Melissa Parmenter is a pianist, composer and BAFTA-nominated film producer. She released her critically acclaimed mini-album Messapica in 2020, receiving support from the likes of Classic FM, Scala Radio, The Line of Best Fit, and Edith Bowman's ‘Soundtracking’ podcast. A beautifully crafted fusion of piano and cello, it was inspired by the church bells and olive trees of Puglia, the region of Italy she calls home.
Working alongside director Michael Winterbottom she produced many important films such as ‘The Road to Guantanamo’; ‘Greed’; ‘The Trip’ series with Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon; ‘This England’, starring Kenneth Branagh; and ‘Shoshana’ which recently premiered at the BFI London Film Festival.
Her passion for music and film often comes together through her scoring work, composing music for films such as ‘Genova’, starring Colin Firth and Catherine Keener, and ‘The Killer Inside Me’, starring Casey Affleck, Jessica Alba and Kate Hudson.
A brilliant and experienced pianist, her performances mix her intoxicating classical works alongside her vivacious sense of humour.
Melissa> Most of my music starts with improvisation. Because my music is primarily piano-based I improvise new themes on the piano and record them as I go.
Then, using these fragments I construct the piece working alongside the computer and the live piano. I use Logic and I have recently discovered some fantastic new software instruments.
Software instrument libraries are so brilliant nowadays they have taken on an important role in the development of composition, and their sounds can inspire the direction of the musical work.
Melissa> Composing is often a very solitary experience. For me, because I combine my work as a film producer which is a very social, people-focused job, I find writing music a wonderful release and I am so grateful to get to sit alone and write music.
When working on a film score in particular, I love collaborating with other composers. Everyone comes with their own strengths and creative ideas which is really exciting to explore. When working as part of a team one also gets the chance to combine the best of everyone’s creativity.
I have composed film scores both alone (on the film ‘Genova’) and also with Joel Cadbury (‘The Killer Inside Me’, ‘Comes a Bright Day’) – Joel was fantastic to work with – we found that our musical styles really complimented each other and it’s great to have someone else to bounce ideas around with.
Melissa> I love going into Air Edel to mix my music with Nick Taylor and to record on the incredible Steinway grand piano that is in the studio.
Nick and I have collaborated on most of my music including my album ‘Messapica’ and my most recent EP ‘North Sea’. Nick brings such warmth and magic to the recordings and I love adding to the mix some of my recorded sounds that I have gathered over the years – like the Camogli church bells on the track ‘Mezzogiorno’ which I recorded when I was in Italy shooting a film.
I also love to perform my music live with Harry Escott on the cello. Most recently we played together at our gig at the Colchester Arts Centre last October.
Melissa> My experience is more in film and TV however I imagine that with the arrival of AI there will be a real challenge ahead for the industry in terms of where music will be sourced and how new music will be commissioned, and how we protect composers’ work.
Melissa> Rather unsurprisingly, both Philip Glass and Michael Nyman are my musical heroes. The breathtaking scores for ‘Mishima’ (Philip Glass) and ‘The Piano’ (Michael Nyman) left a huge impression on me as a child, growing up learning the piano. It was so exciting to discover the power of music and film and the magic that is made when they work together. Tori Amos was also a great influence for me, her composition on the piano and her songs are so powerful and inspiring and watching her play piano live is mind blowing!
Melissa> I love minimalism – both in music and in all areas in life! So that is why I love music by Philip Glass, Michael Nyman, Yann Tiersen, Max Richter, Arvo Pärt – their atmospheric minimalist style lends itself perfectly for film. Michael Nyman has a voice unlike any other and his music has so much energy and urgency about it but also with such beautiful melodies. Michael’s score to ‘Wonderland’ will always stay with me.
Melissa> I am very lucky to have my studio in the countryside where I can just open the door and hear the most incredible symphony of bird song in the garden – no need for a speaker and Spotify.
When working alone, I don’t really put background music on as I like to stay fully focused on the task at hand. I also like to give my ears a rest and save them for my piano practice and composition.
Melissa> I agree that our listening experience has changed so much over the years. As with so many areas in life, there is so much choice – and at the end of the day, I just love to listen to the music that moved me when I was growing up – on vinyl or recently we bought a CD player and I have loved listening again to all my CDs.
In terms of my work, I think because I am very piano-focused and I have my grand piano in my studio I am very connected to just the beautiful acoustic sound of the piano and that hasn’t really changed for me despite all the various listening experiences available now.
Melissa> I have never thought about a ‘listening diet’! I definitely listen to too many Radio 4 current affairs programs which I think is inevitable given what’s going on in the world. I would like to listen to more music as I did when I was growing up – but because of the nature of my work and a busy family home I often don’t get the chance. I play music when I am in the bath. I love BBC Night Tracks and I like listening to Radio 3 to discover new classical pieces I haven’t heard before. Also, given I work in film and film music has always been my passion, I like to dip into the odd film score – old and new.
Melissa> I have a hard drive of sounds that I recorded over the years. For about 15 years whilst I was producing on films shooting all around the world (Italy, Pakistan, India, Iran, France, Greece) I often took with me my mini recorder so I could record some sound memories – like trains, tunnels, the sea, beaches, night sounds, alley ways, birds, bells, conversations… I love to incorporate them into my music if I can.
Melissa> I love swimming and the sea. I watched the documentary ‘The Deepest Breath’ about the incredible Italian freediver Alessia Zecchini. One of my favourite films growing up was ‘The Big Blue’ (such a fantastic soundtrack by Eric Serra). I have been studying underwater sounds and hunting out recordings – all with a view to complete my water inspired new piano album hopefully this year!
Melissa> I have travelled a lot while producing our Michael Winterbottom films – we shot in India, Pakistan, Iran, France, US, Italy, Greece and I loved it, particularly travelling for work where you get to properly interact with the local teams and experience their culture and the sounds of the cities. I love the church bells in Italy, the sounds of the cicadas, the sea, the call to prayer blasting out the mosques in Morocco, the chaotic city sounds of Shanghai and Mumbai.
Melissa> My feelings haven’t changed since I was young and I still feel that same passion for music and sound. Perhaps with age, the intensity of those feelings may fade a little but the sound memories don’t. I don’t listen to as much music as I would like to as I don’t get the time sadly, but it is always there for me.