SILENCE and darkness. From the void, a whisper of wind. Then we see distant hills beneath a vast layer of menacing grey cloud. An object begins to fill the sky - its ambiguous geometry suggests a colossal spacecraft. The sound segues into an eerie choral effect and a voice urges us to "listen patiently." Good advice, because Last and First Men is an unhurried and complex contemplation of loss, memory and the mysteries of existence. Based on the 1930 novel of the same name by British philosopher, sf writer and Common Wealth Party member Olaf Stapledon, the film explores the history of humanity in the near and distant future. There is no cast apart from a narrator, the visuals are abstract and the tone falls somewhere between academic dissertation and parable. It ought to be pretentious and dull but it works brilliantly. Director Johann Johannsson, who died before the film's final edit and release, was an accomplished musician, arranger and composer. The stark and dreamlike imagery is heightened by his sorrowful and strangely melodic score, a blend of traditional and electronic sound. Sadly, this was Johannsson's only feature film. A brilliant and idiosyncratic integration of image, sound design and script, this illuminating and engaging treatment of a science-fiction classic deserves the widest possible audience. READ THE FULL Morning Star REVIEW

If any film composer of the last decade defined the period best, it might've been Jóhann Jóhannsson, whose synthy, epic tones captured the turbulent, globalized environment of the new century. His work with Denis Villeneuve (Prisoners, Sicario) turned him into a Hollywood name, but the Icelandic instrumentalist was also a musician in his own right who toured the world and released his own records. I'm writing in the past tense, of course, because Jóhannsson died in 2018, though not before he completed his final work, an installation with orchestra combining film and music–with narration by Tilda Swinton–from where this extraordinary cinematic odyssey emerges in its apparently intended final form. Its vision of an apocalyptic extinction inevitably garners interpretations as something of an epitaph to his life and career. Just as Jóhannsson's music seems to fit sweeping, epic cinema, so was the inspiration behind the 80-minute tone poem Last and First Men.  Last and First Men premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival. READ THE FULL Film Stage  REVIEW

One of the greatest losses to both avant-garde music and cinema in the past decade was the tragic death of Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannsson. Known best for his score for Mandy and his work with Denis Villeneuve on films like Sicario and Arrival, Jóhannsson's work became quickly beloved by cinema-heads the world over, which made his passing at 48 even more bitter; he had a lot of life yet to live and a lot more work to do. This included a burgeoning directorial career of his own - a year before his passing, the composer premiered his first film, an adaptation of Olaf Stapleton's sci-fi classic Last and First Men (which influenced the likes of H.P. Lovecraft, C.S. Lewis, and Arthur C. Clarke, and which you should really check out given that it's available for free online), in a work-in-progress exhibition at the Manchester International Film Festival, which he scored live alongside a narration done by Tilda Swinton. Well, a completed version of Last and First Men will have its world premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival next week, and it already has a trailer ready to go. Take a look at this and tell us that you aren't intrigued. READ THE FULL Vanyaland ARTICLE

Not all movie scores have the potency to stick with viewers long after the credits rolled. But a great film score not only stands out in our minds, it can bring back the emotions we felt during a particular scene. We can relive the thrill of danger or adventure, tears can well up in our eyes over romantic or mournful notes. Without looking, some scores can even conjure up images from the movie, clear and crisp as when we first watched it, because the music pinned those moments to our memories. There have been hundreds of scores that have had this effect on us over the decade. Here are just a handful of some of our most unforgettable favorites: "Arrival," Jóhann Jóhannsson For a movie about communicating with other lifeforms from outer space, some of the most poignant moments of Denis Villeneuve's "Arrival" are actually more terrestrial. As Amy Adams' character struggles to complete her mission -- figure out why aliens have landed on earth and keep the world's most powerful armies from attacking them -- she must also deal with the memory of losing her young daughter. Jóhann Jóhannsson's compositions melded the sounds of the visiting extraterrestrials into his music, complementing their attempts to communicate with his ambient score. Max Richter's stirring composition "On the Nature of Daylight," a pre-existing work, elevated the characters' emotional journey through loss and uncertainty to hope. SEE THE WRAP '10 best film scores of the 2010s' PAGE

