Composer Threads Official Danny Elfman Thread

[JNHFan2000 2,966]

Might get some blues or jazz with this

[ddddeeee 257]

I'm listening to the audiobook now and it's grim - relentlessly grim. 

 

The main character is suffering from memory loss. I wonder if Girl on the Train played a part in Elfman landing this.

[DangerMotif 1,038]

Are there any available recordings of his Cello concerto?

[Jay 37,369]

On 24/05/2022 at 2:13 PM, ddddeeee said:

You can listen to Elfman's cello concerto here! From 36:30!

 

Gautier Capuçon & l'Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France jouent Elfman & Mahler à la Philharmonie de Paris

 

[DangerMotif 1,038]

I don’t think that link plays anymore

[ddddeeee 257]

Serenada Schizophrana premiered on February 2005 and was released in October 2006.

 

Rabbit & Rogue premiered June 2008 and was released in June 2017.

 

His violin concerto premiered June 2017 and was released March 2019.

 

His piano quartet premiered February 2018 and was released March 2019.

 

His percussion quarter premiered September 2019 and was released May 2022.

 

Since then, he has had four premieres that are yet to be released. I don't think any have been recorded. The percussion and cello concerto were available online but have since been taken down.

 

 

[Romão 2,274]

 

[JTN 2,030]

He has an amazing voice. And he’s the youngest 70-year-old I’ve ever seen.

[ddddeeee 257]

 

[filmmusic 1,836]

To think that this man has no formal musical training.

It's astounding!

[JWilliamsFan1999 47]

I love John Williams, Danny Elfman and Hans Zimmer. All great composers but my #1 has to be John Willams. He is like the master of film scores. By the way @filmmusic, I love your profile picture from Memoirs Of A Geisha. Do you recommend me that score by John Williams? Because I have heard it is also one of his most popular scores, too. 

Also since this is a thread on Danny Elfman, does anyone like his band Oingo Boingo? If Yes, what are some songs you guys can recommend me? 

[filmmusic 1,836]

2 minutes ago, JWilliamsFan1999 said:

By the way @filmmusic, I love your profile picture from Memoirs Of A Geisha. Do you recommend me that score by John Williams? Because I have heard it is also one of his most popular scores, too. 

Thank you.

Of course I recommend it.

It has 2 of the most beautiful themes in Williams's oeuvre. (Sayuri's theme and The Chairman's waltz)

You haven't heard it yet?

The film is quite good too!

[JWilliamsFan1999 47]

Just now, filmmusic said:

Thank you.

Of course I recommend it.

It has 2 of the most beautiful themes in Williams's oeuvre. (Sayuri's theme and The Chairman's waltz)

You haven't heard it yet?

The film is quite good too!

 

Alright, will give those a listen for sure. Thanks so much, @filmmusic

[DangerMotif 1,038]

https://t.co/uRH2yODWZa

[Alex 2,835]

That is a lot of money…

[HunterTech 994]

Elfman's depiction of the events are so specific that I have trouble imagining how she could dispel this idea of being someone who is out to get him after things didn't go her way (especially if this only going public because of money disputes instead of her feeling people should know anyway). I'm going to remain cautious and try to be fair, but it is a more compelling self-defense out the gate compared to some other celebrities in a similar position.

[TolkienSS 407]

I hope that woman gets the humiliation she deserves. Pure scum. Payments stop, make new threats.

[Edmilson 7,466]

Elfman was wise in paying her back in 2018, though. Had he got Metoo-ed during those days, he would never work as a composer and musician again. Depending on the backlash, I think even The Simpsons would replace his classic opening theme for one written by the RC drones who score the show these days. Remember when the show removed the Michael Jackson episode from Season 3 after that HBO documentary?

[Mephariel 451]

1 hour ago, TolkienSS said:

I hope that woman gets the humiliation she deserves. Pure scum. Payments stop, make new threats.

 

Not sure how you come to the conclusion she is a scrum from that article. I am not saying I believe her, but she could be the victim here. 

[Taikomochi 1,136]

If you are outright dismissing the possibility that she might be telling the truth based on nothing except the desire to avoid the cognitive dissonance of an artist you like potentially being a piece of shit, then ya brain broke.

[Andy 4,138]

"The Final Confrontation"

[KK 3,307]

Whether all the allegations are true or not, you can't deny that the intimate circumstances of their relationship that both parties have verified (i.e. the photoshoots, the martini glass "joke", etc) are all ripe for uncomfortable, predatorial boundary crossing, especially in that kind of power dynamic...and it's not entirely off-brand for Elfman's public persona.

[ddddeeee 257]

Elfman's my favourite musician, so reading that article this morning was a bit too much for me to fully process.

 

I've just finished reading it a second time, trying my best to pretend this were any other prominent musician, and I honestly have a really bad feeling about it all. What I can't get past is that in 2020, when all of this was still very hush-hush, Abadi founded the Female Composer Safety League for victims of sexual abuse in the music composing industry. 

