Irv Johnson

Education

Equipment

My Equipment/Kit:

I can use:

About me

An old friend, now colleague of mine, had advised me early on, that if I truly wanted to become a composer for film, that I should first learn the short format: as in the :30 spot, BEFORE tackling film.
I had know idea what that actually meant at the time, but nevertheless, I attempted to address it by co-founding a boutique music house (in NYC), where my partner and I serviced the commercial/promos/network television industries. Our client list included, VH1, MTV, Discovery Channel, HBO, among a host of others. We scored promos, commercials, television shows, Interstitials and mnemonics; as well as music for the behind-the-scenes docs for popular shows like ‘Rome’.
Having had success in that end of the business, I still dreamed of scoring film. My first film (solo) gig, was a no pay drama/thriller, that I ended up scoring three times.
The reason? Mostly because I had no particular strategy on how to score a feature length film, but, moreover, as a perfectionist, I knew that I at least, wanted to get the feeling just right. And although by this time, I had gained a lot of experience scoring to picture in a variety of ways, scoring film was a completely different animal.
Having gone through the ranks, and having had the good fortune of meeting a really experienced sound designer/composer - with whom I have since established a long term working friendship with - who was kind enough to teach me the craft, and the necessary shortcuts to get me to the finish line - on time and on budget - I can now say that I have arrived, on the other side, as a film/tv/media composer.

In hindsight, I know, that each and every film; short or long; commercial or product film, all have a particular story to tell. Our job as composers, is to (first) listen intently to the director's instructions and wishes, and then use that information to try and find the best possible (musical) story to tell; attaching emotions that will help: connect, make space for, and cue in the viewer by giving them a greater understanding (emotionally) to what they are actually watching. The music score should support and fully integrate with the film as a whole; complementing it, but not overpowering it, or the creative contributions from the other departments, i.e acting, scripting, editing, sound, etc.

Today, I not only enjoy scoring film, but also enjoy, on occasion, teaching it to up and coming composers. I have done this both privately, and at several institutions in Denmark including: The Royal Conservatory at Esbjerg (in cooperation the the national film school), Sonic College in Haderslev and ArtLab in Copenhagen.

I am open to talk (nerdy) about film, to any and all those that share my love and passion.

Feel free to get in touch.
Referees:
Available upon request.
Additional information:
Studied classical violin and piano at a early age at The Dalcroze School of Music in Manhattan (NYC).
Co founded a band that was produced by Carlos Alomar

License & Passport

Skills

Secondary Job Title	Music Supervisor
Job Titles	Producer, Music Director, Composer
Years in industry	6+ years