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CONTACT | Natalie Baartz - Scorebird Music scorebird@gmail.com

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Ep | “& THE ENSEMBLE” | Stream Now

BMI Know Them Now - Composer Highlight

James Newberry is an award winning film composer who has worked with numerous creative filmmakers and storytellers. His approach to scoring to picture and unique voice can be heard on various features, Oscar-eligible short films that have reached top-tier film festivals around the world (Sundance, SXSW, NYFF, Tribeca, etc.), television series, and more.

Characterized by an organic, artistic, specialized electro-acoustic sound, James’ music elevates every project. His scores incorporate new sounds, un-conventional style blends, and his group, &, The Ensemble, is a collection of musicians he frequently uses on different projects.

James was born in the small town of Warner Robins, GA, and has lived and worked in cities such as Cleveland, New York City, and currently, Los Angeles. He began his career as a performing classical percussionist, practicing and performing marimba, vibraphone, timpani, multi-percussion setups, and anything and everything you can hit. He played in numerous metal bands, jazz combos, orchestras, big bands, percussion ensembles, chamber groups, and more. Many of his early compositions would help self-teach him to expand into writing for film and television. He began writing scores for short films and experimental installations in Cleveland, then went on to attend NYU's Scoring for Film & Multimedia graduate program.

One of his earliest projects, Bandito, directed by Evan Ari Kelman, was selected for the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival and led to numerous collaborations with Kelman, including Where There’s Smoke, an Amazon Prime short film and 2017 Tribeca Film Festival selection, as well as a western in 2018, The Badlands Girl. In 2020, James provided the original score for Buck, directed by Elegance Bratton & Jovan James, which premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. He also worked with Elegance Bratton for his documentary, Pier Kids, which debuted on PBS | POV in 2021. James also scored the original music for Palliative, directed by John Beder, which was edited into a New York Times Op-Doc in 2020, titled Dying In Your Mother’s Arms. James recently completed the score for TREAT, a podcast movie produced by and starring Kiernan Shipka, which premiered October 25th, 2021, as well as the web series We're Doing Good, which premiered at SXSW 2022. James co-scored the Showtime Original documentary series Catching Lightning, CNN documentary series LBJ: Triumph and Tragedy, Wolfgang for Disney+, HBO's The Lady And The Dale, and the 2023 Sundance premiere The Stroll, which will air on HBO in 2023

He has written additional music on Netflix's Ozark, AMC's Fear the Walking Dead, HBO's The Outsider, and more. James also worked with Stenfert Charles on Ubisoft’s For Honor, providing additional music as well as performing on taiko drums, surdos, afro-cuban instruments, and military percussion.

Along with percussion, James performs clarinet, piano, guitar, synthesizers, and some experimental strings on his scores. He only learns how to play instruments well enough to make weird sounds on them. His favorite scores are those that subvert expectation, defy conventional norms, and elevate the art of filmmaking. He currently lives in LA. \\