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What/Who are Thomas Newman's Influences?


Sharkissimo

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I'd credit his early involvement in theater, and his eclectic musical taste. A very natural fusion of the classical idiom with various pop ones, similar to Williams and jazz.

He's one of the most original composers that I'm aware of.

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Well, I can't remember where, but I've heard/seen him talk about Feldman, Ives, Berg, and Radiohead.


If you turn up any more information on this, be sure to post it here. I'd like to know.

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http://www.laphil.com/philpedia/music/it-got-dark-lapa-commission-world-premiere-thomas-newman

Newman studied composition and orchestration at USC with Frederick Lesemann and noted film composer David Raksin, and privately with composer George Tremblay. He completed his academic work at Yale University, studying with Jacob Druckman, Bruce MacCombie, and Robert Moore. Newman also gratefully acknowledges the early influence of the legendary Broadway composer Stephen Sondheim, who served as a great mentor and champion.

http://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/news-bfi/interviews/scoring-mr-banks-composers-life-hollywood

What music do you enjoy listening to?
Popular records, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Steeleye Span, Eels, or Charles Ives, Morton Feldman. Any number of things.
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Interesting - a Youtube search for Frederick Lesemann turns up this brief excerpt from his violin concerto... and not much else. I'm not familiar with Tremblay or Moore either but can't find anything of theirs.

To my ears, it seems like MacCombie, Druckman, (both of whom I quite like) and Sondheim were the most influential on Newman. But I'm pretty wary of trying to trace influences either for myself or anyone else.

That said I can hear some proto-Newman in here.

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  • 1 month later...
  • 8 months later...

Sorry. Couldn't find it (though my university does have some of Bushard's other papers published with full text online).

But let me know if this link works:

http://search.alexanderstreet.com.hmlproxy.lib.csufresno.edu/view/work/375431#page/1/mode/2up

It's the full score for Quiet City by Aaron Copland.

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On 5/29/2015 at 11:21 PM, Sharky said:

@19:37

@1:00

Anyone else hear the similarity?

Absolutely. The ever underappreciated Koechlin...only the inner circle knows about him.

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  • 2 months later...

Thomas keeps bringing up Bernard Herrmann in interviews. He has also mentioned John Williams in the past.

A very important direct musical influence would be Rick Cox who has worked with Thomas since the 1980s. He worked on the electronics for The Rapture, he played saxophone on The Player, he provided lots of experimental guitar for Road To Perdition and played the banjo ukulele on American Beauty, just to name a few examples.

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A very important direct musical influence would be Rick Cox who has worked with Thomas since the 1980s. He worked on the electronics for The Rapture, he played saxophone on The Player, he provided lots of experimental guitar for Road To Perdition and played the banjo ukulele on American Beauty, just to name a few examples.

Thanks for that. I meant composers or specific pieces, but you're right - the tight 'band' that Tom works with influences his sound a great deal. A really like the free-form approach to precomposition, It's something Zimmer has picked up on in recent scores.

I'm thinking American folk music and Americana, especially of the more 'gritty' and 'earthly' kind (not necessarily the Copland kind, even though he occasionally taps into that too).

I think so too, though as a Brit I'm not really with American folk music. Are we talking Appalachian or great plains folk?

I'd really like to know where Newman gets what I dub his 'stoic sound' from (a la your fascination with Williams's 'religious sound'). The second half of The Shawshank Redemption from The Shawshank Redemption is the classic example in his canon. Basically an ostinato or ground bass figure (usually based around rising fourths or fifths), a repetitive chord sequence featuring tertian or quintal triads or tetrads, above which forms a melodic line and/or counterline employing dissonances such as bluesy #11ths or #9th over consonances below.

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  • 5 years later...

It might help: 

Finding Newman: The Compositional Process and Musical Style of Thomas Newman  

https://issuu.com/schoenbergmusic/docs/adam_schoenberg-final_document-_tho_a6d935b1434370

 

Tokyo 77 an ensemble founded by Thomas Newman, Rick Cox, George Budd, Chas Smith

https://open.spotify.com/album/76sQa7vJ3IneVEAPH5qGp5?si=5xkE6CaPQbGb-vg1FGzSYg

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On 8/17/2015 at 6:38 PM, Thor said:

I'm thinking American folk music and Americana, especially of the more 'gritty' and 'earthly' kind (not necessarily the Copland kind, even though he occasionally taps into that too).

Yeah. Absolutely, @Thor.

Aside from Copland, he makes the most "American" music, that I've ever heard.

 

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