
Celebrating the music of “The Descendants” | Photo © Heidi Chang
As folks around the country get ready to tune into the Grammy Nominations Concert tonight, many fans of Hawaiian music are wondering if “The Descendants” soundtrack will get a Grammy nomination for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media. Grammy officials are keeping mum until the show airs from Nashville.
Earlier this year, the made in Hawaii movie, directed by Alexander Payne, took home an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. Now, The Descendants music supervisor, Dondi Bastone, says, “We’ll be thrilled to just get a nomination for a Grammy. We’d be really honored. Fingers crossed.” Bastone, who lives in Los Angeles, notes there are 66 entries this year in their Grammy category, ranging from “Glee,” “Twilight,” and “Sparkle” to “Search for Sugarman.”
As the excitement continues to build, Jay Junker, who was a musical advisor on the film, reflects on all the fuss: “Win, lose, or draw. It’s good that the movie and soundtrack are out there, because that puts the music out there. Not just in the first year, but in the years that follow, when people revisit the film or view it for the first time. 20 years from now, there will still be people hearing the music, that’s great. So I wish them a lot of luck, and congratulate them (the production team and all the artists) that they got it done, because it will keep going for years to come.”
Blog update:
Exciting news: The soundtrack for The Descendants has just been nominated for a Grammy!
Last Spring, many gathered to celebrate the music of “The Descendants” at a Sound and Vision: Screening, Panel and Concert at The Venue in Honolulu. Great to hear some of the musicians who performed on the soundtrack including: Charles Brotman, Pancho Graham, Danny Carvalho, Makana, Cyril Pahinui and Jeff Peterson.
Click on images to enlarge
Related Story
Soundtracking ‘The Descendants’ with ‘Real’ Hawaiian Music (NPR story)