I heard this poem by Matt Sowerby on ‘The Verb’ and loved it immediately. The words are powerful and Matt read it with this grounded rhythm that really struck me. I got in touch with him and he very kindly let me set it to music – here’s the result!

LYRICS BY:  Matt Sowerby
Twitter: @HopepunkPlanet

PERFORMED BY: Beth Clarence
Twitter: @_BethClarence_ 
Instagram: @BethClarence_

Lullaby

I've just finished mixing the soundtrack for The House of Edgar with the wonderful Harry George. To celebrate I thought I'd share this minute-long clip from "The Masque of Red Death", a medieval sounding waltz. The first verse is particularly difficult for performers, as it goes through some unusual modulations without any accompaniment. I hope you enjoy it!

The Masque of Red Death (Clip)

Inspired by the work of Hans Zimmer and Vangelis, this is one of three pieces of music written for some proof-of-concept clips produced by Akash Beri. The percussion gives a sense of relentless pursuit, whilst the piano lays a statement over the top.

Composed by Thomas F. Arnold.

British Made - One

Inspired by the work of Hans Zimmer and Vangelis, this is one of three pieces of music written for some proof-of-concept clips produced by Akash Beri. The percussion gives a sense of relentless pursuit, but is softened by ambient strings and a reverberated piano melody over the top.

Composed by Thomas F. Arnold.

British Made - Plus One

The main theme from Emma Catalfamo's short film 'Kindling', the story of a strained relationship between a mother and her daughter. The story plays out over three separate times, as the child grows up and out of the shadow of her parent. The music is simple in its orchestration but complex in its harmony, lending itself to a main character who is both unsettled and isolated.

Composed and performed by Thomas F. Arnold.

Kindling - Main Theme

The prelude to 'The House of Edgar', a musical based on the life and works of Edgar Allan Poe. Improvised variations of this piece were played before each performance of the 2018 production of the show at the New Wimbledon Theatre and then the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

Composed and performed by Thomas F. Arnold

'Prelude' from 'The House of Edgar'

"I allowed myself to be led astray into reaching for stars that are too big - another failure - and I have had my fill of that."

I wrote this song a while back as part of a potential project about Vincent Van Gogh. While I haven't really pursued the show, I'm really proud of this song. It's inspired by Van Gogh's 'The Starry Night', a hugely famous piece that at the time he deemed a failure.

I'm really lucky that my mates are such talented beans, so I got a few of them together to help me record this remotely from lockdown. They sound amazing, so please do go and support them on their various social media platforms...

MALE VOCALS: Mickey Jo Boucher
Youtube: youtube.com/mickeyjotheatre

FEMALE VOCALS: Beth Clarence
Twitter: @_BethClarence_
Instagram: @BethClarence_

VIOLIN: Kate Smethurst
Instagram: @rei.sondetre

GUITAR: Dan Pearson

If you like the song and wanna support me, I'd really appreciate people listening to the song a few times on Youtube, just to kick that view count up a bit: https://youtu.be/5_tfKRZYNvU

For the best sound quality, wear headphones.
For the authentic Van Gogh experience, take one ear bud out.
Thank you if you've read this far! Stay safe, stay healthy :)

The Starry Night

“Lovely blue sky, a birthday present in itself. I knew a boy, once, with eyes that colour, years ago.” – Wise Children

A song to contrast with the grey skies outside. A while back, before the Emma Rice stage adaptation, Amy Lotherington and I batted about a few ideas of how you could adapt Angela Carter’s ‘Wise Children’ as a musical. I wrote this song based on a throwaway line in one of the book’s opening chapters. In it, Dora Chance thinks back to boy she had a fling with in her youth. Her younger self joins in.

Lock-down’s been a wonderful time to dust off a few of these unproduced songs and record them with absurdly talented friends. So here comes the massive list of thanks – this project was so much bigger than I originally thought and everyone has thrown so much at it! Go give ‘em some love all over the socials…

VOCALS: Claire Moore and Anna Hale
(Huge thanks to this absolute dream mother-daughter duo. Still pinching myself that they agreed to do this!)
Anna’s Twitter: @allhaleanna

VIDEO EDITED BY: Michael L Worrall
Twitter: @MLWorrall
Facebook: Michael L Worrall - Editor, Director, Composer

INVISIBLE PERCUSSION: Jake Wood
Instagram: @jakewooddrums
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6WD-RKYIjyk2DnpaDTwnKQ

VIOLIN: Arin Smethurst
Instagram: @arin.s.muso
Twitter: @ArinSmethurst

CELLO: Luke Smith
BASS: Dan Pearson
Instagram: @danpearrson

CLARINET: Thom Conroy
Instagram: @thom.conroy.musician
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0x3mJojTrCqCwlI7yGFrhQ
Facebook: Thom Conroy-Musician

BASSOON: Siobhan Connellan

TRUMPET: Alex Pace
Instagram: @alexjpace

FRENCH HORN: Catherine Edington

MUSIC AND LYRICS BY Thomas F. Arnold

Special thanks to Amy Lotherington, Susannah Greenow & Jacob Carter, who all cast a handy eye over the lyrics and helped me tighten them up a bit!
Amy’s Instagram: @amylotherington
Susannah’s Instagram: @susannahgreenow
Jacob’s Instagram: @jacob_carter_actor
Upside Up Theatre Company: @upsideup_theatre

If you liked the song and want to support me, please go and give the song a wee listen to on YouTube, would be great to get a few more notches on that view count!

Please wear headphones!
Thank you if you’re read this far! Stay safe out there xx

Eyes As Blue As The Sky

A retelling of the famous horror story written by gothic icon Edgar Allan Poe from the folk musical 'The House of Edgar'. Music and Lyrics by Thomas F. Arnold. Performed by Ben Philipp and James Alston. Full Cast and Band Recording on Spotify.

Thomas F Arnold

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