Today we’d like to introduce you to Ben Andrew
Hi Ben, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
My name is Ben Andrew and I am a film composer, pianist and author living in LA. My musical journey began with a classical foundation — I trained under British concert pianist John Bingham, a pupil of Heinrich Neuhaus at Trinity College of Music, London, and later studied at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest with Jenõ Jandó. I’ve performed around the world, from London’s St Martin in the Fields to Hong Kong’s City Hall. Never one to shy away from a challenge, I’ve pushed myself to perform some of the most demanding works in the piano repertoire over the course of my career, including Rachmaninov’s 2nd and 3rd Piano Concertos, and Beethoven’s 4th concerto as well as Chopin’s complete op.25 etudes. In addition to my work as a classical pianist, I have extensive experience as a pop pianist. I’ve supported artists like Tom Walker, Rick Wakeman, the late Bernie Marsden of Whitesnake, and Roger Hodgson of Supertramp.
My foray into composition began with arranging well-known pieces for solo piano. I then decided to branch out and write works for four pianos, with three players per piano. I love writing music across all genres. A rock song I co-wrote and orchestrated titled Not in My Name, featured a guitar solo from Bernie Marsden and received airplay on BBC and LBC radio in the UK. My arrangement of Hatikvah is currently featured on the grade 8 exam syllabus for the world’s leading examination board, the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM).
Back in 2013, I was fortunate to meet the remarkable composer, Harry Gregson-Williams (Shrek, The Chronicles of Narnia, Man on Fire). Twelve years later, I am so excited to be living here in LA working full-time for Harry. Since we first met over a decade ago, I have contributed towards several of his projects, including his scores for both Meg 2: The Trench and Gladiator II.
Collaboration lies at the heart of composition, whether that be working with orchestral musicians in a recording session, or working closely with a publishing and editorial team. Amazing things can happen when you open yourself up to collaboration. I love meeting new people, and working with other, like-minded creatives is always a real pleasure. One of my favorite collaborations in recent months has been with founding member of Black Sabbath, Tony Iommi, when I orchestrated his latest release, Deified. I have also enjoyed working with companies like Solid State Logic (SSL) and Sequential. For SSL, I wrote and recorded an original piece to accompany the launch of their newest products. I also gave a presentation on my compositional process at World Heart Beat Studios, London. For Sequential, I composed two original pieces to showcase their relaunch of the iconic Prophet 10 synthesizer.
Alongside performing and composing, I have a strong background in music education and was Head of Keyboard at a leading private school in the UK for 12 years. I’ve authored several books for the world’s largest publisher of printed music, Hal Leonard. I also created ScaleTracks, an iOS app designed to make practicing scales and arpeggios fun. With over 1,000 backing tracks across genres from Dubstep to Baroque, ScaleTracks has received rave reviews in BBC Music Magazine, The Strad, and Music Teacher Magazine.
I love the variety that comes with a career in music, and writing music for film and television has always been my dream. Right now, I’m living that dream, here in LA, and I am excited to see where this journey takes me.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
On my journey to becoming a full-time composer, one of the biggest challenges I faced was time, or rather, a lack of it. The process of composition takes considerable time, and before I took the plunge and fully embarked upon this journey, I was working full-time and long days in the field of music education. This meant I had to burn the midnight oil sacrifice my evenings on a regular basis. During this time, I did not really have a work/life balance and it was a real challenge to avoid burnout. I kept my eyes on the goal however and with a combination of tenacity and patience, I managed to break into the world of full-time composition.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Much of my work can be heard by visiting my website or YouTube channel.
Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
The first piece of advice I would give is to learn the language of music. Music is all about communication and like any other language, if we are to communicate effectively, then we must know how to fully use our musical toolkit. My second piece of advice would be: never give up on your dreams. To be a successful film composer in today’s world, versatility it the name of the game. Given the sheer diversity of visual content available to us, as composers, we must be flexible, adaptable and sensitive to the vision of directors and producers. We must be adept at writing music in all genres and styles, and have a can-do attitude, even if it means stepping outside your comfort zone. Having that resilience to keep going, with your dreams in sight, isn’t always easy. But, remember that nobody can ever expect more from you than your best. You will have successes as well as setbacks, delights and disappointments. In the end though, it will be worth it if, like me, you gain immense satisfaction from creating music. Thirdly, learning to use the appropriate software and investing in a decent computer and equipment is all a must. Being able to create realistic sounding mock-ups to show to directors is super important, and helps to showcase your talents at a high standard.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.benandrewmusic.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ben_andrew_music/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@benandrewmusic
