The end of my schooling is coming up fast… June. After which time I have to find a job, er… you know, find a job if I don’t want to just sit around at home (which actually sounds awesome). But my spending habits are such that I should have a job, how else am I supposed to buy my bus tickets and cheesy snacks?
So I’ve been trying to figure out what I’m going to do for a job. There isn’t really a lot out there for music media composers. Well, there is, but to get those jobs I imagine is fairly to very difficult.
Honestly, I think this job could be done from anywhere in two instances:
- I could write music for anyone and do it through the internet without having ever met them.
- Even though I could do it anywhere, I should be in a location where the market allows for me to make contacts.
Taking the first point into account, I could live anywhere and do this, for instance we could move back to North Dakota, or stay in Portland. If this were the case I think I’d stay in Portland for access to the plethora of musicians who I would most likely have to record at different points for whatever job I was working on.
As for the second point, I should be in a location where the industry is much larger. In North America these locations would be L.A., N.Y., Seattle, Vancouver, and maaayyyybeee Portland (wow, this isn’t slanted at all is it?).
In talking with Ruth, Los Angeles and New York are out. Which leaves me with Portland, Seattle, and Vancouver. So here is my question for you:
Should I move?
Seattle has a larger market than Portland because of all the video game studios, and Vancouver is the third largest media market after L.A., and N.Y. because of all the Television and Movies filmed here. But moving to Vancouver would require either getting a work visa (not easy) or becoming a Canadian citizen (also not easy). So I have added a poll for you to vote in. So what do you think?
Astro Boy by John Ottman. Talk about a surprise. Out of everything I’ve heard by Ottman, this, I think, is his best work. It’s really well put together and orchestrated (credit should also be given to his orchestrators). I haven’t seen this movie, and most likely won’t, but the score is fantastic! Very broad in scope and it has the ability to soar to the heights it portrays. A huge feat for Ottman, because some of his scores I’ve heard before have sounded a little (I hate to use this word, because it was used by a professor of mine to describe one of my pieces) contrived. I absolutely love this score, and my favorite cue (at the moment) is “Robot Humanity.”
Avatar by James Horner. This album for me didn’t live up to the hype that I created for it in my mind. However, I must say that I don’t know if the movie would have been as good without this score. The way Horner builds the sonic world is absolutely amazing, and it matches what is on screen nearly perfectly. I absolutely am in love with this movie (in 3D), And I have to say that the score is growing on me. I definitely like it more today than the first time I heard it. My favorite cue from this album would have to be “‘You don’t dream in cryo. ….’”
Drag me to Hell by Christopher Young. I haven’t yet seen this film, but I can tell you that the score is pretty impressive for the genre. Necessarily creepy, but at times cacophonous, and a really well played violin solo to boot. The score is very heavy-handed, but in my mind it fits a Sam Raimi directed horror film. My favorite cue is “Concerto to Hell” basically because it combines the major themes into one song. “But Reed, isn’t that what’s called a suite?” “You’re right… it is pretty sweet.”
Knowing by Marco Beltrami. This film wasn’t very good, however, the score was brilliant. Beltrami always manages to hook me, even though it doesn’t seem that way upon first listen. You have to love a score that is well thought out and fully utilizes the orchestra, among other things including tibetan bowls! My favorite cue is “Caleb Leaves.”
Moon by Clint Mansell. Mansell’s best score for me was The Fountain, because of it’s ability to haunt me and make me feel a sense of yearning. This soundtrack is just like that. He does such a superb job of making the “aloneness” felt thoroughly. Sam Rockwell gave the performance of a lifetime in this film, and this score does nothing if not support that. Reflecting on having seen the film, I honestly don’t remember hearing the score, which I think means that it did it’s job to a “T”, which is support the film and underscore the performance onscreen. I don’t like listening to this score because it actually makes me feel lonely, but if I had to choose a favorite I would take the opening cue “Welcome to Lunar Industries.”
Sherlock Holmes by Hans Zimmer. The soundtrack for this film is so interesting. A lot of gypsy music and a combination of sounds that Zimmer has only hinted at before. You might be reminded of some Jack Sparrow stuff from Pirates III, or maybe even hints of a tune or two from Black Hawk Down… and even a haunting violin; a la The Dark Night. But maybe the coolest thing is the way this music completely is the world of Sherlock and Watson. It was a hard decision, but I think my favorite cue is “I Never Woke Up In Handcuffs Before,” because it reminds me a little bit of Fanfare Ciocarlia. Ask me again in two minutes and it might be different.
Star Trek by Michael Giacchino. Perhaps my favorite film of the year, or you know, maybe a three-way tie (I’ll let you guess). Much like Land of the Lost, Giacchino does a really awesome job of making a full orchestra sound like a chamber group… it must be the mix… yeah, I’ll go with that. I think he’s done a remarkable job of cultivating a Giacchino sound. I can definitely hear elements of Lost in this score (in some of its minimalistic orchestrations and motives) and I love it. My favorite cue is “Nailin’ the Kelvin.”
Terminator Salvation by Danny Elfman. This is not your older brother’s Danny Elfman. It barely has any flavors at all of the Elf-man. To me it was much like his score for Hellboy 2, in that I wouldn’t have guessed it to be an Elfman score (Hellboy 2 I would have attributed to James Newton Howard). This one I would have guessed was a score by Hans Zimmer or one of his acolytes. It was very steeped in electronic rhythms and very brassy sans woodwinds. I’m not saying I don’t love it, because I do, I’m just saying that it’s not the Elfman I know. I look forward to his score for Burton’s Alice In Wonderland, because I’m sure that’ll be recognizably Elfman. My favorite cue is “Reveal/The Escape.” BTW… I really liked this movie despite Chrstian Bale’s off-camera performance.
The Vampire’s Assisstant by Stephen Trask. I look forward to seeing this film, when it comes out in iTunes, but for now I’ll satisfy myself with it’s score. Very interesting and quirky, the score to me exemplifies how I perceive John C. Reilly (kindof the reason I want to see the film). My favorite cue from this album is “Limousine” because there is some cool, almost Bulgarian sounding, vocal work passing in the background at one point in the cue.
