Jeff Rona
Encyclopedia
Jeffrey Carl “Jeff” Rona (born March 3 1957 in Culver City, California
) is an American
composer
for film
. He was a member of Hans Zimmer's
Media Ventures. His credits include Sharkwater, Slow Burn
and Whisper
.
Prior to becoming an established composer, he was closely involved in a number of creative & technical aspects of electronic music, including the development of musical software and new instrument design, and was a leading figure in making MIDI a groundbreaking world-wide phenomenon.
He worked on numerous films & records before landing his first solo composing project, scoring the acclaimed television series Homicide:Life On The Street for director Barry Levinson. Since then he has scored a number of other films and television projects with directors such as Ridley Scott, Steven Spielberg, Wong Kar-wai, Robert Altman, Steven Soderbergh, Mark Pellington, Stephen Hopkins, Jonathan Demme, Frank Darabont and many others. His projects have received numerous awards including Oscar, Peabody & Emmy awards, and countless film festival awards around the world. He is a two time recipient of the ASCAP film and television music award. He was commissioned to compose a concert for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, which toured throughout China.
Among his album projects he recorded and performed as a member of Jon Hassell’s highly regarded group, during which he co-composed and produced the acclaimed City-Works Of Fiction record for Opal Records (now on Rykodisc). The group toured and performed with legendary producer/composer Brian Eno. He’s performed with the Eastern fusion ensemble Axiom Of Choice, and appears on their Narada records. In addition to his album work with Hassell, his music is also on the critically praised world-beat Transplanet series on Triloka Records, the electronica compilation Leaves From The Tree, and Elysium For the Brave, the newest record with Persian singer Azam Ali.
Jeff has been chronicling his experiences in the film music world over the past several years in his very popular column in Keyboard Magazine, The Reel World. The column, which is also the basis of his major book on film music, is read worldwide. He is an artist-in-residence at the Aspen Music Festival, and often speaks on film music.
Culver City, California
Culver City is a city in western Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 38,883, up from 38,816 at the 2000 census. It is mostly surrounded by the city of Los Angeles, but also shares a border with unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County. Culver...
) is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
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...
for film
Film score
A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film, forming part of the film's soundtrack, which also usually includes dialogue and sound effects...
. He was a member of Hans Zimmer's
Hans Zimmer
Hans Florian Zimmer is a German film composer and music producer. He has composed music for over 100 films, including critically acclaimed film scores for The Lion King , Crimson Tide , The Thin Red Line , Gladiator , The Dark Knight and Inception .Zimmer spent the early part of his career in the...
Media Ventures. His credits include Sharkwater, Slow Burn
Slow Burn
Slow Burn is an American drama thriller film starring Ray Liotta, Jolene Blalock and LL Cool J, which is notable for the extended period between production and eventual release...
and Whisper
Whisper
-In fiction:* Whisper , fictitious character in the popular Fantasy RPG Fable* Whisper, a character created by Ian Fleming in the James Bond novel and film Live and Let Die* Whisper , a 2007 horror film...
.
Biography
Jeff Rona is a contemporary film composer, recording artist, and performer. The son of European immigrants, he studied music, art & photography, but left school to pursue music as his life’s work. Early on he composed for dance, theater, galleries and contemporary concert venues around the world using both traditional musicians and cutting-edge digital technologies. Eventually he became an in-demand studio musician, arranger, ethnic woodwind player, sound designer, synthesist and music programmer in Los Angeles & New York.Prior to becoming an established composer, he was closely involved in a number of creative & technical aspects of electronic music, including the development of musical software and new instrument design, and was a leading figure in making MIDI a groundbreaking world-wide phenomenon.
He worked on numerous films & records before landing his first solo composing project, scoring the acclaimed television series Homicide:Life On The Street for director Barry Levinson. Since then he has scored a number of other films and television projects with directors such as Ridley Scott, Steven Spielberg, Wong Kar-wai, Robert Altman, Steven Soderbergh, Mark Pellington, Stephen Hopkins, Jonathan Demme, Frank Darabont and many others. His projects have received numerous awards including Oscar, Peabody & Emmy awards, and countless film festival awards around the world. He is a two time recipient of the ASCAP film and television music award. He was commissioned to compose a concert for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, which toured throughout China.
Among his album projects he recorded and performed as a member of Jon Hassell’s highly regarded group, during which he co-composed and produced the acclaimed City-Works Of Fiction record for Opal Records (now on Rykodisc). The group toured and performed with legendary producer/composer Brian Eno. He’s performed with the Eastern fusion ensemble Axiom Of Choice, and appears on their Narada records. In addition to his album work with Hassell, his music is also on the critically praised world-beat Transplanet series on Triloka Records, the electronica compilation Leaves From The Tree, and Elysium For the Brave, the newest record with Persian singer Azam Ali.
Jeff has been chronicling his experiences in the film music world over the past several years in his very popular column in Keyboard Magazine, The Reel World. The column, which is also the basis of his major book on film music, is read worldwide. He is an artist-in-residence at the Aspen Music Festival, and often speaks on film music.