Academy Award-winning composer Rachel Portman will be feted with BMI’s Richard Kirk Award for career achievement at the performance rights organization’s Film & Television Awards on May 19.

Portman will be the first woman to be honored with the award since the org started giving it out 25 years ago. In 1996, Portman established another precedent as the first woman to win an Oscar for original score for Emma. She also was nominated by the Academy for her music in The Cider House Rules (1999) and Chocolat (2000). Her other credits include Nicholas Nickleby, The Joy Luck Club and The Manchurian Candidate plus such TV pics as HBO’s Grey Gardens.

Portman joins such previous Kirk Award honorees as John Williams, John Barry, Lalo Schifrin, Danny Elfman, Alan Menken and Mike Post.

Additionally, New Orleans musician-composer Terence Blanchard will receive BMI’s Classic Contribution Award for his efforts in music education.

Event, hosted by BMI president/chief operating officer Del Bryant and VP of film/TV relations Doreen Ringer Ross, will be held at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills. – Christopher Morris

Source: Variety

…in a crushing blow to theme song geeks, the Academy is getting rid of the main title them category. Somewhere, Danny Elfman is pissed.

Effective for the 2010-2011 awards year, the Main Title Theme category will be eliminated and replaced with a new category, “Music Composition for a Nonfiction Program.” Details about the placement of main title theme achievements are still being discussed by the Music PGEC.

As if releasing one calamitous blockbuster score on the same day wasn’t enough, the La-La-lers have also announced they are re-issuing in complete stereo John Williams’ The Poseidon Adventure. You may remember that Film Score Monthly first issued this title (thought not entirely in stereo sound) which quickly sold out. If you were angling for one on eBay, put a stop on that PayPal transfer and order up what is promised to be a glossed up edition. Read on for the blurbage…

In association with Twentieth Century Fox and Sony Music’s Custom Marketing Group, La-La Land Records presents the world premiere release of David Arnold’s complete score from the 1996 Twentieth Century Fox sci-fi blockbuster motion picture Independence Day, starring Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum, Mary McDonnell, Bill Pullman and Randy Quaid, directed by Roland Emmerich. Arnold’s epic, sweeping orchestral score sends the listener, along with the film’s large scale sci-fi action and broad human drama, into the cinematic stratosphere. Produced by Nick Redman & Mike Matessino and Didier C. Deutsch, edited and assembled by Mike Matessino, and mastered by Mark G. Wilder and Maria Triana, this 2 CD Limited Edition set features over two full hours of astounding film music, (with more than 70 minutes of previously unreleased material) including the complete score, along with a generous helping of Bonus Tracks. In-depth liner notes by Dan Goldwasser features comments from the composer, co-writer/producer Dean Devlin and others. This is a limited edition of 5000 Units.

First time entire score is presented in STEREO! Presenting the premiere stereo release of John Williams’ classic score to the legendary 1972 Twentieth Century Fox adventure film The Poseidon Adventure, starring Gene Hackman, Ernest Borgnine, Shelly Winters and Red Buttons, produced by Irwin Allen and directed by Ronald Neame. Williams’ epic orchestral score expertly intertwines the film’s examination of heroism and tragedy. Produced by Nick Redman and Mike Matessino, mastered by Daniel Hersch, and remixed and sequenced by Mike Matessino, this superb-sounding special limited edition release features never-before-released Bonus Tracks, including the film versions of “The Morning After”, source cues and alternate versions of the main title. In-depth liner notes by Jeff Bond take you behind the scenes of the film and its music. This is a limited edition of 3000 Units.

For this release, the 2″ 24-track tape containing the original 35mm 6-track mag was transferred into Pro Tools, and restored and mixed with the advantages of another decade’s advance in sound processing technology.

For ordering info: lalalandrecords.com.

A Symphony of Hope: The Haiti Project

Many of the worlds top composers are coming together to write and record a new symphonic work that will be available on both CD and DVD to music lovers around the world. All proceeds from this project will go to Hands Together in order to help the people of Haiti. The recording will take place in May of 2010 in Los Angeles and will be available this summer.

Composers lending their talents include:

Hans Zimmer
Dave Grusin
Marvin Hamlisch
John Debney
Christopher Young
Mark Isham
Brian Tyler
Tyler Bates
Theodore Shapiro
Christoph Beck
Christopher Lennertz
Don Davis
Bruce Broughton
George S. Clinton
Ed Shearmur
Alex Wurman
Deborah Lurie
David Kitay
John Swihart
Timothy Michael Wynn
Michael Wandmacher

and others…

“The band had been brought in by Hayward to collaborate on the score with Horton’s composer John Powell back in September 2009. However, the re-shoots and subsequent reediting meant Powell, who was already booked for Tom Cruise’s Knight and Day and Doug Liman’s Valerie Plame pic Fair Game, had to leave. “There was no animosity,” says Hinds. “He was just like, ‘If you haven’t figured out what you’re doing cinematically, I gotta go.’”

