Mychael Danna



Composer/keyboardist Mychael Danna was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and showed musical talent early in life. Singing and piano lessons defined his childhood and early adolescence, but a hand injury at age 14 ended his piano career.
Danna switched over to synthesizer instead and concentrated on his composing skills. After earning a degree in composition from the University of Toronto and winning the prestigious Glenn Gould Composition Award his final year there, Danna began his film scoring career, which includes over 15 features and documentaries. Danna also served for a time as composer-in-residence for the McLaughlin Planetarium in Toronto.
His fusion of different styles of music and keen arrangement skills make Danna a versatile and popular artist, whether scoring films, working on his own new age compositions (Skys, Sirens), collaborating with his composer brother Jeff Danna (A Celtic Tale), or working with Tim Clement on electronic environmental pieces (Summerland, North of Niagra).  
Biography by Heather Phares  -  Source: allmusic

Mychael Danna is an Academy Award-winning film composer recognized for his evocative blending of non-western traditions with orchestral and electronic music. His highly awarded works include the Oscar-winning score for Ang Lee's As Aventuras de Pi(2012), and his many Genie Award-winning scores for director and longtime collaborator, Atom Egoyan.
His passion for presenting complex ideas in a musically accessible way began as Danna learned his craft at the University of Toronto. There, he was exposed to early- and world-music that later influenced his style. Danna earned the school's inaugural "Glenn Gould Composition Award" in 1985 and also began scoring for student theatre groups, as he launched his artistic partnership with Egoyan. Danna has scored all of Egoyan's films since 1987's Family Viewing (1987).
Danna's work on Egoyan's films, Ararat (2002), O Fio da Inocência (1999), O Doce Amanhã (1997) and Exótica (1994), secured him Genie awards from the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television; as did his score for Deepa Mehta's Oscar-winning film,Às Margens do Rio Sagrado (2005).
Danna earned the 2013 Golden Globe and 2013 Oscar for scoring Ang Lee's As Aventuras de Pi (2012), following his collaborations with Lee on Tempestade de Gelo(1997) and Cavalgada com o Diabo (1999).
As Aventuras de Pi (2012)'s rich soundscape reflects a deeply transnational story with inventive cross-cultural arrangements: Indian sitars play French melodies, European play South Asian motifs, a church choir sings in Sanskrit, and a variety of other musical combinations soar alongside a full studio orchestra.
The highly awarded work embodies Danna's approach to composition-creating rich soundscapes to be appreciated by a wide audience.
Other celebrated collaborations include those with Bennett Miller on his multiple Oscar-nominee O Homem Que Mudou o Jogo (2011) and his Oscar-winning drama, Capote(2005); with Terry Gilliam on his Oscar-nominated O Mundo Imaginário do Doutor Parnassus (2009) and Contraponto (2005); with Mira Nair on Feira das Vaidades (2004),Um Casamento à Indiana (2001) and Kama Sutra (1996); and with Billy Ray on Quebra de Confiança (2007) and O Preço de uma Verdade (2003).
Danna's credits also include the Oscar-winning Pequena Miss Sunshine (2006), for which he shared a Grammy Award nomination for Best Compilation Soundtrack Album; Marc Webb's acclaimed romantic comedy, (500) Dias com Ela (2009); and James Mangold's Oscar-winning film, Garota, Interrompida (1999). 

Biography by Mychael Danna

Watch and listen the vídeos: Life of Pi (all tracks),
Driving in the Rain, Transcendence (full soundtrack),
8 MM (full soundtrack), Popular Mychael Danna (200
videos), Be my Light, The Blood of Cuchulainn, See
You Again, Kama Sutra, Legends, Something Hidden,
House of Windows, The Sweet Hereafter, Funeral,
Iona, The Winner is, Sky 7, Hollywood, The Tunnels,

Snake Dance, A Little Touch, Maya's Theme, Legends, A Cry from the Heart, House of Windows,
First Night First Day, Visions of Bernadette, The 
Drowning Plains, The Child Deirdre, The Profecy,
Mix (50 videos), Mix (50 videos) and Mix (50 videos).