The latest Cinematic Radio Show edition, JAN 27, 2009

THIS JUST IN features the newest film music albums as they arrive. On this special two hour episode Erik Woods, the host of the show, will review the International Film Music Critics Association's nominations for film music excellence as well as play music from BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES (Walker), THE SPIRIT (Newman), TERMINATOR: THE SARAH CONNOR CHRONICLES (McCreary), THE DEAD POOL (Schifrin) and VINTAGE CINEMA featuring music from SPELLBOUND (Rozsa), THE RED PONY (Copland) and ON THE WATERFRONT (Bernstein) performed by Erich Kunzel and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra.

Here is the playlist:
http://www.geocities.com/cinematicsound/playlists/jan_27_09.html

Click Here to listen to the show:
http://www.geocities.com/cinematicsound/

REPORT: TYLER BATES scores "THE WATCHMEN" - Photos and article on the recording sessions

American composer of 300, Tyler Bates, is responsible for the musical accompaniment of the long awaited upcoming comic book adaptation, The Watchmen.

Watchmen is an upcoming 2009 American superhero film that adapts Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' 1986 comic book limited series of the same name. Directed by Zack Snyder, the film adaptation stars Patrick Wilson, Jackie Earle Haley, Malin Akerman, Billy Crudup, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Matthew Goode, Stephen McHattie and Carla Gugino. Set in an alternate 1985, the film follows a group of former vigilantes as tensions heighten between the United States and the Soviet Union. The film began shooting in Vancouver in September 2007 for release on March 6, 2009. As with his previous film 300, Snyder closely modeled his storyboards on the comic, but he chose not to shoot all of Watchmen using chroma key and opted for more sets.

This past fall, as scoringsessions.com reports, he was at the Eastwood Scoring Stage at Warner Bros. to record his score for the film where an 87-piece orchestra was used, and ScoringSessions.com was there to report with exclusive photos from the scoring session.

All can be found HERE.

NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED FOR OSCARS 2009 - BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

The associated press gave away the nominations for all the categories for this year's ACADEMY AWARDS which you can view HERE, with the nominations for BEST ORIGINAL SCORE being:


"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Alexandre Desplat;
"Defiance," James Newton Howard;
"Milk," Danny Elfman;
"Slumdog Millionaire," A.R. Rahman;
"WALL-E," Thomas Newman.

ALEXANDRE DESPLAT's "AFTERWARDS"

The celebrated french composer of this year's beautiful score to THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON, Alexandre Desplat has yet another upcoming project being released, entitled AFTERWARDS.

Directed by Gilles Bourdos, the new drama is about the life of newly divorced lawyer Nathan Del Amico who is shaken up after he meets a doctor who claims that he can sense when select people are about to die. Though he doesn't believe the doctor, events in Nathan's life slowly make him think he's not long for this world.

The movie's score is provided by the composer is featured in a MAKING OF video, linked at the original source, HERE along with info on the score that's going to be released by NAIVE RECORDS.

Here are the CREDITS OF THE SCORE:

Musique composée, orchestrée et dirigée par Alexandre Desplat

Trompette solo: Ibrahim Maalouf
Piano solo: François Pinel
Percussions: Cyril Atef
Violon solo: Dominique Lemonnier
Violoncelle solo: Eric-Maria Couturier
Cor solo: Jean-Jacques Justafré
Harpe: Nicolas Tulliez
Flute, piano, programming: Alexandre Desplat

Enregistrée et mixée au studio Davout
Ingénieur du son: Andrew Dudman
Pro Tools : Benjamin Caillaud
Assistants : Cécile Coutelier, Cédric Culnaert

Régie : Christophe Briquet
Orchestrations : Alexandre Desplat, Jean-Pascal Beintus
Copistes: Norbert Vergonjanne, Claude Romano
Assistant d’Alexandre Desplat : Thomas David

For more, visit this link HERE.

TRACKLISTING, HERE.

INFO IN ITALIAN, HERE.

SOUND CLIPS, HERE and HERE.

IFMCA 2008 AWARDS - NOMINEES ANNOUNCED

THE INTERNATIONAL FILM MUSIC CRITICS ASSOCIATION (IFMCA) ANNOUNCES ITS 2008 NOMINEES FOR SCORING EXCELLENCE

THOMAS NEWMAN’S WALL*E LEADS THE FIELD WITH 4 NOMINATIONS

JANUARY 16, 2009. WALL*E, the Pixar movie about a lone robot left on Earth, garnered the most nominations for the fifth annual International Film Music Critics Association Awards for Excellence. The animated film was nominated for four awards: Film Score of the Year, Best Score for an Animated Film, Best Film Composition (for “Define Dancing”) and Composer of the Year for Thomas Newman (who also scored REVOLUTIONARY ROAD and TOWELHEAD in 2008).

