Welcome!


Please contact me with suggestions for the site or whatever.

Here's the news:

September 2008

I'm back in the studio working on a number of projects to be announced soon. The full length version of "Songs of the Sea - The Olympic Regatta Suite" is out. It includes all the tracks from the EP, along with a violin concerto, a beautiful poem by renown poet David Whyte set to music, and my song "Wisdom of Wind", sung by the amazing Hila Plitmann with lyrics by Lisa Gerrard.

I am working on an arrangement of the song for Finnish metal diva Tarja Turunen for her upcoming album. She came by the studio recently and we had a terrific afternoon. Her version should be fantastic.

This is somewhat off topic for my site, but I'd like to say also that this November 4th is likely the most important presidential election in decades. I want to encourage everyone reading this to vote for Barack Obama, donate money or time to his campaign if you can, and get everyone you know to vote for him as well - especially in any so-called swing states. The future of this country and all of us living here is dependent on it.

August 2008

I am back from China and busy finishing the last mixes for the record, to be called "Songs of the Sea - The Olympic Regatta Suite." You can check out the EP now on iTunes. I have just a few tracks more to mix before a full release. I've posted a ton of photos from the trip on my Facebook page. Enjoy. Working on a project for the Olympics was incredibly challenging and rewarding for me. I hope you'll enjoy the music and let me know what you think.

June/July 2008

I guess they liked my score for Fear Itself - they invited me to do another. So far, I seem to be the only composer invited back for a second helping of Fear.

Now my focus is entirely on China and the Olympics. The music is written, orchestrated, copied and printed. The orchestra, I'm told, is in rehearsals in Qingdao. Twenty seven musicians form the Beijing Phil have flown in to bolster the ranks. Total is over 100 players. I fly over on July 5th for recordings and the premiere in Qingdao on July 16th. I've asked to conduct at least one section of the suite, but haven't been given final word. But the concert, including a song I wrote (fabulous lyrics by my lovely Australian friend Lisa Gerrard) will be televised throughout all of China (should I get nervous being watched by 1.4 billion people?) PBS is coming to film a documentary of the concert as part of a program on cultural collaborations between America and China.

After the premiere, I come back for a few days to mix and master the recordings, then return for a full Olympic tour with the orchestra, soprano, and some traditional Chinese instrumentalists. We'll be in Beijing July 27, Shanghai on July 30, and Hong Kong on August 1.

Then back to the Reel World.

May 2008

Spring is almost ready to fly home. Busy times here in the land of the Lotus Eaters (aka L.A.).

I had the honor of receiving the2008 ASCAP Film and Television Music Award this year, my second. The event was held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. It was for my score to the Showtime series Brotherhood.

I am putting final touches on my concert for the 2008 Olympics Regatta. We will record the orchestra and other musicians during July in the lovely coastal city of Qingdao (where the Olympic sailing events will take place) and then tour 4 cities prior to the opening of the Olympic Games. Our performances will be in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing and end up in Qingdao.

In the meanwhile I am scoring an episode of the new NBC anthology series Fear Itself. Each episode has its own cast and director from the horror genre. I am working with director Ronny Yu on the episode called Family Man. It will air June 19th. The series was previously called "Masters of Horror" on Showtime.

April 2008

The feature "Sharkwater" which I scored continues to garner awards around the globe. It recently was honored with the American Humane Society's Genesis Award for best documentary of '07. It is also being released in a number of countries and a new DVD and Blu Ray DVD is out this month. I am in the studio scoring an indie animated film called "From Inside" from the bizarre mind of artist John Bergin. I'm also back n the studio with singer/songwriter Louise Fraser on tracks for her upcoming record.

February 2008

"Henry Poole Is Here" which features a song written by Lisa Gerrard and myself, was among the first films to sell at Sundance Film Festival. I will hopefully have word soon about release dates, soundtrack album, etc. Other projects are moving along.
If anyone has my soundtrack to the film Sharkwater (a very moving documentary that has been winning awards around the world!) I would appreciate some positive feedback on iTunes or Amazon mp3.

January 2008

Happy New Year to you all! I hope this will be a terrific year for everyone.
I am starting in on a film called "The Chosen One" along with my occassional writing partner Lisa Gerrard. Lisa and I just composed a song for the film "Henry Poole Is Here" starring Luke Wilson and Rhada Mitchell.

