Gary Chang

Last updated
Gary Chang
Born (1953-02-22) February 22, 1953 (age 72)
Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.
Genres
Occupations
Instrument Synthesizer
Years active1985–present

Gary Chang (born 22 February 1953) is an American composer and musician, known for his film scores. Working primarily in the action and thriller genres, he has composed the scores to over 70 films and television productions, often collaborating with directors John Frankenheimer and Craig R. Baxley. [1]

Contents

Life and career

Born into a family of musicians in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Chang studied at Carnegie Mellon University and the California Institute of the Arts. [2] He studied electronic music under Morton Subotnick, [3] and established himself as a session musician and synthesizer programmer for the likes of Al Jarreau, Herbie Hancock, Chick Correa, Robbie Robertson, and Weather Report. [3] [4]

He began his film scoring career working for Giorgio Moroder and Harold Faltermeyer. [2] His first scoring credit on a film was as an additional music credit for The Breakfast Club (1985), writing and performing the track “Dream Montage”. In 1986, he scored the film 52 Pick-Up for director John Frankenheimer, launching his solo scoring career. [4] He would subsequently work with Frankenheimer on Dead Bang (1989) and The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996).

He frequently works with director Craig R. Baxley, particularly on his Stephen King collaborations. [1] His scores for other directors include Miami Blues, Under Siege, Sniper, The Substitute and Double Team. For his work on Under Siege, he won a BMI Award. [5]

Chang is an associate professor of music composition for the screen at Columbia College Chicago. [1]

Selected filmography

Film

Television

References

  1. 1 2 3 Stahley, Logan (2014-11-02). "Faculty Spotlight: Gary Chang". Marginalia. Retrieved 2025-04-20.
  2. 1 2 "M-Audio - Acclaimed audio interfaces, studio monitors, and keyboard controllers". 2015-04-24. Archived from the original on 24 April 2015. Retrieved 2025-04-20.
  3. 1 2 "Gary Chang | NAMM.org". www.namm.org. 2024-01-25. Retrieved 2025-04-20.
  4. 1 2 "GARY CHANG :: My-blog-of-interviews". my-blog-of-interviews.webnode.page. Retrieved 2025-04-20.
  5. ↑ Haring, Bruce (May 20, 1993). "Kamen nabs Kirk award at BMI fete". Variety . Retrieved June 4, 2019.
  6. ↑ Cosford, Bill (December 2, 1986). "Norris' spoof a clunker". Miami Herald. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
  7. ↑ Cosford, Bill (November 7, 1986). "'52': It's a winner". Miami Herald. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
  8. ↑ Boedeker, Hal (May 11, 1988). "Hang on to your ticket money". Miami Herald. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
  9. ↑ Kehr, Dave (March 28, 1989). "A Dead 'Dead Bang'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
  10. ↑ Murphy, Ryan (March 25, 1990). "Shock to System: Caine is superb as mad murderer". Miami Herald. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
  11. ↑ Cosford, Bill (April 22, 1990). "Miami Blues: Tough, funny, frightening". Miami Herald. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
  12. ↑ Coto, Juan Carlos (September 18, 1990). "Death Warrant doesn't warrant viewing". Miami Herald. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
  13. ↑ Coto, Juan Carlos (March 19, 1991). "Perfectly dreadful film debut". Miami Herald. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
  14. ↑ Cosford, Bill (October 13, 1992). "Super-killer Seagal strikes again in Siege". Miami Herald. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
  15. ↑ Rodriguez, Rene (February 3, 1993). "Sniper is off target despite good tricky scenes". Miami Herald. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
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