Syndicated HEARTS OF SPACE is heard on over 200 National Public Radio stations. Estimated audience: 200,000 listeners / week. HOS is the #2 contemporary Music program on public radio in station carriage, and is in the Top 20 list of all syndicated programs. Stephen Hill - Producer, Steve Davis - Associate Producer. For the week of: March 1, 2019, HOS presents: PGM 1207 : "A FRAGILE BEAUTY" ambient chamber and choral harmonies for the winter season. program includes;     LUDOVICO EINAUDI   "Indaco" < 0:00->5:18 >    : ISLANDS: ESSENTIAL EINAUDI; Decca 4764491; 2011    : Info: www.einaudi-islands.com; www.ludovicoeinaudi.com    ELENI KARAINDROU   "The Wind of War" < 5:18->8:06 >   "Encounter" < 8:06->12:12 >   "Separation" < 12:12->15:32 >   "Love Theme" < 15:32->19:42 >   "The Dark Secret" < 19:42->23:42 >    : TOUS DES OISEAUX; ECM New Series 2634 B0029589-02; 2018/2019    : Info: www.ecmrecords.com/catalogue/1540302478;      www.facebook.com/eleni.karaindrou.official    JOHANN JOHANNSSON   "Good Night, Day" < 23:42->27:37 >    : ORPHEE; Deutsche Grammophon 00289 479 6021; 2016    : Info: www.deutschegrammophon.com/us/artist/johannsson;      www.johannjohannsson.com    MAX RICHTER   "Space 11 (Invisible Pages Over)" < 27:37->32:45 >    : FROM SLEEP; Deutsche Grammophon 00289 479 5257 GH; 2015    : Info: www.deutschegrammophon.com/us/artist/richter;      www.maxrichtermusic.com    JOHANN JOHANNSSON   "A Pile of Dust" < 32:45->37:36 >    : ORPHEE; Deutsche Grammophon 00289 479 6021; 2016    : Info: www.deutschegrammophon.com/us/artist/johannsson;      www.johannjohannsson.com  VOCES8   "For Now I Am Winter" < 37:36->42:18 >     composed by Olafur Arnalds and Arnor Dan Arnarson   "Plainscape I" < 42:18->47:48 >   "Plainscape II" < 47:48->51:27 >   "Plainscape III" (part) < 51:27->53:48 >     composed by Pe teris Vasks    : WINTER; Decca B0025736-02; 2016    : Info: www.deccaclassics.com/us/art p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d; min-height: 14.0px}

A year on from his death, DAZED speaks to those close to the Icelandic composer about his innovative soundtracks for films like Arrival, mother!, and Mandy Jóhann Jóhannsson came of age in the Reykjavik scene of the 1980s, trying his hand at shoegaze (Daisy Hill Puppy Farm) and metal (Ham) before co-founding Kitchen Motors, a musical blurring boundaries between the rock, jazz and classical realms. His 00s run of solo releases took on an increasingly ambitious cast, with loss a recurring theme on richly textured albums like 2008's Fordlandia, about Henry Ford's failed rubber-plant utopia of the same name, and 2011's The Miners' Hymns, written for Bill Morrison's documentary ode to the UK miners' strike of the 1980s. Among his fans was French-Canadian filmmaker Denis Villeneuve, who tapped Jóhannsson to provide the score for his English-language debut, Prisoners, in 2013. After Jóhannsson's death in February of last year, ruled as an accidental overdose of cocaine combined with prescription medication, Husom inked a deal with Deutsche Grammophon to produce a series of new releases. These will include a slew of back-catalogue reissues; the score for Last and First Men, a self-directed sci-fi film narrated by Tilda Swinton; and a choral recording of Drone Mass, an oratorio which premiered at the New York Met in 2015. There are also plans afoot to see Jóhannsson's "intense" unused score for mother! released – though his work on Blade Runner 2049 looks unlikely to ever see light of day. "It was mostly idea-stage stuff, too raw to have been released," says Husom. In his lifetime, Jóhannsson was a composer of extraordinary sensitivity, an artist whose fierce intelligence and refusal to tell his audience what to think made many of his peers, in the words of Portishead musician and composer Geoff Barrow, "realise their shit was stock". Above all, perhaps, he was an artist who knew instinctively that silence is a music of its own. You just have to know how to listen. p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d; min-height: 14.0px} READ THE FULL DAZED ARTICLE

The late Jóhann Jóhannsson will not be forgotten. In February of 2018, Iceland mourned the sudden loss of one of their most cherished neo-classical composers and songwriters. At only 48-years of age, he was found deceased in his Berlin residence from what would later be determined as an accidental overdose. Jóhannsson was prolific in his creative outpourings both internationally and within the Icelandic musical community and he wrote music for theatre, dance, television and films. His style can be described as a distinctive blend of traditional orchestration with electronic elements. KEXP, a Seattle based radio station and nonprofit arts organisation recently released footage of a moving series of tribute concerts for Jóhannsson hosted by the Mengi arts space in Reykjavík. The day of commemorative performances occurred during last year's Iceland Airwaves festival (November 2018) and all of the artists involved shared a personal bond with Jóhannsson, be it through friendship or collaboration, often both. READ THE FULL Guide to Iceland Now ARTICLE

