Spark & Fire: Fuel Your Creativity

Let emotion be your North Star: Composer Kris Bowers

Mar 8, 2023

Award-winning composer Kris Bowers discusses how he let emotion guide him in composing the score for 'When They See Us', a series on the Central Park Five. He emphasizes the power of music in evoking deep feelings, connecting with the audience, and crafting authentic, emotionally resonant compositions.

28:49

Episode guests

Kris Bowers

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Episode notes

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Embrace emotion as a guiding force in composing to connect with the heart of a story.

Utilize diverse music playlists and emotional depth to maintain creativity and manage intense compositions.

Deep dives

The Power of Music in Emotion

Music has a profound impact on emotion, with composer Chris Bowers reflecting on the emotional connection music can create. He describes his experience playing his grandmother's piano, highlighting how music can express deep emotions and connect individuals on an emotional level. Bowers emphasizes the importance of finding the heart of a creative work to resonate with the audience, using emotion as a guiding force for composing.

Intro

5min

A Meeting with a Filmmaker and Scoring a Sensitive Subject

5min

Emotionally Tuned Composition

12min

Exploring Music's Emotional Role in a Premiere and Personal Connection to a Series

4min

Exploring Creative Process and Emotional Resonance in Composition

2min

This episode follows the composer Kris Bowers’ personal story about composing the score for the culture-shifting and emotionally devastating work When They See Us. This award-winning series follows the true story of five boys, wrongfully accused in 1989 of the brutal rape of a jogger in New York’s Central Park. The narrative spans a quarter-century, from the night of the incident to their eventual exoneration as grown men.

To tackle this project, Kris let emotion be his North Star. Allowing his emotions to guide him led him straight to the heart of the story — and inspired a score that connects the audience to the characters.

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