Thursday, April 29, 2010

Nico Muhly

We travel through strange hair-worlds with geometrical birds and foam-sky created by Icelandic animator, Una Lorenzen, for 'It Goes Without Saying' from the album Speaks Volumes (2007) by New York based composer, Nico Muhly. Produced by Valgeir Sigurðsson at his home studio in Reykjavík. Be sure to see it full screen, if you can.

Muhly was born in Vermont in 1981 and raised in Providence, Rhode Island. He graduated from Columbia University with a degree in English Literature. In 2004 he received a Masters in Music from the Juilliard School.

His orchestral works have been premiered by the American Symphony Orchestra, the Boston University Tanglewood Institute Orchestra, the Boston Pops, the New York Philharmonic, and the Chicago Symphony.

His film credits include scores for Joshua (2007), Best Picture nominee The Reader (2008), and the Argentine drama Felicitas, and he has worked extensively with Philip Glass as editor, keyboardist, and conductor for numerous film and stage projects.

Muhly has also lent his skills as performer, arranger, and conductor to other musicians, including Antony and the Johnsons, Sam Amidon, Björk, and Jónsi from Sigur Rós.

Many of his most frequent collaborators are colleagues at Bedroom Community, an artist-run label headed by Icelandic musician Valgeir Sigurðsson and inaugurated by the release of Speaks Volumes.