I have also done a small internet video for the terrific people at Brave New Films, a political action group with enormous impact. I've begun the task of updating my book, The Reel World, for it's 2nd Edition.

And finally, I will have some news soon regarding a large scale project this year for a major internaltional athletic event!

December 2007

Happy Holidays to you all. I hope this has been a good year for you in every way you wished. It was certainly an interesting one for me. Winding down now, but several interesting projects are on the horizon! I am interviewed in a new book called Inside Film Music. Well worth checking out, it has interviews with a wide range of very interesting people. Also for you groove maniacs out there, I am on the Ableton LIVE website as well.

November 2007

Finally the new soundtrack is OUT. Sharkwater, the hugely successful documentary (22 international awards and counting, including Best Score) I scored just came into theaters in the US (Europe next spring) and the soundtrack is out on iTunes and Amazon MP3 NOW. We have a limited number of signed CDs as well here in the STORE, and a portion of profits goes to helping with ocean ecology and the fast dwindling shark population! Check it out and please leave some nice feedback on iTunes and Amazon as well.

October 2007

I've been away a bit, and so this is a late update. I've been in Beijing now twice for meetings on projects and to record the China Philharmonic for an upcoming project. I also scored music for the unveiling of one of the most advanced electric cars I've ever seen, the Pivo2 from Nissan. A very strange and enjoyable project. Sharkwater hits theaters in the US this November 2 finally, and Europe early next spring. Clips are on the SCORES page.

August 2007

I've jumped onto several projects. I'm doing a TV movie for Spike called Crash and Burn, directed by Russell Mulcahy of Highlander fame. From there I am doing a miniseries called The Gathering directed by Bill Eagles, for whom I scored another terrific television projet a few years back called The Riverman. I'm also doing a short video project for a major Japanese car maker to introduce a secret new concept vehical that is both high tech and very globally conscious.
I've finished recording and mixing the soundtrack album for Sharkwater, the multi multi award winning documentary coming this September to the US and most countries soon thereafter. While I did the score last year, I had a different idea for the soundtrack, to do remixes of several of the cues and the make several of the themes redone as songs. Coming soon!

July 2007

I made an extraordinary trip to China this month to scope out the studio scene there and to take on several creative opportunities. I will be producing tracks for one of China's best know vocal artists. More about that soon. I'm back in the studio at the moment getting started on a video game project and some other projects yet to come out of wraps. I had the pleasure of going into the studio with Wendy & Lisa to play some of my crazy woodwinds for their upcoming Bionic Woman TV projects. Go girls!!

June 2007

I did a rare LIVE performance onstage with Lisa Gerrard at Los Angeles' Orpheum Theater this month. Gerrard was on a North American tour, and invited me to perform at the show here to a capacity crowd. We performed a piece from our score to 1000 Roads.

March/April 2007

The soundtrack album for Slow Burn is now available on iTunes. The film opens April 13th. It should be pretty cool. I did a good amount of remixing just for the album, and it includes a vocal version of the main title with Brit singer songwriter Delores Clay (Jamiraquai, Swing Out Sister, and many Hans Zimmer scores).

I just finished some music for an upcoming Apple Computer spot.

I've been in the studio with another terrific British singer, Louise Fraser. We've been collaborating on some tracks that will be available on a new release soon.

February 2007

My remix for Azam Ali is available for download on the Six Degrees website. It is a download only EP with me (as 'Luxurious') and some great top dj/remixers.
I've been asked to speak on a film music panel at this years ASCAP Making Music Expo. Please come by and check it out. Last year's inaugural expo was amazing.
The Reel World Forums are finally fixed, de-spammed and ready for lots more comments, converations, and ideas. So please tell everyone you know interested in film music to come along, register, and drop a line.

January 2007

Happy New Year! Hope you had a great holiday and are ready to get going with your goals and wishes. No time like now.

If you've been trying to gret an account on the Reel World Forum, we've had to stop taking new people until we get a nasty spam problem worked out. I hope to have that sorted by this week and we can get it started again. We'll let you know asap.

December 2006

Happy holidays all. Things are winding down for the year. I'm working on a larger commercial at the moment and a few more remixes due soon.

