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Where will the next generation of film music greats like Henry Mancini, Elmer Bernstein and Howard Shore come from? Some of those future Oscar-winning composers may well have participated in this year's 16th annual ASCAP Television & Film Scoring Workshop, which took place in July in Los Angeles under the guidance of composer Richard Bellis (his seventh year with the program), Kevin Coogan (ASCAP Sr. Director F&TV Music), and Mike Todd (ASCAP Director F&TV Music).
The workshop program was initiated in 1988 and has gained international recognition through the years. The intensive month-long program featuring prestigious guest speakers from the highest levels of the film and television music industry is widely known as a major educational and networking opportunity for aspiring composers. A total of 15 applicants from across the country and from as far away as Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, Philippines, and Spain were selected by a jury of leading composers to participate in the workshop.
The 2004 workshop focused on the many important business and creative elements film composers must face in this competitive world. Participants were exposed to different aspects of scoring at each session. There was a night with acclaimed film & television composer Randy Newman. Speakers also included composer agent Christine Russell (Evolution Music Partners); music attorney Scott Edel (Kleinberg, Lopez, Lange, Cuddy & Edel); veteran violinist and studio concertmaster Endré Granat; President of the RMA/LA Chapter's Brian O'Connor; APM's Adam Taylor (President); Music Director Edwina Travis-Chin; Lifetime Television's Marianne Goode; Lion's Gate's Joel C. High; Electronic Arts' Steve Schnur; ASCAP composers Steve Bramson (JAG and Navy NCIS), Sean Callery (24) and Marco Beltrami (i, Robot); Sabron's Sandy De Crescent; vocalist and vocal arranger Randy Crenshaw; score reader/orchestrator Dave Slonaker; Pro Tools operator Mary Parker; and 20th Century Fox's orchestral scoring recordist John Rodd.
Participants also went on field trips. One trip was to the studio of ASCAP film & television composer Jeff Rona to discuss the latest in recording technology and approaches to scoring in the digital world; another included an evening with Russ Bartmus at JoAnn Kane Music Services, discussing music preparation, copying and librarian services. In addition, the participants practiced their conducting techniques on stage with Richard Bellis and music editor Michael Ryan of Mad 4 Music, who also instructed the composers on cue sheets and timing notes in preparation for a recording session.
Five 3-minute clips in different styles (dramatic, animation, comedy, action, suspense and epic/period) from recent feature films and television series were chosen for which the participants composed their own original cue. Each original score was then recorded with a 40-piece orchestra featuring top L.A. studio players at the Newman Scoring Stage on the Fox Studios lot, with master film score engineer Armin Steiner. A screening of all clips was then held at the William Fox Theater on the Fox Studios lot for the final day of the workshop.
For the first time in the history of the Television & Film Scoring Workshop, ASCAP presented the Steve Kaplan TV and Film Studies Scholarship to Ted Masur of San Francisco, California. The scholarship was established by his family and friends, in memory of the late composer, performer and producer Steve Kaplan. Steve contributed songs and scores to many popular television programs, including Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune. This new scholarship was designed to provide financial assistance for one participant to further his/her career in the field of television and film composing at the completion of the annual ASCAP Television & Film Scoring Workshop.
Also, the inaugural Harold Arlen Film & TV Award was given to Greg Chun of Manhattan Beach, California, after the completion of the ASCAP Television & Film Scoring Workshop. Sam and Joan Arlen, the son and daughter-in-law of Harold Arlen, established this new award in recognition of Harold Arlen's 100th birthday in 2005.
The ASCAP Television & Film Scoring Workshop is partially funded by The ASCAP Foundation. Major contributions of resources, equipment and talent were provided by 20th Century Fox Music, Paramount Pictures and Television, Icon Distribution Inc., Sabron Inc., Jo Ann Kane Music Service, Mad 4 Music and the Newman Scoring Stage.
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