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Tim Greiving
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Tim Greiving

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Sunday

Movies

How the training montage became a miniature artform

There's a third Creed movie in theaters, which technically makes it the ninth Rocky movie. And a new Rocky movie means... a new training montage.

How the training montage became a miniature artform

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Friday

Forensic musicologists race to rescue works lost after the Holocaust

Walter Arlen in Chicago, pictured circa 1942. Walter Arlen hide caption

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Walter Arlen

Music

Forensic musicologists race to rescue works lost after the Holocaust

The Exilarte Center in Vienna is the world's leading research institution devoted to preserving the work of composers such as Walter Arlen and others, who were exiled or killed during the Holocaust.

Forensic musicologists race to rescue works lost after the Holocaust

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Friday

How a Grammy-winning Pueblo musician influenced the soundtrack for 'Prey'

The heroine of Prey, Naru, is played by Amber Midthunder. David Bukach/Hulu hide caption

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David Bukach/Hulu

Culture

How a Grammy-winning Pueblo musician influenced the soundtrack for 'Prey'

Prey, the new prequel to the 1987 blockbuster Predator streaming on Hulu, features a sophisticated soundtrack influenced both by Native cultures and video games

How a Grammy-winning Pueblo musician influenced the soundtrack for 'Prey'

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Sunday

Elvis songwriter Mike Stoller looks back on his hits

Mike Stoller, 89, the songwriter and producer who, with his producing partner, wrote many of Elvis's biggest songs, poses for a portrait at his home in Los Angeles, CA. Jessica Pons for NPR hide caption

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Jessica Pons for NPR

Music Features

Elvis songwriter Mike Stoller looks back on his hits

Mike Stoller and Jerry Leiber wrote hit songs for Elvis, along with a whos-who of other artists including Big Mama Thornton, Ben E. King, and more.

Elvis songwriter Mike Stoller looks back on his hits

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Friday

The theme to 'Jurassic Park' hasn't aged a day

A crowd entering the theater to see Jurassic Park, photographed on October 5, 1993. Fairfax Media Archives/Fairfax Media via Getty Images hide caption

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Fairfax Media Archives/Fairfax Media via Getty Images

Movies

The theme to 'Jurassic Park' hasn't aged a day

John Williams' score was, true to form, unforgettable — as Jeff Goldblum remembers in an interview with NPR.

The theme to 'Jurassic Park' hasn't aged a day

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Friday

Movies

Will the soundtrack to 'Top Gun: Maverick' stack up against the original?

The sequel to Top Gun opens in theaters over Memorial Day weekend. The soundtrack from the original movie was a major success. The music for Top Gun: Maverick has a lot to live up to.

Will the soundtrack to 'Top Gun: Maverick' stack up against the original?

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Thursday

New opera teaches a classical music class in the ongoing fight for civil rights

A still from "We Hold These Truths." Music for the new opera was composed by Tamar-kali, and director dream hampton put that music to film, for the LA Opera's Digital Shorts series. Erik Paul Howard hide caption

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Erik Paul Howard

Deceptive Cadence

New opera teaches a classical music class in the ongoing fight for civil rights

Tamar-kali, who composed the music for Mudbound and Shirley, has a new project: an opera that you can watch online.

New opera teaches a classical music class in the ongoing fight for civil rights

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Thursday

How the many pairs behind 'Cyrano' made music for the movie's lovelorn couples

Haley Bennett stars as Roxanne and Peter Dinklage as Cyrano. Peter Mountain/Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Inc. hide caption

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Peter Mountain/Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Inc.

Movies

How the many pairs behind 'Cyrano' made music for the movie's lovelorn couples

The National frontman Matt Berninger and his wife Carin Besser wrote the lyrics, and twin brothers Aaron and Bryce Dessner scored the movie.

How the many pairs behind 'Cyrano' made music for the movie's lovelorn couples

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Tuesday

Meet Germaine Franco, Oscar-nominated 'Encanto' composer

Composer Germaine Franco attends the world premiere of Encanto at Hollywood's El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood in November 2021. Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney hide caption

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Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney

Music Features

Meet Germaine Franco, Oscar-nominated 'Encanto' composer

She's the first woman to score a Disney animated feature, and a history-making Oscar nominee. But most importantly, Franco is a drummer, who brings a jam-band attitude to a by-the-book industry.

Wednesday

Four centuries of Black American history are told in new Kronos Quartet performance

Kronos Quartet Jay Blakesberg hide caption

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Jay Blakesberg

Deceptive Cadence

Four centuries of Black American history are told in new Kronos Quartet performance

Deep in the heart of Texas, the Kronos Quartet reflects on race relations and social unrest with At War with Ourselves – 400 Years of You, by composer Michael Abels and poet Nikky Finney.

Four centuries of Black American history are told in new Kronos Quartet performance

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Tuesday

'Candyman' Composer Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe Sings, Scares The Body Electric

Composer and sound artist Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe, photographed during a screening of Candyman on Aug. 17, 2021 in New York. Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for Universal Pictu hide caption

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Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for Universal Pictu

Movie Interviews

'Candyman' Composer Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe Sings, Scares The Body Electric

The sound artist and composer took a deeply unique, and wonderfully successful, approach to the composing of his score for the new Jordan Peele-written horror reboot.

'Candyman' Composer Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe Sings, Scares The Body Electric

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Music News

Latest 'Candyman' Movie Is Scored By Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe

A Black avant-garde musician has successfully applied his visceral, voice-centered style to the films he has scored lately. His approach eerily suits the newest Candyman movie.

