Newsletter #18 - Back on the Street
Kia ora everyone,
Wow, it’s been a while since my last update in October. I hope you all had a wonderful end to the year and a restful holiday season.
When I last wrote, Shortland Street was heading into hiatus, and I had just begun working as a Music Editor on a new upcoming television seriers with my friend and mentor Claire Cowan. That project has now wrapped, and I can’t wait for people to hear the incredible music Claire has created. It was a brilliant project to be part of, and as always, I learned a huge amount working alongside her.
Shortland Street: Legacy
Yes, I’m back on the Street!
I’m now back scoring the new season, Shortland Street: Legacy, which begins airing tomorrow!
For this season I’ve created a new arrangement of the classic theme by Graham Bollard for the episode recaps. With the season titled Legacy, I wanted the original melody to really shine, honouring the heart of the theme while bringing it into the sonic world of the current underscore.
If you didn’t catch last year’s Christmas cliffhanger two-part special, it’s worth a look. The episodes featured over 35 minutes of music, while both a contagion and a deranged murderous doctor ran rampant! Meanwhile an intense fight scene brought a medical helicopter crashing down into the side of the hospital, definitely one of the most action-packed scores I’ve written for the show.
Furniture Trio EP
Towards the end of last year, my ensemble Furniture Trio released our self-titled EP. Our group sits somewhere at the edge of contemporary classical, ambient, and jazz.
We recorded the EP in my old music teacher Bernard Wells’ living room. Bernard taught me guitar from around the age of 12 and encouraged me to start writing music early on — so it felt pretty special to bring this project back to that space.
The EP is now available for streaming:
We also filmed two live videos of us recording tracks from the EP, which you can watch above.
Among the Smoke
I recently completed a short film called Among the Smoke with director Austin Salt-Cowell. The film is an animated documentary narrated by Austin’s 93-year-old grandmother, who recounts her childhood experiences living in wartime London during the Blitz.
For the score I recorded local violinist Sayaka Kirkman, whose playing brought a fragile, human intimacy to the music that felt completely right for the story.
Thanks so much for reading.
It’s been a busy and creatively varied start to the year. With a number of short films, an installation, all coming at once, while working on the new season of Shortland Street.
As always, thanks for following along. If you get a chance to listen or watch any of the projects above, I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Best wishes until next time!
Ngā mihi nui,
William Philipson
