Journey’s End

I was asked to score ‘Journey’s End’ by Sherriff, a harrowing and heartfelt play about the First World War. Here, my music served to break up the scenes because the director chose not to have physical changes of scene. The bleak and modal music mirrors the main character’s psychological state. It also depicts the outlook for the soldiers on the Front, with moments of anguish and despair. The final track was looped until the last of the audience had left the theatre.

‘Antigone’ by Sophocles, directed by Brian Parsons, featured an eerie Dali-esque setting in an undefined 1960s totalitarian location. The chorus, traditionally old men, were in this case war widows with defined personalities who delivered the choric odes a few lines each in turn. The music needed to be subtle and unobtrusive, yet underline the message and mood of each ode. Antigone’s appearances were underscored by extracts of John Tavener’s music, and this certainly influenced the style of my writing.

This trailer is for a novel by Polly Courtney about the issues leading up to and during the London riots of 2011. The main character finds herself caught between two worlds, with music a projection of this – grime and minimalist piano music find themselves in contention. The ‘Ride of the Valkyries’ is significant to the plot – read the book to discover more!

Soundtrack

This video gives a flavour of the ‘Soundtrack’ Project in Bristol which I helped to direct. Working with young composers, we interviewed elderly people at a residential home and used the details and stories of their lives as a stimulus for new compositions. Parts of the compositions for which I was the mentor can be seen here along with extracts of the final concert.

This advert is originally from NFTS. The music is quirky and upbeat, with the texture and instrumentation reflecting changes such as night to day, while the persistent saxophone motif unifies and drives forward the whole.

One

This short was scored by kind permission of Jim Le Fevre. It seems to embody a loneliness and drudgery while at the same time a kind of otherworldliness and beauty. The music is live piano, with three different motifs intertwined and overlaid to create a collage

By kind permission of Jim Le Fevre