‘Creating music for new Tom & Jerry is dream come true’

Daily Trust: How does it feel being tapped to create music for a ‘reboot’ of a classic such as ‘Tom & Jerry’? Vivek Maddala: I’m honored to be working on such an iconic show-and, notably, one that has such a rich musical pedigree. The original 1940s Tom and Jerry cartoons were beautifully drawn and conceived, […]

Daily Trust: How does it feel being tapped to create music for a ‘reboot’ of a classic such as ‘Tom & Jerry’?

Vivek Maddala: I’m honored to be working on such an iconic show-and, notably, one that has such a rich musical pedigree. The original 1940s Tom and Jerry cartoons were beautifully drawn and conceived, and the Scott Bradley music scores were marvelously written and executed. Over the subsequent generations of the show, it developed a reputation for having the main characters engage in intense violence. 

But this new show draws inspiration from the original show where the rivalry between Tom and Jerry is more comedic. Also, not infrequently, the two pair up to pursue a common goal or solve a problem. So it’s pure fun, with moments of real sweetness. It’s a dream come true.

DT: Where did you get inspiration for the music on ‘Tom & Jerry’?

Maddala: Early on, the show’s director, Darrell Van Citters, expressed an interest in having the music continue the tradition of Scott Bradley.  So I spent some time studying his old scores and his approach. 

Bradley had a keen sense of story, humor, irony, timing, and drama.  I’ve been trying to preserve that, while expanding the range of expression and having all the music I write sound like me, and reflect my musical voice and vision. Ultimately, the inspiration comes from the stories and the way the animation is drawn/rendered.

DT: How closely do you work with the animators, as there’s no dialogue in this incarnation of ‘Tom & Jerry’?

Maddala: Actually, there is dialogue in this new version. The main characters never speak, but most of the ancillary characters do. I had expected to work closely with the animators and the director before starting the show, but for the most part they send me final animation and I have carte blanche on the music. 

On occasion I’ll get some notes from the director, but at this point it has become pretty rare. Interestingly, Warner Bros. has yet to give me any notes (knock on wood!).

We’re some 30 episodes into the show (now on my second season) and I have a good sense of what he wants to hear and I think he trusts my judgment.  There’s one notable deviation from this, however: Sometimes the director asks me to pre-score a scene before it’s animated; or they need a song written that will be performed by an on-screen character. In this case, there’s quite a bit of interaction as the music will directly affect what the animators do and what the voice-over talent will do. The interaction is exciting, so I try to invite it when appropriate.

DT: You began to show strong interest in music from age 3. How did your parents react to that?

Maddala: I came from a very academic background (my father was a university professor, quite acclaimed in his field), so there was always an assumption that I would establish a career in a more traditional math/science-related profession. My parents encouraged my musical leanings, but I think they assumed music would remain a leisurely pursuit. 

For some reason, I always had music pouring out of me, even as a small child. I continually had a tune in my head, or was tapping out complex rhythms on any surface I could find, even when I was supposed to be doing something else.  So I think it was inevitable that I had to focus my life on making music, despite pressures and expectations to do something else.

DT: After Tom & Jerry, would you work on more animation projects?

Maddala: I’d love to work on more animation projects. Ideally, given my background in feature films, I’d love to do animated features. But television is great, too. The regular pace can actually be an asset.

DT: You studied Electrical Engineering in university. At what point did you decide to be a composer, and what process did you follow?

Maddala: I chose to be a composer long before I entered engineering school. I had been writing music since I was around 7 years old, and it was a huge part of my life throughout my childhood and teen years. When I was 8, I saw Hitchcock’s North by Northwest on television, and was captivated by Bernard Herrmann’s score; that’s when I realized film scoring had to be in my future.

At age 15, I studied jazz performance at the Berklee College of Music. But at the same time, I led a kind of dual existence because I also had a strong background in math, science, literature, and history-and cultural expectations insinuated I should follow a more conventional path. So at age 16, I entered Georgia Tech, where as an undergrad, I majored in Electrical Engineering (and got a minor in Economics, while playing in the university jazz band and pursuing many other musical diversions).

In graduate school, I studied engineering and applied physics, and worked as an electrical engineer a large Fortune 500 company. All the while, I wanted to focus on music, but the trappings of bourgeois customs proved to be a consistent impediment.  Finally, in 2000 I entered a national film scoring competition, and I won the grand prize-which gave me the opportunity to score a silent feature film restoration for TCM/Warners, which was then followed by five more film score commissions from them. In 2008 I was given a film scoring fellowship by the Sundance Institute, which then led to my scoring several independent features. My colleague, Dan Blessinger (a marvelous recording/mix engineer and musician/songwriter), who I met while working on the TCM features, recommended me for the Tom & Jerry gig, and that’s what brought me here.

In essence, I’ve followed a fairly circuitous route to realize my goals as a composer, and it’s not one I’d recommend to others, by the way. But we each take our own path, and it helps make us who we are.