En route to a fabled pastor, the protagonists from Emerald, Texas stumble upon a quasi-hippie enclave in a forest.

I wish the film scene had been longer, because I had so much fun writing this oddball cue. The central rhythmic element is my plucking on an electric guitar run through (warning: audio tech babble follows) a convolution reverb based on a drum ostinato.

Add hand percussion, recorder, and low-end piano to the mix and you have your instant magic realism/quasi-rural/vaguely-spiritual traveling underscore!

A self-styled miracle man resides across a shady forest. The ragtag companions of Emerald, Texas set out through the woods towards what they hope will be their quest’s end.

The scene provides the occasion for the film’s main theme, which had been previously hinted at in fragments. The melody emerges from a mysterious rural introduction and subsequent agitated string passage. The intro, by the bye, was given to the viola rather than violin, for a more more raw and haunting sound.

There were only a few string players on the recording, which we tracked multiple times to give the music a bigger sound. The resulting chamber orchestra feel worked well for the film’s intimate contemporary-fantasy sensibility.

I’m happy to re-launch my Cue of the Week blog! By re-launch I mean resume, after a long period of neglect. Other than a few cosmetic details, nothing has changed; you’ll still hear a weekly selection of my music for film, games, concert music and other media.

Music for media by nature is bundled with its host project, and to be honest I’ve been lax about publishing soundtrack albums. This blog allows me to share work I’m proud of which you might not otherwise easily be able to hear.

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Enough preamble! As I’m currently scoring a new feature film by my longtime collaborator George Adams, I thought I’d share the opening music from our previous film, Emerald, Texas. As this opener suggests, the score is a mix of Americana, chamber orchestra, and oddball sound design.

Guitars (as throughout the score) courtesy of the multitalented Kyle Johnson.

In the movie Siren, a groupie approaches a married band member in a too-close-for-comfort manner. I scored the moment of temptation with ambient electric guitar and vocals, respectively performed by Tom Strahle and Hilary Hearty.

This week’s music is another excerpt from my guzheng concerto, Identity: Zhongshan Zhuang. This passage, from the second movement, is the musical equivalent of a nostalgic flashback to happier times. The darker turn at the end presages moodier material ahead.

Want to hear more of the sound of this unique Chinese instrument? Stream the concerto via Apple Music or Spotify.