Tim Maurice Named BMI Film Scoring Scholarship Recipient

The scholarship was awarded at a presentation by BMI composer David Newman.
April 8, 2009

Composer Tim Maurice has been named the 2009 BMI Film Scoring Scholarship recipient at the annual BMI Day at Berklee College of Music. Maurice received the scholarship at a presentation by BMI composer David Newman, in whose name this year's scholarship is given; Doreen Ringer-Ross, BMI vice president, film/TV relations; Berklee President Roger H. Brown; and Berklee Film Scoring Department chair Dan Carlin.

The BMI Film Scoring Scholarship is a yearly tuition scholarship awarded on the basis of compositional maturity and talent, as well as financial need. Each year, the scholarship is given in the name of a noted BMI composer. Newman, this year's honored composer, taught a master class on film scoring as part of the ceremony.

Tim Maurice, a native of Oxford, Maine, began studying classical piano at the age of 6. While in 8th grade, Maurice began taking piano lessons at Bates College with Natasha Chances, who studied with Alfred Cortot at L'Ecole Normale de Musique in Paris. In high school he gave several classical performances at Bates prior to attending the college. Maurice transferred to Berklee in 2007 to major in film scoring. That year, he entered in Berklee's third annual film scoring contest and placed as a finalist. He has since composed music for independent films; worked on the music preparation team for Captain Drake, a film produced by NBC; and scored the first two pilot episodes of the webisode series Oldbury Hill. In early 2008, his piece "Lights of Laramie" was used in performances of The Laramie Project at Boston Center of the Arts.

David Newman is a celebrated Academy Award-nominated film composer whose work includes AnastasiaIce AgeThe War of the RosesBrave Little Toaster, Throw Mama from the Train, HoffaThe Nutty ProfessorThe Spirit, and the soundtracks to dozens of the more popular films of the past few decades. Newman's musical credits predate his compositions. An alumnus of the University of Southern California, he first became an accomplished violinist and conductor, and he has conducted the Los Angeles Philharmonic on several occasions. His work on the violin is heard on the soundtrack to Close Encounters of the Third Kind. He is part of a Hollywood film music/scoring dynasty that includes his father Alfred, uncle Lionel, brother Thomas, and cousins Joey and Randy. The recipient of 12 BMI Film Music Awards, Newman served as music director for the Sundance Institute for four years. In 2007, he was elected president of the Film Music Society.                                                 

"This scholarship continues our mission of supporting young and emerging composers at the college level," stated BMI's Ringer-Ross. "We support Berklee's commitment to excellence in music and film scoring and their determination to further the growth of talented, trained, and educated composers."

Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) is an American performing right organization that represents more than 375,000 songwriters, composers and music publishers in all genres of music and more than 6.5 million works. BMI's latest financial results, $901 million for its 2008 fiscal year, are the highest performing right collections for any copyright organization in the world. BMI has represented the most popular and beloved music from around the world for over 65 years. The U.S. corporation collects license fees from businesses that use music, which it then distributes as royalties to the musical creators and copyright owners it represents.