I am a musician with a passion for film, tv and video game music. I studied music, majoring in composition and minoring in performance at the University of the Witwatersrand from 2019 to 2023, and have experience working on student led films as the soundtrack composer. As a trumpeter I have 10 years experience playing the instrument, and have been part of provincial level youth orchestras and wind bands, and am currently performing with the Johannesburg Symphony Orchestra. My passion for music comes from listening to classical music from a young age, to composers such as Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich and Bernstein, to film scorers like Hans Zimmer, John Williams, Ludwig Goransson and John Powell. I have recently started exploring more electronic music genres such as ambient, techno and lo-fi.

JamesSwan15

I am a musician with a passion for film, tv and video game music. I studied music, majoring in composition and minoring in performance at the University of the Witwatersrand from 2019 to 2023, and have experience working on student led films as the soundtrack composer. As a trumpeter I have 10 years experience playing the instrument, and have been part of provincial level youth orchestras and wind bands, and am currently performing with the Johannesburg Symphony Orchestra. My passion for music comes from listening to classical music from a young age, to composers such as Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich and Bernstein, to film scorers like Hans Zimmer, John Williams, Ludwig Goransson and John Powell. I have recently started exploring more electronic music genres such as ambient, techno and lo-fi.

Available to hire

I am a musician with a passion for film, tv and video game music. I studied music, majoring in composition and minoring in performance at the University of the Witwatersrand from 2019 to 2023, and have experience working on student led films as the soundtrack composer. As a trumpeter I have 10 years experience playing the instrument, and have been part of provincial level youth orchestras and wind bands, and am currently performing with the Johannesburg Symphony Orchestra. My passion for music comes from listening to classical music from a young age, to composers such as Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich and Bernstein, to film scorers like Hans Zimmer, John Williams, Ludwig Goransson and John Powell. I have recently started exploring more electronic music genres such as ambient, techno and lo-fi.

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Skills

So
Soundtrack
Ableton Live
In
Instrumental
Th
Theme Tune
Ji
Jingle

Experience Level

Soundtrack
Expert
Ableton Live
Expert
Instrumental
Expert
Theme Tune
Expert
Jingle
Intermediate

Language

English
Fluent
Afrikaans
Fluent

Education

Bachelors of Music at University of the Witwatersrand
February 3, 2019 - December 1, 2023
Golden Key Society Member from 2019, my training here included learning recording techniques; jazz, electronic, classical and film composition; orchestration and arrangement styles and techniques; and classical trumpet training

Qualifications

Add your qualifications or awards here.