Also nominated for Film Score of the Year are the acclaimed THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON by Alexandre Desplat; the highest grossing movie of the year, THE DARK KNIGHT by James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer; the Abu Ghraib prison documentary STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE by Danny Elfman and the first score by veteran film composer John Williams in three years, INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL.

Danny Elfman received the most individual nominations this year with seven: Composer of the Year; Film Score of the Year and Best Documentary Score for STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE; Best Drama Score for MILK; Best Action/Adventure Score and Best Individual Cue for WANTED (“Success Montage”); and Best Fantasy/Science Fiction Score for HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY.

In the category of Breakout Composer, the Association took notice of scores by up-and-coming composers Paul Cantelon (THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL and W.), Andrew Lockington (JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH and CITY OF EMBER), Nico Muhly (THE READER), Max Richter (WALTZ WITH BASHIR) and Atli Örvarsson (BABYLON A.D. and VANTAGE POINT).

The nominations by the IMFCA, which has members from around the world, reflect the Association’s global perspective. International score nominees include the latest Hayao Miyazaki animated film GAKE NO UE NO PONYO (PONYO ON THE CLIFF) by Joe Hisaishi, the comedy BIENVENUE CHEZ LES CH’TIS by Philippe Rombi, and the made-for-television movie PANE E LIBERTÀ by Ennio Morricone.

The International Film Music Critics will announce the winners of their 5th Annual Awards on February 18, 2009.

FILM CATEGORIES:

FILM SCORE OF THE YEAR
• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, music by Alexandre Desplat
• The Dark Knight, music by James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer
• Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, music by John Williams
• Standard Operating Procedure, music by Danny Elfman
• Wall*E, music by Thomas Newman

FILM COMPOSER OF THE YEAR
• Alexandre Desplat
• Danny Elfman
• James Newton Howard
• Thomas Newman
• John Powell

BREAKOUT COMPOSER OF THE YEAR
• Paul Cantelon, The Other Boleyn Girl and W.
• Andrew Lockington, Journey to the Center of the Earth and City of Ember
• Nico Muhly, The Reader
• Max Richter, Waltz with Bashir
• Atli Örvarsson, Babylon A.D. and Vantage Point

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A DRAMA FILM
• The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, music by James Horner
• Che, music by Alberto Iglesias
• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, music by Alexandre Desplat
• Defiance, music by James Newton Howard
• Milk, music by Danny Elfman

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A COMEDY FILM
• Bienvenue Chez Les Ch’tis, music by Philippe Rombi
• Burn After Reading, music by Carter Burwell
• Fool’s Gold, music by George Fenton
• Leatherheads, music by Randy Newman
• Tropic Thunder, music by Theodore Shapiro

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR AN ACTION/ADVENTURE FILM
• The Dark Knight, music by James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer
• Hancock, music by John Powell
• Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, music by John Williams
• Speed Racer, music by Michael Giacchino
• Wanted, music by Danny Elfman

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A FANTASY/SCIENCE FICTION FILM
• The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, music by Harry Gregson-Williams
• City of Ember, music by Andrew Lockington
• Hellboy II: The Golden Army, music by Danny Elfman
• Inkheart, music by Javier Navarrete
• The Spiderwick Chronicles, music by James Horner

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A HORROR/THRILLER FILM
• The Happening, music by James Newton Howard
• Låt den rätte komma in (Let the Right One In), music by Johan Söderqvist
• Mirrors, music by Javier Navarrete
• Twilight, music by Carter Burwell
• Valkyrie, music by John Ottman

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR AN ANIMATED FEATURE
• Bolt, music by John Powell
• Gake no ue no Ponyo (Ponyo on the Cliff), music by Joe Hisaishi
• Horton Hears a Who!, music by John Powell
• Wall*E, music by Thomas Newman
• Waltz with Bashir, music by Max Richter

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
• The Crimson Wing: Mystery of the Flamingos, music by The Cinematic Orchestra
• Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son about his Father, music by Kurt Kuenne
• Night, music by Cezary Skubiszewski
• Standard Operating Procedure, music by Danny Elfman
• Tabarly, music by Yann Tiersen

FILM MUSIC COMPOSITION OF THE YEAR
• Cloverfield: “Roar! Overture,” music by Michael Giacchino
• The Happening: “Be With You,” music by James Newton Howard
• Valkyrie: “They’ll Remember You,” music by John Ottman and Lior Rosner
• Wall*E: “Define Dancing,” music by Thomas Newman and Peter Gabriel
• Wanted: “Success Montage,” music by Danny Elfman


