In 2010 the Dallas Symphony Orchestra announced a series of concerts that would make any film fan smile. Titled “Masters of Film Music“, the DSO will hold concert events featuring some of the most memorable film scores (through a series of performances conducted by the top living film composers themselves) in Dallas’ renowned Meyerson H. Symphony Center.
At G-S-T we’re pretty big into film scores so this is right up our alley and we wanted to share this with you. Also we’re going to cover the events so keep an eye out for write-ups, possible interviews and more. Needless to say, we’re pretty excited! Today the DSO has re-issued a press release highlighting the musicians featured in their 2011-2012 Pops line up. After the jump is a link to the video detailing what the Masters of Film Music has to offer any and all film fans as well as music lovers in general. Enjoy!
Click the image above to see the video…
From the official press release:
The Dallas Symphony Orchestra today announces a new multi-year programming initiative: the Masters of Film Music. This ground-breaking new series brings the music of some of today’s top film composers to Dallas as part of the 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 Dallas Symphony Pops Series. The Masters of Film Music will feature a Dallas Symphony Orchestra-commissioned world premiere work written by each composer, combined with a multi-media career retrospective with images on a larger-than-life screen.
The top composers whose world premiere commissions and career retrospectives will be featured in the Masters of Film Music are George Fenton, Theodore Shapiro, James Newton Howard, Michael Giacchino, Harry Gregson-Williams.“The Masters of Film project is revolutionary in the sense that we are combining the works of the top living film composers, whose music is heard by millions of people around the world, with the artistic power of the Dallas Symphony,” said Dallas Symphony Orchestra Chief Marketing and Entertainment Officer Stephen Cook. “The DSO is taking the lead in innovative programming, combining the great music of the movies with the powerful sound of the orchestra. I know our patrons will be thrilled with the result.”
“This new aspect of our Pops Series pairs some of the most recognizable film scores ever written with the incredible talent of our orchestra,” Dallas Symphony Orchestra President Douglas Adams stated. “To hear this music performed in the acoustical perfection of the Meyerson Symphony Center will be a treat for any music lover.“
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Composers in the 2011-2012 Season:
James Newton Howard is one of the most versatile and in-demand composers currently working in film. A look back on Howard’s impressive film career will include music from movies such as Pretty Woman, The Sixth Sense, King Kong, I am Legend, The Village, Michael Clayton, The Fugitive, The Dark Knight (with Hans Zimmer), My Best Friend’s Wedding and many more. To date, Howard has received eight Oscar nominations, including five for Best Original Score, five Grammy nominations, one Emmy Award and four Golden Globe nominations. In addition, he was honored with ASCAP’s prestigious Henry Mancini Award for Lifetime Achievement.
(Tickets available for the January 13th – 14th performances)
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Award-Winning British film composer Harry Gregson-Williams has scored numerous motion picture films, television and video games. Williams got his big break while working under Oscar-winning film composer, Hans Zimmer, in the mid-’90s and since then has successfully made a name for himself in Hollywood. With over 60 motion picture films under his belt, including Shrek 1, 2 and 3, The Chronicles of Narnia Series, X Men Origins: Wolverine, The Prince of Persia and Williams has also composed for television shows, commercials and video games.
(Tickets available for the April 5th – 7th performances)
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Emmy and Academy Award-Winner Michael Giacchino has not only scored several well-known feature films, he has also composed music for television shows, animated shorts and video games. Giacchino has penned the music for such films as UP, Mission Impossible III, Star Trek, The Incredibles and Ratatouille, for which he received an Oscar nomination. His compositions have brought joy and laughter to the entertainment world and have earned him immense respect over the years. Giacchino also earned an Emmy for his work on the ABC hit show Lost and an Oscar for his work on Up.
(Tickets available for the May 18th – 20th performances)
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Composers from the previous 2010-2011 season:
Theodore Shapiro has composed music for film, television and the concert stage. His ability to turn humor into music has lent itself to such blockbuster films as Marley and Me, The Devil Wears Prada, Old School, You, Me & Dupree and countless others. Shapiro has composed the score for several Ben Stiller-produced comedies including Tropic Thunder, Blades of Glory, Dodgeball and Starsky & Hutch, and other notable films like13 Going on 30 and Year One.
British composer George Fenton is best known for his musical work for film, television and theatre. He has written the music for over 70 feature films and has collaborated with some of the most influential filmmakers of the late 20th century. Among his many film credits are Gandhi (with Ravi Shankar,) The Fisher King, Dangerous Liaisons, Hitch, The Madness of King George, Memphis Belle and many more. Fenton also composed the score to the hit television series Planet Earth and Blue Planet.
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About DSO Music Director Jaap van Zweden:
The 2009-2010 season marks Jaap van Zweden’s second as music director of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. A Juilliard-trained violinist, van Zweden joined the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra as concertmaster at age 19. It was during his time at the Concertgebouw that van Zweden spent sixteen years being mentored and inspired by such great conductors as Solti, Haitink, Giulini, Harnoncourt and Bernstein, and it was Bernstein who pronounced he was a born conductor and should pursue it as a career.
In 1997, van Zweden made his decision to conduct full time and was subsequently named the chief conductor of the Netherlands Symphony Orchestra where he remained until 2003. Highlights of van Zweden’s music directorship at the DSO include the world premiere of August 4, 1964 by Steven Stucky, Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, performances at Napa Valley’s Festival del Sole and the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival, and the critically acclaimed CD releases of Beethoven’s Fifth and Seventh Symphonies and Tchaikovsky’s Fifth Symphony and Capriccio italien. This season, van Zweden will make his conducting debut with other American orchestras including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Philadelphia and Cleveland Orchestras, as well as a return engagement with the Chicago Symphony.
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About the Dallas Symphony Orchestra:
The Dallas Symphony Orchestra has a rich, 109-year history of artistic excellence. As the largest performing arts organization in the Southwest, the DSO is committed to the pursuit of uncompromising musical distinction through innovative and classical programming, and strives to build a community of passionate music lovers in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The DSO has grown from a 40-person ensemble to a world-class orchestra since its inception in 1900, and continues to be the cornerstone of the burgeoning Arts District in downtown Dallas; a district now noted as the largest in the nation.
After an exhaustive search, the DSO named Jaap van Zweden as music director beginning in the 2008-2009 season. Eminent music directors such as Antal Dorati, Paul Kletzki, Georg Solti, Eduardo Mata and Andrew Litton laid the groundwork for important elements of today’s DSO, including extensive touring and recording, special community and education concerts and the building of the world-renowned Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center.
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Again, the concerts are a little ways off but we’ll keep you posted on any news as well as our upcoming coverage. For more info, including tickets, head on over to the Dallas Symphony Orchestra website or the Masters of Film Music page.
