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Animated Views’ Jeremie Noyer e-mailed us to tell us that his newest Caspian article is online: an interview with Narnia composer Harry Gregson-Williams. Here’s the summary from the top of the article, followed by a link to the rest!

For any film music buff, Harry Gregson-Williams is no stranger. We owe him such notable scores for all three Shreks, Gone Baby Gone, Chicken Run, Man on Fire, Flushed Away, Domino, Phone Booth, Bridget Jones: The Age of Reason, Enemy of the State, Antz and Kingdom of Heaven, among others. Such impressive credits that prove his being as comfortable in live action as in animation to provide elegant, smooth and at the same time strong scores.

Born December 13 1961, Gregson-Williams began his career as a music teacher at the Amesbury School in Hindhead, Surrey, England, then at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, where he had been a pupil, and also for a short period in both Egypt and Africa, thus experimenting music as a universal language, before stepping into film music.

Prince Caspian is his fifth collaboration with director Andrew Adamson after composing the scores for his Academy Award-winning Shrek (co-composed with John Powell), the hit sequels Shrek 2 and Shrek the Third, and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, for which he collected Golden Globe and Grammy nominations for his score. From the delicate and otherworldly notes of an electric violin to the stabs of a furious, full orchestra, let him be your guide through the sounds of Narnia…

Harry Gregson-Williams: Scoring the Return to Narnia!

iF Magazine has interviewed composer Harry Gregson-Williams. Check out the full interview at the source link, or just read the portion below.

iF: There’s a real flow to PRINCE CASPIAN. Talk about how you integrate the orchestra with your samples for its unique, and melodically pleasing sound?

Harry Gregson-Williams: Caspian is more or less an acoustic score, as was LWW. As I often do, I integrated some of my customized sounds (nothing heinously electronic!) alongside an orchestra, a choir and various ethnic instruments from all around the world to create the sound of Narnia. It is amusing to me that on LWW I seemed to ruffle some people’s feathers for sounding too electronic. Please! I enjoy and listen to plenty of ‘electronic’ music and sometimes create scores along those lines, but…. well…. I don’t know what some people’s idea of ‘electronic’ is, but it’s not mine.

iF: You make ample use of choral music in PRINCE CASPIAN. Do the words have any actual meaning, a la Howard Shore’s use of Elvish in his RINGS scores?

Harry Gregson-Williams: As it happens they do, and they did for the most part in LWW. There are many sections where I used various Runic phrases (a very old English language) which served as exclamations that the choir would sing – usually small, rising phrases that I always thought of as a sort of ‘Greek Chorus’ commenting on the action as it happened. Also, in the more noble and heroic parts of the score there is a large use of Latin. Secular Latin.

iF: Is it more difficult writing “lighter” fantasy scores like SHREK and the first NARNIA, or going for the more sophisticated sound of epics like PRINCE CASPIAN?

Harry Gregson-Williams: If you know me, you’ll know that I find it stimulating and creatively necessary to move between genres. I wouldn’t say I find any particular thing easy, either. Working on the NARNIA movies has been a blessing and I have been aware of what a responsibility this has all been. I’d follow Andrew Adamson in to any old battle at any old time, too. He’s a brilliant director who has an amazing ability to get the best out of the people around him, and he’s a good friend too.

iF: How do you see your NARNIA sound developing for the next film THE VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER?

Harry Gregson-Williams: No idea. Ask David Arnold — he might have given this subject some thought!

iF: In addition to scoring CASPIAN, you also voice the swashbuckling squirrel Pattertwig. What’s it like to finally be part of the fantasy universe? And do you hope for an action figure?

Harry Gregson-Williams: When I phoned my two children from a London ADR stage to tell them that I was about to voice one of the characters in the movie, there were squeals of utter delight- initially. But as my son, not so much his sister, discovered that it was to be Pattertwig’s voice that I was going to do and not some mighty Minotaur or something, he had great difficulty hiding his disappointment! It was fun to do nonetheless, and yet another reason I feel amazingly fortunate to have been a part of the Narnia adventures thus far. Of course, a Pattertwig action figure would have to be kept on a very high shelf, well out of sight …

By now, whether you are Christian or not, you have heard at least one hit song from the beloved Christian rock band Switchfoot.

