Hans Zimmer Launches Online Course in Film Scoring for $90
Hans Zimmer, one of the most prolific film composers of all time, will lead an internet course in writing music for the movies through startup MasterClass.
Pre-enrollment for Zimmer’s class, which will cost $90, opens Friday on the MasterClass website. The full class, slated to include more than 30 exclusive video lessons, will be available in January 2017.
The German composer, who had no formal musical training, has scored the soundtracks for more than 150 films including “The Lion King” — for which he won an Academy Award — as well as “Gladiator,” “Pirates of the Caribbean,” “The Dark Knight,” “Inception” and “Interstellar.”
“My MasterClass is a way for me to show that bold ideas can come from anyone and all you need is a computer to make music. Maybe even just a phone!” Zimmer said in a prepared statement. “I hope my MasterClass helps people see they just need to break the rules and move their ideas forward. The rest is just technicalities.”
In his first-ever online class, Zimmer will teach aspiring filmmakers and musicians how to use music to tell a story. The MasterClass will delve into the inner workings of musical composition covering such topics as how to create new sound palettes, establish a tempo, score to dialogue and picture, and use sound to tell a story. Through Zimmer’s personal instruction, students will study examples of his work including breaking down the sounds that helped create memorable characters such as the Joker from Batman and Sherlock Holmes.
The Zimmer-led course joins MasterClass’ other Hollywood entries, which include Aaron Sorkin on screenwriting, Werner Herzog on filmmaking, and Dustin Hoffman and Kevin Spacey on acting. Earlier this week, MasterClass opened enrollment for an electronic-music production class with EDM producer deadmau5. The startup’s roster of other instructors includes Christina Aguilera (singing), Usher (performance), Serena Williams (tennis), James Patterson (writing), Reba McEntire (country music).
San Francisco-based MasterClass, which launched in May 2015, is backed by investors including New Enterprise Associates, WME Ventures, Michael Bloomberg’s Bloomberg Beta, Advancit Capital, Robert Downey Jr.’s Downey Ventures, Javelin Venture Partners, Harrison Metal Ventures and individual investors including Casper CEO Philip Krim.
Watch the trailer for Zimmer’s MasterClass on film scoring:
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