James Hannigan
Encyclopedia
James Hannigan is an award-winning British
film
, television
and video game composer
who has composed music for various entries in the Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings
, Command & Conquer
, Wing Commander
, Warhammer and Grand Prix series' of games.
, Wing Commander: Privateer 2: The Darkening and FreeLancer
, and he has created and remixed tracks for numerous titles on the EA Sports
label, along with creating scores for the BAFTA-nominated titles Evil Genius and Republic: The Revolution
. Hannigan also composes for television, most recently contributing to BBC America
sci-fi TV series Primeval
. Some of his recent VG credits include Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1, Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3, Command & Conquer: Tiberian Twilight, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Art Academy and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
In the earlier stages of his career, between 1995 and 1997, James Hannigan held the position of in-house composer at Electronic Arts
, before he based himself at the world-famous Pinewood Studios
complex in West London, often collaborating with Richard Joseph
. The pair worked on the sound and music for titles such as EA's Theme Park World
and Theme Park Inc
, along with Elixir Studios
' Evil Genius and Republic: The Revolution
. An accomplished sound designer, Hannigan has also worked on films such as Lost in Space
.
(BAFTA) and he won a BAFTA Award with Electronic Arts in 2000 for Sim Theme Park (UK title: Theme Park World
). In 2010 his score for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince received a BAFTA nomination and won an International Film Music Critics Association (IFMCA) award.
interviewee and has been interviewed by the BBC
a number of times on shows such as BBC Radio 4
's Front Row
and Click On, and has been profiled in Develop
magazine, Audiomedia, Resolution, Post Magazine
, Music Sound and the Moving Image (MSMI) and other publications. In 2010 Hannigan was featured in Tom Hoover's book 'Soundtrack Nation: Interviews with Today's Top Professionals in Film, Videogame, and Television Scoring'. James has talked at other industry events, including Glasgow's Musicworks, 'Ear Candy' with fellow composer Richard Jacques
at The Barbican Centre and The Edinburgh International Festival with co-panelists John Broomhall, Harry Gregson-Williams, Stephen Deutsch and Barrington Pheloung.
magazine, outlining some of the differences between scoring for games and conventional linear media forms such as film and television. Drawing on his experience as a composer and arranger in different industries Hannigan argued that, due to players being both audience to and participants in games it is increasingly difficult categorising music and sound as either diegetic or non-diegetic as understood by the conventions of the film viewing experience. The player, often a character existing inside the gameworld, is able to hear music and sound normally only reserved for a passive audience, completely inaudible to characters in the story world of a film, for example, and this raises philosophical questions as to the essential function of such content in games. Hannigan argues that, ultimately, for sound and music to best support and enhance the games playing experience, the games industry should cease to rely on the film model in forming the soundtrack of games and attempt to bring sound and music closer together in function. In an interview for the BBC's Front Row radio programme, to highlight one of the philosophical conundrums of scoring music for games, Hannigan cited the hypothetical example of James Bond's theme being utilised in a James Bond game, suggesting that if the player is being expected to assume the role of James Bond, should it follow that the James Bond theme ought to be audible to James Bond himself? Hannigan appears to concede that the use of such a theme can be effective but calls upon the games industry to recognise the gamer's dual role of audience and participant in games.
In an interview with the Independent newspaper James Hannigan is quoted as having said he believes music production for games has become as sophisticated as music for film
debuting in London at the Royal Festival Hall on 22 October 2007, and featuring the Philharmonia orchestra.
James Hannigan's popular 'Soviet March' theme from Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3 was performed at 'A Night in Fantasia', by the Eminence Symphony Orchestra at the Sydney Entertainment Centre, Australia on 26 September 2009. The popular track can be heard on YouTube
On 28 October 2010, a concert of James Hannigan's music was held at St. Mary's Church, Nottingham
, England. As part of the GameCity
2010 Festival, the concert featured The Pinewood Singers and soloists performing the theme of 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1', pieces from Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3, Evil Genius and other titles
, The Skywalker Symphony Orchestra, The Slovak Symphony Orchestra and The Chamber Orchestra of London, recording at Abbey Road Studios
, AIR Studios and Skywalker Ranch
. He has recorded renowned soloists such as Miriam Stockey, Soname
, Tony Hinnigan
and the Pinewood Singers for his projects. On his official website he is quoted as saying he is 'comfortable in the studio working with synths, processors and sample libraries' but is also an 'advocate for keeping music live whenever it's possible and appropriate to do so'.
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
and video game composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
who has composed music for various entries in the Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings
Middle-earth in video games
While an immense number of computer and video games owe a great deal to J. R. R. Tolkien's works and the many other high fantasy settings based upon his, relatively few games have been directly adapted from his world of Middle-earth...
