The Pale Blue Eye I was REALLY excited to see The Pale Blue Eye – as the whole thing was shot around my hometown of Pittsburgh. Western PA is filled with well-preserved colonial sites that are located within state parks. Specifically, I spend a lot […]

Silent Night Silent Night originated in Austria in 1818. It was written as a poem, “Stille Nacht! Heilige Nacht!”, by Joseph Mohr, a young priest in the town of Oberndorf. The melody was composed by Franz Xaver Gruber, a schoolteacher and organist in the nearby […]

The Whale The Whale is a film directed by Darren Aronofsky, and stars Brendan Fraser as a reclusive English teacher, who tries to reconnect with his estranged teenage daughter. Brendan Fraser is easy to like. His career is in a renaissance — as he’s reinvented […]

21 Grams I completely lifted my right-hand technique from composer, Gustavo Santaolalla. He effectively arpeggiates chord shapes by rolling through them with his fingers. This is a beautiful way to voice chords, and pretty easy to do with a little practice. The best way to […]

The Banshees of Inisherin The Banshees of Inisherin, is a 2022 black comedy written and directed by British-Irish playwright, Martin McDonagh. The film follows two lifelong friends (Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson) who find themselves at an impasse, when one abruptly ends their relationship. The predicament […]

All Quiet on the Western Front This film has instantly become one of my all-time favorites. While based on a literary classic, All Quiet on the Western Front is not your “classic” war film. It has more in common with HBO’s Chernobyl, than 1917. There […]

The Haunting of Hill House I loved this Netflix series from writer/director Mike Flanagan. The music by The Newton Brothers almost acts like an additional character (or ghost). If you’ve seen the series, you’ll agree the music and film are inextricably linked. This is also […]

Blood Theme Dexter was an excellent Showtime series (2006 – 2013) set in Miami. The series centered on Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall), a forensic technician, who leads a secret parallel life as a vigilante serial killer. The Blood Theme, by composer Daniel Licht, is […]

Blood Oath This is definitely my favorite piece from the IT score. I’m 45, so I remember when the book came out in the 80’s: Stephen King’s IT (the book) was figuratively and literally biggest thing in 1986. I remember going Christmas shopping at the […]

Andor Andor is unlike anything else in Star Wars canon. It’s a slow burn, clearly designed for adults — don’t expect The Mandalorian. This is more Blade Runner than lightsabers. The acting is excellent, especially Diego Luna in the title role, who brings a brooding, […]

The Shawshank Redemption Written and directed by Frank Darabont, The Shawshank Redemption, is a 1994 drama film based on the 1982 Stephen King novella Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption.  The film tells the story of a banker who is (despite his claims of innocence) sentenced […]

The Parting Glass The Parting Glass is a Scottish traditional song written in 1770. (However, evidence of this song has been found in manuscripts from the 1620s-1630’s.) This solo guitar arrangement is heavily inspired by the live a-capella versions of Loreena McKennitt and Hozier. The […]