The annual World Soundtrack Awards may not garner as much attention as higher profile events like the Oscars, but they have an important purpose. Their goal - and the goal of the institution behind the awards, The World Soundtrack Academy - is to honor an often forgotten component of film. Music sets the tone and atmosphere of a movie and can even help alter an audience's entire viewing experience. Motion picture soundtracks and scores should be celebrated, and this past year's crop is especially outstanding. Nominations for Best Film Composer of the Year and Best Original Song Written for a Film include; Carter Burwell for Goodbye Christopher Robin and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri Alexandre Desplat for Isle of Dogs and The Shape of Water Jonny Greenwood for Phantom Thread Jóhann Jóhannsson for Last and First Men, Mandy, The Mercy, Mary Magdalene (co-composed with Hildur Guðnadóttir), and The Butcher, the Whore, and the One-Eyed Man John Williams for Star Wars: The Last Jedi and The Post In the Best Composer category, several artists and scores are getting the recognition they deserve as well. Particularly the work of Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannsson, who unfortunately passed away this year, leaving behind an impressive musical legacy. His song "The Beast" from Sicario sent chills up audiences' spines back in 2015. And he won Best Composer last year for his score for Arrival. He continued to impress this past year, composing for a whopping total of five films. Jóhannsson brought poignant tones to the Australian film The Mercy - his music almost acting as a supporting actor or character with how big a presence it has. It's a welcome presence, as well. The seasoned talent of Jóhannsson would make him a shoe-in for best composer of the year; and it could even be argued that separating his compositions by film for best song or soundtrack awards would be a major mistake, as his body of work as a whole is deserving of recognition. The 18th World Soundtrack Awards and concert will be held on October 17th at the Capitole Ghent in Belgium, and music for television will also be honored. Fans can also nominate their favorite score by voting for the Public Choice Award until September 7th. p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #606060} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #606060; min-height: 14.0px} READ THE FULL Film School Rejects ARTICLE

Jóhann Jóhannsson passed away earlier this year, but the Icelandic composer lives on in a series of recordings now being released posthumously. Just before his death in February, Jóhannsson composed the score for the upcoming horror film Mandy, and now Lakeshore Records (the label behind the Stranger Things soundtrack) and Invada Records (the label founded by Portishead's Geoff Barrow) have announced that they'll release the film's soundtrack this September 14.   PHOTO: Jeff Vespa/WireImage/Getty   READ THE FULL SPIN ARTICLE &  WATCH THE TRAILER   p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #606060}

Jóhann Jóhannsson left this world too soon. He was born in Reykjavik in 1969 and died earlier this year in Berlin. His legacy includes a short, but impressive list of film scores such as the Golden Globe-winning Theory Of Everything, Sicario, Arrival and Prisoners. He was initially set to score Blade Runner 2049 for frequent collaborator Denis Villeneuve, but they amicably departed as Jóhannsson's score allegedly didn't fit the film. The composer also worked on Mother, but it seems that the composer himself thought the film would work much better without music. Prior to his death, Jóhannsson worked on several films whose scores, unintentionally, now serve as a coda to Jóhannsson's life. The Mercy is a 2017 British biographical drama film, directed by James Marsh and written by Scott Z. Burns. It is based on the true story of the disastrous attempt by the amateur sailor Donald Crowhurst to complete the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race in 1968 and his subsequent attempts to cover up his failure. The Mercy is a dramatic score in Jóhannsson's typical minimalist style. Relying mostly on piano, glockenspiel, some strings and synth atmospheres, the music aches. Some of the piano-and-glockenspiel is rather upbeat; and when combined with a subtle string ostinato it fills your heart with joy.  Back in 2002 Englabörn was Jóhannsson's first album. It was re-released in 2008 without any alterations; but a celebratory edition was scheduled (and has been released) in 2018. It's been remastered and it includes a second disc with remixes by various artists. I have to be honest and say that I'm not familiar with the original release of Englabörn and thus can't offer an opinion as to how this new release compares. This new release does sound crystal clear. The recording and mixing are of such quality that they allow you to hear every tiny little detail in the composer's music. Whilst adding the finishing touches to this article, I'm listening to his album Orphée. It dates back to 2016 though it feels like it came out just yesterday. It's such a beautiful album; I'm fighting back tears. As quoted earlier, much of Jóhannsson's music sounds like an ending, a prelude to an end or an aftermath. It often inhibits a sense of loss, to convey the deepest and darkest of emotions where words and conventional music fail. His compositions are often minimal, his arrangements sparse, but there is nothing simplistic about his music. He had a unique ear for harmonies, melodies, for juxtaposing instruments and for combining the acoustic with the electronic. His music doesn't really sound like others' (though others sound like him), and it doesn't always evolve or resolve in traditional ways. There's a serenity about his music, something timeless and inevitable – like gazing at the stars at night.  His voice is missed. p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #606060} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #606060; min-height: 14.0px} READ THE FULL Synchrotones ARTICLE

Jóhann Jóhannsson's score for the 2014 film The Theory of Everything is to be reissued on vinyl next month. It's the latest in a series of reissues of work by the Icelandic composer who passed away in February, following on from the reissue of his debut album, Englabörn, this month. The score was recorded at Abbey Road Studios and featured in the film which portrayed the relationship between Stephen and Jane Hawking. Jóhannsson won the the Golden Globe for best original score for the film in 2015, and was also nominated for an Academy Award that same year. The reissue will be made available in an edition of 1500 copies on blue vinyl, and marks the first reissue of the score since its original release in 2014. SEE The Quietus PAGE p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #606060} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #606060; min-height: 14.0px}

