![]() Adroit use of strings and a dying fall by the tuba ( Jonathan Mayers) mark a turning point, then drums in a steady pulse and a rising weave of strings and choir fashion an impressive conclusion. A later, lighter choral effect evokes Ennio Morricone writing on The Mission or Burn. The raw, primitive quality is reminiscent of Jerry Goldsmith’s Planet of the Apes score while the towering choral section calls to mind Goldsmith’s The Omen. A battle scene in the film is brought to life with dark, minatory voices and bludgeoning percussion chugging remorselessly forward. In his music for Snow White and the Huntsman the piano ( Harry Rylance) is insistent and nervy, vibes shimmer and the chorus provide a bed of wordless voices as the woodwinds humanise and rising strings enrich. The selections for the Albert Hall concert are rich, dense and diverse, demonstrating writing that is a tremendous synthesis of the different schools of classic film composing. James Newton Howard has come a long way since, both in his conducting and composing. ![]() “I’ve spent a good part of the last 40 years in a recording studio… The time had come to emerge from my studio, put on my armour and pick up a baton.” This trepidation is understandable since the last time he conducted in London - in a session for Kiki Dee in the 1970s - one of the musicians told him, “Please stop, because you’re distracting the orchestra.” ![]() “I’m trying to be cool right now, but it’s difficult,” announces Howard, not without trepidation. Join the mailing list for a weekly roundup of Jazz News. Not yet a subscriber of our Wednesday Breakfast Headlines? On Friday night, accompanied by the Royal Academy of Music Symphony Orchestra and the Crouch End Festival Chorus, James Newton Howard commenced the first ever concert tour of his own music, starting at the Royal Albert Hall. In a stellar career as a sideman he also worked with Barbra Streisand, Rod Stewart and Randy Newman before he “found his calling” as one of the most successful film composers of our time. ![]() James Newton Howard was a piano prodigy who received his crucial break thanks to Garry Katz, producer of Steely Dan, who recommended Howard when Elton John needed a keyboard player for his 1975 tour. James Newton Howard - 3 Decades of Music for Hollywood ![]()
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