{"id":714,"date":"2010-10-20T01:34:13","date_gmt":"2010-10-20T05:34:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/?p=714"},"modified":"2010-12-27T20:38:01","modified_gmt":"2010-12-28T01:38:01","slug":"john-frizzell-2007-part-a","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/?p=714","title":{"rendered":"JOHN FRIZZELL (2007, Part A)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Return to<\/strong>:\u00a0Home <\/a>\/\u00a0Exclusive Interviews & Profiles<\/a> \/\u00a0Composers<\/a><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/p>\n

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Unlike John Frizzell\u2019s prior horror scores for Dark Castle \u2018s graphic <\/em>Thirte3n Ghosts<\/em> <\/em><\/strong>and <\/em>Ghost Ship<\/em><\/strong> <\/em>(2002), <\/em>The Reaping <\/em><\/strong>is a major shift in pacing and style, and is less overtly infused with experimental concepts and harsh, bristling cues. In our discussion we touch upon aspects and conventions of the theological thriller, and the qualities that make the music for <\/em>The Reaping <\/em><\/strong>a noteworthy entry in this oft-visited genre.<\/em><\/p>\n

John Frizzell <\/strong>: When you read some reviews, people say the score is very loud, and it just isn\u2019t\u2026 There\u2019s a lot more emotion in it, and a lot more melody. The first conversation I had with [co-producer Joel Silver] is that \u2018this is a different kind of film; it\u2019s different from what Dark Castle has done before, and we\u2019re going into a different territory.\u2019<\/p>\n

Mark R. Hasan <\/em><\/strong>: Which is pretty fresh for the company, because their horror films have a more formulaic style: there\u2019s always a shock, plenty of graphic murders, and bits of suspense in-between; whereas musically, <\/em>The Reaping <\/em><\/strong>seems to reflect a more measured approach. In listening to the score, I don\u2019t get the impression there\u2019s a series of shocks that happen throughout the beginning.<\/em><\/p>\n

JF <\/strong>: No. In fact I think this film is very patient in taking its time to pull you in.<\/p>\n

MRH <\/em><\/strong>: You also mentioned people were surprise at the score\u2019s melodic elements. There\u2019s quite a number of long, melodic passages that you develop and flesh out much later, and it\u2019s a nice contrast to the more dissonant and experimental-styled scores you\u2019ve done.<\/em><\/p>\n

JF <\/strong>:\u00a0The Prize Winner from Defiance, Ohio <\/strong>is a little film, and one of my favourites. It\u2019s on Milan (and I think it\u2019s going to be up on iTunes very soon) and it\u2019s definitely one of my melodic sides, as is\u00a0Gods and Generals<\/strong>\u2026 It is nice to do this in a film which has some genre elements in it\u2026 I thought, \u2018Hey, this is a great opportunity to sort of break the mold and go into more traditional film scoring, but also towards the experimental things that I like to do.<\/p>\n

MRH <\/em><\/strong>: Was there a particular aspect of the lead character or story that made you choose woodwinds and piano to emphasize a palpable warmth?<\/em><\/p>\n

JF <\/strong>: It was something about [Hilary Swank’s] character, and maybe because this film is about femininity and motherhood. I also knew that if I took my theme and played it high on the piano early on in the film, then when I had the entire orchestra and choir bark it out later, it would certainly have grown.<\/p>\n

MRH <\/em><\/strong>: <\/em>The Reaping <\/em><\/strong>was directed by Stephen Hopkins, whose own career includes a number of stories with explosive elements \u2013 he\u2019s very adept at horror and action \u2013 whereas his new film is less typical of his prior works, like <\/em>Predator 2<\/em><\/strong>,<\/em>Blown Away <\/em><\/strong>(1994), and <\/em>Judgment Night<\/em><\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\n

JF <\/strong>: [Stephen Hopkins’\u00a0The Life and Death of Peter Sellers<\/strong>] is a very character-driven work; very soft-spoken and delicate in the way that it approaches its subject of a very complex character. I think\u00a0Ghost in the Darkness <\/strong>has its big, wild moments, but it definitely takes its time building up the tension, too. Stephen is definitely one to blow a thing up here and there, but I think you can see in his style his love of photography and colour, and his love of shape and motion.<\/p>\n

MRH <\/em><\/strong>: I wondered if it was difficult to compose music for a director whose prior films, particularly <\/em>Ghost in the Darkness<\/em><\/strong>, contained really dense layers of dynamic sound effects plus score?<\/em><\/p>\n

JF <\/strong>: I really love working with sound designers. On\u00a0The Reaping <\/strong>it was\u00a0Danetracks <\/a>(they did the\u00a0Matrix <\/strong>films and have done a lot of pictures with Joel Silver), and we had a lot of conversations where we\u2019d meet, we\u2019d talk, we\u2019d play things for each other and know who\u2019s covering what\u2026 I\u2019m not so out to write a score and put it on a movie; I try to think more of making a movie now, and try to be objective with my score when we get to the final process, and just think what\u2019s going to serve the film.<\/p>\n

MRH <\/em><\/strong>: I guess when you get to the final mixing stage, that\u2019s where you\u2019re confronted with all these different sound opportunities; you can add or enhance anything, but you have to use a lot of discretion.<\/em><\/p>\n

JF <\/strong>: If you write a delicate cue and it\u2019s played too loud, it takes on a whole new character. Dave Campbell mixed the music on this film, and I think it\u2019s Dave\u2019s last film \u2013 he says he\u2019s retiring \u2013 and I\u2019m incredibly honored to have worked with him, because he\u2019s just so good at finding that place where a score should fit into a film.<\/p>\n

