Composers

Northern Silents works with both extant composed scores and commissions composers to write new scores.

Neil Brand’s chamber orchestra scores for The Lodger (Hitchcock, 1927) and Oliver Twist (Frank Lloyd, 1922) were given their live premieres at Abbeydale Picture House in 2017 and 2018 respectively. Neil Brand’s first original score composed especially for Northern Silents was Echoes of the North, commissioned in 2021 by Northern Silents and Durham Brass Festival. It premiered at Morecambe Winter Gardens in November 2022, performed by Brighouse and Rastrick Band, before enjoying an online release as part of The Space’s 2022 commissioning programme, followed by performances in Halifax, Manchester, and Durham.

In 2025, Leeds-based composer and sonic artist Ben Gaunt was commissioned to collaborate with Frame Ensemble on a hybrid composed-and-improvised scoring of Nosferatu (Murnau, 1922) for The Stoller Hall and National Science and Media Museum. Gaunt’s synchronised electronic composition interacted with Frame Ensemble’s live improvisation in real time. Nosferatu had its first performances over Halloween in 2025 at The Stoller Hall and Pictureville Cinema at the National Science and Media Museum.

Both Echoes of the North and Nosferatu are available for performance. To enquire, please email Jonny Best.