Country: Israel, Germany
Israeli/German composer Frank Ilfman started his career studying piano and trombone at the Jaffa Conservatorium in Tel Aviv and played lead trombone in the Tel Aviv Dixieland Band. Perhaps it’s these early varied experiences that have led him to be such a skilled and diverse composer. Starting at 17, composing for television series The Chancer, he has since worked on over forty films and television series, one of the most recent being Netflix’s Gunpowder Milkshake.
This new action film has given Ilfman a perfect chance to flex his musical muscles and have some fun in the process. At the start of the film soundtrack, the score goes in appropriate yet expected directions; moody, dark with emotional touches to reflect the character’s harsh realities. But, as the action sequences come in, Ilfman is given a chance to shine. During a vicious and funny fight scene in a bowling alley, we get “Goonfight at Gutterball Corral”, which invokes classic Ennio Morricone scores while also moving in a darker rock direction. Later, we’re treated to “La Ballad de los Charros”, a hyper-kinetic slice of mariachi music. Ilfman is a composer who can do a broad range of styles, and is one to definitely keep an ear out for.
Check out a couple of these musical pieces in our World Watch Playlist!
The Indy Review 