3dotmag November 2012

AWARD WI NN I NG B R I T I SH COMPOS E R PAUL ENGLISHBY 2012 EMMY WINNER FOR DAVID HARE’S ‘PAGE EIGHT’

all musical endeavors. He was responsible for me getting into jazz, composing, playing the bass, and got me out of double maths on some musical pretext on many occasions. Q: Who is your favorite composer of all-time and why? A: At the moment it’s Benjamin Britten. There is a very original expressive voice there, always economical with material but for me emotionally devastating even in simple folk song settings, and a fantastic orchestrator. He was also adamant that music had a practical purpose and wrote much music for children and amateurs. Q: Do you use technology in your position and details? A: Yes, I use a sequencer on a Mac. This software enables one to create mock ups of music cues so that collaborators can hear demo versions of what you have in mind. I often record some of my scores or parts of scores at home in my studio, too. Q: What are your personal thoughts about the art of composing for film? A: Personally, I feel that the music in film should make sense as music and have its own integrity, as well as serving the picture. There should also be good reason for it to be there in the first place. The are many ways to score a scene, and it doesn’t matter, per se, which method is employed, as long as it’s achieved with confidence and the collaborators all have the same intention. Q: What is the craziest project you ever worked on? A: I ended up acting in a scene in the film “Confetti” that I wrote the music for. Director Debbie Isitt makes wonderful improvised comedy and decided one day that I should have a scene with the stars Martin Freeman and Jessica Hynes round the piano on camera. I was like a rabbit in headlights sucking its stomach in. Q: Where do you see your career taking you to next? A: I hope to carry on making music for the rest of my life. I love working in the mix of film, TV and theatre, concert music, jazz and dance music that I’m lucky enough to have done. END

British composer Paul Englishby is no stranger to winning awards or working alongside all-star casts. Oscar nominated screenwriter David Hare’s masterpiece “Page Eight,” has already been nominated for a British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) award and a Golden Globe. Thanks to Englishby’s amazing craftsman- ship, the film can also add nominations for the prestigious Ivor Novello award for Best TV Soundtrack and the highly desired Primetime Emmy Awards nomination for Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music. At an early age Englishby began to compose, his dedication and passion for music led him to attend the Royal Academy of Music and go on to write highly acclaimed scores for film, television, theatre, dance, and the concert hall. His film scores include the Oscar nominated “An Education” directed by Lone Sherfig and starring Carey Mulligan, “ Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day,” directed by Bharat Nalluri and starring Amy Adams, the Peep Show team’s Magicians, Brit flick “ Confetti,” starring Martin Freeman and Jessica Hynes, “Ten Minutes Older,” which featured contributions by directors

Jean-Luc Goddard, Mike Figgis, Spike Lee, Werner Herzog and Jim Jarmusch. “Page Eight” stars Bill Nighy, Rachel Weisz and Ralph Fiennes. This British political drama is David Hare’s first work as a director since “Strapless” in 1989. Notable TV credits include the hugely popular series “Luther” starring Idris Elba, “ Hamlet,” a location-set feature version of the Royal Shakespeare Company’s acclaimed production starring David Tennant and “An Englishman in New York,” starring John Hurt. Not only has this gifted artist created scores for Oscar nominated films, along the way, he taught Hugh Grant to play the guitar and Nicholas Cage to play the piano, coached his singing and taught him to con- duct. With a career that many only dream of, Paul Englishby remains humble and en- joys working in a field that he loves. It won’t be long before the world will find out if this down to earth Englishman will gain another title to his array of accolades as an Emmy Award Winning Composer for his breathtaking score for “Page Eight.”

Written by Karina Lidia

SOUND ON FILM series, which teamed composers up with directors to make half hour music films. Not only was I paid an unimaginable amount for a poor student, but I got to conduct a full orchestra at Abbey Road Studios. Wow, this is it from now I thought, but in reality, it was a long time before that happened again. Q: What or who inspired you to be a com- poser? A: My parents were always massively encouraging, taking me to piano lessons, band practice, concerts, broadening my mu- sical taste, and putting up with the noise. I had a fantastic music teacher at my school called Tony Evans who encouraged me in

Q&A with British Composer Paul Englishby

Question: When did you first know you wanted to be a composer? Answer: I was about 11 when I started writing music. I remember listening over and over to Beethoven’s 6th symphony and writing a very juvenile piece that had tunes alarm- ingly close to Ludwig’s. I went on to write music for the school band and choir and friends that played instruments. Q: What was your first paid composer position? A: When I was at college, I won a commission from the BBC for their

••• WWW.3DOTMAG.COM 0 2 3