Enter Marco Beltrami, says Mastodon’s Brent Hinds:

“All of a sudden, there’s this new guy, who went in a different direction,” continues Hinds, who by that point was on a world tour with the band. “And there was no way he could connect with me: They brought all the new scenes to us, but I was on tour this entire time, so I had no time to preconceive what I wanted the movie to sound like. Being so busy … it’s hard to be creative when you’re going through the same motions every day [onstage].”

And a bit of caution to filmmakers looking to hire non-traditional composers, who, you know, can’t cater to a year’s worth of post-production fixes:

“Hinds says that Beltrami wanted a more restrained, subtle approach than the vigorous shredding Mastodon recorded for Hex in L.A. last fall. “I totally had to go back and start over again,” says Hinds, reached in Atlanta as he prepped for the band’s 37-date spring tour of North America, which begins in Charleston, South Carolina, tonight. “We’re still working on it. We wrapped a little of it today; we’re doing a little more tomorrow. Tomorrow is enough for me. I was finished months ago. We had such short notice to work on the thing.”

“Though constant last-minute change isn’t a new phenomenon in Hollywood, Hinds, a first-time movie composer, has found the process frustrating. “I blew my wad over there,” he says of the time Mastodon spent recording and composing in L.A. last fall. “It was some of the best shit I’ve ever written in my life. Now I’m just trying to finish with as much patience as possible.”

Jonah Hex is due in theaters June 18th. (Obviously) there is no date set for a soundtrack album at this time.

Cinemusic presents the complete song listing from the film:

“Walk To Rasul’s”
Composed By: Danny Elfman
Courtesy of Morte Pharmaceutical

“Stand Up”
Performed by The Prodigy
(Liam Howlett /Manfred Mann/Peter Thomas)

“Can’t Go Back”
Performed by Primal Scream
(Bobby Gillespie/Andrew Innes/Martin Duffy/Gary Mounfield)

“There’s A Pot Brewing”
Performed by The Little Ones
(Lee LaDoucuer/Gregory Meyer/Ian Moreno/Brian Reyes/Edward Nolan Reyes)

“The Barber of Seville Overture”
(Gioachino Rossini)
Performed by the Zagreb Festival Orchestra
Conducted by Michael Halasz

“Omen”
Performed by The Prodigy
(Liam Howlett/Tim Hutton/Keith Andrew Palmer)

“Bongo Song”
Performed by Zongamin
(Sasumi Mukai)

“(Banana Splits) Tra La La Song”
Performed by The Dickies’
(Mark Barkan/Ritchie Adams)

“Chi mai del mio provo piacer pie dolce! [Act 2] Idomeneo”
Performed by Wiener Philharmoniker
(Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)
Conducted by Sir John Pritchard

“Starry Eyed”
Performed by Ellie Goulding
(Ellie Goulding/Jonny Lattimer)

“This Town Ain’t Big Enough For Both Of Us”
Performed by Sparks
(Ronald Mael)

“Crazy”
Performed by Gnarls Barkley
(Brian Burton/Thomas Callaway/Gianfranco Reveberi/Gian Pero Reverberi)

“We’re All In Love”
Performed by New York Dolls
(David Johansen/Sami Takamaki/Steven Conte/Sylvain Mizrahi/Brian Delaney/Brian Koonin)

“Per Qualche Dollaro in Piu”
Composed by Ennio Morricone
(Ennio Morricone)
(from “Per Qualche Dollaro In Più” – For A Few Dollars More)

“Bad Reputation”
Performed by Joan Jett and The Blackhearts
(Joan Jett/Kenny Laguna/Ritchie Cordell/Martin Kupersmith)

“Battle Hymn of The Republic”
Performed by Elvis Presley
(Extract from An American Trilogy)
(Traditional arrangement by Mickey Newbury)

“Make Me Wanna Die”
Performed by The Pretty Reckless
(Taylor Momsen/Ben Phillips/Kato Khandwala)

“Kick Ass”
Performed by Mika
(Mika/Jodi Marr/RedOne)

Score Credits:

