Michael Price (composer)
Encyclopedia
Michael Price is a builder composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...

, producer, arranger and award-winning music editor.
He is equally at ease writing in full orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...

l or more electronic
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...

 and contemporary idioms, and is in great demand as a producer, arranger and programmer, having worked on more than 30 major studio pictures.

Short Biography

Michael’s music career began with the widely respected Tonmeister
Tonmeister
Tonmeister is most often found as a job description in the music and recording industries. It describes a person who is a sound master : a person who creates recordings or broadcasts of music who is both deeply musically trained and also who has a detailed...

 course at Surrey University, where he won the PRS composition prize in 1990. After writing a number of scores for contemporary dance
Contemporary dance
Contemporary dance is a genre of concert dance that employs compositional philosophy, rather than choreography, to guide unchoreographed movement...

, he became Musical Director of DNA Dance and Music, whose projects included the arts council funded chamber opera
Chamber opera
Chamber opera is a designation for operas written to be performed with a chamber ensemble rather than a full orchestra.The term and form were invented by Benjamin Britten in the 1940s, when the English Opera Group needed works that could easily be taken on tour and performed in a variety of small...

 “All the Garden Gold”, based on the life of William Morris
William Morris
William Morris 24 March 18343 October 1896 was an English textile designer, artist, writer, and socialist associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and the English Arts and Crafts Movement...

 and the Pre-Raphaelite movement
Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood
The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood was a group of English painters, poets, and critics, founded in 1848 by William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais and Dante Gabriel Rossetti...

.

Following a successful career as a dancer for contemporary houses , Michael's first film work was in 1996, when he was invited by Michael Kamen
Michael Kamen
Michael Arnold Kamen was an American composer , orchestral arranger, orchestral conductor, song writer, and session musician.-Background:...

 to orchestrate and program electronic sounds for the Paramount
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...

 movie EVENT HORIZON
Event Horizon (film)
Event Horizon is a 1997 science fantasy horror film. The screenplay was written by Philip Eisner and directed by Paul W. S. Anderson. The film stars Laurence Fishburne and Sam Neill...

. This led to a 5 year working relationship encompassing a number of highly successful film score
Film score
A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film, forming part of the film's soundtrack, which also usually includes dialogue and sound effects...

s in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

, LA
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

 and Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...

, and concerts in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...

, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

, San Francisco and Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...

. Following the successful production of the score to BAND OF BROTHERS, Michael was approached to music edit on The Fellowship of the Ring for New Line Cinema
New Line Cinema
New Line Cinema, often simply referred to as New Line, is an American film studio. It was founded in 1967 by Robert Shaye and Michael Lynne as a film distributor, later becoming an independent film studio. It became a subsidiary of Time Warner in 1996 and was merged with larger sister studio Warner...

.

In addition to composing for Zentropa
Zentropa
Europa is a film directed by Lars von Trier. Released in 1991, it is von Trier's third theatrical feature film and is the final film in the Europa trilogy....

's "Dommeren" and Slingshot Studios’ "Sugarhouse
Sugarhouse (film)
-Plot:Sugarhouse tells the story of Tom , a middle class British man who attempts to make a mysterious purchase from a crack addict, portrayed by rapper and actor Ashley Walters. The intended purchase is complicated by the involvement of a local drug dealer named Hoodwink, portrayed by Andy Serkis...

" he scored 2 documentaries for famous producer and director Alfonso Cuarón
Alfonso Cuarón
Alfonso Cuarón Orozco is a Mexican film director, screenwriter and film producer, best known for his films Children of Men, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Y tu mamá también, and A Little Princess.- Early life :...

; "The Possibility of Hope
The Possibility of Hope
The Possibility of Hope is a 2007 documentary included as an extra in Children of Men Special Edition DVD.-Synopsis:A look at different matters of the world such as immigration, global warming and capitalism through the eyes of scientists and philosophers.-External links:* Children of Men* at...

", and Naomi Klein
Naomi Klein
Naomi Klein is a Canadian author and social activist known for her political analyses and criticism of corporate globalization.-Family:...

’s "The Shock Doctrine
The Shock Doctrine
The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism is a 2007 book by Canadian author Naomi Klein, and is the basis of a 2009 documentary by the same name....