"Englaborn" was Icelandic composer Johann Johannsson's debut album, first issued in 2002. Best known for his soundtracks, Johannsson received Oscar nominations for "The Theory of Everything" and "Sicario." Shortly before his unexpected death on Feb. 9, he completed a series of reworkings of "Englaborn" tracks. Some he performed himself, while others were covered by musicians like stunning vocal ensemble Theater of Voices, ambient duo A Winged Victory for the Sullen, pianist Vikingur Olafsson and Ryuichi Sakamoto. The package has a remastered version of the original release, which developed from music he wrote for a play by Havar Sigurjonsson, as well as the reinterpretations. READ THE FULL Norfolk Daily News ARTICLE

Jóhann Jóhannsson, the Oscar-nominated Icelandic composer of movie soundtracks including The Theory Of Everything, Arrival and Sicario, who was found dead in his apartment in Berlin last weekend, has two entries in the Classic FM Chart. The first is a re-entry of his album Orphee at no. 5, and his most recent work, the soundtrack for The Mercy, enters the chart at no. 26. In the rest of the chart, Andre Rieu's Amore steals the no. 1 spot from Sheku Kanneh-Mason, who falls to no. 2. Jonny Greenwood's score for Phantom Thread is at no. 3 this week, this week's biggest climber having risen seven places, meanwhile Islands is a non-mover at no. 4. Music for Mindfulness holds onto its place within the top ten at no. 6, while Outlander: Season 3 and Murray Perahia playing Beethoven's Piano Sonatas both enter the Classic FM Chart at no. 7 and no. 8 respectively. Finally, the soundtrack for The Little Mermaid climbs four places back into the top ten at no. 9, while Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring featuring Marc-André Hamelin and Leif One Andsnes falls four places to just inside the top ten. p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #606060} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #606060; min-height: 14.0px} In the middle of the chart, there is a singular re-entry from Danny Elfman with his soundtrack to Justice League and a handful of large fallers, including Joseph Calleja singing Verdi and Arangelo performing Bach Magnificats. In the lower third of the chart, Oliver Davis's Liberty also enters at no. 23, bringing this week's total of new entries to six. Finally, Star Wars: The Force Awakens re-enters the chart at no. 29, and for the second week in a row, no. 30 is home to the biggest faller - this week it's Steve Reich down twenty-three places from no. 7.  SEE THE FULL CLASSIC fM CHART

"I don't like to use the [verb] 'perfect,' " Jóhann Jóhannsson told KEXP: Seattle - Kevin Cole during his visit to the Seattle member station last summer, where he played selections from his 2016 album, Orphée, an interpretation of the Orpheus myth. "It's just finished when it needs to be finished." In speaking with Cole, or in performance at venues as grand as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Johannsson always came across as a humble thinker: His clipped, plain explanations seemed to be the primary-colored outward palette of an ultraviolet interior world. The sensibility of his work - dramatic and maudlin, heady and hopeful - was enough to fuel two lifetimes of inquiry, which made his death this past Saturday, at the age of 48, all the more shocking and saddening. Jóhannsson's work was most often heard thundering within movie theaters, via the scores he created to films such as Sicario, Arrival and The Theory of Everything. Watching him here - a maestro and a keyboard, joined by the Contemporary Music Ensemble to bring his last solo album to life - is a strange experience: a humble setting, a soft-spoken artist, a universal sound. SET LIST "A Song for Europa" "De Luce Et Umbra" "A Sparrow Alighted Upon Our Shoulder" "The Drowned World" p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #606060} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #606060; min-height: 14.0px} LISTEN TO THE SEGMENT

The work of Jóhann Jóhannsson was richly emotive and deeply human in its approach, drawing vivid parallels between mankind and the world we inhabit. It's a claim not many artists can make. The Icelander's death at the unjustly young age of 48 comes as a shock on many levels. He had been releasing music for over 15 years. The early focus was on concepts; his ambition immediately made clear with big ideas translated into wonderfully articulate and deeply meaningful musical statements. Bigger and higher profile scores were on their way, and Jóhannsson won Best Film Composer of the Year at the World Soundtrack Awards for his score to Arrival. Around this time his 10th and final album Orphée was released. Inspired by Ovid's interpretation of the myth, it reaffirmed his ability to bring great emotion from chamber-sized forces and smaller cells of melodic material. Jóhannsson's final work was the soundtrack to James Marsh's The Mercy, the film poignantly released on the day of his death. The quality never dropped, the guiding principles never were lost, the direction never anything other than firmly forward-facing. READ THE FULL musicOMH ARTICLE p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #606060} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #606060; min-height: 14.0px}

A new trailer for " Blade Runner 2049" has dropped over 2 months after the first preview was released. "Good Morning America" debuted the extended look at the long-awaited sequel Monday morning. While the first trailer introduced us to Ryan Gosling's character, LAPD Blade Runner, Officer K, this new clip reveals more about Harrison Ford's character, who says that he and his fellow Blade Runners were being hunted. Previews haven't focused on Decker thus far because it's rumored Ford doesn't appear until the last third of the movie p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Arial} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Arial; min-height: 11.0px} The cinematography is just as visually exotic as past previews, but featured more of Johann Johannsson's synthesizer-induced score that pays homage to Vangelis' original score for 1982's Blade Runner. The first film was characterized so much by it's sounds scape as well as every frame treated as if a photograph on a gallery wall. Johannsson has said his work on the movie was "an enormous challenge of mythical proportion." READ THE FULL POP DUST ARTICLE & WATCH THE VIDEO