[karelm 2,914]

I once hung out right next to him!  It was a rehearsal/pre-run of Cirque de Soleil's Iris a few years back.  I was invited to the dress rehearsal so experiencing the entire production in an empty theater.  My friend, who invited me, walked up to this man just standing in the empty performance hall and introduced me to an ordinary looking man he called Danny Elfman.  It was so unexpected.  I wouldn't have recognized him if not introduced!  It was surreal and mind blowing but mostly after the fact when I realized...holy shit, that was Danny Elfman I just met!  Otherwise, I probably would have walked right past him.  The most memorable thing was he seemed very nervous.  His mind was elsewhere and he was very consumed about all the musical details of the high profile production such as the balance between electronics and amplified performers who were surrounding the stage.  I stood next to him alone and he was completely consumed by the production issues.  He was friendly, professional and kind, just deeply preoccupied. 

[mstrox 6,651]

There’s really no reason to doubt the story.  She went on to advocate for survivors of abuse and assault within the industry without naming names for years, and there are people she came to at the time with that information.  The fact that Elfman’s camp cops to all of the stuff that is proveable (“Well sure he sent her a picture of what he said was semen in a glass, but it was a joke!”) and vehemently denies everything that isn’t proveable one way or the other certainly stinks of fish.  For me as the outside consumer who is not personally impacted, these things always a bummer, never really a surprise…

[Taikomochi 1,136]

I think what people miss in these stories is that it’s highly frowned upon in the film industry to speak out against major figures like this. You get blacklisted. Her career would certainly be harmed by this. People saying she is doing it for fame are deeply, deeply detached from reality. She would have no such motive. 

[ddddeeee 257]

The FilmScoreMonthly forum aren't allowing any discussion on this. That's disturbing.

[1977 1,743]

If anyone has seen photos of Elfman in later years, he certainly is giving off creepy vibes, particularly his dead-looking eyes. Not saying this proves anything but...

 

His recent non-film album covers and the imagery associated with some of the songs also seem a bit disturbed. He always came across as off-beat and eccentric in earlier years but really seems to be leaning into something else lately.

 

He is obviously a very gifted film composer so I hope these allegations are false or overstated, but the truth needs to come out either way.

[Jurassic Shark 12,079]

5 minutes ago, JTWfan77 said:

If anyone has seen photos of Elfman in later years, he certainly is giving off creepy vibes, particularly his dead-looking eyes. Not saying this proves anything but...

 

He looks more and more like an old lady. Is he trying to tell us something?

[Andy 4,138]

Elf man->Elder woman

[Edmilson 7,466]

For a while, I always "Elfman" was a stage name, like he was trying to evoke the creature from the folklore Elf and thus tying his name with fantasy and adventure... But no, the guy's family name is really Elfman. 

[Andy 4,138]

“What are you?”

“I’m Elfman.”

[Koray Savas 2,251]

Is he still married to Bridget Fonda?

[Jay 37,369]

Yeah

[ddddeeee 257]

Is there any frame of reference for this? Just wondering what the immediate fallout of this could be. Elfman gets booted from The Actor and Beetlejuice 2? If the latter happens, I'd guess he's done.

 

He has a lot of upcoming shows, too.

[Ollie 1,059]

This begs the question, can you separate artistic merit from the person?

 

Plenty of artists /celebrities/ athletes have done or been accused of reprehensible behavior. However they have also taken part in many things people enjoy.

 

Do you continue to enjoy their output, dispense of it from your collection, or stop supporting future endeavors? 

[JTN 2,030]

21 hours ago, Jurassic Shark said:

Is he trying to tell us something?

Oingo boingo.

[mstrox 6,651]

2 hours ago, ddddeeee said:

Is there any frame of reference for this? Just wondering what the immediate fallout of this could be.

The comic Louis CK did the same thing, albeit more regularly, and he “disappeared” for like six months and then went back to doing shows, joking about it.

 

58 minutes ago, Ollie said:

This begs the question, can you separate artistic merit from the person?

 

Plenty of artists /celebrities/ athletes have done or been accused of reprehensible behavior. However they have also taken part in many things people enjoy.

 

Do you continue to enjoy their output, dispense of it from your collection, or stop supporting future endeavors? 

IMO, once somebody makes art, it stops being theirs and starts belonging to each individual person who consumes it.  Danny Elfman jacking off at someone without their consent doesn’t change the fact that your already-owned copy of Edward Scissorhands is beautiful or Mission Impossible rules or whatever.  The real choice is whether to continue financially supporting his endeavors through catalog releases, new OSTs, etc…and the further question, which i think is probably unanswerable for schmoes like us, is what kind of money does Danny Elfman get from, like, an expanded Nightbreed release.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

No ethical consumption under capitalism. I’ll continue to enjoy the content I like while also acknowledging that some of the art I love is produced by terrible people.

 

 

[Marian Schedenig 8,200]

5 hours ago, Ollie said:

This begs the question, can you separate artistic merit from the person?

 

Plenty of artists /celebrities/ athletes have done or been accused of reprehensible behavior. However they have also taken part in many things people enjoy.

 

Do you continue to enjoy their output, dispense of it from your collection, or stop supporting future endeavors? 

