Meet the Twins
Sometimes, dreams lay hidden–dormant, just waiting to be discovered. Sometimes, you stumble into them yourself. Sometimes, they are seen in you and awoken by those you love. That’s how it happened for us.
It began in high school. We found a guitar in the garage and our Dad showed us a few chords. We began playing and found an interest that we had no idea even existed. It was then that music in general became a hobby, something fun. By the time our older brother’s birthday came around, we had become frequent visitors to the music aisles at local stores. So thinking it would be a funny gift, we bought Joe the soundtrack to Raiders of the Lost Ark. That night, he asked us to come to his room and listen to something. He then played a piece of music that we thought made no sense at all. But he liked it. He anticipated our reaction, and as most older brothers do, he knew something we didn’t. We’ll never forget his reply, “No, guys, listen to it again, only this time, picture Indiana Jones climbing down a rope into the Map Room using the medallion to find the exact spot where the Ark of the Covenant was buried!” Needless to say, that did it. We were hooked. Joe grinned. He knew.
We were in awe of this newfound world of film music. Our old opinions had been shattered, making way for dreams to unfold. In that one moment, we saw the power of music and our love for the symphony began! Yet it wasn’t until we saw the 1989 version of Batman, with music by Danny Elfman, that we began to understand the importance of musical themes, and how they are applied to characters, environments, and every other aspect one senses in film. Using musical themes to tell a story—what a powerful way to impact people’s lives. We knew we wanted to do that. We just had no idea how.
We started college as business majors. It was practical—it was safe. But after two years of going nowhere, we knew that something had to change. It became evident that our road was a different one–our road led to music. Neither one of us had any musical training up to this point. Imagine trying to enter a music composition program with no musical training. Impossible. Yet we would soon discover not only the power of music, but also the great power of believing in the impossible.
So, the dreamers set out, vision in hand, and we approached the composition department at the university. Not wanting to waste words, or even knowing how to talk our way into something, we told them we wanted to write music for film–in Oklahoma. And then we were told, “That’s like Rock-n-Roll. We don’t teach that here. You’ll have to go to California.” Our response was brief: we couldn’t move, so we asked what our options were. And somehow, with a smiling Universe looking out for us, we were admitted as music majors into the composition program with other students who had been in music their entire lives. It was then that we realized our vision was not our own, it was a gift, and we would not allow it to go unfulfilled. It was difficult, but after two years, things started clicking and the dream of writing orchestral music for film began to unfold.
With our quest begun, we needed an outlet for our creative work, so in 1994 we became “TwinComposers.” Working side by side, we added film, graphic design and web development to our artistic endeavors.
And then it happened again–one more signpost on the road of destiny. An inspiration so monumental, we would be in the theater every weekend for months to come, transported to the world of Middle-earth and The Lord of the Rings. Our film experiences would never ever again be the same. In 2004 we formed our own studio under the banner of the “SeaKings.”
Our journey had begun. And our journey continues. We will always dream and we will always believe in the impossible. For that is where dreams live. And that is where dreams come true. We know that the adventure of our lives is just beginning, for we have much yet to do.