Best known for his collaborations with David Lynch, most notably the dreamy, haunting music for the director's cult TV soap opera, "Twin Peaks" (1990-91). After completing his classical training, Badalamenti worked as a Borscht Belt pianist in the 1950s, as a jingle writer and as an arranger-songwriter for performers as diverse as Mel Tillis and Shirley Bassey. As Andy Badale he wrote the songs for the 1973 film "Gordon's War" and the score for "Law and Disorder" (1974).Although he continued composing, Badalamenti saw his career take off when he was hired as Isabella Rossellini's vocal coach and subsequently wrote the atmospheric score for Lynch's "Blue Velvet" (1986). He has continued a long association with the director, including scoring TV commercials and films like "Lost Highway" (1997). Badalamenti's non-Lynch credits include "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" (1989), but he seems most at home with darker fare like the noirish "Tough Guys Don't Dance" (1987) and "The Comfort of Strangers" (1990), the black comedy "Parents" (1989) and the phantasmagoric "The City of Lost Children" (1995).
Profession(s):
composer, musician, lyricist, arranger, voice coach
Sometimes Credited As:
Andy Badale
Education
Eastman School of Music Rochester, New York French horn, composition and piano
Manhattan School of Music New York, New York French horn, composition and piano
New York Film Critics Online Award Best Score "Mulholland Dr." 2001
Online Film Critics Society Award Best Original Score "Mulholland Dr." 2001
BAFTA Anthony Asquith Award for Achievement in Film Music "The Comfort of Strangers" 1991
Grammy Best Pop Instrumental Performance "Twin Peaks Theme" 1991
2001 Provided the eerily effective score for Lynch's "Mulholland Dr."
1997 Reteamed with Lynch for "Lost Highway"
1995 Provided the haunting original score for "The City of Lost Children"
1992 Scored Lynch's feature "Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me"
1990 TV composing debut for series, "Twin Peaks", created by Lynch
1990 Created album of music with David Lynch for singer Julee Cruise
1990 Collaborated with Lynch on theatrical production, "Industrial Symphony No. 1" presented at the Brooklyn Academy of Music
1990 Composed music for David Lynch's commercials for Calvin Klein's perfume, Obsession
1986 First collaboration with David Lynch, "Blue Velvet"
1974 Wrote first film score, "Law and Disorder"
1973 First film credit as Andy Badale, writing songs for Ossie Davis's "Gordon's War"
Wrote songs for commercials (for Opium, Exxon, and New York City)
