Jóhann Jóhannsson

This is an Icelandic name. The last name is a patronymic, not a family name; this person is properly referred to by the given name Jóhann.
Jóhann Jóhannsson

Jóhann Jóhannsson
Background information
Born (1969-09-19) 19 September 1969
Reykjavík, Iceland
Origin Iceland
Occupation(s) Composer and producer
Website http://www.johannjohannsson.com

Jóhann Jóhannsson (Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈjouːhan ˈjouːhansɔn]; born 19 September 1969) is an Icelandic composer. As a composer he has been identified with minimalist, neo-classical, drone, and electronic music. Jóhann is known for his film music, primarily for his Oscar-nominated, Golden Globe-winning score for James Marsh's The Theory of Everything.

Life and career

Jóhann was born in Reykjavík, Iceland. His first album, Englabörn, released in 2002, includes pieces for string quartet, piano, percussion and electronics.[1] Jóhann Jóhannsson has since released several albums with the 4AD, Touch and Fat Cat labels.

Whilst Jóhann's background is in the Icelandic alternative music scene, Englabörn combined holy minimalism, Erik Satie, Purcell and Moondog with the electronic music of labels such as Mille Plateaux and Mego. Later works include Virthulegu Forsetar (2004), scored for a brass ensemble, electronic drones and percussion, and the orchestral albums Fordlândia (2008) and IBM 1401, A User's Manual, a composition which uses sounds produced from the electromagnetic emissions of the old IBM 1401 mainframe computers.

Kitty Empire wrote about Johan's work called Virthulegu Forsetar in The Observer: "It's hard to classify this beautiful album by Icelandic composer Johannsson. On this, his second album, he employed an orchestra of 11 brass players, glockenspiel, piano and organ, with added bells and electronics and it lies somewhere between classical, ambient music and experimental soundtrack",[2] while Andy Beta gave Englabörn a score of 8.9 in Pitchfork Media: “exceptionally restrained, the piano moving like droplets off of slowly melting icicles, the violin breathing warmth from above. The hesitation of each breath and falling bead feels as though it were a Morton Feldman piece condensed to three minutes.”[3]

In 2010, Jóhann collaborated with the experimental filmmaker Bill Morrison on The Miners' Hymns (2011), a film and accompanying composition for brass band, pipe organ and electronics which "celebrates social, cultural, and political aspects of the extinct industry, and the strong regional tradition of colliery brass bands".[4] The piece had a live premiere in Durham Cathedral in July 2010 and was released on CD and DVD in May 2011. The album was described as, "A gorgeous brass-based requiem for northeast England's former mining community" by the BBC.[5] Writing in UK Sunday newspaper The Observer, Fiona Maddocks gave the London debut performance of the score at the Barbican five stars, writing: "The strange counterpoint between an Icelandic minimalist, an American film-maker and a bitter episode in recent British history has resulted in a work as unclassifiable as it is unforgettable. […] As a lesson in the power of film music, seeing The Miners' Hymns was basic and startling."[6]

His film work includes scores for Denis Villeneuve's Prisoners and Sicario, Lou Ye's Blind Massage, James Marsh's The Theory of Everything, The Good Life (Eva Mulvad, DK 2010), Varmints (Marc Craste, UK 2008) and For Ellen (So Yong Kim, US 2012).[7] Jóhann has written music for the theatre and he collaborated with the international choreographer and dancer Erna Omarsdottir on the pieces IBM 1401, A User's Manual (2002), and Mysteries of Love (2005).

He is a co-founder of Kitchen Motors, an art organisation with a record label which specializes in instigating collaborations, promoting concerts and exhibitions, performances, chamber operas, producing films, books and radio shows to uncover new art forms.[8]

Jóhann founded Apparat Organ Quartet in 1999, which has released two albums since 2002 with live performances in Europe, America and Japan.[9] Jóhann has also produced and written music with Marc Almond (Stranger Things album), Barry Adamson and Pan Sonic, The Hafler Trio, Jaki Liebezeit, Stephen O'Malley, Peter Rehberg, Stilluppsteypa, and others.

Jóhann has performed all over the world with his ensemble, including Paris in the Centre Pompidou, London's Barbican Centre, Brussels' Palais des Beaux Arts, and the Rudolfinum in Prague.

Discography

Albums

Singles

Selected works

As composer

Feature films

Short films

Television documentaries

Plays

Stage works

Awards

Academy Awards

Year Recipient/Nominated work Award Result
2015 The Theory of Everything Best Original Score Nominated
2016 Sicario Nominated

Grammy Awards

Year Recipient/Nominated work Award Result
2016 The Theory of Everything Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media Nominated

References

  1. ↑ "Jóhann Jóhannsson, the post-classical elegist – Features | State Magazine". State.ie. 2011-07-20. Retrieved 2012-01-13.
  2. ↑ Kitty Empire (2004-12-16). "Other pop | Music | The Observer". London: Guardian. Retrieved 2012-01-13.
  3. ↑ Beta, Andy (2003-03-05). "Jóhann Jóhannsson: Englabörn | Album Reviews". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2012-01-13.
  4. ↑ "Fatcat Records | News". Fat-cat.co.uk. 2011-06-20. Retrieved 2012-01-13.
  5. ↑ "Music – Review of Jóhann Jóhannsson – The Miners’ Hymns". BBC. Retrieved 2012-01-13.
  6. ↑ Maddocks, Fiona (16 March 2014). "The Miners' Hymns review – a rich seam of music and mine". The Observer (London). Retrieved 12 July 2015.
  7. ↑ "For Ellen – Online Film Guide | Sundance Institute". Filmguide.sundance.org. Retrieved 2012-01-13.
  8. ↑ Kitchen Motors website
  9. ↑ Strauss, Neil (2001-10-25). "THE POP LIFE – THE POP LIFE – Iceland Shows Its Charm Is Still Vigorous". Iceland: NYTimes.com. Retrieved 2012-01-13.
  10. ↑ Jóhann Jóhannsson at the Internet Movie Database
  11. ↑ "McCanick (2013) – Full Cast and Crew". IMDb.
  12. ↑ "Prisoners (2013) – Full Cast and Crew". IMDb.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Saturday, April 16, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.