Composition Journal

First review for Comforting Score soundtrack

Randall Larson over at Buysoundtrax.com has written the first review of my score for Comforting Skin. It is very well-written and insightful, a great review. Mayrand’s score imposes a claustrophobic atmosphere of gloom and despondency, shifting between very poignant melodies and jagged, atonal orchestral colors that reflect the character’s ...

Comforting Skin soundtrack release

A week ago was the sold-out premiere of Comforting Skin at the Vancouver International Film Festival. After the film was over, during the Q&A with the filmmakers a woman raised her hand and said this: " I am not part of the film industry, I am jut someone in the audience ...

Tell a Story

Second post regarding the new VMO commission. This piece is about 9 minutes long. I'll tell you right away, this is the longest single movement concert piece I have ever written. Up until now I have focused on other aspects of composition and did not feel ready for something this long. Now I ...

Lead the way

Still composing the VMO orchestral piece. I have some thoughts I want to put down in my blog and I'll try to do it in short, frequent posts. Here's the first. I had many ideas for this piece, and being of longer duration, I had more material prepared to fill the ...

Orchestral commission: taking the time

The core idea for the VMO commissioned piece has been chosen and it's time to write. Today I am exploring the idea freely, seeing where it takes me instead of going straight to paper. I will not write anything final today. I am jotting ideas down and recording myself improvising freely. ...

Living in a sound world.

As I work on this orchestral commission for the Vancouver Metropolitan Orchestra, I find I can describe my process like this. ******* A piece is a world I inhabit. A theme is like a character I build and get to know. First, I must make sure it's a character I like, that has ...

How many more Traviatas?

Read this article about how orchestras all over the world are in trouble. Audiences are fleeing and why? Today someone told me this story of this true patron of the opera, a lady who has had season tickets to the opera for 20 years and eventually decided to stop going because ...

Film vs. Commissions

The traditional way composers work with commissions has not felt right for me for a long time. You get your commission, hole up and months later the musicians get a piece they have never seen and may not like then have to perform it. That doesn't work for me and I'll ...

Comforting Skin – first session

First recording session took place yesterday at Blue Wave studio in Vancouver. Things went smoothly and from what Brian Campbell tells me, we got a good sound! Can't wait to hear it. We have a wonderful small bunch of fantastic musicians. I am one lucky composer. Next session coming next Sunday! players

Comforting Skin -the end is near

It's always a strange feeling. After the long road of scoring, adding to the score little by little, to finally be near the end. I sat down with the director Derek Franson yesterday to go over everything done and yet to be done, and to reassess certain cues that as the ...