Music Composer for Film and Television
sonic storytelling by acclaimed composer David Stone Hamilton
His new soundtrack album is available now on all major platforms.
It all begins with your creative vision.
Collaborative Exploration
As a filmmaker, you're not just getting a film composer, you're gaining a collaborator in the exploration of sonic possibilities.
Music is the universal language, but it’s often very challenging to describe with words. That’s where years of experience help me in understanding your creative vision. When I work with a director, we use score references, scripts, storyboards, animatics, and other tools to communicate about the kind of film score we want to develop.
Before the film even goes into production, I work with you collaboratively to create, edit, and refine a musical sketch piece. This piece is a musical palette unique to your project and its creative vision. This is a time to experiment, try unconventional instruments and combinations, push musical boundaries, and create a truly unique sonic identity for your film becomes a musical palette based off your vision.
This music sets the tone for the film and many directors I’ve worked with find it perfect for helping actors on set to understand direction.
When it comes time to write the score to the edited film we hit the ground running with our musical palette and themes already in place. Now it’s time to take those elements to the next level as we explore the incredible synergy between moving picture and music.
The Way you tell your story makes all the difference.
Movie music is more than just background noise. It is a powerful tool that can shape the entire cinematic experience.
Let’s redefine the boundaries of sound in storytelling and create a truly immersive cinematic experience that lingers long after the credits roll. My scores are meticulously crafted to complement the visual elements, heighten the drama, intensify emotions, and seamlessly integrate with the overall storytelling.
In the convergence of sound design and film music, offers a unique and innovative approach that pushes the boundaries of what is possible in audio storytelling. Contact me to discuss how we can bring your project to life through the transformative power of a unified sonic experience.
Elevating Movie Music
Contact David to discuss your next project
Innovative Hybrid music Scoring
The boundaries between Electronic and acoustic film music are becoming increasingly blurred.
What I bring to the table is not just a convergence of these two worlds but a seamless integration that transcends traditional distinctions. I have developed a hybrid approach, somewhere between the synthetic and the natural, that considers the sonic landscape as a whole, offering viewers a truly immersive cinematic experience.
Sound Design and Film Music
In many cinematic projects, sound design and film music are treated as separate entities. However, I take a holistic approach, considering both elements as integral parts of a unified sonic canvas. This marriage of sound design and film music allows for a more cohesive and impactful storytelling experience.
Creating Atmosphere Through Soundscapes
Rather than viewing sound design and film music in isolation, I focus on creating immersive atmospheres that envelop the audience. The ambient sounds and musical themes work in harmony, guiding the viewer through a sensory journey that elicits emotional resonance.
Dark Encounter Official Soundtrack
“A dark score carrying a hefty doses of melodic emotion. It can be done! I believe this score makes the movie a hell of a lot better.” (Main Titles)
MovieScore Media once again teams up with David Stone Hamilton on the composer’s latest collaboration with director Carl Strathie. While their previous movie, Solis, was an exciting thriller set in outer space, Dark Encounter has a more somber tone with supernatural elements. The film follows a grieving family who has yet to learn the truth about the mysterious disappearance of their 8 year-old girl. When strange lights appear in the nearby forest, the family is exposed to an inexplicably strange phenomenon that rattles them to the core. The origin of the lights appear to be visitors from another world that may be related to the mystery that shattered the family.
We wanted the score to explore themes of guilt and loss, and have music reflect the way tragedy can tear a family apart,” explains David about the film. ”When visitors from another world appear in the form of strange lights, we used avant-garde vocals to evoke a sense of terror and mystery, while hinting at a very human aspect in these extraterrestrial encounters. As the true purpose of the alien presence is revealed, the vocals transform into heavenly choral textures and the orchestra likewise becomes much grander in scale. We wanted this contrast in musical style and instrumentation to signal a major shift in the story, while using strong emotional themes as a common thread throughout the film.
