Jason Cullimore is a talented and successful composer of orchestral music and film score. He is also a creative writer of compelling instrumental jazz, electronica and world music.
Achievements
Jason Cullimore is one of the most recognized composers in Saskatchewan, having won numerous awards. They include: a Grand Prize in the Jazz Category of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest; top-four placings in the instrumental category of the Unisong Contest and electronic category of the John Lennon Contest; and eleven other finalist or higher placings in various songwriting contests. He has earned a Gemini nomination (the Canadian Emmy) for the soundtrack to the television show 2030 CE, shared with Ross Nykiforuk and Rob Bryanton; a Saskatchewan Showcase Award for his score to the film “Slatland”; and four major provincial and national arts grants to compose and record new jazz, choral and classical music. His piece “Amphibian” was included on a compilation of the “best emerging artists in Canada” presented as part of the in-flight entertainment on Air Canada. He has also been performed by the Regina and Victoria Symphony Orchestras, and five of his works have appeared in Regina Symphony Orchestra New Music Festivals. He has written and recorded jazz suites for live players, and helped produce a concert event called Constellations, staged in Regina, Saskatchewan, featuring the electronic funk band Lazerblade performing with a brass section and string quartet. He recently released his first album: “Strange Dreams” is a compilation of Jason’s best electro-symphonic and ambient electronic music (it includes four tracks that have placed top-ten in the John Lennon and USA songwriting contests).
Leadership
Jason has leadership experience in a theatrical setting. He was music director for “No Limits”, the arts gala of the 2005 Canada Summer Games. Under the direction of playwright Joey Tremblay, Jason joined the core creative team and helped fifty emerging artists from across Canada create and stage a major theatrical event featured at the end of the games. Jason’s music was an inspiration for the event, and the production included live performances of Jason’s scores as well as recordings of his electronic and classical music. Jason was also chief composer and co-organizer of Kathleen Irwin’s “Crossfiring”, an all-day arts event mounted in rural Saskatchewan which drew patrons from a wide area. He wrote scores for live choral and jazz ensemble performance, and helped to develop the themes of the event. Among numerous other projects, he has contributed scores to a play by Regina’s esteemed Globe Theater and ballet performances by the Youth Ballet Company of Saskatchewan.
Studio
At home with sequencers and samplers since beginning to compose electronically on the Commodore 64 in the 1980’s, Jason has also written for live musicians on numerous occasions. His studio has several 64-bit PC’s and some of the latest and most authentic-sounding instrumental, synthesizer and vocal sample libraries available. They include:
- A wide range of libraries by EastWest (e.g. Ministry of Rock, Pianos Gold, Fab Four, Stormdrum 2, Silk and Symphonic Choirs)
- A wide range of libraries by Vienna Symphonic Library (e.g. Special Edition, Solo and Appassionata Strings, Harps and Saxophones)
- Symphobia (for epic orchestral music)
- Electri6ity (for electric guitars)
- Stylus RMX xpanded (for acoustic, world and electronic drum loops)
- Omnisphere (for colorful acoustic and synthetic sounds)
- Evolve (for contemporary electronica score)
He will be adding Los Angeles Scoring Strings and Tonehammer’s Requiem epic choir library by the end of June, 2010.
Life and times
Jason has composed music since the late 1980’s. In his childhood in Regina, he studied piano and organ performance. At Queen’s University, he earned a B.Sc in biology, but found himself spending his happiest times writing music. He switched gears for his Master’s Degree and studied music psychology and cognition in the Queen’s Psychology Department. He continued to compose, with his first professional work being scores for theatrical productions and student film projects in Kingston, ON. His music improved rapidly under the mentorship of Queen’s music school composition professor Norman Sherman, who introduced Jason to contemporary art music by the likes of Stockhausen and Messaien. After graduating with a thesis on the cognitive representation of musical harmony, Jason returned to Regina determined to pursue a career in soundtrack and concert music. He intended to stay in Regina for only a few months, but an encounter with Rob Bryanton of Regina’s Talking Dog Studios led to composing work on popular children’s programs “Incredible Story Studio” and “2030 CE”, which won a Gemini for its soundtrack. Jason pursued every opportunity he was given, writing for chamber ensembles, symphony orchestras, film and television productions, theater and ballet productions, and recording projects. His tenacity and versatility has allowed Jason to become one of Saskatchewan’s most successful and noted composers of both soundtracks and concert music. Today, he continues to broaden his range and aims to take on major projects originating both in Saskatchewan and larger markets such as Vancouver, Toronto, and Los Angeles.