 

That's the easier part of the question for me. If I've already got it, I claim to feel entitled to enjoy it, regardless of the artist. But what about future projects? Does our enjoyment of Elfman's music justify supporting his output (and thus financially (and "morally") supporting the artist)? Luckily, I've never been a big Elfman fan, so I'm not much impacted by this situation personally - whatever the true background or outcome. But of course I'd be in much more of a moral conflict if similar accusations were published against e.g. Williams (which fortunately seems very unlikely).

[Bellosh 3,419]

Film music, more so than a singular musician or band, or even comedian (Louis CK mentioned) is the result of a wide range of other creatives visions (director, writer, art director, cinematographer, costume designer, concept artists, actors ect ect).

 

It's diluted enough where I think it's much easier to separate the music from the artist.

[Edmilson 7,466]

Thank goodness, as far as we know John Williams didn't show his dick to anyone who didn't want to see. Imagine the headlines: "John Williams exposed his willy / little johnny / flesh baton".

[Bayesian 1,363]

Man, what a dreadful and troubling thing to have to read about my second favorite film composer. This cannot end well for Elfman. If the allegations are true in their entirety, we have just witnessed the end of his career. He’ll then join the growing crowd of talented men fallen from grace whose achievements will forever be interpreted in conjunction with their moral failings and abusive actions. If the allegations are false, he’ll still get dragged through the mud until the courts declare him innocent.

 

Abadi’s detailed accusations, coupled with the hush money agreement and her founding of an awareness and victim support group, make me inclined to believe her. I’m still processing what this means for my relationship with Elfman’s music. 
 

What I don’t understand is why he didn’t maintain payments and spare what could well be the ruination of an incredible career. More importantly, what on earth possessed him to do these offensive acts in the first place? 
 

All this makes me wonder, what other currently respectable artists/celebrities/public figures are one NDA breach from being destroyed in the public eye?

[Mephariel 451]

49 minutes ago, Bayesian said:

Man, what a dreadful and troubling thing to have to read about my second favorite film composer. This cannot end well for Elfman. If the allegations are true in their entirety, we have just witnessed the end of his career. He’ll then join the growing crowd of talented men fallen from grace whose achievements will forever be interpreted in conjunction with their moral failings and abusive actions. If the allegations are false, he’ll still get dragged through the mud until the courts declare him innocent.

 

Abadi’s detailed accusations, coupled with the hush money agreement and her founding of an awareness and victim support group, make me inclined to believe her. I’m still processing what this means for my relationship with Elfman’s music. 
 

What I don’t understand is why he didn’t maintain payments and spare what could well be the ruination of an incredible career. More importantly, what on earth possessed him to do these offensive acts in the first place? 
 

All this makes me wonder, what other currently respectable artists/celebrities/public figures are one NDA breach from being destroyed in the public eye?

 

Also, was Danny Elfman's lawyer drunk when representing him? Did he actually let Elfman release this statement?

 

"Ms. Abadi’s allegations are simply not true. I allowed someone to get close to me without knowing that I was her ‘childhood crush’ and that her intention was to break up my marriage and replace my wife."

 

He sent her a cup of what looked to be semen with a line "to pique your imagination," and then said this? If anything, this is the kind of self-important attitude that makes him look guilty. 

 

[Edmilson 7,466]

52 minutes ago, Bayesian said:

More importantly, what on earth possessed him to do these offensive acts in the first place? 

I think that, pre-Metoo, most of these powerful Hollywood artists and executives thought they were so powerful and larger-than-life that they could do literally everything they wanted and would never get caught. No one would ever believe the victims anyway. 

 

Then, in 2017, all of that changed. But before that, I doubt that these people feared getting exposed. They're rich, famous and influent, no one could get them.

[Alex 2,835]

10 hours ago, Bayesian said:

This cannot end well for Elfman. If the allegations are true in their entirety, we have just witnessed the end of his career.

I would be very surprised if this was the end of his career. There are people still working in Hollywood with far more egregious accusations.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,542]

Agreed, bro.

Like many other "scandals" which some people think are so monumentally important, this will pass.

"Today's headlines are tomorrow's chip paper", so the saying goes.

The only people that it will continue to matter to, are Elfman, his family, and the woman concerned, and that's how it should be.

Keep it private.

History is replete with famous and influential people, who have been caught up, or caught out. Elfman has learned a valuable, yet painful, lesson: if you don't want something to come back and bite you on the ass, don't do it, in the first place.

How fans/professionals will react, is entirely up to them, but I am sure that Elfman will continue to have a productive career.

"No matter how high your highs, or how low your lows, there's a billion people in China who just don't give a damn".

[JTN 2,030]

INNOCENT until proven guilty.

[KK 3,307]

4 hours ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

How fans/professionals will react, is entirely up to them, but I am sure that Elfman will continue to have a productive career.

 

Elfman will continue to have an enormously profitable career. This will disappear within the month.

 

Abadi, probably already blacklisted, will have a very hard time working again.

 

And that's kind of the heart of the problem.

[ddddeeee 257]

Elfman has two live shows in a week and a half, so I guess we'll see.

 

Any chance this is what's holding up Nightbreed? It seemed good to go like a month ago and now there's nothing.

 

The more I read Elfman and Elfman's rep's statements, the more awful they sound.