While all the band members are Christian, they prefer to be known as just a rock band because they say their music contains broad themes that everyone can enjoy, whether it be “Meant to Live,” “Dare You to Move” or their newest hit single, “Awakening.”

The San Diego-based group now has a new original song out called, “This is Home,” which plays in “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian,” the latest “Narnia” film which this past weekend seized the box-office crown, with $55 million in ticket sales over its debut weekend.

The Switchfoot song is featured during the end credits of the film, and appears on the Original Walt Disney Records Soundtrack CD, which released May 13.

The Christian Post caught up with Jerome Fontamillas, who is often found jamming on the guitar or keyboards for the band, to discuss the new “Narnia” song and to get the 411 on Switchfoot’s latest projects.

The following are excerpts taken from the interview:

CP: Tell me a little bit about “This is Home” – Switchfoot’s new song, recorded for the movie “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian.” How does the song tell the journey of these four kids?

Fontamillas: Well, the whole idea of the song – if you read the Chronicles the series from beginning to end – it’s this idea that the place you live now is not the place you are really meant to be. You feel this is just a passing by and there is something bigger for you beyond this place. This song has a longing to go to that place. ‘This is Home’ is about longing to be in the place where you belong and destined to be.

CP: What do you think is the destiny of these four kids?

Fontamillas: Well, I’m sure for the four kids, Narnia is their place to be. But you know, you can relate it to you. ‘This is not my place. I belong in a place bigger than this.’

CP: Now, have you read the books?

Fontamillas: Yes, I have … when I was a kid.

CP: Was it surreal to work on a story you read when you were younger?

Fontamillas: Yeah. It was surreal to be a part of a work like this. Reading C.S. Lewis all my life, it’s an honor and a privilege to work on something like this. So when they called us up and said, ‘Hey can you work on a song for the movie?’ we were like pretty floored. We were like, ‘Really? For Chronicles of Narnia? That’s amazing.’

CP: A lot of your songs are known to contain messages that Christians can relate to. Do you see any such messages in this song?

Fontamillas: Oh, yeah. I mean a lot of our songs have Christian themes because C.S. Lewis is a big part of us. We read a lot of it at work, so a lot of the themes he had put in his book, you can see them in a lot of our songs.

We have a song called, ‘Meant to Live.’ The idea is that we are meant to live for something more, something bigger than where we are at.

We have a song called “This is your life,” where you are talking about ‘Is this all there is or is there something big you could be living for?’ And a lot of C.S. Lewis themes are in that area.

CP: How about for this song?

Fontamillas: ‘This is Home,’ like I said before … this song has a longing to be in a place where you are destined to be at.

ChristianPost.com for the rest

On Wendsday, May 14th, Ben Barnes appeared on NBC’s “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” promoting Prince Caspian. He talked briefly about his audition and acting expierience, his family and shared a clip from the film.

The clip does feature Peter Pevensie and Prince Caspian dueling. The duel itself makes a lot more sense when you actually watch the clip. Simply put, neither of them look like what the other expects.

Switchfoot also appeared and performed “This is Home” from the Prince Caspian soundtrack.

Ben Barnes:

Switchfoot:

Enjoy!

Walt Disney Records will release the original soundtrack for Walt Disney Pictures/Walden Media’s The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian on May 13, 2008. The recording features score written by award-winning composer Harry Gregson-Williams and songs performed by Switchfoot (“This Is Home”), Regina Spektor (“The Call”), Oren Lavie (“A Dance ‘Round The Memory Tree”), and Hanne Hukkelberg (“Lucy”).

In 1950, the scholar, critic and writer C.S. Lewis published The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the first of his seven-volume series, The Chronicles of Narnia, and established a modern legend. Adults and children alike fell in love with his stirring, action-packed adventure that was set in the middle of World War II bombing raids yet transported readers into an alternate and far more enchanted universe of mythological creatures waging an epic battle between good and evil.