OTHER CATEGORIES:

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR TELEVISION
• Battlestar Galactica (Season 4), music by Bear McCreary
• John Adams, music by Robert Lane and Joseph Vitarelli
• Merlin, music by Robert Lane
• Lost (Season 4), music by Michael Giacchino
• Pane e Libertà, music by Ennio Morricone

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A VIDEO GAME OR INTERACTIVE MEDIA
• Afrika, music by Wataru Hokoyama
• Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures, music by Knut Avenstroup Haugen
• Gears of War 2, music by Steve Jablonsky
• Mercenaries 2: World in Flames, music by Chris Tilton
• Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, music by Mark Griskey

BEST NEW RELEASE/RE-RELEASE OF AN EXISTING SCORE
• Baby: Secret of the Lost Legend, music by Jerry Goldsmith; produced by Douglass Fake (Intrada)
• Body Double, music by Pino Donaggio; produced by Douglass Fake (Intrada)
• The Boys from Brazil, music by Jerry Goldsmith; produced by Douglass Fake (Intrada)
• Heavy Metal, music by Elmer Bernstein; produced by Lukas Kendall (Film Score Monthly)
• The Matrix: The Deluxe Edition, music by Don Davis; produced by Don Davis and Robert Townson (Varèse Sarabande)

BEST RE-RECORDING OF AN EXISTING SCORE
• El Cid, music by Miklós Rózsa; conducted by Nic Raine, produced by James Fitzpatrick (Tadlow)
• The Kentuckian/Williamsburg: The Story of a Patriot, music by Bernard Herrmann; conducted William Stromberg; produced by Anna Bonn, John Morgan and William Stromberg (Tribute Film Classics)
• Odna (Alone), music by Dmitri Shostakovich; conducted by Mark Fitzgerald, produced by Hans-Bernhard Bätzing (Naxos)
• She, music by Max Steiner; conducted William Stromberg; produced by Anna Bonn, John Morgan and William Stromberg (Tribute Film Classics)
• An Unfinished Life – Piano Sketches, music by Christopher Young; performed by Dave Guili, produced by Flavio Motalla and Christopher Young (BSX)

BEST COMPILATION ALBUM OR BOX SET
• Gangs of New York/The Journey of Natty Gann/The Scarlet Letter, music by Elmer Bernstein; produced by Robert Townson (Varèse Sarabande)
• Indiana Jones: The Soundtracks Collection, music by John Williams; produced by Laurent Bouzereau (Concord)
• Le Cinéma de Georges Delerue, music by Georges Delerue; produced by Stéphane Lerouge (Universal Music France)
• MGM Soundtrack Treasury, various composers; produced by Lukas Kendall (Film Score Monthly)
• Superman: The Music, various composers; produced by Mike Matessino and Lukas Kendall (Film Score Monthly)

FILM MUSIC RECORD LABEL OF THE YEAR
• Film Score Monthly
• Intrada
• La-La Land
• MovieScore Media
• Varèse Sarabande


The International Film Music Critics Association (IFMCA) is an association of online, print and radio journalists who specialize in writing about original film and television music.

The IFMCA was originally formed in the late 1990s as the now-defunct “Film Music Critics Jury” by editor and journalist Mikael Carlsson, a regular contributor to filmmusicradio.com and filmmusicmag.com, and the owner of the Swedish independent film music label MovieScore Media.

Since its inception, the IFMCA has grown to comprise over 50 members from countries as diverse as Australia, Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America.

Previous IFMCA Score of the Year Awards have been awarded to Dario Marianelli’s ATONEMENT in 2007, James Newton Howard’s LADY IN THE WATER in 2006, John Williams’ MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA in 2005 and Michael Giacchino’s THE INCREDIBLES in 2004.

For more information about the International Film Music Critics Association, its members and the list of past awards, please visit http://www.filmmusiccritics.org or contact press@filmmusiccritics.org.

JOHN DEBNEY | "Hotel for Dogs"

Award Winning composer JOHN DEBNEY scores "HOTEL FOR DOGS"

IN THEATRES JAN. 16TH

(Hollywood, CA) Award-winning composer JOHN DEBNEY scores DreamWorks and Nickelodeon (Hollywood, CA) Award-winning composer JOHN DEBNEY scores DreamWorks and Nickelodeon Movies’ film HOTEL FOR DOGS, directed by Thor Freudenthal. The family comedy stars Lisa Kudrow, Don Cheadle, Emma Roberts and Jake T. Austin. Debney’s score to Hotel for Dogs is a playful blend of eclectic instruments and rich melodies. From "Friday's Theme" to the grand "Hotel Theme," the score reflects the fun and whimsy of the film. Debney recorded the score at the Eastwood Stage located at Warner Bros. studio with a 90 piece orchestra and acoustic guitars.

