Most famous for his songwriting in the new wave band The Suburbs, Emmy-winning composer Chan Poling has gravitated lately to performing pop music from other iconic songwriters. His jazz trio, The New Standards, features Chan on piano, John Munson (of Semisonic fame) on bass, and Steve Roehm on vibes. In episode 26 of Composer Quest, Chan talks with me about his arranging, songwriting, and film scoring.
[audio:https://charliemccarron.com/mediaftp/composerquest/composer-quest-026-chan-poling.mp3]Right click to download Ep. 26, or open in iTunes. For more about Chan Poling, visit his website.
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Episode Soundtrack
- 0:00 – “Love is the Law” – The Suburbs (Love is the Law, 1984)
- 0:57 – “And I Love Her (The Beatles)” – The New Standards (Sunday Morning Coming Down, 2012)
- 10:26 – “Music for Boys” – The Suburbs (1982)
- 17:03 – “Call Your Boyfriend (Robyn)” – The New Standards (Sunday Morning Coming Down, 2012)
- 18:01 – “Essence (Lucinda Williams)” – The New Standards (Sunday Morning Coming Down, 2012)
- 18:34 – “No Cars Go (Arcade Fire)” – The New Standards (Sunday Morning Coming Down, 2012)
- 20:35 – Composition for the film Fritz: The Walter Mondale Story
- 21:33 – Composition for the film My Brother and I / The Founding of Mayo Clinic
- 24:24 – “Love is the Law” – The New Standards (The New Standards, 2005)
- 26:58 – “Cows” – The Suburbs (Ladies and Gentlemen, The Suburbs Have Left the Building, 1992)
- 27:29 – “Sunday Morning Coming Down” – The New Standards (Sunday Morning Coming Down, 2012)
Further Listening
- John Adams – “The Chairman Dances” from Nixon in China (New York City imagery)
- Sufjan Stevens – Come On Feel The Illinoise (Using a place as songwriting inspiration)
- Harold Budd (Chan’s mentor at CalArts)
- Morton Subotnik (Taught electronic music at CalArts)
- Philip Glass
- Muse – “New Born” (Philip Glass influence)
