Danny Bensi & Saunder Jurriaans
Composers of Starz’s American Gods and AMC’s NOS4A2
Source: Getty Images
Danny Bensi and Saunder Jurriaans are two award winning film composers. They have been playing music together for over twenty years. In the last eight years, they have completed well over 100 acclaimed film and TV scores.
Before moving to New York in 2001, Danny was raised studying the cello in Europe while Saunder grew up playing guitar in Seattle’s thriving music scene. As a duo, they are known for bold unpredictability, uniqueness, and their ability to interpret a wide range of genres. Drawing from an array of modern classical styles and beyond, their compositions are filled with atypical orchestrations, sensuous melodies, and visceral soundscapes.
One of their first films, Martha Marcy May Marlene (Dir. Sean Durkin) garnered much attention for it’s sparse and suspenseful score. Soon after, their sinister score for Enemy (Dir. Denis Villeneuve) won Best Musical Score at the Canadian Screen Awards. In 2015 they scored Joel Edgerton’s acclaimed suspense thriller, The Gift.
Branching out also into documentaries, the duo have written remarkable scores for LA 92 (Nat Geo), Amanda Knox (Netflix), and The Wolfpack (Netflix/Sundance Grand Jury Prize Winner).
In TV, Danny and Saunder have scored 2 seasons of Jason Bateman’s Ozark (Netflix) as well as The OA (Netflix) and Chef’s Table (Netflix). They were also recently sought out to write a fresh new score for season 4 of Fear The Walking Dead (AMC) and signed on for the second season of American Gods (STARZ).
Danny and Saunder have also successfully ventured into the video game world with their score for Ubisoft’s For Honor.
Most recent films include Joel Edgerton’s film Boy Erased (starring Lucas Hedges, Nicole Kidman, Russell Crowe), and Alistair Banks Griffin’s The Wolf Hour (starring Naomi Watts).
Watch the trailers for American Gods and NOS4A2.
This episode of The Pop Disciple Podcast is hosted by Paul Goldowitz.
Production, Editing, Mixing, Mastering | Paul Goldowitz
Select Cues and Songs Throughout Episode | Danny Bensi, Saunder Jurriaans
The Pop Disciple Podcast Theme and Outro Music | Paul Goldowitz
Special thanks to Danny Bensi, Saunder Jurriaans, and White Bear PR.