, Command & Conquer
Command & Conquer
Command & Conquer, abbreviated to C&C and also known as Tiberian Dawn, is a 1995 real-time strategy computer game developed by Westwood Studios for MS-DOS and published by Virgin Interactive. It was the first of twelve games to date to be released under the Command & Conquer label, including a...
, Wing Commander
Wing Commander (franchise)
Wing Commander is a video game media franchise consisting of space combat simulation computer games from Origin Systems, Inc., an animated television series, a feature film, a collectible card game, a series of novels, and action figures...
, Warhammer and Grand Prix series' of games.
Career
Notable early game credits of Hannigan include Sim Theme Park , Space Hulk, Conquest: Frontier WarsConquest: Frontier Wars
Conquest: Frontier Wars is a real-time strategy engine released in 2001 by Ubisoft and Fever Pitch Studios. The bulk of the development was done at Digital Anvil in Austin, Texas, a startup developer originally owned by Chris Roberts.-Gameplay:...
, Wing Commander: Privateer 2: The Darkening and FreeLancer
Freelancer (video game)
Freelancer is a space trading and combat simulation video game developed by Digital Anvil and published by Microsoft Game Studios. The game was initially announced by Chris Roberts in 1999, and following many production schedule mishaps and a buyout of Digital Anvil by Microsoft, it was eventually...
, and he has created and remixed tracks for numerous titles on the EA Sports
EA Sports
EA Sports is a brand of Electronic Arts that creates and develops sports video games. Formerly a marketing gimmick of Electronic Arts, in which they tried to mimic real-life sports networks by calling themselves "EA Sports Network" with pictures or endorsements of real commentators such as John...
label, along with creating scores for the BAFTA-nominated titles Evil Genius and Republic: The Revolution
Republic: The Revolution
Republic: The Revolution is a computer game produced by Elixir Studios, founded by Demis Hassabis, a former programmer of Lionhead Studios and published by Eidos Interactive. It is a depiction of grassroots political action, where one attempts to put their preferred government in power. It is set...
. Hannigan also composes for television, most recently contributing to BBC America
BBC America
BBC America is an American television network, owned and operated by BBC Worldwide, and available on both cable and satellite.-History:The channel launched on March 29, 1998, broadcasting comedy, drama and lifestyle programs from BBC Television and other British television broadcasters like ITV and...
sci-fi TV series Primeval
Primeval
Primeval or primæval may refer to:* Primeval, a British science fiction television series.* Primeval , a 2007 film* Primeval , a score of music from the BBC TV series Doctor Who...
. Some of his recent VG credits include Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1, Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3, Command & Conquer: Tiberian Twilight, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Art Academy and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
In the earlier stages of his career, between 1995 and 1997, James Hannigan held the position of in-house composer at Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
, before he based himself at the world-famous Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios is a major British film studio situated in Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, approximately west of central London. The studios have played host to many productions over the years from huge blockbuster films to television shows to commercials to pop promos.The purchase of Shepperton...
complex in West London, often collaborating with Richard Joseph
Richard Joseph
Richard Joseph was a British computer game composer, musician and sound specialist. He had a career spanning some 20 years starting in the early days of gaming on the C64 and the Amiga and onto succeeding formats through to the present day.After being diagnosed with lung cancer, he died on 4 March...
. The pair worked on the sound and music for titles such as EA's Theme Park World
Theme Park World
Theme Park World is a construction and management simulation, and is a sequel to the successful video game Theme Park. Theme Park World was developed by Bullfrog Productions and released by Electronic Arts in 1999...
and Theme Park Inc
Theme Park Inc
Theme Park Inc is the last game of the series that started with Theme Park in 1994 and continued with Theme Park World in 1999....
, along with Elixir Studios
Elixir Studios
Elixir Studios was a British video game developer. The company was founded in 1998 by Demis Hassabis, formerly a prominent figure at Lionhead Studios. At its height, it employed around sixty people, and was based in London. It aimed to be an independent developer, creating its own intellectual...
' Evil Genius and Republic: The Revolution
Republic: The Revolution
Republic: The Revolution is a computer game produced by Elixir Studios, founded by Demis Hassabis, a former programmer of Lionhead Studios and published by Eidos Interactive. It is a depiction of grassroots political action, where one attempts to put their preferred government in power. It is set...
. An accomplished sound designer, Hannigan has also worked on films such as Lost in Space
Lost in Space (film)
Lost in Space is a 1998 American science fiction film starring Gary Oldman and William Hurt. The film was shot in London and Shepperton, and produced by New Line Cinema. The plot is adapted from the 1965–1968 CBS television series Lost In Space...
.
Awards
Hannigan's music scores have been nominated five times by the British Academy of Film and Television ArtsBritish Academy of Film and Television Arts
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is a charity in the United Kingdom that hosts annual awards shows for excellence in film, television, television craft, video games and forms of animation.-Introduction:...
