Monthly Archives: April 2014

John Powell stories in Variety

John Powell, one of today’s most talented film composers, is the subject of a special section in Variety this week (Rio 2 is now in release and How to Train Your Dragon 2 is upcoming). In my main story, I discuss his status as today’s leading animation composer but also talk to directors Doug Liman, Carlos Saldanha, Paul Greengrass and Dean DeBlois as well as composers Hans Zimmer and Gavin Greenaway about what makes Powell so special.

In a sidebar story, John explains his decision to take a sabbatical from film music, and in another, he talks about five of his most memorable film-music experiences.

Goldenthal symphony debuts

I love writing about the non-film work of composers better known for their movie scores. Elliot Goldenthal has been commissioned to write his first symphony, and the Pacific Symphony — in addition to debuting the Goldenthal work — will also showcase pieces by James Horner and Howard Shore. Here’s a piece I wrote for Variety previewing them.