By Zach Johnson
Disney Music Group, in association with Treefort, will soon debut For Scores, a new podcast series featuring interviews with film and television composers from Disney, Marvel, Pixar—and eventually, from Lucasfilm, and 20th Century Fox. Hosted by Variety’s Jon Burlingame, the podcast will give a voice to award-winning composers.
“Launching a podcast was a natural progression for us given our legacy and rich history with award-winning film and television soundtracks,” said Ken Bunt, Disney Music Group President. “We look forward to including composers from our upcoming slate.”
The new podcast series is produced by Maria Kleinman for Disney Music Group in association with Treefort Media, an L.A.-based podcast company with a mission to expand imagination through premium audio storytelling. The episodes will be available to download everywhere podcasts are enjoyed August 23. Four additional episodes are scheduled for the fall and into 2020. Robbie Snow, Disney Music Group’s Senior Vice President of Marketing, said, “We’re incredibly fortunate to work with such a well-respected journalist and expert in music for films and television. Jon’s rapport with these composers has evoked poignant and personal accounts of their scoring processes.”
Descriptions for the first four episodes follow:
EPISODE 1: Henry Jackman (Wreck-It Ralph, Big Hero 6, Ralph Breaks the Internet)
In this first of two episodes with Jackman, he recalls rebelling against the classical music and choir singing of his childhood in England with drums and pop music. He also reveals how a surprise call from the legendary Hans Zimmer led to his career in film scoring, as well as the secret homage he made to John Williams’ music from Star Wars in Ralph Breaks the Internet.
EPISODE 2: Harry Gregson-Williams (Penguins)
Gregson-Williams recounts how he helped make penguins seem even more charming and funny in the Disneynature documentary Penguins. He goes on to discuss why he actually enjoys the stress of conducting his own scores and how his own children are both his best audience and critics. Gregson-Williams also gives a sneak peek into the music for the upcoming Mulan movie.
EPISODE 3: Pinar Toprak (Captain Marvel, Purl)
Toprak speaks about her amazing journey from studying violin at a conservatory in her homeland of Turkey, to becoming the first woman to score a film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. She shares stories about the soundtrack that most influenced her career, her work scoring hit video games, and the panic attack that helped her write the Captain Marvel theme.
EPISODE 4: Alan Silvestri (The Avengers, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame)
Silvestri reflects on his work on all four Avengers films and also reveals the emotional process he goes through, how it has shaped his work in the film industry over the decades, and how despite the wide range of movies he’s worked on—that it’s all still a terrifying mystery to him.