Composers Dustin O’Halloran and Herdís Stefánsdóttir bring a little bit of Icelandic influence to their score for Apple TV+’s English gothic drama, The Essex Serpent. Life partners and now first-time collaborators, O’Halloran (American pianist/composer) and Stefánsdóttir (Icelandic composer) push past the stereotypical confines of a Victorian period piece by using electro acoustics and reverberating strings to create a unique, multidimensional landscape.
Their freedom to experiment with sound was encouraged by the series’ director, Clio Bernard (Ali & Ava, The Selfish Giant), who was already a fan of the duo’s individual work. Complimenting each other’s strengths in a way that feels more intimate than most other TV scores, O’Halloran and Stefánsdóttir explored subjects like fear of the unknown, the constant conflict between science and religion, and the complexity of superstition. What results is a soundtrack that is rich in emotional depth.
Cinemacy is proud to premiere “Fata Morgana” from The Essex Serpent, below:
The Essex Serpent is based on the 2016 novel by Sarah Perry and stars Claire Danes and Tom Hiddleston. Set in 1800s England, the series follows London widow Cora Seaborne (Danes) who moves to Essex to investigate reports of a mythical serpent. She forms a surprising bond of science and skepticism with the local pastor (Hiddleston), but when tragedy strikes, locals accuse her of attracting the creature.
“This was our first collaboration together as composers,” says O’Halloran and Stefánsdóttir. “Even though it was a period piece set in the late 1800s, we took a modern approach to the music and how we wrote and recorded it, accentuating the sound of the wood and bow of the strings, and we went deep into capturing the sound limits of the cello and electro-acoustic manipulation.”
O’Halloran and Stefánsdóttir both come to The Essex Serpent with their own impressive history of work. Notable recognition for O’Halloran includes writing the Emmy-winning main title theme to Amazon’s Transparent and receiving multiple nominations (Oscar, Golden Globe, and BAFTA) for the Dev Patel-starring drama Lion. Stefánsdóttir recently won the 2022 Icelandic Music Award for her score to the FX series Y: The Last Man, in addition to receiving a nomination for her score in Ry Russo-Young’s feature film, The Sun Is Also a Star.
Lakeshore Records is releasing ‘The Essex Serpent’ Original Series Soundtrack on Friday, June 10th.
