Jay Wadley is an American composer and music producer based in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, known for his work in film, television, and contemporary classical music. He is a two-time winner of the Charles Ives Award from the

American Academy of Arts and Letters The American Academy of Arts and Letters is a 300-member honor society whose goal is to "foster, assist, and sustain excellence" in American literature, Music of the United States, music, and Visual art of the United States, art. Its fixed number ...

and was nominated twice at the

Hollywood Music in Media Awards The Hollywood Music in Media Awards (HMMA) is an award organization honoring original music (Song and Score) in all forms visual media including film, TV, video games, trailers, commercial advertisements, documentaries, music videos and special p ...

under the best original score category in 2020 and 2021.

Early life and education

Wadley was born and raised in

Edmond, Oklahoma Edmond is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States. It is a part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, located in Central Oklahoma. Its population was 94,428 according to the 2020 United States census, a 16% increase from 2010. maki ...

. During his senior year at

Edmond Memorial High School Edmond Memorial High School is a public secondary school located in Edmond, Oklahoma, one of three high schools in the Edmond school district. It serves approximately 2,300 students. History The school was originally named Edmond High School b ...

, he composed his first choir piece for 60 classmates to perform at a school talent show. After graduating in 2001, he studied music composition at

Oklahoma City University Oklahoma City University (OCU) is a private university historically affiliated with the United Methodist Church and located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The university offers undergraduate bachelor's degrees, graduate master's degrees and docto ...

under composer Edward Knight. After completing his undergraduate degree, Wadley pursued a Master's degree in Music Composition at the

Yale School of Music The Yale School of Music (often abbreviated to YSM) is one of the 12 professional schools at Yale University. It offers three graduate degrees: Master of Music (MM), Master of Musical Arts (MMA), and Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA), as well as a joi ...

studying under

Aaron Jay Kernis Aaron Jay Kernis (born January 15, 1960) is a Pulitzer Prize- and Grammy Award-winning American composer serving as a member of the Yale School of Music faculty. Kernis spent 15 years as the music advisor to the Minnesota Orchestra and as direct ...

Martin Bresnick Martin Bresnick (born 1946) is a composer of contemporary classical music, film scores and experimental music. Education and early career Bresnick grew up in the Bronx, and is a graduate of New York City's specialized High School of Music and A ...

and

Ezra Laderman Ezra Laderman (29 June 1924 – 28 February 2015) was an American composer of classical music. He was born in Brooklyn. Biography Laderman was of Jewish heritage. His parents, Isidor and Leah, both emigrated to the United States from Poland. Thou ...

. During his time at Yale, he also worked as an assistant manager at the Yale Center for Studies in Music Technology, taught undergraduate composition and contributed to various projects, including orchestral works with the Yale Philharmonia.

Career

Film and television

Wadley is best known for composing the score for the 2020 film ''

I'm Thinking of Ending Things ''I'm Thinking of Ending Things'' (stylized as i'm thinking ''of'' ending things) is a 2020 American surrealist psychological thriller film written and directed by Charlie Kaufman. It is an adaptation of the 2016 novel of the same name by Ia ...

'', directed by

Charlie Kaufman Charles Stuart Kaufman (; born November 19, 1958) is an American screenwriter, film director, and novelist. Having first come to prominence for writing ''Being John Malkovich'' (1999), ''Adaptation (film), Adaptation'' (2002), and ''Eternal Sun ...

. The film, an adaptation of Iain Reid's novel, received critical acclaim, and Wadley's score was particularly praised for its haunting and atmospheric quality. Wadley incorporated orchestral textures and dissonant harmonies to reflect the film's psychological tension, drawing inspiration from avant-garde composers and classic Hollywood scores. In addition to composing the score, Wadley composed an original ballet for the film's climactic sequence, as well as a 1950s-style jingle and adaptations of songs from the musical Oklahoma!. He also composed the score for the period drama series ''

Franklin Franklin may refer to: People and characters * Franklin (given name), including list of people and characters with the name * Franklin (surname), including list of people and characters with the name * Franklin (class), a member of a historic ...

