Justin Hurwitz keeps 'Whiplash' alive with 'nerve-racking' concert series

Justin Hurwitz has ne'er thrown a seat astatine the drummer successful his “Whiplash successful Concert” band. But the drummer does person to cognize the people wrong and retired — not conscionable due to the fact that immoderate of the jazz solos are quicksilver and tricky, but due to the fact that the drummer mightiness abruptly person to halt and commencement successful unusual intervals to reflector play and chaos unfolding connected screen.

“They’ve studied it,” says Hurwitz of the 2014 Damien Chazelle movie helium scored and that inspired the performance bid named for it. “It’s not 1 of those parts wherever you tin just, if you’re a bully player, sight-read it.”

The composer is bringing “Whiplash successful Concert” to L.A. this play for 3 shows astatine the Saban Theatre successful Beverly Hills, with an 18-piece large set of country musicians. A workplace percussionist named Jamey Tate volition beryllium rocking the drum kit, with Hurwitz conducting.

“Live to picture” movie concerts are everywhere: the L.A. Phil did John Williams’ “Home Alone” successful December, and galore different symphony orchestras astir the satellite regularly person blockbuster movie screenings connected their subscription calendar. All necessitate orchestras to beryllium successful sync with the films — a feat accomplished by a blase strategy of “click tracks” successful everyone’s headsets and ocular “streamers” connected the conductor’s monitor.

A caller show of “Whiplash successful Concert” successful Mexico City.

(Jorge Gomez)

But “Whiplash” is somewhat antithetic successful that overmuch of its euphony is seen performed by characters connected the screen. When Miles Teller’s panicked and obsessive character, Andrew, is pouring sweat and pounding retired rhythms successful a signifier room, the unrecorded drummer is doing the nonstop aforesaid happening successful the nonstop aforesaid tempo (albeit with little sweat).

The people comprises some existing jazz tunes — including John Wasson’s “Caravan” and the titular piece, composed by Hank Levy successful the 1970s — and archetypal Hurwitz charts. Additionally, determination is the underscore that, for the existent film, was heavy processed and quasi-electronic; Hurwitz had to get originative for the unrecorded shows, truthful saxophones crook pitches and a vibraphone is stroked with a cello bow.

The lawsuit is fundamentally a musical, with characters perpetually practicing connected their own, moving done full numbers together, oregon getting interrupted by a foul-mouthed, chair-throwing J.K. Simmons, who plays the film’s jazz conservatory despot, Fletcher. Perched nether the screen, the set and Hurwitz — who conducts astatine each amusement — person to enactment militantly with Fletcher’s merciless tempo.

Musicians indispensable support successful sync with “Whiplash,” starring Miles Teller arsenic Andrew, left, and J.K. Simmons arsenic Fletcher, arsenic it is screened during the concert.

(Daniel McFadden / Sony Pictures Classics)

“It’s ever a small nerve-racking,” Hurwitz admits. “You ne'er privation to screw up. But it works. And besides jazz large bands, they’re truthful bully — you evidently person to prosecute the close musicians, but erstwhile you do, they’re bully and they cognize what they’re doing. And honestly, it takes little enactment arsenic a conductor successful definite respects.”

Plus: “I’ve seen the movie a lot.”

“Whiplash” enactment Hurwitz and Chazelle successful the Hollywood large leagues; it was critically lauded and fixed galore prizes, and it helped the young duo (and erstwhile Harvard roommates) get their imagination musical, “La La Land,” made, with Oscars to yet travel for each. Hurwitz, 40, has successful information lone ever worked with Chazelle; their different films see the Neil Armstrong play “First Man” and the libidinous epic “Babylon.”

Music is astir ever a driving constituent successful their films — Chazelle was a jazz drummer himself — and Hurwitz ever gets progressive aboriginal successful development, spending respective years crafting each score.

That is chiefly wherefore helium has invested a batch of clip and vigor into gathering his company, Hurwitz Concerts. After a sour acquisition with his aged absorption — the composer sued WME successful 2022 implicit claims of self-dealing successful its touring “La La Land” concerts, reaching a colony successful 2024 — helium made the bold determination of warring for the performance rights successful each of his aboriginal movie contracts, and he’s turned “Whiplash” and “La La Land” into a booming performance business.

“I enactment connected truthful fewer films, and it takes maine years to get a caller one,” helium says. “I put truthful overmuch successful my enactment and successful my scores, and truthful past to beryllium capable to proceed to springiness them beingness and make a livelihood for myself astir those scores has conscionable go a truly large portion of what I do. Not conscionable financially, but emotionally. I emotion to enactment connected to those works. I springiness everything I person to them erstwhile I’m moving connected them, truthful I don’t privation to person to beryllium done with them.”

He learned from observing mistakes made by “the aged folks” who ran his concerts, and from the exemplary of companies similar Film Concerts Live — which typically publication and merchantability its packages to symphony orchestras — and decided to dainty his solo cognition rather differently. Hurwitz seeks retired and partners with savvy promoters; helium has taken his movie concerts arsenic acold arsenic France, Japan and Bangkok. By present helium fields incoming emails from funny promoters astir the satellite much than helium needs to nonstop inquiries himself.

Hurwitz heavy invests successful accumulation of these shows, perpetually improving his ocular and aural immunodeficiency that get sent to tech teams, and helium handpicks and pays the prima drummer for “Whiplash” (and the pianist for “La La Land”) to survey the people and movie with each the aforesaid aids. He promotes concerts connected societal media; 2 shows astatine Carnegie Hall sold retired past week aft helium posted astir it. And helium brings merch — including signed LPs, T-shirts and customized posters for each city.

In different words, helium treats this much similar a touring popular set than an evening astatine the performance hall.

It’s intelligibly working, and connected a large scale. Hurwitz precocious filled a 10,000-seat arena successful Mexico City to capableness for “La La Land,” and 7,000 radical turned retired for “Whiplash.” Hurwitz went determination aft noticing it was 1 of the apical cities for listeners of his euphony connected Spotify. He texted Chazelle aft the shows, reporting that the unsocial passionateness determination rivaled the vigor they’ve experienced successful Paris.

“La La Land” has an ardent and monolithic pursuing astir the globe; attendees often amusement up successful costume, and galore of them cry. The assemblage for “Whiplash” is growing, and he’s besides hoping to adhd the ill-received but cultish “Babylon” to the circuit soon enough.

“Well, Damien made large movies,” Hurwitz says, attempting an mentation for this phenomenon. “And they’re music-driven. People truly deliberation astir the music.”