The New Digital Documentality of Contemporary Film Scoring Practices. Preliminary Results Based on Participant Observation at the Studio of North American Composer Christopher Young

Andrea Bruno; Giulia Ferdeghini; Ilario Meandri

doi:10.54103/2036-461X/23522

Authors

Andrea Bruno University of Turin https://orcid.org/0009-0004-0479-1388
Giulia Ferdeghini University of Turin
Ilario Meandri University of Turin

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54103/2036-461X/23522

Keywords:

Film Music Digital Documentality, Contemporary Film Scoring, Christopher Young/Film Composer’s Studio, Digital Film Music Production, Compositional Process

Abstract

The digital transition has radically transformed the atelier of the contemporary composer, leading to the emergence of a new “digital documentality”. This change necessitates a renewal of musicological research methodologies concerning contemporary creative practices. This paper presents the preliminary findings of an ethnographic fieldwork conducted at Christopher Young’s studio, highlighting the need to consider both documents and production practices. This approach has led to the development of an eclectic study methodology that integrates archival work with the investigation of oral histories, utilising a wide range of documentary sources and leading to a redefinition of the inquiry method. Despite the difficulty of replicating such a large-scale study, both synchronically and diachronically, we believe this research can provide meaningful methodological guidance for musicology concerned with source criticism in contemporary productions. Field observations focused on the music production of Christopher Young’s team for three films: The Autopsy (David Prior, 2022), The Offering (Oliver Park, 2023), and The Piper (Erlingur Thoroddsen, 2023). Fieldwork revealed how music teams integrate digital technologies into the compositional process with original technical, experimental, and creative solutions. The flexibility introduced by the digital transition represents one of the most significant challenges for contemporary musicological research on film music interested in reconstructing the compositional process.

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Author Biographies

Andrea Bruno, University of Turin

Andrea Bruno studies film music at the University of Turin, where he conducts seminars on contemporary film music composition practices. His passion has led him to research the work of Hollywood composer Christopher Young and collaborate with him on some of Young’s projects, including the release of two box sets that collect most of the composer’s works, restructured in suite format. He has also formed an artistic partnership with Italian cellist and composer Marco Robino. Their latest major collaboration was for the score of La Memoria del Mondo, the fourth feature-length film of Italian director Mirko Locatelli, where he served as score coordinator and music editor. Additionally, he supervises and curates the publication of Robino’s catalogue, collaborating with prominent film music labels.

Giulia Ferdeghini, University of Turin

Giulia Ferdeghini is a Research Fellow and ethnomusicologist at the Department of Humanities of the University of Turin. Her work focuses on Linked Open Data and knowledge representation systems in the domains of ethnomusicology and silent film music. She worked within two PRINs and she is presently working for the PE5 CHANGES of PNRR. She teaches Ethnomusicology in DAMS course at the University of Turin. Her area of expertise is the musical culture of the Kurdish people, and she is specialized in the sung epics in Iraqi Kurdistan. She has recently published a book titled Beyta Dimdim: storia, struttura e analisi di un canto epico curdo (Beyta Dimdim: history, structure, and analysis of a Kurdish sung epic, 2024, Venezia: Fondazione Levi).

Ilario Meandri, University of Turin

Ilario Meandri is an Associate Professor of Ethnomusicology at the Department of Humanities, University of Turin. He brings research on classical topics of ethnomusicology and film music together with the development of advanced technologies involving documentation and analysis of sound repertories He has carried out extensive ethnomusicological studies on film soundtracks in mainstream contemporary North American cinema applying an ethnographic approach to the profession of the Hollywood composer. He has carried out pioneering work on the history of production techniques and sound recording in Italy from the post-War period to the present day, applying innovative methodologies to systematic research on oral sources. His research has been published by the most prominent national and international editors in the discipline.

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The New Digital Documentality of Contemporary Film Scoring Practices. Preliminary Results Based on Participant Observation at the Studio of North American Composer Christopher Young

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