Chris Walden
Chris Walden | |
---|---|
Born | Edel | 10 October 1966
Member of | Chris Walden Big Band |
Website | chriswalden |
Chris Walden (born 10 October 1966) is a German composer,
and was nominated seven times for a Grammy Award.He has written big band and orchestral arrangements for Michael Bublé, Diana Krall, Jennifer Hudson, Paul Anka, and Christopher Cross. Since 2019 Walden has been the lead arranger at the Academy Awards. He was an arranger for the TV series American Idol from 2007 to 2016 and has worked for record producers David Foster,[2] Phil Ramone, and Tommy LiPuma. Walden has composed for films and TV in Germany, including the long-running TV-series Dr. Stefan Frank.[3]
Education
Chris Walden grew up in Hamburg, West Germany where he learned to play the
In 1987 he joined the then newly formed German National Youth Jazz Orchestra (BuJazzO)[4] as a trumpet player. Its leader Peter Herbolzheimer early on noticed Walden's interest in arranging and composing and became an important mentor for Walden.
Early career in Germany
Chris Walden started to work professionally as a musician in his teens playing the trumpet in dance bands on weekends while still attending high school in Hamburg. He received his first professional arranging assignments through his mentor Peter Herbolzheimer and after moving to Cologne he went on to write arrangements for many of the German radio big bands and radio symphony orchestras. He continued to play trumpet at various studio recordings and musical theater.
In 1991 he assisted Peter Herbolzheimer in orchestrating the music to the German feature film "
He served as the musical director for four years for the televised German Movie Award show "
Migrating to the U.S.
In 1996 at the age of 29, Walden moved to Los Angeles. He wrote scores for television movies and arrangements for
In 1999, he founded the Chris Walden Big Band,[1] which consists of Los Angeles based studio musicians. With this band he recorded three albums. The first received two Grammy Award nominations in 2005.[8]
As a conductor, Walden has led the
In 2007, during a three-month
Since 2007, he has worked as an arranger for the television program American Idol. He has written arrangements for television appearances by Faith Hill, Christina Aguilera, Katie Holmes, Aretha Franklin, Yolanda Adams, Melissa Etheridge. In 2009 he arranged the National Anthem for Jennifer Hudson's performance at the Super Bowl XLIII.[12]
In 2015 Walden served as conductor and arranger for the 38th Annual Kennedy Center Honors on CBS. In 2019 he was appointed lead arranger for the Academy Awards on ABC.
In 2022 Walden founded the Pacific Jazz Orchestra,[13] a non-profit 40-piece ensemble in Los Angeles, for which he serves as artistic director.
Walden's works encompass 40 feature and TV films, more than 100 episodes of TV series, and more than 1500 arrangements for big band or symphony orchestra.
Awards and honors
- Ernst-Fischer-Prize (1993)[14]
- Ernst-Fischer-Prize (1998)[14]
- Grammy Award nomination, Home of My Heart (2005)[15]
- American Society of Music Arrangers and Composers award (2007)
- Grammy Award nomination, Symphony No. 1 – The Four Elements (2008)[15]
Discography
As leader
- Ticino (ACT, 1995)
- Sunset Boulevard (Button, 1998)
- Home of My Heart (Origin, 2005)
- No Bounds (Origin, 2006)
- Kurt Marti Suite (Origin, 2007)
- Full-On (Origin, 2014)
See also
References
- ^ a b "Jazz Police". Archived from the original on 16 January 2016. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
- ^ a b "Composer Chris Walden to release "Winter Games"". 14 March 2006. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
- ^ "texxas, das internet-programm". Archived from the original on 11 March 2012. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
- ^ "Deutscher Musikrat – BuJazzO". Deutscher Musikrat. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
- ^ Ziegler-Film: Deutscher Filmpreis 1996
- ^ "Albums information Al Bano". Retrieved 25 November 2021.
- ^ "David-Hasselhoff.com". Retrieved 25 November 2021.
- ^ "USATODAY.com – Complete list of Grammy Award nominations". usatoday30.usatoday.com. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
- ^ "About this Artist". LA Phil.
- ^ "New Mexico Symphony Orchestra". Archived from the original on 25 June 2009. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
- ^ "Grammy.com". Archived from the original on 5 November 2009. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
- ^ "Chris Walden". Bundes Bigband Archiv (in German). Retrieved 25 November 2021.
- ^ "L.A.'s New Pacific Jazz Orchestra Unveils Plans". Variety.
- ^ a b "Deutscher Komponistenverband". WALDEN, Chris Komponistenlexikon. Retrieved 27 February 2022.
- ^ a b Chris Walden Grammy
Sources
- ISBN 1-4259-6977-1
External links
- Official website
- Chris Walden at IMDb