'', which presented the challenge of creating a sound that matched the show's historical setting. For ''Franklin'', Wadley combined period-accurate instrumentation with contemporary harmonic structures to evoke the era's historical depth while maintaining a modern sensibility. In 2021, Wadley scored the film ''

Swan Song The swan song (; ) is a metaphorical phrase for a final gesture, effort, or performance given just before death or retirement. The phrase refers to an ancient belief that swans sing a beautiful song just before their death while they have been ...

'', where his music was noted for its emotional depth and complementing the film's narrative. For ''Swan Song'', Wadley utilized minimalistic piano motifs and ambient soundscapes to underscore the film's themes of memory and identity.

Other works

In addition to his film and television work, Wadley has been involved in contemporary classical compositions and live performances. He has collaborated with various orchestras, ensembles, and artists on projects that explore new sonic landscapes.

Awards and recognition

Wadley's work has garnered industry recognition, including being featured twice in '' IndieWire''s "10 Best Scores of the Year" lists. His score for ''Indignation'' was included in the 2016 list, while his work on ''

Driveways A driveway (also called ''drive'' in UK English) is a private road for local access to one or a small group of structures owned and maintained by an individual or group. Driveways rarely have traffic lights, but some may if they handle heavy ...

'' and ''

'' earned him a spot on the 2020 list. His journey as a composer, from punk rock to scoring for Sundance-featured films, was profiled in an industry feature.

Selected filmography

* ''

The Wedding Banquet ''The Wedding Banquet'' is a 1993 romantic comedy film directed, produced and co-written by Ang Lee. The story concerns a gay Taiwanese immigrant man ( Winston Chao, in his film debut) who marries a mainland Chinese woman ( May Chin) to placat ...

'' (2025) * ''

Heart Eyes ''Heart Eyes'' is a 2025 American romantic comedy slasher film directed by Josh Ruben and written by Phillip Murphy, Christopher Landon (who also produces), and Michael Kennedy. The film stars Olivia Holt and Mason Gooding as a pair of cow ...

'' (2025) * ''

'' (2024) * ''

Before Before is the opposite of after, and may refer to: Literature * "Before" (short story) by Gael Baudino, 1996 * ''Before'' by Anna Todd, 2015 Music * ''Before'' (Gold Panda EP), 2009 * ''Before'' (James Blake EP), 2020 * "Before" (song), a 19 ...

'' (2024) * '' The Friend'' (2024) * ''

We Grown Now ''We Grown Now'' is a 2023 American drama film written, directed and co-produced by Minhal Baig. It stars Blake Cameron James, Gian Knight Ramirez, S. Epatha Merkerson, Avery Holliday, Ora Jones, Lil Rel Howery and Jurnee Smollett. ''We Grown N ...

'' (2023) * ''

Fire Island Fire Island is the large center island of the outer barrier islands parallel to the South Shore of Long Island in the U.S. state of New York. In 2012, Hurricane Sandy once again divided Fire Island into two islands. Together, these two isl ...

'' (2022) * ''

Tell Me Lies Tell Me Lies may refer to: * ''Tell Me Lies'' (film), a 1968 documentary film * ''Tell Me Lies'' (TV series), a 2022 drama series * "Tell Me Lies", a 1997 song by Natalie Cole featured in the film ''Cats Don't Dance'' See also * "Little Lies ...

'' (2022) * ''

'' (2021) * ''

'' (2020) * ''

Long Shot In photography, filmmaking and video production, a wide shot (sometimes referred to as a full shot or long shot) is a shot that typically shows the entire object or human figure and is usually intended to place it in some relation to its surro ...

'' (2017) * ''

Indignation Indignation is a complex and discrete emotion that is triggered by social emotions and social environments. Feelings of anger and disgust are some emotions that constitute indignation. The feeling of indignation can occur when one is mistreated ...

'' (2016)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wadley, Jay Living people 21st-century American composers 21st-century American male musicians American film score composers American male film score composers American male television composers American television composers Edmond Memorial High School alumni Musicians from Oklahoma Oklahoma City University alumni People from Edmond, Oklahoma Record producers from Oklahoma Yale School of Music alumni Year of birth missing (living people)