Spotlight: Jóhann Jóhannsson + ACME

With a Golden Globe Award for his original score in 2015’s The Theory of Everything and a nomination for Best Original Score in this year’s sci-fi hit Arrival, Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannsson has established himself as a leader in film scoring. He has also garnered Academy Award nominations for Sicario (2016) and The Theory of Everything (2015) — all the while producing a large body of work independent of film.

At Big Ears, Jóhannsson will be joined by the American Contemporary Music Ensemble (ACME), Theatre of Voices, and conductor Donato Cabrera to present his 2015 composition Drone Mass, using texts based on an ancient Gnostic hymn of the Egyptians. This solemn and contemplative work made for string quartet, voices, and low-pitched electronic drones is not to be missed.