I was saddened by the news a few weeks ago of the death of Basil Poledouris. He was an exceptional film composer, and a terrific guy. I got to know him quite well over the years. Some of my first experiences in film music were doing orchestrations and synthesizer programming for him just as I was getting started. He was terrific to work with - always inspiring, calm, self effacing, and an uncompromising musician. He will be missed. I did a short interview with him in 1999 that you can read here.

For those of you who do or were using the forums here, I've done some updates to keep the spam out. I hope you'll take advantage of them again, and sorry for the crap.

November 2006

I delivered my remix for Azam Ali (see below). It will be out early next year on a remix EP from Six Degrees Records. In the meantime I'm working on some new original tracks. It's good to stretch past scores sometimes. The results are good so far.

October 2006

I'm currently back in the studio doing remixes for my score to the film Sharkwater, which just won it's first festival award. Hopefully the first of many for this wonderful film. The release of Slow Burn has been pushed to sometime next April. My track for Azam Ali's new CD 'Elysium for the Brave' is just out. I will have a remix of it here soon.

September 2006

I'm up in Toronto at the moment, having some fun at the Toronto International Film Festival. I scored a stunning feature documentary called Sharkwater. It's a poetic, sobering and highly visual view of what is happening to the shark population, which has declined 90% in 50 years. It will be out next spring. I was able to meet up with my friend's from Greenstreet Films, whose film Slow Burn, which I scored last year, will premiere in the spring of 2007.

July 2006

Terrific reviews for my Showtime series Brotherhood. Check it out!

I'm starting in on the score for a feature documentary that I'm very excited about. It's on the unlikely topic of sharks. Specifically on the current illegal worldwide slaughter of sharks, and what the environmental implications are if they are made extinct - a real possibility. The film is by Canadian film maker and shark expert Rob Stewart. It will be released some time next year.

I've created a spot on MySpace. Check it out and let's be friends!

June 2006

I'm just finishing work on the upcoming Universal film Whisper for director Stewart Hendler. Look for it this fall. I've also finished scoring the new Showtime series Brotherhood, directed by Philip Noyce. It will premiere on July 9th.

I've been scoring music for the new premium wireless company Voce.

May 2006

I recently did music for a new Mercedes ad. Old skool!

I had the incredible pleasure of conducting a full orchestra for Dead Can Dance at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, and Radio City Music Hall in New York. The shows both sold out and were memorable, exciting eveneings.

I concluded final touches on the indie thriller The Quiet, starring Elisha Cuthbert, Camilla Belle, Shawn Ashmore, Edie Falco and Martin Donovan. It will be released by Sony Classics this fall, along with Slow Burn, which I scored a couple of months back.

I am artist-in-residence again this year at the wonderful Aspen Music Festival's film scoring program, and the ASCAP Summer Film Music Workshop in Los Angeles.

I completed work on Slow Burn, a cool urban thriller for GreeneStreet Films. It stars Ray Liotta, Taye Diggs, Mikhi Pfifer, Jolene Blalock, and LL Cool J. Look for a release and soundtrack album later in 2005.

My film A Thousand Roads, co-scored with Lisa Gerrard, is now a permanent exhibit at the Smithsonian National Museum of the Native American. Click the Reel World pop-up menu to the right for a detailed article on the making of the music. Soundtrack album coming soon.

We're pleased that the AppleLoops edition of LiquidCinema, my first commercially available sample library, is now available. This DVD ROM joins the original 7 CD collection of sounds and rhythms that I have created over the years for my own scoring projects. The CDs come with REX2, AIFF and Acidized WAV files. It is a great tool for any film composer or music producer, and is available NOW from the web STORE.

The soundtrack for the ambitious miniseries for Sci-Fi Channel Legend of EarthSea ( from the popular novels by the amazing Ursula K. LeGuin) featuring the Slovak National Radio Symphony and some wonderful world musicians is out on Varese Sarabande records. Signed copies are available NOW only from our web STORE.

My thanks to everyone who writes to me and to the Reel World Forum. It's a wonderful place to exchange ideas and questions about music for pictures.

The Exchange page here has become a popular place for Q&A regarding all things technical, professional, musical and cinematic.

Thanks again for coming by the website. Please feel free to make comments and suggestions. Check back to see what's been added.

Take Care,  Jeff