", both in 2007. Michael met Cuaron when he scored additional music for the Academy Award winning feature "Children of Men
Children of Men
Children of Men is a 2006 science fiction film loosely adapted from P. D. James's 1992 novel The Children of Men, directed by Alfonso Cuarón. In 2027, two decades of human infertility have left society on the brink of collapse. Illegal immigrants seek sanctuary in England, where the last...

", working closely with Cuaron as music editor.

Michael has also forged a strong working relationship with fellow composer David Arnold
David Arnold
David Arnold is an English film composer best known for scoring five James Bond films, the 1994 film Stargate, the 1996 film Independence Day, and the television series Little Britain.-Film and television career:...

, with whom he has written and arranged on a number of projects, including Edgar Wright
Edgar Wright
Edgar Howard Wright is an English film and television director and writer. He is most famous for his work with Simon Pegg and Nick Frost on the films Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, the TV series Spaced, and for directing the film Scott Pilgrim vs...

’s "Hot Fuzz
Hot Fuzz
Hot Fuzz is a 2007 British action dark comedy film written by Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright, and starring Pegg and Nick Frost. The three had previously worked together on the 2004 film Shaun of the Dead as well as the television series Spaced...

" and "Sherlock", the BBC television series created by Steven Moffat
Steven Moffat
Steven Moffat is a Scottish television writer and producer.Moffat's first television work was the teen drama series Press Gang. His first sitcom, Joking Apart, was inspired by the breakdown of his first marriage; conversely, his later sitcom Coupling was based upon the development of his...

 and Mark Gatiss
Mark Gatiss
Mark Gatiss is an English actor, screenwriter and novelist. He is best known as a member of the comedy team The League of Gentlemen, and has both written for and acted in the TV series Doctor Who and Sherlock....

, that premiered on BBC1 on 25 July 2010.

Prior to achieving acclaim as a composer, Michael enjoyed many achievements as a music editor with films including Peter Jackson
Peter Jackson
Sir Peter Robert Jackson, KNZM is a New Zealand film director, producer, actor, and screenwriter, known for his The Lord of the Rings film trilogy , adapted from the novel by J. R. R...

’s "The Lord Of The Rings
The Lord of the Rings film trilogy
The Lord of the Rings is an epic film trilogy consisting of three fantasy adventure films based on the three-volume book of the same name by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. The films are The Fellowship of the Ring , The Two Towers and The Return of the King .The films were directed by Peter...

" trilogy, Richard Curtis
Richard Curtis
Richard Whalley Anthony Curtis, CBE is a New Zealand-born British screenwriter, music producer, actor and film director, known primarily for romantic comedy films such as Four Weddings and a Funeral, Bridget Jones's Diary, Notting Hill, Love Actually and The Girl in the Café, as well as the hit...

’ "Love Actually
Love Actually
Love Actually is a 2003 British romantic comedy film written and directed by Richard Curtis. The screenplay delves into different aspects of love as shown through ten separate stories involving a wide variety of individuals, many of whom are shown to be interlinked as their tales progress...

", "Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason
Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (film)
# Will Young - "Your Love Is King"# Jamelia - "Stop"# Kylie Minogue - "Can't Get You Out of My Head"# Joss Stone - "Super Duper Love Pt. 1"# Mary J...

" and "Nanny McPhee
Nanny McPhee
Nanny McPhee is a 2005 fantasy film starring Emma Thompson and Colin Firth. Thompson also wrote the screenplay, which is adapted from Christianna Brand's Nurse Matilda books.-Plot:...

". As a music editor, Michael has been nominated for 4 MPSE Golden Reel Awards
Motion Picture Sound Editors
Founded in 1953, Motion Picture Sound Editors is an honorary society of motion picture sound editors. The society's goals are to educate others about and increase the recognition of the sound editors, show the artistic merit of the soundtracks, and improve the professional relationship of its...

, winning in 2001 for "The Fellowship Of The Ring".

Michael also composed the score for the film "Wild Target
Wild Target
Wild Target is a 2010 comedy film, directed by Jonathan Lynn. It is based on the 1993 French film Cible Emouvante. Lucinda Coxon wrote the screenplay, and it was produced by Martin Pope and Michael Rose....

