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"I like songs that are about things happening all around us, right now."
Howard is renowned for composing TV themes and theatre scores as well as choral music. Almost everyone knows Howard's popular TV themes for Blackadder, Mr Bean, Red Dwarf, Q.I., and The Vicar of Dibley. Other recent television scores include 'The Gathering Storm', which received a BAFTA nomination for Best Original Score.
In the theatre his musicals have been performed throughout the world. 'The Hired Man', for example, which he wrote with Melvyn Bragg in 1984, ran in the West End and Off-Broadway, winning The Ivor Novello Award for Best Musical, four Olivier Award nominations, a John Kraaijkamp Musical Award in Holland and seven Waterford International Musical Festival awards. It has had over 100 productions since it opened.
Howard is a prodigious writer of choral music including 'One Choice Away' for the 1995 VE-Day Commemorations, 'I Believe in the Sun' and 'In Memoriam Anne Frank' for the 2001 National Holocaust Memorial. He also writes and presents his own BAFTA-winning music documentaries for Channel 4.
Meet the Composer
Young singers from Islington Music Centre emailed some questions to Howard while they were learning his song.
What gave you the idea about writing a song about refugees? I like songs that are about things happening all around us, right now. Newspapers give asylum seekers, refugees and outsiders a really hard time: so I wanted to write a song that would maybe make people think in a kinder way. History has shown that new people coming in to the UK from elsewhere have been brilliant for our culture, our music, our trade, our sports and our achievements. I think a song like this is long overdue!
Did it take you a long time to write this song? Hmmm....about 2 days: is that long or short?
What was your first idea? Was it music or words? First of all I thought about what the song was going to feel like: you know - happy or sad, loud or gentle, funny or serious. Then when I knew it was going to be about standing up for someone - about solidarity - I realised the song would have to be quite strong and uplifting. (You know how good you feel if you stick up for someone and are their friend when they need it? This is the feeling I want the singers and audiences to have.) After this I 'heard' the tune in my head, and then sat down to write the lyrics. The demo recording followed - so other people could hear it - and the score of the music so other musicians could play it at the piano and sing along themselves.
What other things have you written? Quite a few TV themes - especially comedies - and lots of 'background' music for TV and film too. The ones you might recognise are Blackadder, Red Dwarf, Mr Bean, The Vicar of Dibley, Q.I., The Borrowers, 2.4 Children and Johnny English. Plus I write music for choirs and have had several of my musicals performed in the UK and USA.
Do you get fed up of everyone saying you're the black adder man? No! It's nice that there's maybe one tune of mine nearly everyone can hum! |
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