Culture
FILM MUSIC
Connecting Stories and Sounds For someone who’s made some Now Göransson is the one setting of the hardest-hitting music music to stories, be it with director of recent years, Ludwig GöransRyan Coogler for Fruitvale Station, son exhibits a decidedly laid-back Black Panther, Creed and Creed II, demeanor. From the light beard, easy or his production work for Childish smile and frequently sandaled feet Gambino, the hip-hop persona of to his soft-spoken yet friendly style actor Donald Glover. His work with of conversation, the 36-year-old can the latter led him to winning Grameasily cause one to forget he’s already mys for Record of the Year and Song won Grammys, an Oscar, and an of the Year for 2018’s “This Is AmerEmmy in his relatively short career. ica.” The professional accolades kept Chalk that up to the comfortable coming with another Grammy, an confidence that comes from the Oscar and a Golden Globe for Black seeming ease with which he’s comPanther, and then just this Septemposed complex scores ber, he won an Emmy for huge Hollywood for scoring Disney+’s projects, most recently The Mandalorian. TenBY et’s score, which shifts for Christopher Nolan’s effortlessly between Tenet and the Star Wars JON JACKSON antsy, industrial keyspin-off The Mandalorian, or attribute it to a creative, board to surreally calming melodies, European upbringing by a florist could be yet another awards conmother and a guitar-teacher father tender for Göransson. in Linköping, Sweden. Speaking to Around the same time his father Newsweek recently by phone, Göranshelped make the connection between son said it was a house filled with an stories and sound, young Göransson eclectic mix of music that helped began picking up on musical scores. shape him as an artist. He said The X-Files was likely the first “My sister was playing violin in the TV show where he noticed the effect orchestra,” he said. At first he was the music had on him. He said, “I was bored at the frequent performances so, so scared by that show—just hearthe family attended, until, “My dad ing that whistle [in the theme] gave was whispering stories in my ear, me the creeps, and I made the assoabout what was going on—like stociation about what was giving me the ries—and I remember that made the shivers. I had a similar moment, but in a different emotional way, with whole thing a lot more fun.”
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Edward Scissorhands [music by Danny Elfman], where I was crying. I realized that it was because of the score.” This set him on his path to scoring films and television. He first went to the Stockholm Royal College of Music before going to the University of Southern California for its Scoring for Motion Picture and Television program. It was at a party while at USC where he met his first friend in America, Ryan Coogler. While playing pool, they bonded over music, when a surprised Göransson learned the young director was a fan of Swedish
J a n ua r y 15, 2021
AUSTIN HA RGR AVE/ID-PR
The Mandalorian composer Ludwig Göransson on pandemic recording and the pressure to please Star Wars fans