Harry Gregson-Williams reunites with director Andrew Adamson for the 5th time after composing the scores for his Academy Award®-winning Shrek (co-composed with John Powell), the hit sequels Shrek 2 and Shrek the Third, and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, for which he collected Golden Globe and Grammy nominations for his score. He is one of Hollywood’s most sought after composers, working on a variety of high-profile projects, both animated and live-action.

Over the last several years, Gregson-Williams has composed such notable scores for Shrek the Third,Gone Baby Gone, Chicken Run, Man on Fire, Flushed Away, Domino, Spy Game, Déjà vu, Phone Booth, Veronica Guerin, Smilla’s Sense Of Snow, The Replacement Killers, Bridget Jones: The Age of Reason, Enemy of the State, Antz and Kingdom of Heaven, among others.

The multi-platinum selling rock band Switchfoot has written and recorded the original song “This Is Home,” which is heard in the body of the film and over the end title credits. They shot a video for the song with director Brandon Dickerson, who filmed their most recent video for “Awakening.”

“We are so honored to be a part of the Prince Caspian film with ‘This Is Home,’” says Switchfoot frontman Jon Foreman. “The Narnia stories have a really special place in my brother Tim and my lives. Our dad used to read these to us at bedtime when we were boys. Our imaginations were shaped on these amazing novels.”

The characters of C.S. Lewis’ timeless fantasy come to life once again in this newest installment of the Chronicles of Narnia series, in which the Pevensie siblings are magically transported back from England to the world of Narnia, where a thrilling, perilous new adventure and an even greater test of their faith and courage awaits them.

“As [the film's director] Andrew Adamson and I began early discussions about the musical possibilities for The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian,” composer Harry Gregson-Williams said, “it became clear that the movie could take a score with plenty of edge and bite to it this time around, supporting the fast moving action and adventure that quickly unfolds.”

One year after the incredible events of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the Kings and Queens of Narnia find themselves back in that faraway wondrous realm, only to discover that more than 1300 years have passed in Narnian time. During their absence, the Golden Age of Narnia has become extinct, Narnia has been conquered by the Telmarines and is now under the control of the evil King Miraz, who rules the land without mercy.

The fast forward 1300 years in the future allowed Gregson-Williams to re-address themes from the first film as well as creating new ones. Director Andrew Adamson described, “For Prince Caspian, Harry drew not only on the beloved themes of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, but also developed original, sympathetic themes for Caspian and the Telmarines. Harry has threaded these themes with the same beauty and originality as he has woven all the notes that form his wonderful scores.”

The four Pevensie children will soon meet an intriguing new character: Narnia’s rightful heir to the throne, the young Prince Caspian, who has been forced into hiding as his uncle Miraz plots to kill him in order to place his own newborn son on the throne.

Gregson-Williams embraced the challenge of composing for these new characters. He described, “The early introduction of a fearful Prince Caspian fleeing for his life from the dangerous Lord Miraz gave me a wonderful opportunity to introduce this new and somewhat darker musical landscape right from the opening.”

Also drawing inspiration from C.S. Lewis was Switchfoot. “‘This Is Home’ was inspired by the book after re-reading it for the opportunity to write for the film,” continues the band’s frontman, Foreman. “I am always taken by [C. S.] Lewis’ ability to write about the bittersweet beauty in this world; this home we aren’t really made for but is the place we work out our humanity in the midst of our longing for our true home.”

Walt Disney Pictures and Walden Media present The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian in theaters on May 16, 2008. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian Original Soundtrack will be in stores on May 13, 2008.

BOOM director Brandon Dickerson has just completed the latest Switchfoot music video for the bands new release “This Is Home.” The song was written exclusively for Disney’s highly anticipated feature release of “Prince Caspian” in theaters May 16th.

After seeing an early cut of “Prince Caspian,” Dickerson came up with a concept born out of the way the Pevensie siblings get back to the fallen world of Narnia: They enter an underground railway station that mysteriously transports them to this magical land. The idea was to draw a parallel between this, the film experience, and that of the Switchfoot performance in an underground Los Angeles metro station. The metro trains provide a motivated transition in and out of the “Prince Caspian” footage in a way that highlights both the film footage and the band s performance.