", a romantic comedy
Romantic Comedy
Romantic Comedy can refer to* Romantic Comedy , a 1979 play written by Bernard Slade* Romantic Comedy , a 1983 film adapted from the play and starring Dudley Moore and Mary Steenburgen...

 directed by Jonathan Lynn
Jonathan Lynn
Jonathan Lynn is an English actor, comedy writer and director. He is best known for being the co-writer of Yes Minister and Yes, Prime Minister.-Personal life:...

 and starring Bill Nighy
Bill Nighy
William Francis "Bill" Nighy is an English actor and comedian. He worked in theatre and television before his first cinema role in 1981, and made his name in television with The Men's Room in 1991, in which he played the womanizer Prof...

, Emily Blunt
Emily Blunt
Emily Olivia Leah Blunt is an English actress best known for her roles in The Devil Wears Prada , The Young Victoria , and The Adjustment Bureau . She has been nominated for two Golden Globe Awards, two London Film Critics' Circle Awards, and one BAFTA Award...

, Martin Freeman
Martin Freeman
Martin John C. Freeman is an English actor. He is known for his roles as John in Love Actually, Tim Canterbury in the BBC's Golden Globe-winning comedy The Office, Arthur Dent in the film adaptation of Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Dr. John Watson in Sherlock and Mr. Madden...

, Rupert Everett
Rupert Everett
Rupert James Hector Everett is an English actor. He first came to public attention in 1981, when he was cast in Julian Mitchell's play and subsequent film Another Country as an openly gay student at an English public school, set in the 1930s...

 and Rupert Grint
Rupert Grint
Rupert Alexander Lloyd Grint is an English actor, who rose to prominence playing Ron Weasley, one of the three main characters in the Harry Potter film series. Grint was cast as Ron at the age of 11, having previously acted only in school plays and at his local theatre group...

. This commission followed Michael’s score for "Wild Child", Working Title’s
Working Title Films
Working Title Films is a British film production company, based in London, UK. The company was founded by Tim Bevan and Sarah Radclyffe in 1983. It produces feature films and several television productions, including films starring comic actor Rowan Atkinson...

 successful teen film released in the UK in 2009.

Scores

2010
  • Island
  • First Men in the Moon
  • Siren

2009
  • 7 Lives
  • "Wild Target"
  • "The Mountain Within"

2008
  • Wild Child
  • "Swan Song"
  • "Agent Crush"
  • Crooked House (TV)
  • "Outlaw Births (TV)"

2007
  • The Shock Doctrine
  • Hot Fuzz
  • Sugarhouse
  • The Possibility Of Hope
  • Blind Date
  • Dreamcatcher

2006
  • Eight Percent

2005
  • Dommeren (aka "The Judge")

2004
  • Some Things That Stay

2003
  • LD50 Lethal Dose
  • Senses

2002
  • Ashes And Sand

Music Editor

2007
  • The Last Legion

2006
  • Children Of Men
  • Flyboys

2005
  • Nanny McPhee
  • Goal!

2004
  • 'Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason

2003
  • Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King
  • Love Actually

2002
  • Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers
  • The Truth About Charlie
  • The Time Machine
  • Insomnia

2001
  • Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring

Other Credits

2009
  • The Mountain Within (conductor/music producer)

2008"'
  • Quantum Of Solace (additional music arranger)
  • Dido
    Dido (singer)
    Dido Florian Cloud de Bounevialle O'Malley Armstrong , known as Dido, is an English singer-songwriter.Dido shot to worldwide success with her debut album, No Angel...

     - Safe Trip Home
    Safe Trip Home
    The album received very positive reviews. Metacritic, which is a website that gives an average rating over a number of reviews, rates the album at 74 out of a 100...

     (orchestrator for Jon Brion
    Jon Brion
    Jon Brion is an American rock and pop multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, composer and record producer.-Early life:...

    )

2006
  • The Da Vinci Code (booth reader)
  • Coldcut - Sound Mirrors (collaborator and arranger for title track)

2002
  • 'Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron (music assistant)

2001
  • Band Of Brothers (music co-producer/programmer/orchestrator/conductor)
  • Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (music co-producer)

2000
  • X-Men (music co-producer)
  • Frequency (music assistant)

1999
  • The Iron Giant (music co-producer/programmer)
  • Metallica - S&M (music preparation/concert co-producer/audio pre-production)

1998
  • B.Monkey (programmer)
  • what Dreams May Come (music co-producer)
  • From The Earth To The Moon (music co-producer)

1997
  • The Winter Guest (music co-producer)
  • Event Horizon (music co-producer)

External links

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