Jóhann Jóhannsson has created a huge body of work over his career. He is a composer, solo artist and film maker and has received countless awards nominations including two Oscar nods for best soundtrack (Theory of Everything and Sicario). As part of 2017's MIF, he presented the world premiere of Last and First Men. Billed as an extraordinary new multimedia work - Last and First Men is based on the cult 1932 novel by British science fiction writer Olaf Stapledon (or rather the last two chapters, focussing on the end of human kind). READ THE FULL Manchester Evening News ARTICLE p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica; min-height: 12.0px}

When you think of music capitals of the world you envision London, Austin, Berlin, Vienna. Reykjavik may not be the first city that pops in your head, but it's slowly working itself into the conversation. Iceland's capital city has a rich history in music, from Viking folks songs that date back to the 14th century to the 21st Century art-pop of Bjork. The Los Angeles Philharmonic is doing its part to spread the word of the thriving Icelandic music scene by hosting the Reykjavík Festival.  

Curated by Esa-Pekka Salonen (Conductor Laureate of the Los Angeles Philharmonic) and Daníel Bjarnason (of the Iceland Symphony Orchestra), the Reykjavík Festival will showcase the dynamic music community thriving in Iceland's capital from April 1-17 at Disney Hall in downtown Los Angeles. Among those performing will be Jóhann Jöhannsson with the American Contemporary Music Ensemble on April 17. Although the 47-year old, Oscar-nominee has become Hollywood's go-to musical composer (Arrival, Theory of Everything, Sicario), he also has a thriving solo career with a long discography that includes his latest release, Orphee. CRAVE caught up with Jöhannsson where we talked about Iceland's unique influence on his distinct sound, what fans can expect from his Reykjavík Festival appearance and a little movie he's currently working on called, Blade Runner 2049. READ THE Q&A     p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica; min-height: 12.0px} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica} span.Apple-tab-span {white-space:pre} Read more at http://www.craveonline.com/music/1243871-interview-blade-runner-2049-composer-johann-johannsson-puts-iceland-music-map#gGIVqAoqyUyvtfkw.99

2016 was another great year for movies. We explored the Pacific with Moana, got weird with Deadpool, teared up to Me Before You and met some new aliens in Arrival. As is always the case, none of these adventures would have been as rich or fulfilling without the immense skill of each music team. Composers, musicians, singers, music directors and songwriters make these movies what they are. Here are some of the best soundtracks of this year. From the haunting work of Icelandic composer Johannn Johannsson is Arrival, #7 on our top 10 soundtracks of 2016. We have the to thank JJ for his otherworldly track "Xenolinguistics"       SEE thecelebritycafe.com PAGE     p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica; min-height: 12.0px} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica}

The newly released trailer for Blade Runner 2049 saw the light of day this week. The movie is awaited with great anticipation, it features Ryan Gosling in the leading role and none other than Harrison Ford who also played the leading role in the first film, released in 1982 and is by many considered one of the top films in history. Icelandic composer, Oscar nominee and Golden Globe winner Johann Johansson made the score for the film, which is prominently featured in the new trailer, a part of which can be seen and heard below. READ WATCH Ice News p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica; min-height: 12.0px}

The Hollywood Foreign Press has just announced nominees for the 2017 Golden Globe Awards. La La Land, Moonlight and Manchester by The Sea were tops in most nomimations on the film side, and Stranger Things, Westworld, The People Vs. OJ Simpson, and Donald Glover's Atlanta all picked up multiple nods on the television side. On the musical side, Iggy Pop & Danger Mouse‘s theme song to Matthew McConaughey film Gold was nominated for Best Song, where they're up against Justin Timberlake (from Trolls), Emma Stone ("City Of Stars" from La La Land). Stevie Wonder & Ariana Grande ("Faith," from Sing), and "How Far I'll Go," on of Lin-Manuel Miranda's songs from Moana. On the "Best Score" side, Pharrell, Hans Zimmer & Benjamin Wallfisch were nominated for Hidden Figures, as was Jóhann Jóhannsson for Arrival, and Hauschka‘s score for Lion. (No nomination for Mica Levi's Jackie score? Come on!). The Golden Globe Awards will be presented on January 8, live on NBC with host Jimmy Fallon. Check out the full list of 2017 Golden Globe nominees below SEE THE FULL Brooklyn Vegan PAGE p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica; min-height: 12.0px}

