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MATTHEW CHILELLI

Composer + Audio Engineer
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Writing a Romantic 1950s Hollywood Theme

September 19, 2022 in soundtrack, orchestral music

What do we do when we need to make present-day music sound “retro?” That’s the question I faced when having to write a romantic theme in the style of a 1950s Hollywood film.

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Tags: how to write a 1950s song, how to write a love theme, writing a love theme, writing a romantic theme, composing, composing a love theme, composing a romantic theme, romantic, 1950s, 1950s soundtrack, soundtrack, composer, film composer
Batman always leaves a good impression…

Batman always leaves a good impression…

What if Hans Zimmer Wrote a Podcast Outro?

February 07, 2021 in soundtrack, Scriptnotes

One of the joys of contributing outros for Scriptnotes is getting to learn more more about a composer’s style.

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Tags: soundtrack, hans zimmer, james newton howard, The Dark Knight, Batman, Scriptnotes, Scriptnotes outros, composing film music, epic music
only the creepiest quartet plays music here…

only the creepiest quartet plays music here…

What if 2020 had a Soundtrack

October 28, 2020 in soundtrack, horror music

I absolutely love scary movies. And more than that, I love writing scary music. Detuned pianos, screeching strings…

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Tags: soundtrack, horror music, writing horror music, scary music, silence and other sounds, creepy music, matthew chilelli, horror score, horror movie music
when you’re fighting a boss…like a boss

when you’re fighting a boss…like a boss

Writing a Boss Battle Track

July 15, 2020 in video game music, soundtrack

What makes good “boss battle” music?

This is a question I asked myself after a prompt from a client to create a track in the style of a Kingdom Hearts…

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Tags: video game music, boss battle music, boss battle, kingdom hearts, video game composer, video game score, music composer, boss fight music, writing epic music, writing video game music, syncopation, chromaticism, tempo
there’s nothing peaceful about this rest…

there’s nothing peaceful about this rest…

Scoring an African Crime Thriller

March 05, 2020 in soundtrack, world music

It’s not often I get the chance to write music for a project that’s in pre-production, so when I was approached to do exactly that for a Crime Thriller set in Nigeria…

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Tags: nigerian music, writing action music, action music, thriller, crime thriller, score writing, film score, composing music, the sleep, matthew chilelli, nigerian rhythms, polyrhythm, african music, composing film music
A still from Horizon Zero Dawn can stand in for the unreleased short, right?

A still from Horizon Zero Dawn can stand in for the unreleased short, right?

Writing Music for a Silent Film

December 04, 2019 in soundtrack, short film

The short film follows the efforts of a lone woman carrying fire and light from one town to the next in a world that lives in unending darkness.

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Tags: silent film, writing music, music composer, silent film soundtrack, soundtrack, dramatic music, film scoring, film composer, movie composer, ost, short film, animated movie, music for animation, matthew chilelli
cozy and open at the same time…

cozy and open at the same time…

The Music of Future Farming

November 20, 2019 in documentary, soundtrack

I was well-acquainted with the kind of freezing weather on display in this section of the documentary. It can be painful but beautiful at the same time.

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Tags: composer for documentary, writing documentary music, farming for the future, red hat music, matthew chilelli, documentary composer, composer, composing soundtrack, music composer
Nothing says “indie” like a VW van…

Nothing says “indie” like a VW van…

Writing an Inspirational Indie Track

November 13, 2019 in soundtrack, indie music

When I came back to the states from Japan, I did a lot of camping, and this piece sort of developed over a few trips outdoors.

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Tags: composing indie music, indie rock, writing indie rock, writing indie music, writing an inspirational indie song, composing soundtrack, music composing, music composer, film music
X marks the spot?

X marks the spot?

What does Good Company sound like?

November 06, 2019 in soundtrack, piano music

For a while, a simple piano tune was rattling around in my head - something warm and cool at the same time…

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Tags: piano music, writing piano music, composing, composer, music composer, writing a piano song, writing a song for piano, writing emotional music, emotional music, good company, composing soundtrack, soundtrack
grainy black and white = scary!

grainy black and white = scary!

6 Creepy Halloween Tracks

October 30, 2019 in soundtrack

Halloween is my favorite holiday. I use it as an excuse to watch a bajillion horror movies, and also to listen to my favorite kind of movie music - horror movie music.

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Tags: scriptnotes, writing scary music, writing horror music, composing scary music, composing horror music, creepy music, halloween music, halloween, scriptnotes outros, matthew chilelli, horror movie music, composing, composer, soundtrack, composing soundtrack, 6 creepy halloween tracks, scary music, horror music
All journeys must come to an end…

All journeys must come to an end…

New Music: Cataclysm

October 15, 2019 in soundtrack, animation

It’s always fun when you’re asked to hit a range of emotions within a single cue.

