This week we’re going to focus on the great film scores of Christopher Young. I’d have to say one of my favorite film scores is from Clive Barker’s “Hellraiser.” It’s just one of those sound tracks I can put on and listen to whether it is driving, working around the house, writing or some other creative process. There is just something about that score.

Christopher Young graduated from Massachusetts Hampshire College with a BA in music. He went on to do post graduate work at North Texas State University. Young was inspired by composer Bernard Herrmann, of Citizen Kane and Vertigo fame. He moved to Los Angeles and attended classes at UCLA where he studied with film composer David Raksin.

Learn more and listen to samples!

Mr. Young has score many types of films besides horror. Christopher Young is known for scarey film scores for “Hellraiser,” “Hellbound: Hellraiser II,” “Drag Me to Hell,” “Ghost Rider,” “The Exorcism of Emily Rose,” “The Grudge” and “The Grudge 2.″ He has also done many scores that you may not realize. One movie I like that I didn’t realize he did is “Rounders.” Young has also done comedies like “The Man That Knew Too Little.” All together he has scored over 100 films. When Danny Elfman was not available to score “Spiderman 3,” Christopher Young was able to help Sam Raimi out. If you notice the list of horror above, you’ll notice that he went on to help Raimi more later as well. Check out IMDB for Christopher Young’s full filmography.

[VISIT MUTANTVILLE.COM TO HEAR SCORE SELECTIONS]

via examiner.com

The Core (2003)

Music Composed By Christopher Young

Performed By The Hollywood Symphony Orchestra

Conducted By Pete Anthony

Score Produced By Flavio Motalla and Christopher Young

Intrada Special Collection Volume 187

Disc 1=11 Tracks – Running Time: 51:35

Disc 2=10 Tracks – Running Time: 48:50

Total Time: 21 Tracks – Running Time: 100:25

The Core was a big budget reimagining of Journey to the Center of the Earth set in a more modern and apocalyptic version. WIth a terrific ensemble cast that featured Academy Award winner Hilary Swank, Aaron Eckhart, Stanley Tucci, Delroy Lindo, D.J. Qualls, Tcheky Karyo, Bruce Greenwood and Academy Award nominee Richard Jenkins, The Core is a fun and entertaining thriller that while it might take itself a little too seriously at times yet it does have a sense of humor to boot. The plot of the film is simple, the Earth’s core has stopped rotating for some strange reason (this is a major reveal in the storyline so I won’t spoil it for you) which has caused birds to slam into things and die, as well as unnatural occurances in the Earth’s atmosphere with relentless storms and thunder strikes and earthquakes. Aided by a pair of professors (Eckhart, Karyo), a famed scientist (Tucci), two Air Force Pilots (Swank and Greenwood), a crackpot inventor (Lindo) and the ultimate hacker (Qualls) under the supervision of a Military General (Jenkins) they devise a plan that would take the crew deep into the Earth’s core to jump start the Earth’s motor again within a short period of time before the worst things imaginable begin to happen. The film was a modest hit when it was released in 2003 and is still a charming big budget sci-fi thriller that is definitely better than alot of the sci-fi films that have come out since.

To Be BROADCAST

1. Sat 19 Nov 2011 @ 12:15  BBC Radio 3

Film composer Christopher Young, who has scored Nightmare on Elm Street 2, Hellraiser, and Drag Me to Hell, discovers how his musical scare tactics are inspired by the past.

Throughout the programme, Christopher Young examines how a composer makes an audience jump in terror. He discovers how his own devilish compositions are inspired by the works of Wagner, Berlioz and Liszt. Surprising connections are drawn between classic horror scenes and demonically inspired operas and symphonies.

The programme starts with an investigation of the relationship between the devil and the violin, embodied in the life and legend of Niccolo Paganini. With musicologist Maiko Kawabata and violinist Philippe Quint, Christopher considers the devil’s role in musical complexity.

The tritone is a musical interval nicknamed Diabolus in Musica. It was generally avoided by medieval composers due to the chaos it created within harmony. Goldsmith’s Lecturer in Music Anthony Pryer dissects the unsettling nature of the Devil in Music. Along the way, Christopher discovers what many musicologists consider to be the first horror scene: The Wolf’s Glen scene from Der Freischutz, an 1822 opera by Carl Maria Von Weber. With University of Leeds Professor of Critical Musicology Derek Scott, Christopher examines Mozart’s Don Giovanni and Franz Liszt’s Faust Symphony. King Edward Professor of Music at King’s John Deathridge helps Christopher to discover the demonic techniques developed by Richard Wagner. Horror music expert Stan Link examines Hector Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique, while identifying the sensorial similarities between horror films and classic Romantic works.

The Devil in Music is a Whistledown production for BBC Radio 3. The producer is Colin McNulty.

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October 25, 2011 – The stars aligned last night at House of Blues on Sunset Boulevard when L.A.’s music and film community gathered to honor educators and two of their own at Education Through Music–Los Angeles’annual gala.  Thousands were raised in an evening that honored local music teacher Julie Westand acclaimed film composerChristopher Young (Hellraiser, Species, The Rum Diary).

Film and television star Ed Helms (The Office, Cedar Rapids) emceed the evening’s festivities and entertained the crowd with his old time music outfit The Lonesome Trio.  Mr. Helms was joined by his Officeco-star Kate Flannery for the evening’s auction and together they had the crowd in stitches.  Later in the program The Lonesome Trio was also joined for a number by Thomas Lennon (Reno 911’s Lt. Dangle) and his alter ego Blind Joe Jeffers for a comedic protest song.

Earlier in the evening Michael Bearden, former Musical Director for Michael Jackson’s “This Is It,” and his killer band, Solace, backed a group of young musicians and singers who have been recipients of ETM-LA programs over the years.  Solace entertained the festive crowd late into the evening, long after the student musicians who performed earlier in the show were back home and tucked into their beds.

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