12 Jul 2018

New classical music from Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood

From Upbeat, 3:09 pm on 12 July 2018

Inspired by Glenn Gould’s performances of the Goldberg Variations, Jonny Greenwood has released sheet music for his 2015 composition, 88 (No.1).

The contemporary piece is for solo piano and consists of two movements.

Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood

Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood Photo: wikicommons

This is the first time Greenwood’s music has been available for public performance.

Greenwood has composed many other contemporary works, including film scores, for chamber ensembles and orchestra.

Here are a few of our favourites.

Jonny Greenwood playing a glockenspiel with Radiohead at the Heineken Music Hall

Jonny Greenwood playing a glockenspiel with Radiohead at the Heineken Music Hall Photo: Michell Zappa

Smear

The piece written for two ondes Martenots and a chamber ensemble of nine players was written in 2004.  It contains three movements and has very dissonant harmonies that create an ominous mood as well as beautiful string sonorities.

 

Popcorn Superhet Receiver (1)

Greenwood experiments with tense string glissandos in the first of four movements of Popcorn Superhet Receiver. It was premiered in 2005 at LSO St. Luke’s in London with the BBC Concert Orchestra.

 

There Will Be Blood

Composed for the film There Will Be Blood (2007), this piece features elements from Greenwood earlier words.  His score was nominated for a Grammy in the category of “Best Score Soundtrack Album For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media” in 2008. This was performed by the NZSO earlier this year for the Shed Series.

 

Doghouse

This piece is scored for string trio and large orchestra and was the basis for the soundtrack to the film Norwegian Wood. Greenwood stated that he wrote this piece mainly in hotels and dressing rooms while on tour.

 

Water

Released in 2014, Greenwood experiments with a different sound in his piece Water, featuring many violin solos. The inspiration for this piece was from a Philip Larkin poem.