The Colliding World of Music and Film
There’s a certain degree of eccentric extravagance that comes with an 11:30am drinks reception. Then again, eccentric extravagance seems to be one of the key tenants of the Ivor Novello awards, the annual celebration of song writing. Housed in the flash Grosvenor Hotel on Park Lane, the awards on 22nd May once again highlighted the close link between music and film.
Of course, like any good showbiz ceremony, the stars were out in force. Strolling amongst the 1200 odd attendees packed into the hotel proved to be an eclectic trip down musical memory lane. In the opulent confines of the main room the likes of Jimmy Page, Johnny Marr and Nile Rodgers could be found alongside The Chemical Brothers, Christine McVie, Jerry Dammers and a host of newer acts including Mumford and Sons, Tom Odell and Lily Allen. This disorienting experience is compounded by a lack of windows and clocks. Locked inside for four hours, it’s almost possible to forget the outside world. Even a violent thunderstorm that raged across London passed by without anyone inside noticing.
Yet despite the high celebrity count, the Ivors are a pleasant change from the showboating shenanigans of other awards shows. For a start, they aren’t televised so the incentive to use it as the opportunity to try and upstage proceedings is diminished. More importantly though, there is a genuine display of camaraderie and respect on stage. The mix of awards, some rewarding new work, others celebrating a lifetime of achievements, provide ample opportunity to bask in the art of creating music. Watching compilation video’s summarising the careers of the likes of Nile Rodgers, John McCabe and Jeff Beck, it’s impossible not to be amazed by the sheer variety of things they have achieved.
While this is predominantly a music awards show, film also gets its day in the sun (or at least its afternoon out of the rain). This year, the Best Original Film Score went to Simon Fisher Turner for The Epic of Everest in a leftfield but fully deserved victory. It came at the expense of the higher profile Captain Phillips (Henry Jackman) and Steven Price’s Oscar winning score for Gravity. There was also a Best Television Soundtrack award scooped up by Dominik Scherrer for Ripper Street, beating off competition from Mr Selfridge (Charlie Mole) and The Thirteenth Tale (Benjamin Wallfisch).
But the intimate relationship with cinema runs much deeper than a token award or two. One of the most fascinating things to shine out from the afternoon was the vital link between the disciplines. Career retrospectives for a number of artists all flagged their experience. From Nile Rodgers dalliance with the likes of Beverley Hills Cop III to The Chemical Brothers work on Hanna and Nick Cave’s collaboration with Warren Ellis on The Proposition, the links were teased out time and again. And that’s only complete soundtracks not including the vast number of songs that have been used on the big screen. It’s a bond that can only strengthen both disciplines.
The event closed with a rolling series of standing ovations as Nile Rodgers walked away with the PRS for Music Special International Award, the party carrying on upstairs and in nearby bars. With the Ivors wrapped up for another year it’s time to get back to listening (and watching) the fruits of their labour. The indelible link between music and film remains strong. Long may we all continue to benefit.
