ANGELO BADALAMENTI

'Angelo Badalamenti' (born March 22, 1937) is a composer, best known for his movie soundtrack work for movie director David Lynch, most notably ''Blue Velvet'', the ''Twin Peaks'' saga (1991-1992) and ''Mulholland Drive''

Contents

Background

Collaborations

Quotes

Selected filmography

See also

External links

Background

He was born in Brooklyn, New York to a Sicilian mother and an Italian father and spent much of his childhood listening to opera and classical music. He studied at the Eastman and Manhattan Schools of Music where he earned a master's degree in music. He scored films such as ''Gordon's War'', and ''Law and Disorder'', but his big break came when he was brought in to be Isabella Rossellini's singing coach for the song "Blue Velvet" in David Lynch's classic film ''Blue Velvet''. Rossellini was supposed to sing "Song to the Siren", but Lynch was unable to secure the rights to use it. Badalamenti and Lynch collaborated to write "Mysteries of Love", using lyrics Lynch wrote and Badalamenti's music. Lynch asked Badalamenti to appear in the film as the piano player in the club where Rossellini's character performs. This film would be the first of many projects they would work together on.
After scoring a variety of mainstream films, including '' and ''National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation'', he scored Lynch's cult television show, ''Twin Peaks'', which featured the vocals of Julee Cruise. Many of the songs from the series were released on Cruise's album ''Floating into the Night''. Other Lynch projects he worked on include the movies ''Wild at Heart'', '', ''Lost Highway'', and ''Mulholland Drive'' (where he has a small role as a gangster with a finicky taste for espresso), as well as the television shows ''On the Air'' and ''Hotel Room''. Other projects he has worked in include the television film ''Witch Hunt'', and the films ''Naked in New York'', ''The City of Lost Children'', ''A Very Long Engagement'', ''Dark Water'' and ''Secretary''. He has also worked on the soundtrack for the video game Fahrenheit. His work on Fahrenheit has also been critically acclaimed, with the game breaking new ground, and being described as an 'interactive paranormal thriller'. Lately, he has been composer for director Paul Schrader on such films including ''Auto Focus'', 'The Comfort of Strangers (film)'' and ''.
In 2005, he has composed the background music for the movie Napola.

Collaborations

In 1966, Badalamenti co-wrote a song ("Visa to the Stars") on Perrey and Kingsley's album ''The In Sound from Way Out.'' He is credited on the album as Andy Badale.
In 1987, he lent his services to British synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, arranging the orchestration on the dreamy and melancholic track "It Couldn't Happen Here". The recording foreshadows "Laura Palmer's Theme" from ''Twin Peaks'' in 1990, when he also arranged the strings on various tracks on the Pet Shop Boys' acclaimed ''Behaviour'' album.
In 1993, Badalamenti collaborated with thrash metal band Anthrax on the track "Black Lodge" from the ''Sound of White Noise'' album.
In 1995, he composed, orchestrated and produced Marianne Faithfull's album, titled A Secret Life.
In 1996, Badalamenti teamed up with Tim Booth of the British rock band James. As Booth And The Bad Angel, they released an eponymous album on the Mercury label.
In 2000, he worked with Orbital on the "Beached" single for the movie ''The Beach''.
In 2004, he composed the ''Evilenko'' soundtrack working with Dolores O'Riordan, who sang the main theme and with whom he is still collaborating. A new song by the two, "The Butterfly", is likely to be included in a yet to be announced movie.
In 2004, he was lead composer for the Atari/ Quantic Dream game ''Indigo Prophecy''.

Quotes

★ "My (musical) world is a little bit dark... a little bit off-center. I think of it as tragically beautiful. That is how I would describe what I love best: tragically beautiful."

Selected filmography

★ ''Life of Pi'' (2009)

★ ''The Eye'' (2007)

★ ''The Wicker Man'' (2006)

★ ''Dark Water'' (2005)

★ ''Fahrenheit'' (2005)

★ ''A Very Long Engagement'' (2002)

★ ''Cabin Fever'' (2002)

★ ''Mulholland Drive'' (2001)

★ ''The Beach'' (2000)

★ ''The Straight Story'' (1999)

★ ''Arlington Road'' (1999)

★ ''Girl on a Bridge'' (1999)

★ ''Lost Highway'' (1997)

★ ''La cité des enfants perdus'' (1995)

★ ''Wild at Heart (1990)

★ ''Twin Peaks'' (1990)

★ ''Blue Velvet (film soundtrack)'' (1986)

★ '' (1986)

See also

★ List of noted film producer and composer collaborations

External links

★ Official Angelo Badalamenti website

★ Angelo Badalamenti Myspace

★ Angelo Badalamenti - a peak for David Lynch

★ Yahoo Movies Biography of David Lynch

★ Fansite Biography of David Lynch

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