Recently Debney completed the score to THE STONING OF SORAYA M., (adapted from the New York Times best seller) which received critical acclaim at the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival. His other credits include THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST, for which he received an Oscar nomination; IDLEWILD, a Prohibition-era musical starring the duo Outkast and featuring famed trumpeter Arturo Sandoval; the animated films BARNYARD and CHICKEN LITTLE; the comic-book inspired SIN CITY, and the comedies ELF and LIAR, LIAR.

Debney’s ability to deliver the perfect score in a wide variety of films has made him one of the most sought after composers in Hollywood. For Garry Marshall, Debney scored the black comedy, GEORGIA RULE, PRINCESS DIARIES 1 & 2, and RAISING HELEN; for Tom Shadyac, he scored BRUCE ALMIGHTY and EVAN ALMIGHTY.

In addition to an Academy Award nomination, John Debney has received several Emmy awards, a Dove award for THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST, a CUE award for the score to the videogame LAIR and several gold and platinum selling albums, including THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST and THE PRINCESS DIARIES. Debney was the youngest recipient of the ASCAP Henry Mancini Award for Career Achievement, and has conducted concerts of his music with orchestras throughout the United States and Europe.

In HOTEL FOR DOGS, a pair of orphaned siblings, Andi (Roberts) and Bruce (Austin), are forbidden by their foster parents to have a pet. The kids stumble upon an abandoned hotel and transform it into a dog-paradise for their dog Friday--and eventually for all Friday's friends. Barking dogs make the neighbors suspicious, and Andi and Bruce use every invention they have to avoid anyone discovering "who let the dogs in."

Author: Costa Communications

Composer Austin Wintory Scores "GRACE"

Composer Austin Wintory Scores

Grace

Premieres at Sundance on Jan. 16^th

Los Angeles, CA – Film composer Austin Wintory returns to the Sundance Film Festival with his score for the psychological thriller Grace, the feature film debut of writer/director Paul Solet. Austin Wintory is currently receiving critical acclaim for his score to Academy Award contender Captain Abu Raed, which won the Audience Award at Sundance last year. At just 26 years old, Wintory has already been BAFTA nominated and last year was presented an award for “Best New Film Composer.” Grace will be shown as part of the Park City at Midnight series, premiering Friday, January 16, at 11:59 p.m. at the Egyptian Theatre.

Wintory’s role in the production of Grace went a step further than that of a typical composer. As a friend of director Paul Solet, Wintory was involved with the film very early on. Before any filming occurred, Wintory wrote 20 minutes of music based on the script, and then flew to the set to play the music for the actors and discuss their characters. None of that music was ever meant to be part of the score; Wintory wrote entirely new music for the finished film.

For his Grace score, Wintory took an experimental approach. The score consists of manipulated sounds, including recordings of creaking floorboards on the set, a baby crying and flies buzzing. Wintory even used traditional instruments in non-traditional ways, weaving a piece of plastic through the strings of a cello and assembling the largest group of clarinets ever recorded in London at Abbey Road. The score also features vocalist Lisbeth Scott (Captain Abu Raed, Passion of the Christ). Scott wrote lyrics to the lullaby sung by the mother, which is repeated as a theme sung by Scott throughout the score. “I have no intention of ever working with another composer,” said Solet.

Austin Wintory taught himself how to compose, orchestrate and conduct in high school, before attending NYU and USC. His first short film at NYU won a local scoring competition and premiered at New York’s Lincoln Center. At USC, Wintory studied under Golden Globe nominated composer Christopher Young (The Shipping News, Spider-Man 3). In the three years since beginning his professional career, Wintory received a BAFTA nomination for the videogame flOw, was named “Best New Film Composer” at the Hollywood Music Awards and is listed as an Oscar contender for Captain Abu Raed by the Los Angeles Times. His upcoming film projects include the comedy Knuckle Dragger and dark drama The Sunset Sky.

Grace stars Jordan Ladd as a pregnant woman who loses her unborn child though a sudden tragic accident. She carries the stillborn baby to term, where she miraculously wills the delivered corpse into life. But it is not too long before the increasingly isolated mother realizes that something is not right with baby Grace, and she must make horrible sacrifices to keep her living.

