Looking for songs for your Halloween playlist? Check out these 5 composers
By Candice Zhang
You’ll never know which spooky movie will contain one of your favourite soundtracks. (Nalyn Tindall/CanCulture)
As spooky season approaches, many of us may be revamping our playlists to include tracks that match the Halloween theme. If you’re looking for a few suggestions, fear not – CanCulture has you covered. This Halloween, consider supporting your talented fellow Canadian composers. From the sounds of sci-fi horror to soundtracks featured in hit movies such as Hereditary, there are many talented Canadian composers to listen to. Here are five of them:
Colin Stetson
The mind behind the soundtrack to the well-known hit movie Hereditary (2018) hails from Montreal. Stetson began playing alto saxophone as soon as he turned nine years old, with his passion leading him to begin his formal studies in music when he turned 15. He then won a scholarship to the University of Michigan and developed his known idiosyncratic style. With practice, many could distinguish Stetson’s distinct jazz mixed with avant-garde style. These opportunities led Stetson to his career working on film scores.
Mark Korven
Born in Toronto, Korven primarily works as a composer for film and television. He worked on films including The Witch (2015), The Lighthouse (2019), and The Black Phone (2021). Due to his success, Korven has received 8 Genie Nominations, 14 Gemini Nominations, a Gemini Award, and a Canadian Screen Award. He plays multiple instruments from around the world, including the Swedish Nyckelharpa, megabass waterphone, and the cello. Korven utilizes these instruments to convey the various meanings of his tracks, leading to his emotional yet versatile compositions.
Steph Copeland
Copeland is not only a composer known for horror scores, but is also a pop vocalist and music producer. She first started her music career in the electro/pop group Perilelle, where a music agent spotted her talent and offered her a job working on the score for the horror film Antisocial. She took this opportunity and continued to compose for other features, such as Creep Nation (2019). Copeland is known for her moody and emotional rhythms, which match the overall aesthetic of the piece.
Olivia Korosak
Korosak has recently broken into the music industry and is beginning to compose multiple film scores for a variety of short films and theatrical productions. She has training in classical music in piano and voice, having completed a degree in vocal music from McMaster University. Korosak has worked on the short horror film A Fresh Start (2022), composing the eerie tracks which you can hear throughout the film.
Paul Zaza
Beginning as a trained pianist, Zaza started his music career playing music for different theatrical productions such as the hit musical Hair. As soon as he started his own recording studio, Zaza began composing music for various films. He has experimented with a variety of genres, but his horror features were popular for their chilling sound. Some of his most well-known work includes music for the films Ghostkeeper (1981), Popcorn (1991), and The Dark (1993).
Ta-da! Now you have five composers to add to your playlist for your upcoming Halloween party. Next time you're watching a horror movie, you may even notice that the soundtrack was written by one of these composers. So why not share that knowledge with others? Have a happy time trick-or-treating to some tasteful tunes!