allows me to.
- How are composing film scores and game scores different? Do you use any different techniques when doing either?
I think scoring for video games and films is a different process. And I do try to keep them separate. I find film scores generally a lot simpler to score. The main difference between the two is that films are locked media with a designated outcome. But video games have to explore every possibility of what happens in the game, and the score has to do this too. A film score is very straightforward in structure, yet a video game has so many different tracks for different sections of the game that it gets very complicated.
- Listening to "Textures," you say it was made to build sorrow, fear and anticipation. When doing a section like this, what techniques do you use to make the music allow audiences to feel these emotions? What instruments did you use in that score?
Sorrow was created using very somber violin melodies. I used an intense vibrato to imitate the emotion. The melodies in the section were generally based on the tonic note, the supertonic and the mediant, which is in the minor scale. The emphasis on the third three notes of the scale seemed to create a mourning feeling, which I expanded on vastly. In musical composition it is not only the choice of the instrumentation, which is important. The actual notation is just as important to create certain emotions.
Fear was a contrasting section. This was the idea of the piece; to compose three contrasting emotions for choreography in the form of a video. For fear I used several ambient synthesizers, which were used for effect rather than to portray a certain melody. The sounds created using the synthesizers were supposed to be tense and horrific, to recreate fear. Some slight pitches are heard, but the vital part of this emotion is the sound of the synthesizers rather than the pitch.
For anticipation I used another different selection of instruments. The electronic synthesizer at the start performed very slow notes, which were meant to make the audience anticipate the next note in the sequence. The vocalist is then add added to make the piece more interesting, and give the piece more movement even though it consists of very static chord sequences.
- How do you incorporate different instruments/sound effects when making a horror score to achieve the atmosphere of a film or game? For example, I'm listening to Nosferatu right now, if you want to go off that.
It depends entirely on the context of the film. If the film is a horror, which is meant to have great impact on the audience; keeping them on the edge of their seats, then my aim is to enhance that feeling with the original musical score. Atmosphere can be created in a number of ways. You can create atmosphere by typical musical notation in a classical orchestral score or by using ambient sythesizers to create different emotions.
I like to use a nice blend of the two. The orchestral score can amplify certain emotions which the synthesizers and electronic instruments cannot; and vice versa. I have a humongous collection of electronic instruments at my disposal, which is very helpful for scoring films in the horror and thriller genres.
Nosferatu was slightly different as the piece was composed for a live performance. I used many different melodies in the score as well as a small amount of ambience. I didn't want the piece to sound too innovative and "modern" as the film was created during the 1910's.
- What is the most unique instrument you've ever used in a score? Can you please explain?
I would suggest the Duduk, which is a middle eastern instrument. It is a wind instrument which can perform very powerful melodies. It has a unique timbre which no other instrument has (to my knowledge). I would suggest the nearest imitation of the Duduk would be the clarinet.
The instrument can be used in any context. The usual would be in films portraying ancient times in the middle east, for example Kingdom of Heaven (Orlando Bloom). However, you can get very strange yet interesting sound by using the instrument with orchestras or even electronic instruments. Being innovative and original is a great thing for a composer and using the instrument in a new context is a good way to do this.
- Which is your favorite instrument to work with and why?
I love composing for the brass section in particular; in an orchestral score. The sheer impact of huge brass chords can be very powerful. I used to play the tuba and bass trombone many years ago before I starting composing, and the experience of performing in top orchestras made me want to compose powerful brass melodies for orchestra.
When I compose for the trumpets, horns, trombones and tuba; I feel like I am back in the orchestra, playing the instruments. It does take me back to wonderful memories in my childhood. There is nothing like the adrenaline you get whilst performing a huge melody in a Tchaikovsky or Shostakovich symphony.
-When listening to your music on YouTube, I came across a pretty heated conversation between you and a critical viewer. You handled the situation gracefully, although the critic seemed to get flustered. What do you say to critics that don't understand or enjoy your scores? Has anything crazy ever happened besides the above incident (if you would even call it that)?
Youtube does get a lot of people who like to argue! That is the only criticism about the service. I remember the conversation anyway. And I sort of see what the guy meant, although I certainly do not think I was "boasting" as much as he thought! You have to sell yourself in the music and film industries and that is what I was doing.
If you have a number of qualifications, credits and testimonials you are proud of (and that will impress clients), then what is the point of not mentioning them? I don't think he even disliked my music, but the way I presented it. Each to their own I suppose, text is never presented the same as actually speaking to the clients. It can also be interpreted in different ways, which was obviously the case here. Luckily every one of my clients and friends didn't pick up the "vibes" that he did! This is the only case where this has happened....thankfully.
- Tell me about a favorite score you've composed so far, and why you feel that way.
So far I think my favourite score would be for the film Ham and the Piper, Prussia Lane Productions. The film is a romantic drama between an elderly couple. There is a lot of passion and sorrow in the film; as the wife seems to be terminally ill.
I managed to get a lot of freedom in this score, which makes it even more memorable. I was able to create the emotions that were portrayed in the film, in my own distinct way. The score is extremely versatile and varied; there are many different sounds incorporated into one large musical score. A large amount of the duration of the film is scored and this was quite a task. However, I seemed to have accomplished it to my highest standard and the entire crew were very happy! So we were all very pleased with the score.
Thanks for your time Adam!