“Music videos for feature films have the challenge of merging two forms of pop culture ” music and film ” with a third art form, the video “says dickerson. “This is an instance where each part is enhanced and complements each other to create a new whole. Everyone is thrilled at the result.”

Dickerson, a fan of shooting on film, chose to shoot this video using the RED ONE camera, due to the projects tight turn-around. By working in the 4k realm there was no delay in the editorial process and visual effects could be immediately integrated.

“I believe in selecting the right technology for the job, but still came to this with a healthy dose of skepticism because of my passion for film,” notes the director. “We approached the shoot the same way we would using film, with the exception of being mindful of contrast and over exposure. I was impressed that we were able to create a distinct look with RED that worked incredibly well with the 35mm footage from “Prince Caspian.”

The comedian David Williams plays Bulgy Bear in the big-screen adaptation of C.S Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian.

Speaking about David’s role in the movie, a source told the publication: “He loves The Chronicles of Narnia and jumped at the chance to voice Bulgy Bear.”

“He’s got great timing and brings a comic touch to the role.”

We’ve also learned, from the press kit, that Narnia composer Harry Gregson-Williams has provided the voice for the character Pattertwig!

Here, we finally have the music video for Switchfoot’s song: This is Home. It is a much better quality version of the music video than we’ve yet seen, and we are very excited to be able to provide this video for you all:

Switchfoot’s song This Is Home now has a music video. We still hope to have a higher resolution version sometime this week, but here it is, for those that can’t wait:

Switchfoot – This is Home: Lyrics

I’ve got my memories
They’re always inside of me
But I can’t go back
Back to how it was
I believe it now
I’ve seen too much
But I can’t go back
Back to how it was
Created for a place I’ve never known

[Chorus]
This is Home
Now I’m finally where I belong
Where I belong
Yeah, this is home
I’ve been searching for a place of my own
Now I’ve found it,
Yeah this is home
Yeah, this is home

Belief over misery
I’ve seen the enemy
And I won’t go back
Back to how it was
And I’ve got my heart set on what happens next
I’ve got my eyes wide and it’s not over yet
We are miracles
And we’re not alone

[Chorus]

And now after all my searching
After all my questions
I’m gonna call it home
I’ve got a brand new mindset
I can finally see the sunset
I’m gonna call it home

[Chorus]

Now I know, Yeah this is home
I’ve come too far
No, I won’t go back
This is home

For the 2005 movie “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,” composer Harry Gregson-Williams was given an ambitious task: Write the score for a movie where the good guy is a talking lion who is a literary allusion to Jesus, the bad guy is a candy-toting wicked witch and the whole action is set in a fantasy world entombed in winter that children access via a wardrobe.

Gregson-Williams delivered, earning Golden Globe and Grammy nominations for the film’s score.

In late 2007, he received a new assignment from Disney: Can you do all that again?

Scoring “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian,” the sequel to the original hit that arrives in theaters May 16, was daunting, Gregson-Williams admits. But in an industry where sequels are the studios’ bread and butter, composers often are pushed to expand their vision and find new themes in their previous works.

For “Caspian,” it was a matter of picking up some of the underlying themes in the first film and expanding upon others from the new one. “A composer is one own’s harshest critic,” Gregson-Williams says. “I thought, ‘I’ll take that scene and develop it,’ and ‘I don’t think I’ll bring that scene with me.”‘

Gregson-Williams says he had the benefit of “Caspian” taking place in a vastly different Narnia from “Wardrobe” — one that is ravaged by chaos and war. “Narnia is not quite so beautiful and snow-laden,” he said. “The place is a wreck when the children arrive there.”

As a result, the score is more foreboding and imposing than the one for “Narnia,” in which Gregson-Williams tried to express the Pevensie children’s glee in finding an alternative world.

In addition, he has two new major characters to introduce musically: the titular hero, Prince Caspian, and the tyrannical Lord Miraz. “Prince Caspian is being pursued from almost the start of the film,” he said. “The tone of the movie is more urgent, dark, driving.”

Read the rest at Reuters