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While you won’t see the composer himself at “The World of Hans Zimmer — A New Dimension” on stage on Oct. 3 at Desert Diamond Arena, Zimmer curated the show and is its producer and musical director.
You will see Matt Dunkley at the show, though. The conductor will lead the musical portion of this multimedia spectacular, which blends Academy Award winner Zimmer’s scores from films such as “The Lion King,” “Dune,” “Gladiator” and “Interstellar” synchronized with epic film sequences from the movies.
Like Zimmer, orchestrator Dunkley’s accomplishments also fit on a much-curled scroll, including Grammy nominations. Interwoven with Zimmer, his portfolio of movie work features over 200 films, and he’s worked on TV shows and on video games. He’s also collaborated with pop icons like Billie Eilish and Lizzo. He’s conducted at venues from the Hollywood Bowl to the Sydney Opera House.
It all began with a trumpet.
“I started out as a classical trumpet player,” Dunkley tells New Times. “I studied at music college in London and worked in symphony concerts, theater and more. I started getting into arranging. I found I was a better arranger than I was a trumpet player,” he laughs.
Dunkley says that in the ’90s, a lot of pop bands wanted live string music in London. He did that, and the path eventually led to film work. “230-odd films later, that’s kind of what I do,” he says, laughing.
He spent a lot of time as an orchestra member with his trumpet, but connected immediately with conducting. “It was terrifying, but it felt right, and I just knew that’s where I wanted to be. I’ve been so lucky to have a career where I can work on so many amazing movie scores and work with these incredible artists. I lucked out,” he says.
Before conducting the Zimmer events, he’d already been working with the composer for quite some time.
“I worked with Hans in the studio for over 20 years,” he recounts. “The guy who was doing it before is a fabulous conductor called Gavin Greenaway, who works a lot with Hans, too. He’d done a lot of these tours and decided he wanted to spend more time at home, as he’d been on the road for like five years. Hans and his production team came to me and said, ‘Do you fancy going out (on the road) with this?’ and I did. I must have done something right because they keep booking me.”
With so much material to choose from and so many moving pieces to creating these live shows, Dunkley says it can be an intense process and one that’s “very collaborative.”
“We talk about the program and how we’re gonna do it. I’m also involved in selecting players and some parts of the audition process. It’s a creative position that comes with a lot of responsibility but also with a great deal of creative satisfaction.”
The studio environment is so different from the live show, and Dunkley loves both.
“I’ve spent the last 30 years of my career being in the studio; I’ll soon be at Abbey Road doing another film score, and I love it. This tour — the first time I did it was last autumn in Europe, and it was lovely to get in front of people and get that emotional feedback from the audience.
“We all need that sometimes in our lives, I think. And, you know, the instant reaction of how this wonderful film music moves people is fantastic. It’s like a drug; it’s really cool. I can see my hands love doing it, as well.”
To get those responses, Dunkley can’t emphasize how important preparation is for him. “You have to do the homework and know every inch of the music. I study the scores, we rehearse, and then it’s all about transferring the energy to the live performance. You have to commit 100%.”
The conductor definitely isn’t interested in taking all the credit.
“We have these amazing performers; just an incredible orchestra and soloists who all commit 100%. We have a woman on cello who just goes crazy every night, and it’s wonderful to see. The energy is infectious. All of it makes each show a very special evening.” Dunkley also mentions the professionalism that goes into all of the aspects of the show, from lighting to stage design.
And about that trumpet: We asked if he still plays it.
“I do a bit, yeah,” he says. “I’m actually gonna play it on this tour. There’s one number near the beginning of the show where I’m gonna have a little noodle on the trumpet.”
