The Danny Elfman & Tim Burton 25th Anniversary Music Box Receives 2012 Grammy Award Nomination For “Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package”
Arguably the most innovative and adventurous box set package ever assembled is The Danny Elfman & Tim Burton 25th Anniversary Music Box, which was released by Warner Bros. Records in May. Wednesday, this extraordinary collection of music and artwork earned a 2012 Grammy Award nomination for “Best Boxed Or Special Limited Edition Package,” earning nods for its art directors Matt Taylor and Ellen Wakayama, as well as for Danny Elfman and Tim Burton.
This ingenious collaboration between renowned composer Danny Elfman and legendary film director Tim Burton collects expansions of the 13 original scores that Elfman has composed for Burton’s iconic films; a newly produced library of 16 CDs, each packaged with artwork by Burton, adding up to more than 19 hours of music. Additionally the package contains a bonus DVD of an exclusive conversation between Elfman and Burton discussing every film and score in their remarkable quarter-century collaboration.
The elaborate and lovingly designed collectible box set included the first-time-ever soundtrack release of Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure (1985), as well as scores to the films Beetlejuice (1988), Batman (1989), Edward Scissorhands (1990), Batman Returns (1992), The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), Mars Attacks! (1986), Sleepy Hollow (1999), Planet of the Apes (2001), Big Fish (2003), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005), Corpse Bride (2005), and Alice in Wonderland (2010). It also includes music from Elfman and Burton’s numerous other collaborations: Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Jar, Amazing Stories: Family Dog, Beetlejuice: The Animated Series, The World of Stainboy, Burton’s Museum of Modern Art exhibit, and Elfman’s unused score to the Edward Scissorhands Ballet. The initial series of limited, numbered editions are sold out, however a small quantity of the standard edition, highly collectible box set can be purchased here.
About Matt Taylor: Taylor won a Grammy Award in 2007 for his design of The Red Hot Chili Peppers Stadium Arcadiumbox set. He followed that achievement with Grammy nominations for HIM’s Venus Doom and My Chemical Romance’s The Black Parade. His work has showcased the diverse sounds of Smashing Pumpkins, Brian Setzer, Josh Groban, Michael Bublé, Melissa Etheridge, Ben Harper, Tracy Chapman, Kenny G, Paris Hilton, Frank Sinatra, and others.
About Ellen Wakayama: Between the years 2002 and 2010, Wakayama remained the heart and soul of the Warner Bros. Records art department. As Senior VP, Wakayama spearheaded artwork and packaging campaigns for every project, and worked closely with artists on the WMG roster including: Madonna, Linkin Park, Josh Groban, Fleetwood Mac, Seal, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Michael Bublé, and My Chemical Romance, among others. In 2007, Wakayama was nominated for a Grammy Award for the packaging of My Chemical Romance’s The Black Parade.
About Danny Elfman: Four-time Oscar-nominated and Grammy-winning composer Danny Elfman has scored such diverse films as Spider-Man, Good Will Hunting, Beetlejuice, Batman, Men in Black, Midnight Run, Big Fish, Dick Tracy, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Mission: Impossible, Chicago, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and Milk. His 25-year, 13-film collaboration with director Tim Burton began in 1985 when Elfman was pulled from his band Oingo Boingo to score Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure and continued with 2010’s blockbuster Alice in Wonderland. Elfman made his classical music debut at Carnegie Hall with his symphony, “Serenada Schizophrana,” followed by “The Overeager Overture,” which premiered at The Hollywood Bowl. His first ballet, “Rabbit and Rouge,” choreographed by Twyla Tharp, debuted with the American Ballet Theatre at Lincoln Center. His upcoming projects include Men In Black 3, Sam Raimi’s Oz: The Great And Powerful, and Cirque du Soleil’s “Iris.” Two new films for Tim Burton, Dark Shadows and Frankenweenie, are also in the works. Elfman is also known for the classic television themes to The Simpsons and Desperate Housewives.
About Tim Burton: Tim Burton has directed memorable and stylistic films, ranging from Batman, Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Big Fish, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. His most recent blockbuster, Alice in Wonderland, broke the billion-dollar box office mark. His films have racked up six Academy Awards and 11 Oscar nominations for everything from acting to art direction. His first feature length film, Pee Wee’s Big Adventure, was also his first collaboration with composer Danny Elfman. Their instant film chemistry led them to 13 collaborations, and continues with Burton’s upcoming stop-motion animated film, Frankenweenie. With a background in animation, Burton has done more to revive the stop-motion field than any other director, starting with his first stop-motion project, Vincent, and continuing through the cult classic, The Nightmare Before Christmas and Corpse Bride. Burton has also published a book of characters and stories, The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy, and most recently released an immense 430-page book comprising over 40 years of his personal and project artwork, titled The Art of Tim Burton. He currently has an art exhibit that debuted at the Museum of Modern Art in New York and is touring through several art museums across the world.