There are many classic science-fiction scores, from the all-electronic "Forbidden Planet" to the all-classical "2001: A Space Odyssey." So the challenge for today's film composer working in the sci-fi genre is to find a fresh approach. For "Arrival," Iceland-born, Berlin-based Johann Johannsson used the film's theme of communication between humans and extraterrestrial visitors as his starting point, with much of the music based on unusual vocal sounds. For "Passengers," set on a spaceship traveling to a distant planet, L.A.-based Thomas Newman employed a hybrid orchestra-plus-electronics approach for the people on board and the crises they face. Says Johannsson about his third film for director Denis Villeneuve: "I knew from the time I read the script that the human voice would play a big part in the score, and that there would be a lot of writing for voices. But I wanted very unconventional, avant-garde, extended-technique choral writing as opposed to the more traditional choir sounds." READ THE FULL Variety REVIEW p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica; min-height: 12.0px}

Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannsson has a diverse portfolio. His music has soundtracked the war on drugs in Mexico, the early life of Stephen Hawking and, most recently, a mysterious alien invasion. This versatility perhaps derives from his "schizophrenic" music taste: "It goes from black metal to early electronic music from the 1950s." Next up for the composer – who is currently preparing for a tour that will see him play the Barbican Centre in London on December 9 – is the hugely anticipated Blade Runner 2049. This will be the fourth time that Jóhannsson, a Golden Globe winner and two-time Oscar nominee, has worked with director Denis Villeneuve – following Prisoners, Sicario and Arrival. The Berlin-based musician talked to i about working with Villeneuve on the set of Arrival and Sicario, and his secretive preparation for the new Blade Runner film. READ THE FULL INews POST p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica; min-height: 12.0px}

Whether it's a John Carpenter classic or Jonny Greenwood's experimental modernism, the film soundtrack is becoming ever more popular as a standalone listen. Contemporary Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannsson reckons that's because "people are hungry for new sounds, and for the experience of listening to unfamiliar music that you don't hear on commercials and in every TV show". He should know. Jóhannsson has written boldly impressionistic scores for numerous high-profile films, including Stephen Hawking biopic The Theory Of Everything, darkly emotional revenge piece Prisoners and drug-cartel thriller Sicario, where he used a 65-piece orchestra to convey ominous intensity; and he's earned two Oscar nominations in the process. The common thread in his work is his treatment of the score as an integral element of the overall sound design, rather than an independent composition imposed on it. Jóhannsson's latest work is the soundtrack to smart sci-fi thriller Arrival, starring Amy Adams. Here, he offers his top tips for writing a winning movie score. READ THE FULL guardian ARTICLE p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica; min-height: 12.0px}

This fall, Vulture is partnering with the podcast Song Exploder for a series of episodes on the most interesting film scores of the year. Here, host Hrishikesh Hirway interviews Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannsson about the music of Arrival, his third collaboration with director Denis Villeneuve. (His fourth, the Blade Runner sequel, is coming in 2017.) Jóhannsson was nominated twice in the Oscars' Best Score category last year, and his minimalist arrangements for Arrival have made him one of the front runners in this year's race as well. Below, Jóhannsson walks Hirway through the structure of the soundtrack's "Heptapod B," explaining how he drew from the film's linguistic themes in its composition. This episode is part of a series I'm doing over the next few months, highlighting film music that I think could and should be considered for an Oscar. In the film Arrival, Amy Adams plays a linguist trying to decode an alien language. The score was composed by Jóhann Jóhannsson, his third film collaborating with director Denis Villeneuve. In this episode, Johann breaks down a piece from the score called "Heptapod B," and how, like the film, it revolves around the concept of language. LISTEN TO Vulture - Song Exploder PODCAST   p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica; min-height: 12.0px}

