Alex Heffes's score to Shardlake, featuring the Paraorchestra and choir Tenebrae, is now available from Hollywood Records, released on 24 April 2024. The series releases worldwide on Disney+ and Hulu on 1 May. The soundtrack also features Alex Heffes playing electric 'cello.
Shardlake is an eerie whodunnit adventure, based on the popular historical novels by C. J. Sansom.
Set in 16th-Century England during the dissolution of the monasteries, lawyer Matthew Shardlake (Arthur Hughes) is sent by Thomas Cromwell, the Lord Chancellor (Sean Bean) to the remote town of Scansea. Shardlake's mission is to investigate the death of a commissioner and to seize the wealth of Scansea's monastery, accompanied by the ambitious Jack Barak (Anthony Boyle).
Shardlake, the central character, is disabled, therefore making it especially apt that Disney chose to collaborate with the Para Orchestra - the world’s only orchestra built around people with a range of disabilities.
Shardlake is an eerie whodunnit adventure, based on the popular historical novels by C. J. Sansom.
Set in 16th-Century England during the dissolution of the monasteries, lawyer Matthew Shardlake (Arthur Hughes) is sent by Thomas Cromwell, the Lord Chancellor (Sean Bean) to the remote town of Scansea. Shardlake's mission is to investigate the death of a commissioner and to seize the wealth of Scansea's monastery, accompanied by the ambitious Jack Barak (Anthony Boyle).
Shardlake, the central character, is disabled, therefore making it especially apt that Disney chose to collaborate with the Para Orchestra - the world’s only orchestra built around people with a range of disabilities.
Flim Music Reporter, 26 Apr 2024
Electronic press kit available from Ulysses Arts
Alex Heffes
Alex Heffes is a Golden Globe, BAFTA and three-times Ivor Novello nominated composer who has scored over 70 feature films and TV projects. He has worked with many of cinema’s top filmmakers including Steven Frears, Kevin Macdonald, Catherine Hardwicke, Mira Nair, Michael Keaton & J J Abrams. His wide range of work includes scores to Macdonald’s The Last King Of Scotland & State Of Play, Justin Chadwick’s Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom, Mira Nair’s Queen Of Katwe and Michael Keaton’s Knox Goes Away. Notable TV projects include Black Mirror (Shut Up & Dance), the award-winning reboot of TV classic Roots, the Stephen King mini series 11.22.63 produced by J.J. Abrams and the HBO limited series The Regime starring Kate Winslet and Hugh Grant.
Known for his great versatility across genres, Alex has shown himself equally at home scoring biopics such as Stephen Frears’ The Program, horror in The Rite, action in Escape Plan, comedy in Catherine Hardwicke’s Mafia Mamma and natural history films such as BBC Earth's Earth: One Amazing Day and The Elephant Queen for Apple TV+.
His unique ability to collaborate with artists also been been a trademark of his style. It was his iconic score to Macdonald’s The Last King of Scotland that first sent Alex to record in Africa where he created a blend of world music and orchestral scoring. His solo album Face To Face features collaborations with artists such as Ryuichi Sakamoto, Regina Spektor and Yasmin Levy and his score to A Suitable Boy features a collaboration with Anoushka Shankar. He collaborated closely with director Tim Burton on his screen adaptation of Sweeney Todd.
Alex’s many honors include nominations for a Golden Globe, BAFTA and several International Film Music Critics Awards as well as wins and nominations at The World Soundtrack Awards, European Film Awards and The Royal Television Society. He has been nominated three times for an Ivor Novello, winning for Best Film Score of the Year. His score to Roots won Best TV Score of the Year at the Hollywood Music In Media Awards. In 2016 he was invited to become a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Known for his great versatility across genres, Alex has shown himself equally at home scoring biopics such as Stephen Frears’ The Program, horror in The Rite, action in Escape Plan, comedy in Catherine Hardwicke’s Mafia Mamma and natural history films such as BBC Earth's Earth: One Amazing Day and The Elephant Queen for Apple TV+.
His unique ability to collaborate with artists also been been a trademark of his style. It was his iconic score to Macdonald’s The Last King of Scotland that first sent Alex to record in Africa where he created a blend of world music and orchestral scoring. His solo album Face To Face features collaborations with artists such as Ryuichi Sakamoto, Regina Spektor and Yasmin Levy and his score to A Suitable Boy features a collaboration with Anoushka Shankar. He collaborated closely with director Tim Burton on his screen adaptation of Sweeney Todd.
Alex’s many honors include nominations for a Golden Globe, BAFTA and several International Film Music Critics Awards as well as wins and nominations at The World Soundtrack Awards, European Film Awards and The Royal Television Society. He has been nominated three times for an Ivor Novello, winning for Best Film Score of the Year. His score to Roots won Best TV Score of the Year at the Hollywood Music In Media Awards. In 2016 he was invited to become a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.