Interview: Multi-talented Composer Giosuè Greco Talks Scoring Award-Winning Projects

Giosuè Greco is a greatly talented composer who has worked on documentary films like The Seen and the Unseen and the Oscar-winning Period. End of Sentence. Music has always been a huge component of his life and where he finds passion. In our interview with him, we learn about his collaborative processes and how he got to the position he is in currently. We were super excited to talk to and learn more about Giosuè, as he has really established himself as a valuable contributor that uplifts projects throughout Hollywood and the international entertainment community. With numerous successful projects, and more to come, we are excited to see where his career goes next. Read on more below to learn more about Giosuè!

Tell us a bit about yourself. What was your first job in music and how did you decide to become a composer?

I used to think that playing saxophone was my calling while growing up in my hometown of Polistena in southern Italy. I had never thought about composing for films. During my first gig touring with orchestras around Europe as a saxophonist, I began diving into recording and production. I was lucky enough to attend Berklee College of Music, where I cultivated my skills in their Music Production program. After graduation, I did what everyone does… I moved to Los Angeles to work my way up in music, somehow. While working several random music related jobs, I started to release my own music. Ultimately, this landed me my first gig as a film composer and then eventually started working with Dan Romer.

You have a long time collaboration with Dan Romer. Can you tell us more about this?

Dan Romer and I have been collaborating since 2017. During this time, we have worked together on score for the award winning video game Far Cry 5 by Ubisoft, the Netflix Original series, Maniac, and The Innocent Man, to name a few. I consider Romer to be a friend and a creative mentor that I can count on for guidance and good advice.

Talk to us about the musical approach to A Woman's Place. What was your favorite scene to score?

Director Rayka Zehtabchi and I workshopped several approaches to the score of A Woman’s Place. We wanted the score to sound somewhat similar to French classical music of the 1950’s. We drew inspiration from artists such Edit Piaf and the late Maurice Ravel. I particularly liked scoring the scene when the butcher, Etana, describes embarking on her journey into butchery. There are some truly beautiful moments sung by  Moana Avvenenti in the score. She did an incredible job capturing the emotion and power of the scene, in the particular style that we were going for.

What gear do you tend to use, or instrumentation, especially your Oscar winning short you scored, Period. End of Sentence.?

I tend to keep my instrumentation as organic as possible. At times, I like to alter or process real instruments. For example, in Period. End of Sentence, I placed mutes and forks into the harp of an old unplugged electric piano to achieve a unique pizzicato harp sound. In Just Hold On, I used only one alto saxophone for the entire score. But most of it had been pitched down or played back at a different speed so it really sounds like a swarm of wind instruments. I am also a huge fan of ‘happy accidents’ that happen while frantically turning knobs and pushing buttons :)

Who are some of your musical influences?

When I was younger, I drew influence from classical music and jazz composers such as Debussy, Ravel, Wayne Shorter, or even Trane. Today, I am very much influenced by the works of the big italian film composers like the late Nino Rota and Ennio Morricone, but also forward thinking artists such as Brian Eno and Jon Hopkins. We live in a very artistically prolific moment in history, so nowadays I feel like I’m constantly influenced by anything that is musically relevant.

What is your dream project? Dream collaborators?

Right now, I would love to explore the possibilities of composing for an animated film or a video game. I would also love to continue working on films that have strong cultural and social relevance, such as Period. End of Sentence and Not Going Quietly.

You can find Giosuè on social media on Facebook (fan page), Twitch (channel), Instagram (@soundslikegiosue), and on Spotify (here and here). Visit his website: https://www.giosuegreco.com/