Icelandic composer Johann Johannsson talks about how he scored the science fiction movie Arrival with inspiration from the movie's images.   LISTEN TO All Things Considered SEGMENT.    Here's the Transcript MICHEL MARTIN, HOST: "Arrival" has arrived. In the sci-fi mystery film, Amy Adams plays a linguist hired by the government to try and decipher the language of aliens whose spaceships have touched down around the globe. The soundtrack was written by Icelandic composer Johann Johannsson. NPR's Elizabeth Blair talked to him about writing a score that is both otherworldly and intimate. ELIZABETH BLAIR, BYLINE: "Arrival" is a global crisis science-fiction movie. It's also a very personal story about a mother and her child. Without giving too much away, Johann Johannsson says he knew his soundtrack needed warmth. JOHANN JOHANNSSON: It was very apparent to me the moment I laid down the script after reading it that the human voice would play a big part in the score. (SOUNDBITE OF JOHANN JOHANNSSON SONG, "KANGARU") BLAIR: Johannsson enlisted the help of the group Theatre of Voices. (SOUNDBITE OF JOHANN JOHANNSSON SONG, "KANGARU") BLAIR: In the movie, the aliens' motives are unclear. The linguist tries to learn their language. Wearing protective suits, she and a physicist enter a massive oval-shaped spaceship. It's dark and spare. To create that feeling of dread as they walk through a large tunnel towards the aliens, Johannsson uses a combination of rapidly-gliding strings, low and high horns and woodwinds. (SOUNDBITE OF "ARRIVAL" FILM SCORE) BLAIR: A glass wall separates the humans from the giant squid-like aliens. They're made even more ominous because you can't really see them. They're shrouded in a kind of white mist. The linguist holds up a small white board with her name written on it. (SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "ARRIVAL") AMY ADAMS: (As Louise Banks) Louise - I am Louise. BLAIR: An alien sprays black ink on the glass that forms a kind of mandala with irregular-shaped embellishments. (SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "ARRIVAL") UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: (As character) What is that? Is that a new symbol? I can't tell. BLAIR: This symbol was one of the first images from the movie that Johannsson saw. JOHANNSSON: The sort of circular calligraphic writing, it's really beautiful shapes. And those were very inspiring to me. BLAIR: The shapes brought to mind a piece that Theatre of Voices performs. It's by the German composer Karlheinz Stockhausen. (SOUNDBITE OF THEATRE OF VOICES PERFORMANCE OF "STIMMUNG: MODEL 11") JOHANNSSON: It's these kind of the repeated cells and kind of circular motifs or looped motifs. and uses this kind of overtone singing. (SOUNDBITE OF THEATRE OF VOICES PERFORMANCE OF "STIMMUNG: MODEL 11") JOHANNSSON: That's been a favorite of mine for a long time. BLAIR: Communication, or lack of it, is one of the central themes of "Arrival." To communicate with the aliens, the linguist studies every detail of their strange symbols. Theatre of Voices soprano Else Torp says Johannsson captured that quest to understand with his score. ELSE TORP: There are actually patterns that sounds like words, that sounds like something you want to understand because you pick up these bits of information and you have to put them together. At some point, they start sounding really familiar and then suddenly you crack the code. I mean, I can totally see it building from a musical point of view as well into the linguist point of view. (SOUNDBITE OF JOHANN JOHANNSON SONG, "RISE") BLAIR: "Arrival" is the third movie Johann Johannsson has worked on with Canadian director Denis Villeneuve. He also scored "Prisoners" and "Sicario." JOHANNSSON: He has a very strong understanding of where and how to use sound and music and where not to use it as well, which is almost as important. BLAIR: He says he and Villeneuve communicate with communicate with each other throughout the entire filmmaking process. JOHANNSSON: We are in complete symbiosis with that. You know, we have very similar sensibilities. p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica; min-height: 12.0px} BLAIR: Sensibilities that don't need a whole lot of translation. Now he and Villeneuve are working on a sequel to "Blade Runner" due out next fall. Elizabeth Blair, NPR News.

Arrival might be one of the most thought-provoking science fiction films released in the last few years. And given how many recent, smart films there have been in that genre, this is saying something. Indeed, the film deals with hefty concepts like linguistic relativity, as well as the challenges that might exist if we actually attempted to communicate with aliens on Earth-or know why they're here. But just as crucial as the sounds of the enigmatic heptapods who've landed on our planet is the film's somber and hypnotic score. Composed by Jóhann Jóhannsson, the music is every bit as haunting and cerebral in its soundscape as the image of Amy Adams holding up her hand against a pane of alien glass. Then again, considering Jóhannsson has been nominated twice for Academy Awards, this isn't exactly a surprise. Indeed, all of his films with director Denis Villeneuve have an enthralling quality, which fits perfectly with Ted Chiang's short story, "The Story of Your Life," which is the basis for Arrival. READ THE Den of Geek Q&A   p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica; min-height: 12.0px}

With major motion picture soundtracks like The Theory of Everything under his belt, Academy Award-nominated composer Johann Johannsson is back with "Heptapod B," a song from his next film project. The song will be featured in the new sci-fi movie Arrival, starring Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner, and it's premiering exclusively on Billboard. "'Heptapod B' is featured in a montage sequence which demonstrates the various methods that Louise [Adams] and Ian [Renner] use to decipher the aliens' language," Johannsson tells Billboard. "It's one of the first pieces I wrote for the film, and it kind of defined the sound of the more kinetic, action-oriented parts of the score." p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica; min-height: 12.0px} span.Apple-tab-span {white-space:pre} Listen to "Heptapod B" 

