SimplyScottish.com - The Reading Room - Interviews

It’s not by accident that someone becomes one of the world’s most sought-after and admired composers and arrangers. In fact, in the case of Craig Armstrong, its happened quite on purpose. SimplyScottish.com has a time out with the Golden Globe winning film composer on his native Scotland, his musical successes thus far, and his latest musical offering, Piano Works.

1. Craig, thanks for taking time to answer a few questions for SimplyScottish.com. So, there seem to be many ways to be able to describe you and what you do. We could say film composer, arranger, collaborator, recording artist, piano man, and of course, Golden Globe winner. And indeed, we could also say you are simply, and wonderfully, a musician. How do you like to describe yourself? Do you enjoy having your work in multiple sections of the music store?

I try not to differentiate between the work that I do. So whether I am composing for film or for an album or for the RSNO [Royal Scottish National Orchestra], I approach it all in the same way. And it's always great to see your work in a music store and for me I like the fact that the film work is represented so well, especially through doing Baz's films where his film albums are always really interesting projects to be involved in.

2. Receiving your classical training at the Royal Academy of Music, you were a resident composer in Glasgow’s Tron Theatre company, which led to a variety of classical commissions and collaborations with the Northern Sinfonietta, the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. On the other hand, your work with Massive Attack led to two critically acclaimed solo albums, The Space Between Us and As If To Nothing. What was it like to be a member of two separate worlds, classical and popular, and in what ways did those worlds merge for you as your career grew?

In many ways the two seemingly different areas are connected as in both artistic seams we're trying to produce exciting new work. And also the work I did with Massive Attack for example was mostly orchestral.

3. You seem to be equally at ease producing your own work and collaborating with others to create music. Can you describe the experience of working with other musicians on your sophomore solo album “As If To Nothing”? What would you say is the lasting reward of musical collaboration?

Working with the artists on As if to Nothing was really interesting, working with such a variety of artists from Swati Natekar, Evan Dando to Antye Greie. It sounds very cliche, but it was a good experience learning and working with people from such different musical backgrounds. I have since collaborated with Antye Greie in concert and we are planning to do some more writing together in the near future.

4. Your name seems to be resounding the loudest right now in the film scoring world, and its not hard to see why. You have scored several films now, including Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo and Juliet and the ground-breaking Moulin Rouge. You’ve also created musical landscapes for The Bone Collector, Best Laid Plans, The Magdalene Sisters, The Quiet American, and Love Actually. What is it that attracted you to film music, and how does the experience of creating music for a motion picture differ from your other work?

It is different because you don't have a blank page. So unlike writing an album or a classical commission you have in front of you the directors artistic vision. When it works well and you can really tap into that vision then it's a very enjoyable experience. I think this works well with Baz and I really like the score to Taylor Hackford's new film 'Ray' which was a great collaboration.

5. ‘Glasgow Love Theme’ is an exquisite solo piano piece, reflectively beautiful and short enough to be described as fleeting, like the moments we have as humans that seem to be gone before we even realize. The piece featured in the successful romantic comedy Love Actually, which is set in London, England. Did you write ‘Glasgow Love Theme’ specifically for the movie, or is its story tied to your native city of Glasgow itself, as the name suggests?

No, the piece is written for the film but I wrote it in Glasgow so it's definitely a Glasgow-inspired piece.

6. October 2004 sees the release of your third solo album, Piano Works. Not surprisingly, its different from your first two albums in that your love of the piano shines through. The recording features piano versions of some of your film music and your popular collaborations with Massive Attack, but a lot of Piano Works is new. You’ve spoken before about how the city of Paris itself, where you recorded this album, acts often as your artistic muse. In what ways did the beautiful city of light contribute to Piano Works? Are there any other places in the world that seem to inspire in such a way?

I really like writing in Portugal too, in fact I wrote some of Love Actually out there. And I’ve been fortunate enough to have a lot of support from France musically and therefore it makes it an enjoyable experience to work there.

7. If you could single out one new piece on Piano Works that you would be most proud of, that had the power to bring out strong, unforgettable emotions whenever you played it or even listened to it, which would it be?

8. As a piano player myself, I can appreciate full well the beauty of the instrument, the unmistakable feeling one gets when using those keys to create timeless, lasting music. Piano Works is as much a tribute to the instrument as it is to your compositions. If someone asked you why the piano, why not a guitar, a harp, a French horn, a violin, what would you tell them?

9. How important is your nation to you, Craig? Some people have a strong love for their country, and they carry that with them wherever they might go in the world, whatever they might engage in. And then some seem to consider the land of their birth of little importance. In what ways would you say Scotland contributes to your life and your work? And where do you see Scotland in ten years? Do you see the country flourishing as a full member of the world community of nations?

Scotland it goes without saying is an amazing country and it's so important to be part of the international community too. A good thing about Scotland for me is that there is amazing space both emotionally and geographically for me to write.

10. Craig, thank you for your time and for sharing with SimplyScottish.com. As a final question, can you tell us what we might expect from you in the near future?

I’m working on some new film projects, a possible commission from the English National Opera and some new collaborations.

Craig Armstrong's score to the movie Ray will be released December 7th, 2004.

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Elsewhere in The Reading Room:

Read original songs and poetry by selected guest writers and by SimplyScottish.com producer and writer Andrew McDiarmid. You can also submit your own work for consideration. Experience Scotland in poetry and song now.