David Arnold
His incredible music has left us shaken and stirred over the last three decades and so it’s only right that British composer David Arnold’s contribution to Film & TV music-making is celebrated…
The early-mid ’90s saw Arnold’s star rise swiftly. His first feature film score was for Danny Cannon’s gritty The Young Americans in 1993., and it was just the following year that he composed the score for Roland Emmerich’s dazzling sci-fi epic Stargate. Arnold never looked back.
The composer joined forces with Emmerich again for 1996’s blockbuster hit of all hits, Independence Day, and although Hollywood was seemingly his for the taking, the composer had his sights set on one thing. Bond, James Bond.
Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) was Pierce Brosnan’s second outing as 007, and David Arnold’s first Bond score. He proved himself the rightful heir to the great John Barry, delivering a thrilling original score, and would go on to pen the music for a further four films in the series – seeing Brosnan out with Die Another Day (2002) and ushering in Daniel Craig with Casino Royale (2006) and Quantum of Solace (2008).
Beyond Bond, Arnold’s flair for action and way with melody has been put to memorable use in film scores as varied as Last of the Dogmen, The Stepford Wives, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Hot Fuzz, Amazing Grace and 2 Fast 2 Furious.
On the small screen, Arnold has regularly collaborated with Matt Lucas and David Walliams, providing music for hit shows like Little Britain and Come Fly With Me, plus scores for Walliams’s stories Gangsta Granny and Mr Stink.
Some of Arnold’s recent hits have included must-see TV dramas like the always-riveting Sherlock (for which he won a Primetime Emmy) and Good Omens, plus Dracula and the brilliant Mog’s Christmas.