Maybe it's something in the water in Iceland that's produced an invasion of mournfully beautiful and stylistically innovative musicians, each setting out to revolutionize the word with a tonal language of ear-opening, futuristic art. In much the same way that Bjork has caught the world's attention with her mind blowing take on pop, Johann Johannson has been terraforming a sometimes typical landscape of film scoring into a thing of haunting beauty. Listening to such works as "Prisoners," "McCanick," "Free the Mind" and his Oscar-nominated "The Theory of Everything" and "Sicario" are haunting journeys into humanity at its worst, and best. Low, nearly sub-sonic tones dance with subtle, yet memorable themes, his melodies journeying into the depths of hell or the highest reaches of scientific and spiritual heaven with striking originality. In that way, Johannson hasn't diluted his indie street cred honed on any number of strange art music albums, operas and exhibition pieces. He's made that rare segue from high-minded music to the more plebian demands of the big screen, spearheading a music revolution shared by such high art composers as Max Richter ("The Congress"), Jay Wadley ("Indignation") and Mica Levi ("Under the Skin"). Levi created a brilliantly confrontational "Skin" score that was as extra-terrestrial as film music could get with the buzzing tonalities of its black oil seductress, Now Johannson has initiated a scoring close encounter that's just about as strangely memorable with "Arrival" – his latest tour into the extremes of human endurance with Quebecois director Denis Villeneuve. On the pitch black surface of its alien orbs, this tale of linguist trying to find common, grammatical ground for the sake of the planet's survival might not seem to be made of the same unholy moral quagmire stuff of "Prisoner's" psycho child-napper or "Sicario's" ruthless drug war assassin. But those expecting ultimately happy Spielbergian wonder don't know Villeneueve very well, as the translator finds herself moving through time and ponders visions of motherhood, all the while desperately trying to bridge the communication gap with creatures that would give Cthulu pause. It's a sense of dread, and wonder that Johannson conveys with icy, ominous strings, unearthly brass, tribal percussion, emotionally resonant melody and a dialogue between chirping women, moaning males and the approximation of alien whale cries Much in the same way we might not makes sense of the visitors' Rorschach Test language, Johannsson's score is its own wonderfully trippy and beautiful language that doesn't spell itself out, yet remains thematically hypnotic throughout. Like this striking, challenging film, Johannsson's "Arrival" evolves a musical conversation where Johannsson again proves himself as a composer driven to push the outer limits of the art form – yet in a way that multiplex movie audiences will want to understand, and hear more of.   READ THE Q&A with Film Music Magazine

There are two ways of telling a story," said Harrison Birtwistle, who was long preoccupied with the Orpheus myth. "One is to tell it because people don't know it and the other is to tell it like a child's story – to retell it." Icelandic film composer Jóhann Jóhannsson joins the grand tradition of composers (Monteverdi, Gluck, Birtwistle, Anaïs Mitchell) who have retold the legend of music's ability to charm monsters and gods – though for Jóhannsson the tale is about "change, mutability, death, rebirth". p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica; min-height: 12.0px} It's his first official studio album in six years and it marks a move to Deutsche Grammophon's branch of ambient indie-classical grandeur. Jóhannsson's storytelling is stately and sombre. He does lush, spacious things with piano, organ, solo cello, string quartet, string orchestra, voices and crackling electronics, and the arrangements are sensitively done, though I can't say I found much compelling drama in it. A beautiful resolution comes at the end when Paul Hillier's Theatre of Voices sing a cappella text from Ovid's Metamorphoses. SEE theguardian PAGE

Big Ears Festival – America's premiere avant-garde music gathering for six non-consecutive years running – is expanding to four days starting in 2017, and the organizers have announced the first 64 performers. The fest, which runs March 23rd to March 26th in Knoxville, Tennessee, is breaking from their long tradition of having a "composer in residence" for the weekend. Instead, it will explode with a huge and diverse lineup that reaches back to heroes of Sixties and Seventies counterculture up to today's most boundary-pushing art-rockers. The more out-there reaches of indie rock will be represented by Gold-certified alt-country weirdos Wilco, Stephin Merritt and the Magnetic Fields to name a few and the increasingly popular strain of 21th Century Classical and "new music" will be represented by what may be its largest cast yet: Jóhann Jóhannson perfoming Drone Mass; cellist Maya Beiser performing David Lang's World to Come; Radiohead cellist Oliver Coates, choral group Theatre of Voices, flautist Claire Chase, pianist Lisa Moore, cellist Maya Beiser, the American Contemporary Music Ensemble, choral groups the Crossing and Theatre of Voices and Knoxville's own new music ensemble Nief-Norf, who were a surprise highlight of 2016 with a masterfully curated selection of contemporary pieces. READ THE FULL RollingStone ARTICLE

Icelandic artist Jóhann Jóhannsson has already had a prolific, successful career composing both his own solo works of delicate orchestration and decaying electronic drones, and the acclaimed scores for movies like The Theory Of Everything and Sicario. But this year promises to be his busiest-and most high-profile-yet: Not only was he recently tapped to follow in Vangelis' estimable footsteps on the Blade Runner sequel for frequent collaborator Denis Villeneuve, the coming months will also see the debuts of his scores for the Villeneuve-directed Arrival, So Yong Kim's Lovesong, and the Rachel Weisz drama The Mercy. And amid all that, Johansson is releasing his first album in six years, Orphée, on the venerable classical label Deutsch Grammophon. In this exclusive video premiere for "By The Roes, And By The Hinds Of The Field"-one of Orphée's more quietly gorgeous tracks-you get a tidy summation of what the album (and Jóhannson) is about. Its simple, somber piano melody is backed by cyclical waves of strings, then nearly drowned out by a sudden cloudburst of distorted radio static, before emerging steadfastly on the other side, echoing what Jóhannsson says is the album's theme of death and rebirth inspired by the classic myth of Orpheus. It's beautiful, but also kinda creepy-a feeling reinforced by the video's images of ghostly, wild animals wandering through an eerily abandoned house. SEE FULL AV CLUB PAGE WITH VIDEO