Composer Karl Sölve Steven Photo: Supplied
Karl Sölve Steven is one of New Zealand leading composers for film and television. He’s been described as “working at the intersection between experimental electronic, contemporary classical, and pop", and he’s received many APRA screen music awards.
One of Steven's recent film scores is for the newly-released Pike River. For many people, though, he’ll always be associated with the group Supergroove, which got back together and toured earlier this year.
RNZ Concert's David Morriss caught up with Steven to talk about Supergroove, how he got started in screen composing work, and how he approached composing the score for the Pike River movie.
"It's always a huge responsibility taking on a true story, where... real humans have suffered and are suffering. It's solemn stuff, and it needs to be taken very seriously."
"My approach is just to... approach it as I would like someone to approach a story that I had suffered through or experienced. Just with a great deal of respect and care, I suppose, because I feel that music can have something positive to offer these painful experiences."
"That's part of what music is for, at least in my life, and so I feel there's a place for it."
