Center Stage Interview

Mark Gordon interviewed Edwin for his 1-hour live show, Center Stage with Mark Gordon.  Edwin had a great time answering questions about a wide range of subjects, including his three recent horror movie projects, the Vienna Choir Boys, the music of Jerry Goldsmith, the impact music can have in a movie, etc.  Many thanks to Mark Gordon, Ashley and Beth at Krakower Poling PR, and Peter Hackman!

Photos by Peter Hackman


"Unnatural" Soundtrack Album Announced

Updated OCTOBER 12, 2015 with the official press release from Krakower Poling PR.

Varèse Sarabande Records today announced the release of the soundtrack album, UNNATURAL, with music by Edwin Wendler.

From Varèse Sarabande's announcement on Facebook:

"Coming Oct. 16th, composer Edwin Wendler (Tales Of Halloween, Non-Stop, I Spit On Your Grave III) brings us his cold and frightening score for UNNATURAL. A ravenous polar bear rampages through Alaska, eating everyone in its path! Out digitally Oct. 16th. Limited CD will be forthcoming. With every CD purchase you will receive an autographed booklet, compliments of the composer!"

From Edwin Wendler's Facebook page:

"Today, I am very lucky to announce the soundtrack album release of my music for the movie, Unnatural, on Varèse Sarabande Records.  First and foremost, I’d like to thank Peter Hackman for his cheerful can-do attitude and his masterful problem-solving skills, every step of the way.  Supervising Peter at Varèse Sarabande was one of the most experienced producers in the field of indie album releases, the amazing Cary E. Mansfield.  I would like to thank Varèse’s CEO, Darren Blumenthal, for allowing this project to move forward.  Huge thanks to the movie’s producer, Ron Carlson, and its director, Hank Braxtan, for being so supportive of the idea of a soundtrack album.  Thank you to After Dark Films for giving us the fastest turnaround for an artwork approval ever.  It can take weeks or months; they did it within two hours so we could meet our deadline.  A million thanks to the very-patient Alan L Dull for working quickly and precisely on the album’s layout and design.  Many thanks to the wonderful Mark Curry for making my WAV files sound fantastic, and to Chas Ferry for exporting the final master with his incredible attention to detail.

On a personal note, it is not lost on me how thrilling it is, as an avid soundtrack collector, to have a soundtrack album of my music released on THE Varèse Sarabande record label.  I have been a fan of their releases ever since I was old enough to go to a record store, and I own hundreds of them.  Luck is something that can easily run out.  Today, I am very grateful to have had it in spades, on this project, thanks to some wonderful people.

The music itself is creepy, scary, and very aggressive in certain places.  If you are a fan of horror music, I hope to have composed something worthy of your collection.

UNNATURAL (the movie) will be released in theaters October 16.  The digital soundtrack album comes out the same day, with a physical CD release to follow soon thereafter.  I plan on signing every single booklet, with a little note of appreciation."

 

From the official press release, distributed by Krakower Poling PR:

VARÈSE SARABANDE RECORDS TO RELEASE
UNNATURAL – ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK

Featuring Original Music Composed By Edwin Wendler

(October 12, 2015– Los Angeles, CA) –Varèse Sarabande will release UNNATURAL – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack digitally and as a limited edition CD on October 16, 2015.  The album features the original music created by composer Edwin Wendler (I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE III: VENGEANCE IS MINE, TALES OF HALLOWEEN).

To get the emotion behind the film just right, Wendler composed a main theme, which, in the words of the composer, is “quietly relentless” and “designed to express loneliness and isolation.”  The Alaskan wilderness is a character that drives the movie along with the actors.  For Wendler, the UNNATURAL score is “a chilling trip to some dark, musical places, with the most aggressive music I have ever written.” It was very important to Wendler to create cohesion throughout this striking score. Elements of the main theme can be heard during the action music so that “on a subliminal level, there is a thematic consistency, even in material which, on the surface, has nothing to do with the main theme.”

Before Edwin Wendler started composing music, he spent his early years in the Vienna Boys’ Choir where he toured the world, singing in hundreds of concerts and dozens of opera performances.  He earned Certificates in Film Scoring and Screenwriting from UCLA Extension in 2000, and was accepted into the prestigious ASCAP Film Scoring Workshop in 2004.  In 2010, Wendler won a “Best Score” award at the Los Angeles International Film Festival, for his epic score, AZUREUS RISING. Wendler also composed additional music for the box office hit, NON-STOP, starring Liam Neeson.

He also worked as an arranger, programmer, and orchestrator on movies such as THE NICE GUYS, X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST, UNKNOWN, LITTLE FOCKERS, THE LOSERS and INTO THE BLUE.  Wendler’s television credits include arranging on the 2006 Showtime series, SLEEPER CELL: AMERICAN TERROR, as well as composing additional music for NBC’s popular reality series, FEAR FACTOR.  Mr. Wendler’s feature film credits as a composer include THE INTERIOR, CHRISTMAS WITH A CAPITAL C, ESCAPE, TALES OF HALLOWEEN AND I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE III: VENGEANCE IS MINE.

UNNATURAL tells the story of a photographer and his friends who set out in the dead of winter for the Alaskan wilderness to take advantage of the limited, but beautiful daylight.  They are met by an experienced hunter and local lodge owner who instills fear within the group by telling them the legend of Maneater, a bear that has fangs and claws sharper than man-made metal.  This epic tall tale quickly becomes our group’s real, living nightmare.  Nearby, a bioengineering company has genetically altered a polar bear so it can better survive climate change, but the end result is a relentless, deadly, man-eating machine, escaping from the lab and killing everything in its way.

