John Woolrich : Music in Film

What is music for in cinema? Is it just Mickey Mousing, or can it be an essential part of a film

A conversation with John Woolrich Terry Smith and Jennifer Thatcher     

John Woolrich has a practical approach to music making—he founded a group (the Composers Ensemble), a festival (Hoxton New Music Days) and has been composer in association with both the Orchestra of St Johns' and the Britten Sinfonia. His successful collaborations with Birmingham Contemporary Music Group led to his appointment in 2002 as Artist-in-Association. He was guest Artistic Director of the Aldeburgh Festival in 2004 and Associate Artistic Director of the festival from 2005 to 2010. From 2010 to 2013 Woolrich was both Artistic Director of Dartington International Summer School and Professor of Music at Brunel University.

Woolrich is not only an authority on music but also has a wide knowledge of film and art. This conversation will discuss how music and film have been connected since the birth of film as a medium.

Jennifer Thatcher is a freelance art critic, lecturer and public programmes curator, based in Folkestone. She is a regular contributor to Art Monthly and ARTnews. She curated the adult public programmes for the last two editions of the Folkestone Triennial, and was previously director of talks at the ICA, London. She is also an AHRC-funded PhD candidate, researching the history of the artist interview. A selection of her interviews was recently published in Art Monthly’s anthology Talking Art 2.