Contact UsMembers Area Login
Photo of Martin Kiszko

Martin Kiszko

Professional

Composer/Lyricist: Composer
Genre: Media
Email: martin.kiszko@blueyonder.co.uk
Website: www.martinkiszko.com

Biography

Born Leeds, UK, Martin Kiszko is of Polish-British origin; his family footfalls echo around the marshy soils of Belarussian villages as well as the streets of council estates in Leeds. He began his music studies at seven and was accepted at the Leeds City College of Music at age ten.

After completing a BA in Music, Fine Arts and Intermedia and a PGC in Film at Bristol University, Martin assisted veteran film composer Edward Williams with whom he co-founded an innovative inter-media performance group. The ensemble performed Martin’s work Cairoglyph, written for actor Tony Robinson, and The Stratagem of Nauplius which was premiered at the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival.

Between 1984-1997 he composed and orchestrated over 200 scores for film and television. Amongst these were the landmark natural history series Land of the Eagle and Realms of the Russian Bear, in which he pioneered the recording of music samples on film locations as well as using ethnomusicological research to assist the natural history score. He subsequently introduced the palette of East European orchestras to BBC Natural History programmes such as Alien Empire and Battle of the Sexes.

The diversity of Martin’s material also embraces BBC, ITV and C4 dramas Black Hearts in Battersea, The Levels, The Uninvited and Zastrozzi – a Romance. His many well known TV signature tunes include BBC’S Newsround, Food and Drink, Omnibus, Public Eye, Wildlife on Two, and The Natural World.  In addition, he has released eight soundtrack albums with the City of Prague Philharmonic, the Munich Symphony Orchestra, the London Film Orchestra and the Emerald Ensemble. His score for the BBC’S Dreamworks promo (requested by and made for Steven Spielberg and the BBC) was awarded Best Music Video at Missoula Film Festival USA.

During the winter of 2001 Martin voyaged to Antarctica where he composed, performed, and claimed a world first for a spoof Antarctic National Anthem (Someone had to do it!) The visit also provided the inspiration for his cantata Sea Star with words by Britain’s foremost woman poet Anne Ridler OBE.

In 2003 he was commissioned by Elektrodome to produce and direct a multi-media work Inua using state-of-the-art technology ‘Soundbeam’. The work was premiered at Worcester Cathedral on December 16th 2003 and won the 2004 British Academy of Composers and Songwriters Composer of the Year Award in the Education and Community category.

Most recently Martin has worked as Music Consultant on Aardman Animation’s computer game of Wallace and Gromit – The Curse of the Were-Rabbit movie, and has written a cantata A Radius of Curves to celebrate the 2006 Isambard Kingdom Brunel 200th birthday celebrations.

For the early part of 2007 he has composed, conducted and performed the score for the new major movie The Killing of John Lennon.

In addition to his composition, Martin completed a PhD on the migration of the balalaika, published an article in The Galpin Society Journal and wrote the entry for ‘Balalaika’ in the New Grove Dictionary of Music. He also wrote and directed the first UK video on the craft of film music composition – The Art of the Film Score.

Important Works Performances
  1. ZASTROZZI - A ROMANCE (C4) (1985) Gothic drama feature and 4x50' series. 102 minute score for chamber ensemble. Recorded CTS 2 Wembley.
  2. LAND OF THE EAGLE (BBC) (1986) 8x50' series. 160 minute score for London Film Orchestra, ethnic instruments and electroinc samples. Recorded CTS 1.
  3. REALMS OF THE RUSSIAN BEAR (BBC) (1992) 6x50' series. 94 minute score for London Film Orchestra, Feenist Balalaika Ensemble and musicians from the former USSR republics. Recorded CTS 1 and Moscow Melodiya Studios.
  4. THE NINETIES (BBC) (1993) 8x40' series. 82 minute score for London Film Orchestra. Recorded CTS 2.
  5. ALIEN EMPIRE (BBC) (1995) 6x30' series. 90 minute score for Munich Symphony Orchestra. Recorded Munich Recording Studios.
  6. BLACK HEARTS IN BATTERSEA (BBC) (1995) 6x30' drama series. 79 minute score for London Philharmonia. Recorded CTS 3.
  7. THE UNINVITED (ITV) (1997) 4x60' drama series. 85 minute score for London Film Orchestra and electronic samples. Recorded at CTS 3.
  8. DREAMWORKS PROMO (1997) 1x8' natural history film for Steven Spielberg and BBC. City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra. Winner, Best Music Video, Missoula Film Festival, USA, 1997. Recorded at Smecky Studios, Prague.
  9. BATTLE OF THE SEXES (BBC) (1998) 6x30' series. 82 minute score for City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra. Recorded at Smecky Studios, Prague.
  10. Album soundtracks: THE OCELLUS SUITE (EMI), THE UNINVITED (Oceandeep), THE AGE DEMANDED (Kiszko), BATTLE OF THE SEXES (Silva Screen), THE MILLENNIUM MARCH (Kiszko), SEA STAR (Kiszko/Ridler)
  11. THE KILLING OF JOHN LENNON (2006) Feature Film
  1. 31/03/2006: A RADIUS OF CURVES Cantata
  2. 30/06/2001: SEA STAR Cantata