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Worlds first reggae schlager

One of the most unique albums I have worked on is coming out new years day!

Viola Steffens, the well known actress and musician, hits the scene again with this surprising reinterpretation of Hildegard Knef’s music. A German citizen who has lived in Los Angeles for almost two decades, Steffens is uniquely able to deliver a German-Californian fusion that completely transcends the originals.

Composer, orchestrator, and producer Jeremy Borum is a California native and has toured the world extensively in both classical and rock-reggae contexts. He completely re-imagined the old classic songs and created the first ever fusion of German Schlager and California rock-reggae.

In a genre dominated by male leads, Steffens and Borum have created the first ever rock-reggae-schlager led by a woman: an island-ready, feel-good, German-Californian, neo-classic style.

Teaching at Citrus College

This weekend I was again teaching an immersive set of seminars on film scoring at Citrus College to a group of Japanese composers and producers. Over two days I took them on a tour of The Bridge Recording where we visited with film composer Mark Isham, taught them some fundamentals of composing for film, and guided them through scoring a scene of their own on a short deadline. The students were exchange students from the music production and engineering program at Nagoya School of Music.

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Smurfs 2 Video Game

In a few weeks Sony will be releasing the film Smurfs 2, and I composed the score for a Smurfs 2 video game that will be released simultaneously. It is a collaboration between Sony and iStoryTime. The video game music was a large full orchestra score, and the app will be released August 2 with the film.

New York Life creates virtual world for education

New York Life Insurance Company has a huge amount of educational material, and they are creating a game-like virtual world in which you can explore a town and learn about financial and retirement planning. I was the video game composer for their virtual Main Street platform, which will be used internally to educate their clients and employees. The creative director was Dan Gilman, who works for both iClickMedia and Visual Stream Productions.

Teaching at Citrus College

I had the unique opportunity to teach an immersive set of seminars on film scoring at Citrus College to a group of Japanese composers and producers. Over two days I took them on a tour of the Warner Brothers sound stage, taught them some fundamentals of composing for film, and guided them through scoring a scene of their own on a short deadline. The students were exchange students from a music production and engineering program in Japan at the Nagoya School of Music.

Wurlitzer 112 restoration complete

A good friend of mine gave me a 1955 Wurlitzer 112. ’55 was the first year Wurlitzer was making electric pianos, so it’s a super cool relic in rare near-mint cosmetic condition. However, it was severely neglected. I got what I paid for – 75lbs of unusable instrument so old nobody knows how to fix it or find parts. It was an unplayable disaster that only amplified the sound of the power in the walls. And so began my restoration journey…

As of today it’s FINISHED and back to mint condition! Watch the video to hear it and check each photo for more details about the process.

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More Bugbaby screenings

Bugbaby, a horror comedy for which I was the film composer, has been a Halloween favorite two years in a row. It has won multiple awards, played at more than 30 festivals, and continues to get more screenings.

It will screen at the Sacramento Horror Film Festival on Oct 14th and at the PollyGrind Underground Film Festival on Oct 20. You can see all the awards and festivals on my credits page.