Christopher Young
With a background as a jazz instrumentalist, Christopher Young often incorporates elements of rock, jazz, and especially electronic music into his dynamic orchestral film scores. After emerging on low-budget thrillers and horror films in the early '80s, his scores for A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge (1985) and Hellraiser (1987) led to steady work on horror, thriller, and sci-fi films throughout the '90s. Along the way, he also composed music for movies such as John Dahl's drama Rounders (1998) and the boxing biopic The Hurricane (1999). The 2000s brought work for directors ranging from Lasse Hallström and Curtis Hanson to Sam Raimi, including Raimi's Spider-Man 2 (2004) and Spider-Man 3 (2007). Young's projects in the 2010s included The Monkey King (2014) and The Monkey King 2 (2016) for Hong Kong director Cheang Pou-soi.
Beginning his musical career as a jazz drummer, Young was inspired to pursue film composing after hearing the work of Bernard Herrmann. He studied music at Hampshire College in Massachusetts, and followed his bachelor's degree with further study at North Texas State University. Young moved to Los Angeles in 1980. There, he took classes at the UCLA Film School and studied with legendary composer David Raksin. It wasn't long before he found work scoring low-budget horror productions like 1982's The Dorm That Dripped Blood and 1984's The Power, and action films including 1985's Barbarian Queen. Later that same year, his music could be heard in A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge, which he followed with other more enduring films, such as 1987's Hellraiser and Flowers in the Attic.
In the '90s, Young was an in-demand composer for horror films (1995's Tales from the Hood), science fiction (1995's Species and Virtuosity), and thrillers (1995's Copy Cat, 1998's Hush), due to his exuberant, suspenseful style. He also worked on the occasional drama, including his Emmy-nominated score for 1996's Norma Jean and Marilyn and films such as 1998's Rounders and 1999's The Hurricane, starring Denzel Washington.
In 2002, Young earned a Golden Globe nomination for his music for the 2001 Lasse Hallström drama The Shipping News. Highlights of his other work in the decade included the horror films The Grudge (2004) and Ghost Rider (2007), as well as the Sam Raimi films The Gift (2000), Spider-Man 2 (2004), and Spider-Man 3 (2007). He continued to compose a steady stream of scores in the 2010s, including The Rum Diary (2011), based on the Hunter S. Thompson novel, and Tyler Perry's A Madea Christmas (2013). The action fantasy films The Monkey King and The Monkey King 2 followed in the mid-2010s, and in 2017 Young wrote music for the virtual reality video game Wilson's Heart, which featured voice work by Hollywood stars including Peter Weller, Rosario Dawson, and Paul Reubens. In 2019, he provided the soundtrack for the film adaptation of Stephen King's Pet Sematary.
© Marcy Donelson /TiVo
-
The Man Who Knew Too Little (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Varese Sarabande on 1 Jan 1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
U-Boats: The Wolfpack Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Film Soundtracks - Released by BSX Records, Inc. on 9 Jun 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rapid Fire (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Hollywood Records on 5 May 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Gift Score from the Motion Picture
Film Soundtracks - Released by Lakeshore Records on 19 Jan 2001
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Exorcism of Emily Rose (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Lakeshore Records on 4 Oct 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Untraceable (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Lakeshore Records on 20 Nov 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Priest (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Madison Gate Records on 10 May 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Dark Half (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Varese Sarabande on 1 Jan 1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brood Groove
Chamber Music - Released by Move Records on 15 May 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Dorm That Dripped Blood (Original Soundtrack Recording)
Film Soundtracks - Released by CCIVLTD on 13 Oct 2001
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Atmospheros
Jazz - Released by Move Records on 15 Mar 2016
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Informers (Original Motion Picture Score)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Lakeshore Records on 29 Jul 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Madison (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Christopher Young, Kevin Kiner
Film Soundtracks - Released by BSX Records on 29 May 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Scenes of the Crime / A Child's Game (Original Music from the Motion Pictures)
Film Soundtracks - Released by BSX Records on 31 Dec 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Main Theme (from "Jennifer 8") (For Solo Piano)
Film Soundtracks - Released by BSX Records on 21 Dec 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Something the Lord Made (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by BSX Records on 17 Oct 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
An Unfinished Life: Piano Sketches
Film Soundtracks - Released by BSX Records on 14 Oct 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Pranks (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Citadel - Mafy on 18 Mar 2004
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wilson's Heart (Original Video Game Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Varese Sarabande on 1 Jun 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Max and Helen / The Oasis (Original Motion Picture Soundtracks)
Film Soundtracks - Released by BSX Records on 30 May 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Gift (Original Score from the Motion Picture)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Lakeshore Records on 19 Jan 2001
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo