Pop Culturalist Chats with Nathan Barr

You probably know the work of film and television composer Nathan Barr, but don’t even realize it. He’s worked on several popular TV shows, like True Blood, The Americans and Hemlock Grove. In fact, he’s been nominated twice for Emmy awards for his television work. His film work ranges from Cabin Fever to the recent film, Flatliners. We were able to chat with Nathan about music, how it enhances what we see, and how he composes.

PC: How and when did you know you wanted to be a composer/musician?
Nathan: I’ve always loved music and always thought about composing, but it wasn’t really until I came out here and met Hans Zimmer [that it happened]. His confidence in me [helped me] really realize it was something I could do. That was around ’96 or ’97, but I knew very young that I was going to do something in music.

PC: You play several instruments. What was the one that propelled you into music?
Nathan: I think it was probably guitar and cello. Guitar was sort of a rebellion against cello—which is something my parents wanted me to play. I grew up playing cello in orchestra and guitar in rock bands. The two together gave me two different angles on possible music careers that were very different from one another. I think that also helps inform who I am as a composer today.

PC: Do you have a favorite instrument that you play?
Nathan: Not really. I’m glad I play cello. Most days, if I’m glad I play an instrument when I wake up, it’s cello.

PC: What draws you to the projects you work on?
Nathan: Usually there has to be a piece of the story or character that I can relate to on a personal level. It also depends on who the filmmaker is, who the studio is, etc..There are many reasons to do a project beyond whether it’s a great project or not in terms of quality. Sometimes there are some really interesting people involved, and it’s a project on the side that would be a good one to do because of the opportunities it could open up. If I walk into the room and get the right vibe from the people—that they understand my music and want music to be a big part of the storytelling process—that’s really appealing.

PC: What is your process like?
Nathan: Most times, the composer comes on once the film or TV show is being cut. Basically, once they’ve got something close to locked as far as picture goes, we go and sit with the producers, director, and whoever else. We go beat by beat through the show: where there’s music and what purpose the music serves in given moments. So, it’s part of the post-production process.

PC: Are there different challenges for you depending on what you’re scoring?
Nathan: I think that everything that comes along has it’s own unique set of challenges. Sometimes it’s a time thing; sometimes it’s a personality thing. I recently worked on Flatliners, a movie for Sony, and the challenge there that was at the top of the list was that there was so little time to turn it around. It was about three-and-a-half weeks to deliver the score, which is really tight.

The challenge with television—if you’re lucky enough to be on a show, like I was with True Blood where we had eighty episodes, or The Americans, which we’re starting season six on—the challenge is to keep evolving with the story and the show. You have to keep the music interesting while honoring the original intent set up in the pilot as far as music goes.

PC: Do you have a preference between film and television?
Nathan: No, I enjoy both. These days, if you went to most composers they would love to have a handful of really great TV shows and a couple of films to work on within a year. I think we’re all experiencing the renaissance on television as far as storytelling goes. In the past, there’s sort of been a negative view,  creatively, of what can go on television, but that’s going away now. Some of the most interesting stories we experience these days are not in theaters; they’re in television. If you are lucky enough to get on a great show, you’re holding an audiences’s attention for years as opposed to ninety minutes of one film.

PC: A lot of films and shows that you have done are in the horror genre. Is there a genre you’d like to explore in the future that you haven’t done yet?
Nathan: I’d say a third to a quarter of the projects I have done are horror. That’s a genre I really enjoy. At the end of the day, though, I could be comfortable in any genre as long as the storytelling is true and interesting and has a unique voice and perspective that I can be a part of. Really good dramas are always the most appealing to me.

PC: Do you have a favorite score that you’ve worked on?
Nathan: When you have a show like True Blood—it was the better part of a decade—I think it’s really easy to become super attached to the characters and the process and the story. That’s certainly true of that show for me. You get to really know everyone, and it becomes a family. It’s very sad when it ends. I think about the hundreds and hundreds of hours I spent composing for that show and get super nostalgic. Throughout the show, there are many musical moments that I’m very proud of. The intensity of the experience was near and dear to me.

PC: When you’re composing what generally inspires you?
Nathan: One of the things that can make or break being inspired is who you’re speaking to creatively on a day-to-day basis and how many people there are. Ideally, you want one voice who is communicating to you about direction. If that person is excited, you’re involved in it, and they are really articulate and engaged, that’s really exciting. If you’ve got a director who is super distracted and hard to get in touch with, it gets harder to find inspiration sometimes.

PC: Growing up, did you have musical influences? Who was your biggest influence?
Nathan: I think for all of us—in and out of the music world—if we have a great teacher, there’s a very special thing that happens. I met a cello teacher named Maxine Neuman in New York, who also taught at Bennington College, when I was probably a sophomore in high school. That was a very seminal moment for me because she was one of those people that brought life into the lesson, and the lessons went into life beyond the music. That was a pivotal moment for me. She was so inspiring. As far as musical influences, I’m all over the map. Bach would be the one composer whose music has followed me around my entire life and is still profoundly moving.

PC: Is there a piece of advice that you try to live by? 
Nathan: When we’re engaged in the day-to-day grind in churning out music, it can become easy to forget how lucky we are to being composing and being paid to do it. The other thing I’ve figured out as I’ve gone along is that I’m more concerned with being unique than just getting work. There are a lot of composers who are recycling or redoing what’s been done before so well—and they have big careers doing that. There would be something missing for me if I were doing that.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

Guilty pleasure TV show or movie
Saved

Favorite Book
Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

Favorite Movie
Captains Courageous

Music you could have on repeat
Bach

Hidden Talent or Hobby
I’m doing my hobby for a living! I’m a really good traveler. I travel a lot, and I’m pretty good at it.

Favorite Place
A place I’ve never been. I’ve been to all seven continents. I went to Antartica when I was 24. A friend and I drove a school bus to Brazil—that was a life-changing experience.

Three Things You’d Want on a Desert Island
I think I’d just want three of my closest friends with me.

5 People, Alive or Dead, That You’d Invite to a Dinner Party
Bach, David Lean, Joseph Pulitzer, Teddy Roosevelt, and Wallace Beery

Keep up with Nathan Barr by following him on Twitter!