David Fleming (composer)

David Fleming is an American composer. He works in the production of music for films, television, and interactive media. He has worked with composers Atli Örvarsson and Hans Zimmer. He won the ASCAP Screen Music Award for Television Score of the Year in 2024 for his work on ''The Last of Us''. Some of his credits include ''Blue Planet II'', ''Hillbilly Elegy'', and '' Mr. & Mrs. Smith''.

Career

Early career

David Fleming studied musical composition at State University of New York at Purchase. From there he started his career in New York advertising companies, creating music for ringtones and liquor commercials. He won the BMI Foundation's Pete Carpenter Fellowship and moved to Los Angeles where he began writing music for major films.

2017–present

In 2017, Fleming co-composed the BBC series ''Blue Planet II'' (2017) alongside Hans Zimmer, starting a collaborative relationship that saw Fleming contribute to films like ''The Lion King'' (2019), ''Dune'' (2021), and '' Top Gun: Maverick'' (2022), and co-compose films together such as ''Hillbilly Elegy'', ''The Unforgivable'', and ''The Night Logan Woke Up''. Their work on ''Blue Planet II'' earned the score award nominations with the Jerry Goldsmith Awards and the International Film Music Critics Awards.

Fleming co-composed the original score for the television series ''The Last of Us'' (2023–present) with Gustavo Santaolalla. Fleming's work was inspired by real-world sounds within a decayed civilization. He largely worked on action-heavy music for the series, such as a large action sequence in the fifth episode. Like Santaolalla, he wanted to keep his score minimalistic and exercised restraint to match series co-creator Craig Mazin's goal of "having the viewer feel that they're part of the scene rather than be observing the scene". He selected specific instruments that paired appropriately with Santaolalla's work; rather than using a generic drum, he wanted one with "personality, whether it be a rusty barrel or like cracking wood or bowing, rusty metal".

In 2024, Fleming scored projects including '' Mr. & Mrs. Smith'' and ''Jim Henson Idea Man'', for which he was nominated for Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series and Outstanding Music Composition for a Documentary Series or Special, respectively. On June 7, 2024, Fleming performed his work to ''Mr. & Mrs. Smith'' at the ''Deadline'' Sound & Screen TV Event at Royce Hall at UCLA. Lead actor Donald Glover guided Fleming's score to focus on trust and the relationship between the characters. For ''Jim Henson Idea Man'', Fleming wanted to carry the spirit of Jim Henson through the score. He also composed music for the film ''Damsel'' (2024).

Filmography

Film

Television

Other Credits

Awards and nominations

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Fleming, David
Year of birth missing (living people)
21st-century American composers
21st-century American conductors (music)
21st-century American male musicians
21st-century classical composers
American classical trombonists
American contemporary classical composers
American electronic musicians
American film score composers
American male classical composers
American male film score composers
American male television composers
American music arrangers
American television composers
American video game composers
Composers for trombone
Concert band composers
Electronic composers
Living people
Primetime Emmy Award winners
State University of New York at Purchase alumni