Skip to content
CapRadio

CapRadio

signal status listen live donate
listen live donate signal status
listen live donate signal status
  • News
    • beats
    • State Government
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • Business
    • Arts and Lifestyle
    • Food and Sustainability
    • PolitiFact California
    • California Dream
    • Videos
    • Photos
  • Music
    • genres
    • Classical
    • Jazz
    • Roots
    • Eclectic
    • Videos
    • Daily Playlist
  • Programs + Podcasts
    • news
    • Morning Edition
    • All Things Considered
    • Marketplace
    • Insight
    • The View From Here
    • music
    • Acid Jazz
    • At the Opera
    • Classical Music
    • Connections
    • Excellence in Jazz
    • Hey, Listen!
    • Insight Music
    • K-ZAP on CapRadio
    • Mick Martin's Blues Party
    • Programs A-Z
    • Podcast Directory
  • Schedules
    • News
    • Music
    • ClassicalStream
    • JazzStream
    • Weekly Schedule
    • Daily Playlist
  • Community
    • Events Calendar
    • CapRadio Garden
    • CapRadio Reads
    • CapRadio Travels
    • Ticket Giveaways
  • Support
    • Evergreen Gift
    • One-Time Gift
    • Corporate Support / Underwriting
    • Vehicle Donation
    • Stock Gift
    • Legacy Gift
    • Endowment Gift
    • Volunteering
    • Benefits
    • Member FAQ
    • e‑Newsletter
    • Drawing Winners
    • Thank You Gifts
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Close Menu
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 
  • Classical
  •  

New Classical Tracks: Film Composer Danny Elfman's 'Wild Ride' Continues With Classical Album

Wednesday, October 2, 2019 | Sacramento, CA
Listen
/
Update RequiredTo play audio, update browser or Flash plugin.
Brian Averill

Danny Elfman

Brian Averill

Julie Amacher, Classical MPR

"I never expected to be literally blowing fire, playing trombone and passing the hat on the streets of Los Angeles, but that's what I was doing."

That was just the beginning for Danny Elfman, who's become most famous for writing the theme song to The Simpsons. After working as a street musician, his next big adventure found him leading the new wave band Oingo Boingo. Then he got his big break when he started to collaborate with director Tim Burton, which has resulted in 17 film scores and a 30-year relationship.

Danny Elfman has changed course many times in his career, often landing in a place he never imagined. His latest wild ride is a recording that features a piano quartet and a violin concerto, titled Eleven Eleven, with violinist Sandy Cameron.

"It's funny, when I got into film composition, they all hated me because I came from rock 'n' roll. It was like, 'You can't go from rock 'n' roll to film composition.' Then I became a successful film composer, and I was like, 'I want to break into the classical world.' And they're going, 'No, no, no. You're a film composer. We don't want you here.' It's actually kind of fun at this point in my life, feeling the same uphill battle that I felt my entire life for everything I've done, all over again. I find that resistance, weirdly, somewhat motivating.

"If I want to connect with that audience, I have to make sure that bits of my own musical identity and personality get carried into this world, so they can go, 'Oh, yeah. That's him.' There will be those satisfying moments of, 'That's definitely him.'

"I love working and twisting and playing, taking a melody, turning it into a softball, batting it around and seeing if I can make it rubber. The whole pleasure of the third movement, which is my favorite, was really, 'What can I do with four notes and a simple melody?' It's like a throwdown that I gave myself."

You have a thing for the number 11, and that's the name of the concerto, Eleven Eleven. Would you explain what your thing is for the number 11, and, also, how serendipitously it worked out for this concerto?

"My thing with the number 11 is just literally my name, Elfman. In the Jewish religion, the 10th man is called the minyan. Every ceremony has to have 10 to begin. My ancestor was always late and was always the one after that, the unessential 11th person, showing up, going, 'I'm here.' And they go, 'Uh, you're too late.' Hence, the name Elfman: the unessential, slightly late, 11th man.

"It was Sandy, as we were finishing the last cadenza, who said, 'Let's count the bars. It's got to be over a thousand by now. It would be fantastic if it were eleven-hundred-and-something, with your name and the whole thing about the number 11.' And I said, 'Yeah, that'd be cool.' So she started counting two of the movements, and I started counting two of the movements, and we totalled it up. It was like, 'I don't believe this. It's 1,111 measures, exactly.'

"When I start a composition, I feel like I'm pushing a train that has no locomotive uphill. I'm shoving and pushing with all my strength, and it feels impossible. Finally, the track levels out, and I'm pushing it along. It's still a lot of effort, but it's level ground, so I'm not killing myself. And then, when I'm lucky, I reach a point where it's downhill, and the composition is now leading me. I'm not telling it where to go. And I jump on top, and now it's a wild ride."

To hear the rest of my conversation, download the extended podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

    More about New Classical Tracks

  • New Classical Tracks

    Host Julie Amacher provides an in-depth exploration of a new classical music release each week. Wednesdays at 8:30 a.m.

 New Classical Tracks

Coronavirus Newsletter

Get answers to your questions, the latest updates and easy access to the resources you need, delivered to your inbox.

 

Want to know what to expect? Here's a recent newsletter.

Thanks for subscribing!

We'll send you weekly emails so you can stay informed about the coronavirus in California.

Browse all newsletters

Most Viewed

California Coronavirus Updates: Newsom Pushes Back Against Reopening Critics

California Coronavirus Updates: California’s Ban On Indoor Worship Upheld By Appeals Court

California Lifts COVID-19 Stay-At-Home Orders For All Regions

Gov. Gavin Newsom Navigates Compounding Crises — And A Potential Recall — Halfway Through His Term

Sacramento County Is Expanding Vaccinations At Cal Expo, But Not Yet For The General Public

We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter

Most Viewed

California Coronavirus Updates: Newsom Pushes Back Against Reopening Critics

California Coronavirus Updates: California’s Ban On Indoor Worship Upheld By Appeals Court

California Lifts COVID-19 Stay-At-Home Orders For All Regions

Gov. Gavin Newsom Navigates Compounding Crises — And A Potential Recall — Halfway Through His Term

Sacramento County Is Expanding Vaccinations At Cal Expo, But Not Yet For The General Public

Back to Top

  • CapRadio

    7055 Folsom Boulevard
    Sacramento, CA 95826-2625

    • (916) 278-8900
    • Toll-free (877) 480-5900
    • Email Us
    • Submit a News Tip
  • Contact Us

  • About Us

    • Contact Us / Feedback
    • Coverage
    • Directions
    • Jobs & Internships
    • Mission / Vision / Core Values
    • Press
    • Staff Directory
    • Board of Directors
  • Listening Options

    • Mobile App
    • On Air Schedules
    • Smart Speakers
    • Playlist
    • Podcasts
    • RSS
  • Connect With Us

    •  Facebook
    •  Twitter
    •  Instagram
    •  YouTube
  • Donate

  • Listen

  • Newsletters

CapRadio stations are licensed to California State University, Sacramento. © 2021, Capital Public Radio. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Website Feedback FCC Public Files: KXJZ KKTO KUOP KQNC KXPR KXSR KXJS. For assistance accessing our public files, please call 916-278-8900 or email us.