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Tags: writing epic music, epic music, emotional music, writing emotional music, composing, composer, composing soundtrack, soundtrack, cataclysm, matthew chilelli, solo female vocal
A person who has returned from the dead…

A person who has returned from the dead…

New Music: Revenant

October 08, 2019 in soundtrack

It’s funny what inspires a song sometimes. It can be a word, an image, a feeling…

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Tags: epic music, epic, hybrid music, composing, composer, soundtrack, emotional music, inspirational music, inspiration, art
The creepiest “snow” you ever saw

The creepiest “snow” you ever saw

New Music: Scriptnotes Chernobyl

June 03, 2019 in soundtrack

As I’ve been watching Craig Mazin’s excellent HBO series, Chernobyl, I’ve been especially taken by the score for the show.

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Tags: scriptnotes, soundtrack, Hildur Guðnadóttir, chernobyl, hbo, score, film score, composer, music composer
Helping WGA members track their projects

Helping WGA members track their projects

The Start Button

May 14, 2019 in soundtrack

I recently wrote the score for John August’s video explaining The Start Button - a new way for WGA members to track their current projects and request help from their guild if they need it.

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Tags: composer, composing, music composing, soundtrack, WGA, The Start Button, matthew chilelli, film music
Run, little man, run!

Run, little man, run!

New Music Release: Go, Jira!

January 31, 2019 in soundtrack

I’ve been listening to Lorne Balfe’s score to Mission Impossible: Fallout a lot lately, and this idea started developing in my head: what if an Ethan Hunt-type character (let’s call him, I dunno, “Jira”) had to save the world from The King of the Monsters by running a lot?

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Tags: soundtrack, godzilla, gojira, go, jira, mission impossible, lorne balfe, action music, action cue, epic music, epic, composer, music composer, film composer, film score, film music
It’s not an action-style logo without a blue anamorphic flare!

It’s not an action-style logo without a blue anamorphic flare!

New Music Release: Izumi Junior High School in Action

December 12, 2018 in soundtrack

This is a gift I gave to my students and co-workers before I left my school in Japan. I wanted to give the school something unique. I came up with this - an action movie arrangement of their song.

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Tags: action music, film score, Japan, school song, arrangement, composer, music composer, film composer, soundtrack
Scriptnotes Retro Horror 1080.jpg

Happy Halloween

October 31, 2018

Halloween is a great chance to try out some synth sounds I don’t usually get a chance to use. Enjoy this retro horror synth track I wrote for John August’s Scriptnotes podcast. As always, if you’d like to get in touch, feel free to contact me here.

ELKOON filmconvert.jpg

New Music Release : Elkoon - World Theme

September 13, 2018

An epic adventure track for a fantasy world called "Elkoon." I was asked to write something in the style of the soundtrack for Legend of Zelda, so I came up with this world theme for my client’s realm filled with "dwarves, elves, demons, mankind, spirits, elementals, magic, science, alchemy, technology, poliest and monothiest religions."

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road less traveled.jpg

New Music Release: Road Less Traveled

September 06, 2018

Just because you take the road less traveled doesn't mean it's bumpy and scary. Maybe it's paved. Maybe it's the scenic route. Enjoy this pleasant piano and strings piece about taking a detour in life.

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Tags: score, film score, soundtrack, music library, trailer, road less traveled

New Music Released: Passing Storm

August 26, 2018
New Music Released: Passing Storm

I wrote this epic, trailer-style piece to tell a simple story - a character gets into trouble but manages to emerge clean on the other end. This is the first entry in my collection of music library tracks.

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Tags: score, film score, soundtrack, passing storm, music library, epic, trailer
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News

Updates about music composition work and the entertainment industry.

You can read more about me here.


Featured Posts

Featured
Writing a Romantic 1950s Hollywood Theme
Sep 19, 2022
Writing a Romantic 1950s Hollywood Theme
Sep 19, 2022
Sep 19, 2022
What if Hans Zimmer Wrote a Podcast Outro?
Feb 7, 2021
What if Hans Zimmer Wrote a Podcast Outro?
Feb 7, 2021
Feb 7, 2021
Writing a Boss Battle Track
Jul 15, 2020
Writing a Boss Battle Track
Jul 15, 2020
Jul 15, 2020
Scoring an African Crime Thriller
Mar 5, 2020
Scoring an African Crime Thriller
Mar 5, 2020
Mar 5, 2020
Writing Music for a Silent Film
Dec 4, 2019
Writing Music for a Silent Film
Dec 4, 2019
Dec 4, 2019