(BAFTA) and he won a BAFTA Award with Electronic Arts in 2000 for Sim Theme Park (UK title: Theme Park World
Theme Park World
Theme Park World is a construction and management simulation, and is a sequel to the successful video game Theme Park. Theme Park World was developed by Bullfrog Productions and released by Electronic Arts in 1999...
). In 2010 his score for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince received a BAFTA nomination and won an International Film Music Critics Association (IFMCA) award.
Public and media appearances
A regular on industry panels at events such as Games Meet Film, James Hannigan is a regular radioRadio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
interviewee and has been interviewed by the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
a number of times on shows such as BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
's Front Row
Front Row (radio)
Front Row is a radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4. The BBC describes the programme as a "live magazine programme on the world of arts, literature, film, media and music." It is broadcast each week day between 7.15 and 7.45 and has a of highlights available for download. Shows usually include...
and Click On, and has been profiled in Develop
Develop (magazine)
Develop is a monthly trade magazine for the video games industry. Based in Hertford, Hertfordshire, the magazine allows participation by anyone working in the video game industry. Develop is the only European-based website and print magazine aimed exclusively at the development community...
magazine, Audiomedia, Resolution, Post Magazine
Post Magazine
Post Magazine first appeared on Saturday 25 July 1840, just seven months after the introduction of the Penny Post and was the first publication anywhere in the world to be sent by post — hence its name...
, Music Sound and the Moving Image (MSMI) and other publications. In 2010 Hannigan was featured in Tom Hoover's book 'Soundtrack Nation: Interviews with Today's Top Professionals in Film, Videogame, and Television Scoring'. James has talked at other industry events, including Glasgow's Musicworks, 'Ear Candy' with fellow composer Richard Jacques
Richard Jacques
Richard Jacques is a British music composer. He is best known for his video game music, most notably for numerous video games created by Sega.-Early life:...
at The Barbican Centre and The Edinburgh International Festival with co-panelists John Broomhall, Harry Gregson-Williams, Stephen Deutsch and Barrington Pheloung.
Written publications
In 2004, Hannigan wrote "Changing Our Tune", a seminal cover article for the UK's DevelopDevelop (magazine)
Develop is a monthly trade magazine for the video games industry. Based in Hertford, Hertfordshire, the magazine allows participation by anyone working in the video game industry. Develop is the only European-based website and print magazine aimed exclusively at the development community...
magazine, outlining some of the differences between scoring for games and conventional linear media forms such as film and television. Drawing on his experience as a composer and arranger in different industries Hannigan argued that, due to players being both audience to and participants in games it is increasingly difficult categorising music and sound as either diegetic or non-diegetic as understood by the conventions of the film viewing experience. The player, often a character existing inside the gameworld, is able to hear music and sound normally only reserved for a passive audience, completely inaudible to characters in the story world of a film, for example, and this raises philosophical questions as to the essential function of such content in games. Hannigan argues that, ultimately, for sound and music to best support and enhance the games playing experience, the games industry should cease to rely on the film model in forming the soundtrack of games and attempt to bring sound and music closer together in function. In an interview for the BBC's Front Row radio programme, to highlight one of the philosophical conundrums of scoring music for games, Hannigan cited the hypothetical example of James Bond's theme being utilised in a James Bond game, suggesting that if the player is being expected to assume the role of James Bond, should it follow that the James Bond theme ought to be audible to James Bond himself? Hannigan appears to concede that the use of such a theme can be effective but calls upon the games industry to recognise the gamer's dual role of audience and participant in games.
In an interview with the Independent newspaper James Hannigan is quoted as having said he believes music production for games has become as sophisticated as music for film
Public performances
In 2007, a collage of Hannigan's music entitled Welcome to Hogwarts was added to Video Games LiveVideo Games Live
Video Games Live is a concert series created and produced by industry veterans and video game composers Tommy Tallarico and Jack Wall. The concerts consist of segments of video game music performed by a live orchestra with video footage and synchronized lighting and effects, as well as several...
debuting in London at the Royal Festival Hall on 22 October 2007, and featuring the Philharmonia orchestra.
James Hannigan's popular 'Soviet March' theme from Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3 was performed at 'A Night in Fantasia', by the Eminence Symphony Orchestra at the Sydney Entertainment Centre, Australia on 26 September 2009. The popular track can be heard on YouTube
On 28 October 2010, a concert of James Hannigan's music was held at St. Mary's Church, Nottingham
St. Mary's Church, Nottingham
The Church of St Mary the Virgin is the oldest religious foundation in the City of Nottingham, England, the largest church after the Roman Catholic Cathedral and the largest mediæval building in Nottingham....
, England. As part of the GameCity
Gamecity
GameCity is an independent, annual videogame festival in Nottingham, England. The festival is aimed at the general public, and many events allow members of the public to participate freely. The festival receives little funding from the commercial video game industry, and is concerned instead with...
