Composer Jay Wadley faced a daunting challenge when was hired to create the music for the new Apple TV + limited series “Franklin.” How was he going to create almost five hours of music– all fully recorded and mixed– in just six months? “I’ve more than doubled my life’s output in six months,” he jokes during a recent chat with Gold Derby (watch the exclusive video interview above). “It was such a large ship to steer.”
Wadley received a lot of support from series executive producer and director Tim Van Patten. Wadley calls the two-time Emmy winner “an incredible leader.” “He’s just one of those generous people who is very collaborative, very clear and very open and responsive,” says Wadley.
According to Wadley, Van Patten wanted this period drama about Benjamin Franklin‘s (Michael Douglas) work in France during the American revolution to feel more grounded in the reality of the time. “Tim talked about it being grittier and dirtier than you would typically see when people present these sorts of period pieces,” Wadley recalls. “Paris was dirty. It was smelly and the wigs smelled terrible. And it was like trying to capture a little bit of that grit in the score.”
Even with those modern touches, the score is still grounded in the music of the time, with homages to several composers of the Baroque period. However, Wadley was aware of walking a line between originality and imitation. “If anyone was fooled that [the music] was actually Vivaldi, then I’d be proud,” he says. “When you’re dealing with period music, I think as long as it feels authentic to most ears, then I was successful.”
Wadley’s experience is quite diver, ranging from Charlie Kaufman‘s creepy thriller “I’m Thinking of Ending Things” to the queer rom com “Fire Island.” Wadley says he chooses projects based on two criteria: creative challenge and relationships. “That’s kind of how I make my decisions. Do I live the creative direction of this project?” he says. “And then who are the people involved? Do I enjoy working with them? Because when you’re in the trenches on these projects, it can be rough if you don’t enjoy working with the people.”
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