Johan Johannsson

Johan Johannsson was born and raised in Reykjavik . He studied foreign languages ​​and literature at the university. He began his musical activity as a guitarist in indie rock bands, and in 1999 he became a member of the creative association Kitchen Motors , which is engaged in supporting musicians who work at the junction of different musical genres. Then he founded the group Apparat Organ Quartet. Academic music and ambient became close to Johan Johannsson after becoming acquainted with the work of Brian Eno and the musicians of his label Obscure Records ^[4] .

Englabörn's first solo album was released in 2002. It was a collection of works by Johannsson, written for a theatrical production under the same name ^[5] . It was designed in the spirit of minimalism and was written under the influence of the works of Eric Satie , Louis Thomas Hardin , Henry Purcell , as well as electronic musicians of the label Mille Plateaux .

The composer devoted the IBM 1401 album , A User's Manual, published in 2006, to his father, who at one time was one of the first computer engineers in Iceland to try to create melodies using computers. Sounds of electromagnetic radiation from the first primitive IBM computers, translated into the audible range, as well as music from his father, who experimented with IBM technology and recorded his work on a reel tape recorder ^[6] , were used to write compositions. In The Sun's Gone Down And The Sky's Turned Black, Johannsson used computerized vocals to record an excerpt from Dorothy Parker 's poem about unrequited love. Music critic Sal Kinkumani wrote in his review that Johan Johannsson proved with this work that using a computer “a person can simulate absolutely everything, even the human soul” ^[7] .

From 2010 to 2016, he worked mainly as a film composer. But in 2016, he signed a contract to publish a solo album with Deutsche Grammophon . Orphée , Johannsson’s first solo record in 6 years, appeared as a result of the author’s acquaintance with various versions of the Orpheus legends ^[6] .

He died on February 9, 2018 in his Berlin apartment ^[8] . The cause of death is an overdose of cocaine during treatment with prescribed drugs ^[9] .

Johan Johannsson is better known to the general public as the author of music for feature films and documentaries. The Miners' Hymns is one of his most famous works in documentaries. The collection of tracks was released as a separate disc, the eighth in the composer's solo discography, in 2011 as a result of collaboration with director Bill Morrison. The film and music were dedicated to the strikes of the British miners in 1984-1985

The premiere performance of music for the documentary tape took place in 2010 in Durham Cathedral . Later, after the London premiere, The Guardian columnist Fiona Maddox gave the soundtrack five points out of five and wrote in her newspaper that “the acquaintance of the Icelandic minimalist and the American director with a bitter page in modern British history resulted in a work that could not be classified as much unforgettable ” ^[10] .

In 2012, for the music for the film "The Secret" of the Chinese director Lu Ye received the " Golden Horse " ^[11] . And in 2014 he was awarded the Golden Globe Award for the music for the film “ Stephen Hawking ’s Universe ” ^[12]

The composer also wrote music for advertising. So, his work sounds in the advertising video of Baltika beer in 2015: “Close - the whole country” ^[13] .

Filmography

Solo albums

• Englabörn ( 2002 , Touch )
• Virðulegu Forsetar ( 2004 , Touch Music)
• Dís (2004, 12 Tónar, in Iceland; 2005 , The Worker's Institute , in the USA)
• IBM 1401, A User's Manual ( 2006 , 4AD )
• Englabörn (reprint) ( 2007 , 4AD)
• Fordlandia ( 2008 , 4AD )
• And In The Endless Pause There Came The Sound Of Bees ( 2009 , NTOV)
• The Miners' Hymns ( 2011 , FatCat )
• End of Summer ( 2015 , Sonic Pieces)
• Orphée ( 2016 , Deutsche Grammophon ) ^[14]

Singles

• The Sun's Gone Dim And The Sky's Turned Black (2006, 4AD)

Music for films published on separate discs

• Dís (2004, 12 Tónar, in Iceland; 2005, The Worker's Institute, in the USA)
• Free The Mind (2012, NTOV)
• Copenhagen Dreams (2012, 12 Tónar)
• Prisoners (2013, WaterTower Music)
• McCanick (2014, Milan Records)
• I Am Here (2014, Ash International)
• The Theory of Everything (2014, Back Lot Music)
• Sicario (2015, Varèse Sarabande)
• Arrival (2016, Deutsche Grammophon)
• The OA (2016, The Rocket Builder (Lo Pan!) 4AD )

• 2015 Academy Award Applicants