Given the intense plot, Wendler was careful when creating the tonal palette for the movie. “I wanted the music for UNNATURAL to be as cold and unforgiving as the location of the movie: the Alaskan wilderness.”  In order to achieve this feat, Wendler picked sounds that felt like they fit in the environment such as wooden percussion instruments, odd vocals, a banged-up piano, and icy-cold electronics.

After Dark Films presents UNNATURAL in theatres nationwide on October 16, 2015.  Varèse Sarabande will release the UNNATURAL – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack digitally and as a limited edition CD on October 16, 2015.  Every CD purchase will include an extra booklet signed by composer Edwin Wendler.

# # #

www.varesesarabande.com

For more information contact KrakowerPolingPR@gmail.com, or @KrakowerPoling on Twitter

ABOUT VARÈSE SARABANDE RECORDS
Founded in 1978, Varèse Sarabande is the most prolific producer of film music in the world, releasing the highest quality soundtracks from the world’s greatest composers.  From current box office hits and top television series to the classics of Hollywood’s Golden Age, Varèse Sarabande’s catalog includes albums from practically every composer in every era, covering all of film history; from Bernard Herrmann, Alex North and Jerry Goldsmith to Alexandre Desplat, Michael Giacchino and Brian Tyler.

Varèse Sarabande releases deluxe and expanded editions of special soundtracks for the film music aficionado.  The Varèse Vintage imprint specializes in releasing new and re-issued albums by classic pop, jazz and country artists.  Varèse Sarabande Records is distributed by Universal Music Group.

Follow:  twitter.com/varesesarabande
Watch:  youtube.com/varesesarabande
Listen:  open.spotify.com/user/varesesarabanderecords
Like:  facebook.com/varesesarabanderecords
Buy:  varesesarabande.com


"I Spit On Your Grave III: Vengeance Is Mine" Score Completed

Edwin Wendler recently completed the score for the horror sequel, I Spit On Your Grave III: Vengeance Is Mine.  The movie stars Sarah Butler (reprising her role from 2010's I Spit On Your Grave), Jennifer Landon, Gabriel Hogan, and Doug McKeon.  R.D. Braunstein directed.  Produced by Lisa Hansen and Paul Hertzberg for CineTel Films, the movie will be released by Anchor Bay Films in October.

"Tales Of Halloween" - "Friday The 31st" Segment

Director Mike Mendez ("Big Ass Spider," "Lavalantula") recently asked Edwin Wendler to contribute music to his segment, "Friday The 31st," for the anthology feature, "Tales Of Halloween."  The resulting score is some of the wildest music Edwin has ever written.  The movie, which consists of 10 chilling stories by 11 visionary film makers, will be released in theaters on October 16 by Epic Pictures.

For updates about the movie, please check the official Facebook page:

"Unnatural" Score Extended

 
Unnatural_TempPoster

The horror feature, Unnatural, was extended by approx. 3 minutes.

Consequently, Edwin was asked to provide some additional music as well as a new end credits cue, resulting in more than 7 minutes of new material.  Edwin was glad to jump back into this score, which features creepy electronics and processed, orchestral textures.

Also, the movie received its first trailer and a temporary poster today.  For more info, click:

 

BSO Spirit Interview

BSOSpiritInterview

Asier G. Senarriaga conducted a comprehensive interview with Edwin several months ago, and it was published on Edwin's birthday.  The timing couldn't be more perfect!  Edwin would like to thank Asier for the impeccably researched questions and for the opportunity to talk with him.  Special thanks also to Peter Hackman and Victor Kaply.

To read the interview in English or Spanish, please click:


"Unnatural" Score Completed

This week, Edwin Wendler finished scoring the horror feature, Unnatural, starring James Remar (Dexter), Sherilyn Fenn (Twin Peaks), Q'orianka Kilcher (The New World), Graham Greene (Dances With Wolves), and Ray Wise (Jeepers Creepers II).  The movie was directed by Hank Braxtan (Chemical Peel) and produced by Ron Carlson (Life Blood).

Edwin would like to thank Hank and Ron for one of the best experiences ever working on a movie.  A release is planned for 2015.

"Escape" Album Reviews

Perseverance Records released the score album for Escape on October 3rd, 2012, and so far, we have been able to find the following reviews, all of them positive!

 

“[…] this is a score that does hit all the high marks and really unleashes a beautiful theme for its locale. […] Recommended.”
- Danny Gonzalez, Examiner


“Wendler’s subtle writing and tenderly anguished use of melody makes Escape into a thoroughly engaging ordeal, powerfully charting a hero’s rise from his own inner grief at losing a child, along with the more palpable goal of getting away from his captors.”
– Daniel Schweiger, Film Music Magazine


“Both in concept and in performance the score attains an effective and pleasing sound quality, and its journey through the Thai landscape and imprisonment is enthusiastically captured by Wendler in this very fine score.”
– Randall D. Larson, Randall Larson’s Soundtrax


“In Escape, Wendler delivers one of his finest efforts to date.”
– Steven A. Kennedy, Film Score Monthly (reading requires an online subscription)


“Escape is a worldly but cohesive score, ripe for recycling by any major studio who want to make their latest action-adventure seem more adventurous.”
– George Bass, Glass Base

 


Film Music Journal Article

Philippe Blumenthal of the Swiss magazine Film Music Journal asked Edwin Wendler to write an article about his experiences in the film music business so far.  Edwin took the opportunity to shed some light on some aspects of film scoring which are rarely talked about.

Click here to read the full article in English.

Click here to read the full article in German.