MRH <\/em><\/strong>: Theological thrillers have a long legacy of giving composers great opportunities to exploit musical styles, and I wonder what is it about the genre that\u2019s so attractive to composers?<\/em><\/p>\n

JF <\/strong>: I was trying to think to myself when did the first one start being made? I\u2019m trying to think as far back as I can, and it seems like they didn\u2019t really come about until the sixties, unless I\u2019m wrong. Can you think of any before then?<\/p>\n

MRH <\/em><\/strong>: I guess the problem for me is that <\/em>The Omen <\/em><\/strong>and <\/em>The Exorcist <\/em><\/strong>are the two that really stand out. <\/em>Exorcist <\/em><\/strong>is really just a pastiche of material and doesn\u2019t really have a formal score running through it, but <\/em>Omen <\/em><\/strong>was the one that sort of codified everything within the genre; because it did that, it established a template that everyone feels obligated to work towards, which isn\u2019t really fair because a lot of the later filmic imitations were scored by all kinds of different composers. Even Ennio Morricone scored a few, and his stuff is really out there, such as <\/em>Holocaust 2000 <\/em><\/strong>(aka <\/em>The Chosen<\/em><\/strong>), plus Bruno Nicolai\u2019s <\/em>The AntiChrist<\/em> <\/em><\/strong>(<\/em>L\u2019Anticristo<\/em><\/strong>).<\/em><\/p>\n

JF <\/strong>: I think the biggest thing that comes to mind when you\u2019re dealing with a theological thriller is that you\u2019re dealing with theology, and you\u2019ve got a couple millennia of music history to pull on, and I think that\u2019s what you\u2019re focusing on: you have Gregorian chants, you have the concept of chant, you have the Mass; you have all these types of Western religious music to pull on, and that\u2019s probably why there tends to be a common thread in many of these theological thrillers \u2013 we\u2019re pulling on the same liturgical music.<\/p>\n

MRH <\/em><\/strong>: And I guess they\u2019ve allowed composers to dip into some eccentric, if not dissonant concepts, even in straightforward horror films.<\/em><\/p>\n

JF <\/strong>: They\u2019re probably using voices with that, too.<\/p>\n

MRH <\/em><\/strong>: I guess one key aspect is the use of large chorales, and to use such a component requires great skill, if not finesse.<\/em><\/p>\n

JF <\/strong>: It\u2019s complicated. In thinking about \u2018What is a theological thriller?\u2019 Is\u00a02001: A Space Odyssey <\/strong>a theological thriller? It\u2019s a lot about theology, and a lot of great uses of voices in the music in that film. It\u2019s a broad area.<\/p>\n

MRH <\/em><\/strong>: In terms of your own skill, I particularly liked a cue [“Costigan Blues”] where you repeated a particular rhythmic pattern and subsequently bring in large chunks of the orchestra and chorus to further the tension \u2013 something you also employed in <\/em>Alien Resurrection <\/em><\/strong>in two specific places. It\u2019s admittedly my favourite part of that score, and the primal cue appeared in its longest configuration during the end credits.<\/em><\/p>\n

JF <\/strong>: I do know what cue you\u2019re talking about, and it is a further exploration of some ideas that go way back, and probably an idea that I\u2019ll keep pursuing, as I really like the build; it\u2019s hard to put into words as to what it is.<\/p>\n

MRH <\/em><\/strong>: I think it\u2019s the concept of using brass to introduce something with a great deal of weight, and the rhythmic pattern that gives it an ominous momentum, ultimately slamming the audience hard with an aural payoff.<\/em><\/p>\n

JF <\/strong>: I\u2019m always going back and listening to the master, John Williams\u2026 It\u2019s challenging to use brass in contemporary scores, especially higher trumpets. It\u2019s easier to be kind of growling on the bottom, but to sound modern with brass [is much harder]. That may be why you\u2019re hearing less brass in some scores these days. That\u2019s something that I don\u2019t want to give up on\u2026 because I love their power.<\/p>\n

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KQEK.com would like to thank John Frizzell for speaking with us, and Tom Kidd at Costa Communications for facilitating the interview.<\/em><\/p>\n

Visit the composer at <\/em>www.johnfrizzell.com<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

All images remain the property of their copyright holders.<\/em><\/p>\n

This article and interview \u00a9 2007 by Mark R. Hasan<\/em><\/p>\n

Related interviews with John Frizzell: <\/em>Legion<\/a><\/em><\/strong> <\/a><\/em>(2010), <\/em>Primeval<\/a><\/em><\/strong> <\/a><\/em>(2007), <\/em>Stay Alive <\/em><\/strong><\/a>(2006)<\/em><\/p>\n

.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Related external links (MAIN SITE)<\/em>:<\/p>\n

DVD\/Film: Ghost Ship<\/a><\/strong> (2002) —\u00a0Thir13en Ghosts<\/a> <\/strong>(2001)<\/p>\n

.<\/span><\/p>\n

Return to<\/strong>:\u00a0Home <\/a>\/\u00a0Exclusive Interviews & Profiles<\/a> \/\u00a0Composers<\/a><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Return to:\u00a0Home \/\u00a0Exclusive Interviews & Profiles \/\u00a0Composers . Unlike John Frizzell\u2019s prior horror scores for Dark Castle \u2018s graphic Thirte3n Ghosts and Ghost Ship (2002), The Reaping is a major shift in pacing and style, and is less overtly infused with experimental concepts and harsh, bristling cues. In our discussion we touch upon aspects and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[26,22,30,4212],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8nuyW-bw","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/714"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=714"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/714\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2008,"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/714\/revisions\/2008"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=714"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=714"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kqek.com\/mobile\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=714"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}