John Warrington Van Tongeren is an American

keyboardist A keyboardist or keyboard player is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instru ...

and composer for

films A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of Visual arts, visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are gen ...

and television.

Biography

Van Tongeren's career in the entertainment business began as a

, with one of his earliest projects being the band Q, featuring Jon St. James and Stacey Swain (a.k.a. Stacey Q). Q then became SSQ, which released one album, Playback, on EMI records with John contributing four songs, most notably

Anonymous Anonymous may refer to: * Anonymity, the state of an individual's identity, or personally identifiable information, being publicly unknown ** Anonymous work, a work of art or literature that has an unnamed or unknown creator or author * Anonym ...

. After leaving SSQ in the early '80s, Van Tongeren became an in-demand session musician and began composing music for movies. As a musician, he has worked with

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Roger Daltrey Sir Roger Harry Daltrey (born 1 March 1944) is an English singer, musician and actor. He is the co-founder and lead vocalist of the Rock music, rock band the Who, known for his powerful voice and charismatic stage presence. His stage persona ear ...

, Robbie Nevil, John Parr, The Chantoozies,

Starship A starship, starcraft, or interstellar spacecraft is a theoretical spacecraft designed for interstellar travel, traveling between planetary systems. The term is mostly found in science fiction. Reference to a "star-ship" appears as early as 1 ...

Jeff Beck Geoffrey Arnold Beck (24 June 1944 – 10 January 2023) was an English musician. He rose to prominence as the guitarist of the rock band the Yardbirds, and afterwards founded and fronted the Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice. In 1975, ...

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was an American record producer, composer, arranger, conductor, trumpeter, and bandleader. Over the course of his seven-decade career, he received List of awards and nominations re ...

Al Jarreau Alwin Lopez Jarreau (March 12, 1940 – February 12, 2017) was an American singer and songwriter. His 1981 album '' Breakin' Away'' spent two years on the ''Billboard'' 200 and is considered one of the finest examples of the Los Angeles pop and ...

The Pointer Sisters The Pointer Sisters are an American female vocal group from Oakland, California, who achieved mainstream success during the 1970s and 1980s. They have had a repertoire with many genres, they have sold around 50 million records throughout their ...

, Living in a Box,

Stryper Stryper is an American Christian metal and heavy metal music, heavy metal band from La Mirada, California. The group's lineup consists of Michael Sweet (lead vocals, guitar), Oz Fox (guitar), Perry Richardson (bass), and Robert Sweet (musician), ...

, and others. He currently works out of The Blue Room, a recording studio in Los Angeles. Van Tongeren began his film scoring career as one of the original members of Media Ventures (now Remote Control Productions). During his time at Media Ventures Van Tongeren worked on films such as ''

Thelma & Louise ''Thelma & Louise'' is a 1991 American crime drama film directed by Ridley Scott and written by Callie Khouri. The film stars Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis as Louise and Thelma, two friends who embark on a road trip that ends up in unforese ...

'', ''

True Romance ''True Romance'' is a 1993 American romantic crime film directed by Tony Scott and written by Quentin Tarantino. It features an ensemble cast led by Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette, with Dennis Hopper, Val Kilmer, Gary Oldman, Brad Pitt ...

'' and ''

Drop Zone A drop zone (DZ) is a place where parachutists or parachuted supplies land. It can be an area targeted for landing by paratroopers and airborne forces, or a base from which recreational parachutists and skydivers take off in aircraft and land ...

'' with

Hans Zimmer Hans Florian Zimmer (; born 12 September 1957) is a German film score composer and music producer. He has won two Academy Awards, a BAFTA Award, five Grammy Awards, and has been nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards, Emmy Awards and a Tony ...

. He also collaborated with

Mark Mancina Mark Mancina (born 1957) is an American film composer. A veteran of Hans Zimmer's Media Ventures, Mancina has scored over sixty films and television series including ''Speed'', '' Bad Boys'', ''Twister'', ''Tarzan'', '' Training Day'', '' Brothe ...

on ''

Speed In kinematics, the speed (commonly referred to as ''v'') of an object is the magnitude of the change of its position over time or the magnitude of the change of its position per unit of time; it is thus a non-negative scalar quantity. Intro ...

