| Amin Bhatia and Ari Posner Nominated for 26th Annual Gemini Award in 2011 | The news for the 26th annual Gemini Awards has been announced and FLASHPOINT leads the way with nominations. The Toronto based police drama has dominated the Geminis for the past three years, this year with 17 nominations, including best drama and best leading actor in a drama, for Enrico Colantoni. Besides Colantoni, others up for Best Actor in a Drama this year include his FLASHPOINT castmate Hugh Dillon, for playing a different cop in DURHAM COUNTY. Along with nominations in various actor categories the show has been nominated for editing, art direction, photography, direction and for Best Dramatic Series.
Among the stellar team of nominees are co-writers Amin Bhatia and Ari Posner for Best Music Score. The music composed for the episode "Acceptable Risk" features a beautiful vocal performance by Toronto singer Leah Salomaa. This nomination is the third consecutive nod for Bhatia and Posner but the two remain humble. Taking a moment's break to congratulate the producers and the hard working staff of the show Amin remarked: "At a dinner party we were having my cousin had to leave early "because FLASHPOINT is on"...and he didn't know I worked on the show. Now that's an award right there."
The music team is assisted by music editor Joe Mancuso. Song Placement and Music Supervision is helmed by Chris Robinson of Arpix Media. The show's producers Anne Marie La Traverse and Bill Mustos are also very involved in the show's musical direction.
The 26th annual awards are presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television and will take place in Toronto over three nights, with technical and other industry awards handed out Aug. 30 and 31, and the main gala on Sept. 7. It will be broadcast live from the Metro Toronto Convention Centre on CBC. For more information about the 2011 Gemini Awards visit their website.
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| Celebrating Vintage Keyboards at NAMM Winter 2010 |  At Winter NAMM 2010
Dianna Dilworth, Amin Bhatia and Michelle Moog-Koussa invite you to:
An evening celebrating vintage keyboards through documentary film
January 15th from 6-8pm
Avila Room at the Anaheim Hilton
The Making of Bolero Electronica
Neo-symphonic synthesist Amin Bhatia (Virtuality, Interstellar Suite) and Michelle Moog-Koussa, Executive Director of the Bob Moog Foundation host a question and answer session followed by a screening of a short documentary on the making of Bhatia's innovative realization of Bolero Electronica, for which he used over 70 synthesizers covering 75 years of evolution in synthesis in music.
Mellodrama: The Mellotron Movie
Following Bhatia, Dianna Dilworth and Markus Resch of the Mellotron Archive will screen Mellodrama: The Mellotron Movie which explores the rising and falling fortunes of the Mellotron – the first musical keyboard to “sample” the sounds of other instruments – from its birth in a California garage in the 1950s, through its dominance on concert stages in the 1970s, through its almost religious cult of followers in the 2000s.
Please come and join us for this very special evening ~
www.moogfoundation.org
www.aminbhatia.com
www.diannadilworth.com |
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| "Virtuality" honours Bob Moog at the Museum of Making Music | The Museum of Making Music and The Bob Moog Foundation announce Waves of Inspiration: The Legacy of Moog, a special exhibition to run from August 29, 2009 – April 30, 2010. The exhibit is the first of its kind, marking the first public display of the artifacts from Bob Moog’s archives. Amin Bhatia is honoured to be a part of the exhibit with his music CD "Virtuality".
Dedicated to Bob Moog and released on the anniversary of Moog's birthday, "Virtuality" features guest artists Steve Porcaro, Patrick Moraz and members of the Toronto Symphony and Opera Orchestras. Like his critically acclaimed "The Interstellar Suite", the album is an orchestral epic, this time combining electronic elements with live instruments. It also includes "Bolero Electronica", a unique performance of Maurice Ravel's epic Bolero using 75 years of synthesizers performed chronologically. A portion of every sale of "Virtuality" goes to the Bob Moog Foundation.
Bob Moog's 50 year career is an undeniable force in electronic music. His invention of the Moog synthesizer in 1964 made synthesis accessible to musicians for the first time and in doing so provided them with new realms of sonic expression. The instrument revolutionized the face of music and was used by such early synthesists as Wendy Carlos, Keith Emerson, Rick Wakeman, Stevie Wonder, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, Jan Hammer, and more.
The exhibition will feature rare vintage synthesizers and other related Moog instruments beginning with vintage theremins and a prototype of the first modular synthesizer. Other excellent examples of modular instruments from the late 1960s and early 1970s will be on exhibit, including Keith Emerson’s famous “Monster Moog” will be featured for the first time as a part of the museum display.
Along with the exhibit, the MoMM gift shop features an array of unique recordings for the music listener, including "Virtuality".