Music Composed by John Murphy, Henry Jackman, Marius De Vries, Ilan Eshkeri
Additional Music Supervision by Vamanos
Music Performed by London Metropolitan Orchestra
Orchestra Conducted by Andy Brow, Gavin Greenaway
Orchestrations: Stephen Coleman, Robert Elhai, Matt Dunkley, Matt Robertson
Music Mixed by Steve McLaughlin, Gustavo Borner, Tyler Barton
Additional Music Mixed by Andy Barfield
Music Recorded at Air Studios, Abbey Road Studios
Music Mixed at North Pole Studios, Igloo Music, Burbank, Distorter Studios, Los Angeles
Technical Score Engineer: Jack Dolman
Engineering & Programming: Tyler Barton
Recording Engineers: Tom Bailey, Chris Barratt, John Barratt
Additional Engineering & Programming: Scott Somerville
Additional Musical Arrangements: Matthew Margeson
Music Programmers: Andrew Beaton, Eldad Guetta, Jason Boshoff, Felix Erskine, Ben De Vries, Matt Robertson
Drums: Ian Thomas
Guitars: Scott Shields, Ben De Vries, Matt Robertson
Boy Soprano: Brennan Alleye
Choir: Metro Voices
Choirmaster: Jenny O’Grady
Music Preparation: Jill Streater, Global Music Service
Music Production Coordinator: Elias Kustow
Music Production Assistant: Millie Baring

Film Score Monthly:
White Dog – Ennio Morricone (3000 units)
Lalo Schifrin: The Cincinnati Kid (5 Disc Set) – Lalo Schifrin (2000 units)

Intrada:
Cervantes – Les Baxter (1200 units)
Billie / Popi – Dominic Frontiere (1000 units)

Kritzerland:
The Man Who Would Be King – Maurice Jarre (1000 units Sold Out!)

La-La Land Records:
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels – Miles Goodman (1200 units)
Dutch – Alan Silvestri (1200 units)
Speechless – Marc Shaiman (1200 units – delayed)
Eraser (Expanded) – Alan Silvestri (3000 units)
Dragonslayer – Alex North (3000 units)

Perseverance Records:
The Runestone – David Newman (1200 copies)

Tadlow:
The Message / Lion of The Desert (2CD) – Maurice Jarre (2000 copies)

Varese Sarabande:
The Goonies – Davie Grusin (5000 units)
The Spiral Road – Jerry Goldsmith (3000 units)

Buy! Buy! Buyyyy links:

Film Score Monthly
Intrada
Kritzerland
La-La Land Records
Perseverance Records
Tadlow
Varese Sarabande

Film score nerds are suckers for good orchestral music in films, TV shows, videogames and, well, maybe not as frequently, commercials. That’s why this particular ad, showcasing Canadian Olympic athlete achievements at the recently closed 2010 Vancouver Winter games from Canuck telephone/TV/internet monolith Bell is so stunning. It features the actual orchestra players who recorded the piece for the ad emoting and performing gorgeous original music by Canadian composer Darren Fung (Just Buried – released by Moviescore Media).

Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland, starring Johnny Depp as Elijah Wood The Mad Hatter begins pissing off prickly Lewis Carroll purists on March 5, 2010 in theaters everywhere in eye-popping 3D. Lending musical support is Burton’s constant composer Danny Elfman, AKA film music’s most awesome red head.

Threaded throughout the score is an original song penned by Elfman, called “Alice’s Theme”, and it opens up the Disney Records score album due in stores on March 2 (obligatory Amazon link). Here’s a sneak peek at the song’s lyrics (thanks to the supremely talented LD for these)…

“Alice’s Theme”
Music and Lyrics by Danny Elfman

Oh, Alice, dear where have you been?
So near, so far or in between?
What have you heard what have you seen?
Alice, Alice, please, Alice!

Oh, tell us are you big or small
To try this one or try them all
It’s such a long, long way to fall
Alice, Alice, oh, Alice

How can you know this way not that?
You choose the door you choose the path
Perhaps you should be coming back
Another day, another day

And nothing is quite what is seems
You’re dreaming are you dreaming, oh, Alice?
(Oh, how will you find your way? Oh, how will you find your way?)
(There’s not time for tears today. There’s no time for tears today.)

So many doors – how did you choose
So much to gain so much to lose
So many things got in your way
No time today, no time today
Be careful not to lose your head
Just think of what the doormouse said…Alice!

Did someone pull you by the hand?
How many miles to Wonderland?
Please tell us so we’ll understand
Alice…Alice…Oh, Alice

(Oh how will you find you way? … Oh, how will you find you way?)

Sing along!

According to Wilkinson, Goldsmith did not include him on the cue sheets for original music he composed the film Man’s Best Friend. Wilkinson says after he hired an attorney to attempt to get his name properly recorded on the cue sheets for the film, Goldsmith put WIlkinson’s name on the cue sheets and paid Wilkinson retroactive royalties for past broadcasts of the film.

More: filmmusicmagazine.com.