Author: Costa Communications

Alexandre Desplat: Julie & Julia

Celebrated French composer Alexandre Desplat who is considered to be one of the major contenders for the 2009 Best Original Score Oscar with his score for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, is doing the music for Nora Ephron's new film, Julie & Julia, which stars Meryl Streep and Amy Adams.

For more info on the assignment, you can visit the source's link over at upcomingfilmscores.blogspot.com

Angelo Badalamenti: 44 Inch Chest

71 year-old American composer Angelo Badalamenti - mostly known for his collaborations with legendary director David Lynch, is currently working on the score for 44 Inch Chest, an independent drama starring Ian McShane, John Hurt, Ray Winstone and Tom Wilkinson, directed by Malcolm Venville. He is making his first feature film with 44 Inch Chest, which tells the story about a man who plots the kidnapping of his wife's lover

For more info on the assignment, you can always visit the original source's link, HERE.

BAFTA AWARDS 2009 - NOMINEES

The full list of nominations for the Orange British Academy Film Awards in 2009 have been announced by Gemma Arterton and Hayley Atwell.

You can view the entire list HERE, at the organization's official website.

As far as the MUSIC category is concerned, here's the list of nominees as presented in www.bafta.org

MUSIC

• THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON – Alexandre Desplat
• THE DARK KNIGHT – Hans Zimmer, James Newton Howard
• MAMMA MIA! – Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus
• SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE – A. R. Rahman
• WALL•E – Thomas Newman

It is of particular interest to see that the A.R.Rahman Bollywood trend goes ahead empowered and undisturbed, plus among the range of several excellent scores released this year combined with the large numbers of pretty good musical scores that went out as well, the inclusion of MAMMA MIA! amidst the best scores of the year is quite simply ridiculous, to put it hubmly.

However, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a very worthy release from this year, certainly proving that Alexandre Desplat is perhaps the most creative and imaginative film composer working in Hollywood today; his output certainly showcases so.

John Debney: Hannah Montana - The Movie

Upcomingfilmscores.blogspot.com reports that the american composer John Debney is the new composer who'll provide the musical accompaniment to Disney's Hannah Montana: the movie, replacing Alan Silvestri who was previously attached to the film's scoring duties.

The movie which is based on the popular tv-series is directed by Peter Chelsom and is about the story of Hannah Montana, the popular singer. Miley (Miley Cyrus) is becoming overwhelmed with Hannah's popularity. Robbie Ray (Billy Ray Cyrus) manages to persuade Miley to travel to her hometown, Crowley Corners, Tennessee, to reflect about the things that really matter in her life.

To find out more about the shift of the composers and the movie itself, visit the original source link HERE.

And the Golden Globe Award goes to...

Indian composer A.R.RAHMAN for Slumdog Millionaire. Not surprisingly, following the massive success the Danny Boyle does Bollywood film it accompanied, Slumdog Millionaire was the winner out of the following nominees:

The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
Composed by Alexandre Desplat

Changeling
Composed by Clint Eastwood

Defiance
Composed by James Newton Howard

Slumdog Millionaire
Composed by A. R. Rahman

Frost/Nixon
Composed by Hans Zimmer

with the actual winner realistically being one of the weakest entries of the five. Still, we wish to congratulate the composer and provide the links for more info on the man himself, HERE and the actual Golden Globes' link from their official website, located HERE.

Danny Elfman To Score ‘Terminator Salvation’

Danny Elfman, the world famous american film composer and composer of scores and songs for Tim Burton's films and the Simpsons Theme, is eventually the one who will provide the musical accompaniment for the 4th Terminator film, entitled Salvation.

Terminator Salvation is the long awaited, upcoming sci-fi film set for release on May 22, 2009. Directed by Joseph "McG" McGinty Nichol, it is the fourth Terminator film and stars Christian Bale as John Connor and Sam Worthington as the Terminator Marcus Wright. It also introduces a young version of the first film's hero, Kyle Reese, played by Anton Yelchin. The film, set in 2018, focuses on the war between humanity and Skynet.

For more information on the composer's assingment to the musical score of the film, visit the original MTV link HERE.

New interview with HANS ZIMMER / JAMES NEWTON HOWARD on the score to "THE DARK KNIGHT"

Hans Zimmer and James Howard Newton talk about their collaboration scoring The Dark Knight on Morning Becomes Eclectic at 11:15am.

Read the entire interview over at the original source, HERE.

New interview with Alexandre Desplat

Musicfromthemovies.com has a very interesting new article on THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON.

If you follow this link HERE, you can read a new interview with French composer Alexandre Desplat, on the making of the original score for the Cate Blanchett, Brad Pitt drama, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, a movie which tells the story of Benjamin Button, a man who starts aging backwards with bizarre consequences.