The opening weekend (August 28 -30) will kick off with a launch of the Moog exhibition featuring a demonstration by Keith Emerson and music by Erik Norlander and talks by Larry Fast and Brian Kehew.
Amin was hoping to attend the Museum's opening weekend but his composition duties on "Flashpoint" (CBS/CTV) are keeping him close to the studio. The popular television program recently garnered 19 Gemini Award nominations, including Amin's work on the music score.
Visit the Museum of Making Music website for opening weekend tickets and more information. Museum of Making Music: a division of the NAMM Foundation 5790 Armada Drive, Carlsbad, California 92008
Phone: (760) 438-5996 |
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| Amin Bhatia and Ari Posner Nominated for 25th Annual Gemini Award in 2010 | For the second year in a row, Flashpoint, the CTV/CBS drama about a police tactical unit, dominates the Gemini award nominations. With 15 nods in 11 categories, including one for composers Amin Bhatia and Ari Posner for Best Original Music Score for a Program or Series, it is also nominated in several acting categories, Best Photography, Direction and Writing. Airing in both Canada and the US, the action packed drama is based in Toronto and resonates internationally. Among the stellar team of nominees of actors and production are co-writers Amin Bhatia and Ari Posner for Best Music Score. Nominated for the episode "One Wrong Move", it's particularly memorable as it deals with the heroic death of one of the task force. Actor Mark Taylor is nominated for Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Series for his spellbinding performance as Lew sacrificing himself to save another member of the team. The music nod is the second in a row for Bhatia and Posner and they are proud to be a part of the show. "These multiple nominations are great but working on a show of this calibre is the real treat."
The music team is assisted by music editor Joe Mancuso. Song Placement and Music Supervision is overseen by Chris Robinson of Arpix Media. The show's producers Anne Marie La Traverse and Bill Mustos are also very involved in the show's musical direction.
The annual awards are presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television and will take place in Toronto over three nights. For more information about the Gemini Awards visit their website.
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| Amin Bhatia and Ari Posner 2009 Gemini Award Nomination | The police drama Flashpoint leads the pack for 2009 Gemini Awards for excellence in Canadian television with a record 19 nominations. Among the nominees are Amin Bhatia and Ari Posner for Best Original Music Score for a Program or Series.
While Bhatia and Posner have scored the entire series, including the show's theme, the entry they submitted for was the episode "Planets Aligned" wherein the tactical unit saves two kidnapped children and justice is served by the sniper squad. The story required enchanting child-like themes to connect to the fantasy world of one of the young victims, locked up for 9 years with only her books to escape her sick captor. "We had to be very delicate for this story, but still provide the necessary action stuff" recalls Amin.
Amin and Ari have a unique collaboration relationship: as a writing team they build on their strengths, finishing each other's musical sentences. This collaboration has included producing a song for Flashpoint star Hugh Dillon (nominated along with co-star Enrico Colantoni for Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role). Past collaborations for the team have earned them both Gemini Awards and Emmy nominations.
Both composers also cultivate their own projects and profiles. Recent projects for Bhatia include the IMAX film "Mysteries of the Great Lakes" and his CD "Virtuality" featuring guest artists Steve Porcaro, Patrick Moraz and members of the Toronto Symphony and Opera Orchestras. The album also includes "Bolero Electronica", an innovative performance of Ravel's Bolero using 75 years of synthesizers performed chronologically. Recent projects for Posner include season four of the animated series "Johnny Test", the soon-to-be-released comedy feature film "Eating Buccaneers" and production on the 2008 Juno Best Children's Album winner "Music Soup" by Jen Gould.
Both composers agree that Flashpoint takes front and centre on anything else they are working on. "It is such a great show to work on but the deadlines are quite demanding. We split the composition work right down the middle as to who covers what story-line in order to make the deadlines." Adds Ari "I guess it's possible for one person to do the whole thing but that would be 24 hours a day with no family and no sleep. Besides there'd be no energy left for the next episode!"
The team is assisted by music editor Joe Mancuso. Song Placement and Music Supervision is helmed by Chris Robinson of Arpix Media. The show's producers Anne Marie La Traverse and Bill Mustos are very involved in the show's musical direction. Tempos and key signatures of each piece of music are planned in advance so that one piece of music blends seamlessly into another. "We even do this for the final song which Chris gets to us first and then we write the score to lead into it. It's tricky to do but the result is so much better than the usual 'tacked on song' that is so common," say the co-writers.
Both composers credit the Flashpoint producers with the success of the score and the nomination. "Anne Marie and Bill really know what they want so that makes it a lot easier for us, and a lot of fun...challenging but fun!" they add.
The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television will present the 24th Annual Gemini Awards over three nights, two in Toronto this October, then a final November gala in Calgary, broadcast live on Global and Showcase. For more information about the 2009 Gemini Awards visit their website.
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