'', ''

Moll Flanders ''Moll Flanders'' is a novel by Daniel Defoe, first published in 1722. It purports to be the true account of the life of the eponymous Moll, detailing her exploits from birth until old age. By 1721, Defoe had become a recognised novelist, wit ...

'', '' Fair Game'', '' Assassins'' and ''

Twister Twister most commonly refers to a tornado. Twister or Twisters may also refer to: Aviation * Pipistrel Twister, a Slovenian ultralight trike * Silence Twister, a German homebuilt aircraft design * Wings of Change Twister, an Austrian paragli ...

''. Van Tongeren then began to compose music for television series, including '' Poltergeist: The Legacy'' and the nineties revival of '' The Outer Limits'', which he won awards for. Van Tongeren again collaborated with Mancina on the ''Speed'' sequel, '' Speed 2: Cruise Control'', and then worked with Trevor Rabin on the 1998 film ''

Armageddon Armageddon ( ; ; ; from ) is the prophesied gathering of armies for a battle during the end times, according to the Book of Revelation in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. Armageddon is variously interpreted as either a literal or a ...

''. Outside of film and television Van Tongeren was asked to compose three orchestral interludes and contribute production for the late jazz drummer Tony Williams' 1996 album ''Wilderness''. In the 2000s Van Tongeren continued working on film scores, such as '' XXX'' and '' The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor'' with

Randy Edelman Randy Edelman (born June 10, 1947) is an American musician, Record producer, producer, and composer and Conducting, conductor for Film score, film and television. He began his career as a member of Broadway theatre, Broadway's pit orchestras; he ...

, ''

The Passion of the Christ ''The Passion of the Christ'' is a 2004 American epic biblical drama film co-produced and directed by Mel Gibson from a screenplay he wrote with Benedict Fitzgerald. It stars Jim Caviezel as Jesus of Nazareth, Maia Morgenstern as the Bl ...

'' with John Debney, '' Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous'' and the

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

films '' The Cheetah Girls'' and '' Princess Protection Program''. He also scored more sci-fi television series including ''

The 4400 ''The 4400'' (pronounced "the forty-four hundred") is a science fiction television series produced by CBS Paramount Network Television in association with BSkyB, Renegade 83, and American Zoetrope for USA Network in the United States and Sky On ...

'', for which he won the BMI award. His songwriting has led to platinum CDs for '' Rhythm of the Pride Lands'' – Disney, and '' The Cheetah Girls'', as well as the Top Ten hit single for Starship, " It's Not Over ('Til It's Over)" and 3 songs on the '' Wall-E Inspired by'' CD. 2010 saw projects including '' Iron Man 2'' and '' Predators'' with John Debney and movies for

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (nicknamed Nick) is an American pay television channel and the flagship property of the Nickelodeon Group, a sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on April 1, 1979, as the first ca ...

and

. John also wrote and produced songs on Disney's '' Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure'' and '' Bayou Boogie: Inspired by Princess & the Frog''. 2014, John is scoring the redux of the classic '' Tom and Jerry Show'' for WB, airing on the Cartoon Network. Staying true to the style of the original cartoons from the 1940s and '50s, the series has John writing in a mix of orchestral and old school big band styles. In 2015 Van Tongeren wrote, sang and performed the theme to DreamWorks Animation's Dawn of the Croods, now in its third season on Netflix. '' Trinom3'' is John's jazz project that has released two albums so far. '' Details are Sketchy'' and '' Just a Bit Further''.

Awards

Van Tongeren has won numerous awards, the most prestigious of which are a Daytime Emmy, BMI Award and two

Gemini Award The Gemini Awards were awards given by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television between 1986–2011 to recognize the achievements of Canada's English-language television industry. The Gemini Awards are analogous to the Emmy Awards given in t ...

s. John won an Emmy in 2019 for his scores to WB Animation's '' The Tom and Jerry Show''. In 2005 Van Tongeren won a BMI Cable Award for the television series ''

''; which he shared with Tim P.,

Stephen Phillips Stephen Phillips (28 July 1864 – 9 December 1915) was an English poet and dramatist, who enjoyed considerable popularity early in his career. Biography He was born at Summertown near Oxford, the son of the Rev. Stephen Phillips, precento ...

, George S. Clinton and Claude Foisy. In 2000 and 2001 Van Tongeren won the

for Best Original Music Score for a Dramatic Series, for '' The Outer Limits''; these were for the episodes "

Tribunal A tribunal, generally, is any person or institution with authority to judge, adjudicate on, or determine claims or disputes—whether or not it is called a tribunal in its title. For example, an advocate who appears before a court with a singl ...