2010 Festival, the concert featured The Pinewood Singers and soloists performing the theme of 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1', pieces from Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3, Evil Genius and other titles
Live recording
James Hannigan has worked with the Philharmonia OrchestraPhilharmonia Orchestra
The Philharmonia Orchestra is one of the leading orchestras in Great Britain, based in London. Since 1995, it has been based in the Royal Festival Hall. In Britain it is also the resident orchestra at De Montfort Hall, Leicester and the Corn Exchange, Bedford, as well as The Anvil, Basingstoke...
, The Skywalker Symphony Orchestra, The Slovak Symphony Orchestra and The Chamber Orchestra of London, recording at Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios is a recording studio located at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music company EMI, its present owner...
, AIR Studios and Skywalker Ranch
Skywalker Ranch
Skywalker Ranch is the name of the workplace of film director and producer George Lucas. It is located in a secluded, but open area near Nicasio, California, in Marin County. The ranch is located on Lucas Valley Road, although Lucas is not related to the road's namesake, who was a...
. He has recorded renowned soloists such as Miriam Stockey, Soname
Soname
In Unix operating systems, a soname is a field of data in a shared object file. The soname is a string, which is used as a "logical name" describing the functionality of the object...
, Tony Hinnigan
Tony Hinnigan
Anthony "Tony" Hinnigan is a musician from Glasgow. He is best known for his work with Michael Nyman , Ennio Morricone, and James Horner. He plays cello as well as Irish whistle and various Andean woodwind instruments...
and the Pinewood Singers for his projects. On his official website he is quoted as saying he is 'comfortable in the studio working with synths, processors and sample libraries' but is also an 'advocate for keeping music live whenever it's possible and appropriate to do so'.
Selected works
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (EA Bright Light Studio)
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (EA Bright Light Studio)
- Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3 (Electronic Arts)
- Command and Conquer 4: Tiberian Twilight (EA LA)
- Primeval (Impossible Pictures/ITV; series 3)
- Art Academy (Nintendo/Headstrong)
- The Lord of the Rings: Aragorn's Quest (Headstrong/Warner Bros.)
- FreeLancer (Digital Anvil/Microsoft)
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Electronic Arts/Warner Bros; BAFTA nomination, 2010)
- Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (Ubisoft/Sony Pictures)
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (EA/Warner Bros. 'Best of 2007', IGN; 'Best VG Score', Movie Music UK Awards 2007).
- Evil Genius (VU Games. BAFTA Nomination, Music, 2005)
- Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3 Uprising (EA LA)
- Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3 Commander's Challenge (EA LA)
- Republic The Revolution (Eidos. BAFTA Nomination, Music, 2004)
- Conquest: Frontier Wars (Digital Anvil/Ubisoft)
- Warhammer: SotHR (Mindscape; Games Workshop)
- Sim Theme Park* NASCAR Thunder 2004 (2003), Electronic Arts, Inc.
- NASCAR Racing 2002 Season (2002), Sierra Entertainment, Inc.
- NASCAR Thunder 2003 (2002), Electronic Arts, Inc.
- F1 2000 (EA Sports)
- F1 Manager (EA Sports)
- FIFA 96, FIFA 98 (EA Sports)
- Theme Park World (EA/Bullfrog; BAFTA Award, 2000)
- Hasbro Family Game Night 3 (EA Bright Light)
- Grand Prix 4 (Infogrames)
- Brute Force (Digital Anvil/Microsoft. Co-composed with Jesper Kyd and Mike Reagan)
- Catwoman (EA/Warner Bros.)
- Reign of Fire (KUJU/BAM)
- Mr. Bean (VG)
- Lost In Space (Sound Design; New Line Cinema)
- Theme Park Inc. (EA/Bullfrog)
- Warhammer: Dark Omen (Electronic Arts; Sound Design)
- Action Man (multiple titles; Hasbro/Intelligent Games)
- Privateer: The Darkening (Electronic Arts, Origin Systems)
- Sim Coaster (EA/Bullfrog)
- FA Premier League Manager(EA Sports; BAFTA Nomination, 2000)
- FIFA Soccer Manager (EA Sports)
- Cutthroat Island (Software Creations)
- Short Cuts series (Chappell)
- Big Screen (West One Music)
- Distorted Reality (Chappell)
- Jetix (various titles)
- Flight of the Amazon Queen (Renegade)
- Yamaha SuperCross
- ATV Racing
- Infestation (Frontier Developments)
- MoHo (Lost Toys)
- Ball Breakers
- Beasts and Bumpkins (Electronic Arts)
- Gummy Bears Crazy Golf (Beyond Reality Games)
- Darklight Conflict (Electronic Arts; additional music)
- Space Hulk (PSX, Electronic Arts/Games Workshop)