Latest 'Candyman' Movie Is Scored By Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe

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Tuesday

Music

'Willy Wonka' Composer Leslie Bricusse Is Still Busy At Age 90

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory turns 50 in June, and Hook turns 30 in December. Both were shaped by the English lyricist and composer Leslie Bricusse, who remains vital and busy at age 90.

'Willy Wonka' Composer Leslie Bricusse Is Still Busy At Age 90

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Wednesday

Man With A Mission: Miloš Seeks The Next Great Classical Guitar Showpiece

On his new CD, classical guitarist Miloš Karadaglic plays two works composed especially for him. Esther Haase/Verve Label Group hide caption

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Esther Haase/Verve Label Group

Deceptive Cadence

Man With A Mission: Miloš Seeks The Next Great Classical Guitar Showpiece

Recovered from a career-threatening injury, Miloš Karadaglic has his sights set on two goals: finding the next great classical guitar concerto, and erasing the taboo of injuries among musicians.

Man With A Mission: Miloš Seeks The Next Great Classical Guitar Showpiece

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Thursday

Friday

Kris Bowers Reflects On Coming 'Full Circle' In Composing The Score For 'Respect'

Kris Bowers performs onstage during Soundcheck: A Netflix Film and Series Music Showcase on Nov. 4, 2019 in Los Angeles, Calif. Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images hide caption

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Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images

Movies

Kris Bowers Reflects On Coming 'Full Circle' In Composing The Score For 'Respect'

Aretha Franklin liked how Kris Bowers played piano at a competition in 2011. It was his big break — a fact that he says was with him while he scored a upcoming biopic about the late Queen of Soul.

Kris Bowers Reflects On Coming 'Full Circle' In Composing The Score For 'Respect'

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Monday

James Newton Howard, A Composer Who Can Do It All

Composer James Newton Howard in 2008. Wim Lippens/Universal Pictures hide caption

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Wim Lippens/Universal Pictures

Music Features

James Newton Howard, A Composer Who Can Do It All

James Newton Howard has composed the music for more than 100 films: thrillers, Disney animation and big fantasy series. His latest is the Tom Hanks western, News of the World.

James Newton Howard, A Composer Who Can Do It All

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Friday

Requiem For A Theme: Film Composer Clint Mansell On The Sound Of Sadness

Clint Mansell is the Grammy-nominated composer whose work on Requiem for a Dream jumpstarted a prolific and distinctive score career. Mike Palmer/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Mike Palmer/Courtesy of the artist

Music Features

Requiem For A Theme: Film Composer Clint Mansell On The Sound Of Sadness

Darren Aronofsky's 2000 film Requiem for a Dream spawned a musical motif that's rippled through media — and jumpstarted a new career for Clint Mansell, the composer of its haunted score.

Requiem For A Theme: Film Composer Clint Mansell On The Sound Of Sadness

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Friday

Keeping Up With Amanda Jones, Score Composer On The Rise

Amanda Jones, a singer-songwriter turned film and TV composer, is the first African American woman to earn an Emmy nomination for original television score. Ian Spanier/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Ian Spanier/Courtesy of the artist

Music News

Keeping Up With Amanda Jones, Score Composer On The Rise

Jones is the first African American woman ever nominated for an Emmy for an original television score. She got her start because producer/writer Lena Waithe took a chance on her.

Keeping Up With Amanda Jones, Score Composer On The Rise

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Thursday

A New Documentary Shines A Spotlight On The Lyricist Behind The Disney Renaissance

A young Howard Ashman, photographed on the set of his musical Little Shop of Horrors. Disney hide caption

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Disney

Music Features

A New Documentary Shines A Spotlight On The Lyricist Behind The Disney Renaissance

The Disney+ documentary Howard features the life and work of Howard Ashman, a lyricist known for Little Shop of Horrors and one half of the duo that brought the music for three classic films to life.

A New Documentary Shines A Spotlight On The Lyricist Behind The Disney Renaissance

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Saturday

Television

New Looney Tunes Series Hits HBO Max, With New Music

Looney Tunes turns 90 this year and HBO Max is launching a new series of cartoons, along with a new soundtrack composed by Joshua Moshier.

New Looney Tunes Series Hits HBO Max, With New Music

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Thursday

Rachel Portman Steps Away From The Screen With 'Ask The River'

Rachel Portman was the first woman to win an Academy Award for best original score. Her latest album ask the river is her first not written for a film or stage production. Benjamin Ealovega/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Benjamin Ealovega/Courtesy of the artist

Music Features

Rachel Portman Steps Away From The Screen With 'Ask The River'

The first woman composer to win an Oscar for best original score is releasing her first album of music not written for a film or stage production.

Rachel Portman Steps Away From The Screen With 'Ask The River'

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Saturday

Inside 'Uncut Gems': A Cosmic Score In A Frantic Film

Adam Sandler plays jeweler Howard Ratner in the film Uncut Gems. The score is as shiny and cosmic as Ratner's life is messy and frantic. Julieta Cervantes/Courtesy of A24 hide caption

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Julieta Cervantes/Courtesy of A24

Music Interviews

Inside 'Uncut Gems': A Cosmic Score In A Frantic Film

Uncut Gems hurtles along with Howard Ratner's compulsion to gamble, bet his winnings instead of paying off debts and chase down the next high. A lot of the score is, counterintuitively, New Age.

Inside 'Uncut Gems': A Cosmic Score In A Frantic Film

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Sunday

Culture

Reality TV Meets Social Experiment In '63 Up'

The film "63 Up" is the latest in a series of documentaries following a group of British children — filmed every seven years beginning when they were 7 years old. They're now 63.

Reality TV Meets Social Experiment In '63 Up'

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