" and "

Simon Says Simon Says is a children's game for three or more players. One player takes the role of "Simon" and issues instructions (usually physical actions such as "jump in the air" or "stick out your tongue") to the other players, which should be foll ...

" respectively.

Personal life

Van Tongeren grew up in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

Filmography

* '' Dawn of the Croods'' * '' The Tom and Jerry Show'' (52 episodes, 2014–2016) * '' Swindle'' * ''

The Suite Life Movie ''The Suite Life Movie'' is a 2011 American science fiction comedy-drama television film directed by Sean McNamara, written by Michael Saltzman, and starring Dylan and Cole Sprouse, Brenda Song, Debby Ryan, Matthew Timmons, John Ducey, Matth ...

'' * '' Rockin' The Wall'' * '' Den Brother'' * '' The Boy Who Cried Werewolf'' * '' Princess Protection Program'' * ''

Twitches Too ''Twitches Too'' is a 2007 American fantasy drama film released as a Disney Channel Original Movie. It is the sequel to the Disney Channel Original Movie '' Twitches'', released in 2005. The film began production in late April 2007 and was rele ...

'' * '' WarGames: The Dead Code'' * '' Christmas Is Here Again'' * ''

'' (21 episodes, 2004–2007) * '' The Initiation of Sarah'' * '' Thief'' (6 episodes) * '' Masters of Science Fiction'' (1 episode) * '' Wanted'' (5 episodes) * '' Twitches'' * ''

Empire An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...

'' * '' Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous'' * '' Son of the Mask'' (additional music) * '' Jesus the Driver'' * '' Van Helsing: The London Assignment'' * '' The Five People You Meet in Heaven'' (additional music) * '' Lilo & Stitch: The Series'' (uncredited) * '' Don: Plain & Tall'' * '' The Cheetah Girls'' * '' Malibu's Most Wanted'' * ''

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' (''TMNT'') is an American media franchise created by comic book artists Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. It follows Leonardo (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Leonardo, Donatello (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), D ...

'' (various episodes) * '' XXX'' (additional music) * '' The Scorpion King'' (additional music) * Disney's '' The Legend of Tarzan'' * '' The Outer Limits'' (54 episodes, 1995–2000) * '' Red Letters'' * '' Poltergeist: The Legacy'' (36 episodes, 1996–99) * ''

The Magnificent Seven ''The Magnificent Seven'' is a 1960 American Western film directed by John Sturges. The screenplay, credited to William Roberts, is a remake – in an Old West-style – of Akira Kurosawa's 1954 Japanese film '' Seven Samurai'' (itself init ...

'' (3 episodes, 1998–99) * '' Creature'' * ''

'' (additional music) * '' Speed 2: Cruise Control'' (additional music) * ''

Dante's Peak ''Dante's Peak'' is a 1997 American disaster film directed by Roger Donaldson, written by Leslie Bohem, and starring Pierce Brosnan, Linda Hamilton, and Charles Hallahan. The film is set in the fictional town of Dante's Peak where the inhabitant ...

'' (additional music) * '' Metro'' (additional music) * ''

'' (additional music) * '' Assassins'' (additional music) * ''

'' (additional music) * ''

'' (additional music) * '' Monkey Trouble'' (additional music) * ''

Renaissance Man A polymath or polyhistor is an individual whose knowledge spans many different subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific problems. Polymaths often prefer a specific context in which to explain their knowledge, ...

'' (additional music) * ''

'' (additional music) * '' The Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers''

Discography

: '' Love Among the Cannibals'' *

Steve Porcaro Steven Maxwell Porcaro (born September 2, 1957) is an American keyboardist, songwriter, singer, and film music composer, known as one of the founding members of the rock band Toto and the last surviving Porcaro brother (after the deaths of Jeff ...

: '' Someday/Somehow'' * Trinom3: '' Just a Bit Further'' * Trinom3: '' Details are Sketchy''

References

External links

*
John Van Tongeren
at Movie Music UK * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Van Tongeren, John American film score composers American male film score composers Place of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American keyboardists 20th-century American keyboardists Living people Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American male musicians 20th-century American male musicians Canadian Screen Award winning musicians