And now, the 1st Annual Temp Track Awards for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Excellence (in Film Scores), coming to you live from Ball Room X (the storage closet) at the Ye Olde Off-Ramp Inn in Springfield, USA.
Welcome folks to The Temp Track’s first Year End Awards Spectacular! I had a musical number all prepared, but Hugh Jackman and Neil Patrick Harris both backed out at the last minute. So let’s just get down to business.
Disclaimer: I do not claim to have heard every score and release put out this year, so there are probably scores that I should consider but haven’t because of ignorance. If there is something that I have overlooked, let me know so I can add it to my listening list. Also, this is mainly going to be Film Scores, but occasionally I may sneak in a TV or Video Game score. There will be three or four nominees in the categories and one winner except for Composer of the Year, which only the winner will be named.
First we have Score Release of the Year. This category is for a score release, either a new score or re-release of older score. The basic criterion for this category is the importance of the release to the world of Film Music, be it the music itself or a re-release of an important score either in a new or expanded format.
The Nominees Are:
Airplane! (Complete Score) – Elmer Bernstein (La La Land Records)
Back to the Future (Complete Score w/Alternate Takes) – Alan Silvestri (Intrada)
Battlestar Galactica: Season 4 – Bear McCreary (La La Land Records)
Freud – Jerry Goldsmith (Varese)
And the Tempi© Goes To:
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (Complete Score) – James Horner
Our Next Category is for Score of the Year, and this one is pretty self-explanatory: best new film (TV episode or Video Game) score of the year.
Nominations Go To:
Avatar – James Horner (Lightstorm Entertainment/20th Century Fox)
Battlestar Galactica, “Daybreak” – Bear McCreary (SyFy Channel/Universal Studios)
Star Trek – Michael Giacchino (Bad Robot/Paramount Pictures)
Sherlock Holmes – Hans Zimmer (Silver Pictures/Warner Bros. Pictures)
And the Winner Is:
Moon – Clint Mansell (Liberty Films/Sony Pictures Classics)
And finally, the first ever Alfred Newman Tempi© Award for Composer of the Year goes to Michael Giacchino. Mr. Giacchino wrote three great scores for Summer release films (Star Trek, Up, and Land of the Lost) along with his continuing work on TV’s Lost and Fringe, and it is for the continuing high quality of work that his achievements are recognized by The Temp Track. Keep up the good work. I will offer this challenge to Mr. Giacchino should he ever perchase to visit this humble blog, though: I love what you’ve done in the past, but now that you’re established in film and television, it’s time to stretch and explore new sonic worlds.
Okay, now before we go I’m going to go out on a limb, look like a fool, and make some bold predictions for who will get the Oscar nominations for Best Original Score. Without further adieu, here we go: Avatar, Moon, Sherlock Holmes, Up, and Alexandre Desplat’s Coco Before Chanel (I haven’t actually heard the score or seen the film for this one except for excerpts on iTunes, but people seem to have liked it and I needed a fifth).
Well that’s it from the scenic Ye Olde Off-Ramp Inn. I hope you enjoyed the show, have a good time at the after parties and a safe journey home.
Note: I still have yet to see Sherlock Holmes so I have yet to post my review. Hopefully I’ll see it this weekend and have a review up early next week.
Michael Giacchino also scored an environmental documentary called ‘Earth Days’ that was out last summer. I guess if a Juilliard education teaches you nothing else, it’s how to write with extraordinary speed.
And no love for Terminator: Salvation, huh?
I thought Elfman’s score for Salvation was okay, but not Top 5 material, and I guess I need to find this “Earth Days.”