Custom Music & sound design for Sonic Experiences
In collaboration with VTProDesign, David Stone Hamilton was invited to craft a sonic experience celebrating the announcement of Delta Air Lines as an inaugural founding partner of the LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Los Angeles 2028 and unveiling the design of the new A350 plane.
Meet David
DAVID STONE HAMILTON is a classically trained composer known for his emotionally-charged scores and his unique approach to film music, integrating a wide range of musical styles, from rock to electronic to orchestral, throughout his work.
Crafting immersive sonic experiences for film, television, web, and new media is an art that elevates storytelling to new heights. As a seasoned film composer, I specialize in creating captivating film music that resonates with audiences and enhances the emotional impact of visual narratives.
Ghoster Official Trailer – Sophie Proctor, J.R. Brown, Josh Escayg
PLOT: An inquisitive girl and her father must unravel the secrets of Echoville Manor which has held the world's cutest spirit Ghoster captive for 50 years, before Yuto the ghost dragon wipes them all out in his quest for immortality.
Watch the official Trailer for GHOSTER (2022). Original Score Composed by David Stone Hamilton
Recent Film Music Tracks
Soundtrack reviews
"David Stone Hamilton delivers a soundtrack that totally caught me off guard. This is not your typical space based score. Hamilton delivers theme after theme that reflect the characters at the heart of the movie as well as the building urgency of the narrative... If you love scores that are packed with multi-layered themes, that draw out an emotional response in you, then Solis is well worth adding to your collection."
— Review Graveyard
“There were several instances were I was reminded of the flavour of Jerry Goldsmith's score for Poltergeist. It's not that this pays homage, more that it shares common roots and gives off the same emotional connection, being both creepy and beautifully orchestrated at the same time.
Yet another fantastic score from Stone Hamilton that you should immediately add to your wish list.”
— UK Reviewer
“There’s a distinctly otherworldly sound in the kaleidoscopic “Memories”, dreamily slow and smooth. A drive and determination is unmistakable as we head into “Best Odds I’ve Had All Day”, with the countdown timer musically ticking down here through col legno strings, and the music most closely resembling Steven Price’s Gravity (written for a superficially similar film, so it makes sense). But this piece gets much bigger than that (fine) score ever did, with a truly explosive finale.”
— MovieWave
"“There is a 15 minute, beautifully scored, nearly dialogue-free sequence which elevates the entire film to something really quite special. It’s a clammy, dread-inducing sequence that is almost physically painful to watch; one of the single most powerful sequences I’ve seen in a horror film...”
— The Geek Goddesses
SOLIS
Written and Directed by Carl Strathie strathiefilm.com
Cinematography by Bart Sienkiewicz bartsienkiewicz.com
Solis Official Soundtrack
“A very satisfying blend of classic film music techniques with modern elements” (Movie Wave)
MovieScore Media’s latest discovery takes listeners on an unexpected journey to outer space with a thematically rich, symphonic score by up and coming composer David Stone Hamilton. Written and directed by Carl Strathie, Solis is a suspenseful space bound story contemplating the dangers mankind is willing to take in the name of exploration. Although its genre is technically a thriller, it also has a very human story to it, as Troy Holloway (Steven Ogg), through the help of his rescuer Commander Roberts (Alice Lowe), comes to terms with a loss in his past – the death of a loved one – and the subsequent isolation from his family that it caused.
“Solis is a survival space thriller, with the main character in a race against time to meet his rescuer,” explains composer David Stone Hamilton about the score. “We wanted to create a score that would reflect the increasing tension and impending doom with a musical “ticking time bomb” employed in different ways. Sometimes it’s literally a ticking clock, and other times we use modernist percussion effects or col legno strings to give this effect. Our Solar theme represents the grandeur and almost hypnotic allure of the Sun as well as the existential threat it poses to our protagonist. Another prominent theme was the rising half step or minor second interval, which is a nod to John Williams’ brilliant Jaws score to create the inherent tension with this dissonant interval. We also reserved some moments for a Korean instrument named the Haegeum, which has a truly otherworldly sound to it.”