Industry Experience

Education, Media & Entertainment
    uniE603 The New Dawn
    The New Dawn is a piece I wrote for concert band, and is going to be part of a concert series called the Dreamspace series. The series will be about three dreams, one of fame, one of flight and one of fear, which is followed by the end of the night and the rising of the sun. Below is the programme notes for the piece, which tells the conductor my vision for the piece and how it is to be played. The audio is from Musescore 4 The New Dawn signals the rising of the sun, and with it, the ending to the Dreamspace. This piece is about the image of the sun rising over a small town, bringing with it warmth, joy and life. We open the piece in that awkward, gloomy light just before the sun rises, where shadows are still able to frighten, as we struggle to make out what they might be. The flutes, bassoons and clarinets create this slightly ominous atmosphere, while the oboe and alto saxophone carry an odd and awkward melody. As the sun starts to rise, the flutes change into a warmer; yet still swirly; accompaniment, and are joined by the saxophones. They are like the fog lifting and revealing the clouds. The first trumpet and euphonium then herald the rising of the sun, with the brass giving a fanfare-like accompaniment to this gently rising theme, as we start to feel the sun’s warmth chase away the fear that comes with the dark. The first melody then comes back in the horns and saxophones, but now in a major key, signalling the full sunrise in all its multicoloured splendour, as we reach the climax of the first section. Our next section starts with the main fragment of the melody being passed around the lower instruments, as we transition from this glorious sunrise to someone just stirring from their slumber. Here, a flute solo takes the melody, while the clarinets; and later the saxophones create a melodic, flowing accompaniment. This section represents the safety and security you feel as you awaken; feeling ready for the day yet still cozy and comfy, happy to stay in bed and relax. As we transition again into the final section, the upper winds take over the melodic fragmentation we heard earlier. We move back to the sun, now fully risen over the horizon and embrace the warmth and energy it brings. This section is the most energetic and, with the accelerando the melody that was heard earlier, now becomes faster and more lively. The trumpets and horns take the melody, while the winds have energetic flourishes and runs, and the brass and saxophones bring the power in the chords. This section is the climax of the whole piece, and should be played with as much energy as possible, without overwhelming the senses. music instrumental
    uniE603 Desert Camp
    Desert camp is one of my first electronic pieces I composed outside of university, and is the beginning to a series where we follow an adventurer on his journey to a lost city. I imagine the piece opening in a desert, with us soaring over the dunes, before arriving at a campsite near an oasis. We go into the tent there, and see a man walking around and organizing his belongings in the tent, with research materials and maps all laid out meticulously around the tent. We zoom in on one of the maps and discover it is a treasure map, with the destination being a place thought to be a myth, and certainly lost to the centuries. However as we zoom in, the map morphs to reveal the real place, and we realize the journey this man is going on is in fact to a real place. music instrumental soundtrack
    uniE603 Foggy Canyon
    This is another if my electronic compositions, and it follows on from the Desert Camp. In this piece, the adventurer is continuing his journey to the lost city, and is on his way through a canyon that has very thick fog throughout. The shadows and shapes of the valley become sinister and mysterious, as his mind plays tricks on him with his inability to see clearly. Eventually we start to see shafts of sunlight peering through the mist, and the mist clears to a view over a beautiful fantasy city that looks like a mixture between a magical and highly technologically advanced civilization. music instrumental soundtrack
    uniE603 City Entry
    A hybrid of electronic and acoustic instruments, this piece takes place in the same universe as Desert Camp and Foggy Canyon. In this piece, the adventurer is going into the city seen in Foggy Canyon to get some rest, as well as to grab some things that will be needed later on in the quest. Despite this being a very lively and busy city, our adventurer feels very lonely and isolated as he tries to find a place to stay for the night. He sees how all the people around are interacting with each other and how they have built a tight-knit community, and feels left out and almost vulnerable, as he does most of his adventuring by himself. Once he reaches a place to stay for the evening, he takes off his locket/amulet and opens it, revealing that it is actually a music box, which we hear playing at the end of the piece. Inside we see the adventurer as a young child, sitting on an older mans knee, who we assume to be his father. The picture looks old and worn, like the picture was put in the locket over a decade prior, and that the locket is often opened. music instrumental soundtrack
    uniE603 Untitled in Eb
    My first ever electronic composition, and was one of my exam-equivalent works for my studies. This lo-fi, ambient piece uses an electronic instrument I crafted in Ableton; which is an amalgamation of the trumpet and various electronic processing. It also uses a generative approach to music, where probability is used to craft melodies out of four different musical motifs across four different instruments. The piece for me is mostly the feeling of traversing a serene environment, and just being at peace in a place of natural beauty. To me the piece does not feel artificial, but rather like the fresh air on a cool summers walk in a forest.
    uniE603 We are Growing arr for Marching Band
    This is another of my arrangements for Marching Band. The piece is We are Growing by Margaret Singana, and is from the Shaka Zulu tv show. This piece was also taken out of its original key to accommodate the ranges of the members of the marching band. music instrumental
    uniE603 Hlohonolofatsa arr for Marching Band
    This piece is an arrangement commission for Marching Band. The piece is Hlohonolofatsa by the Soweto Gospel choir. I took it out of its original key to be in the instrument range of all the members of the band. music instrumental