A call-out to IB students was organized in September 2017 to ask for music submissions to score the films. In November, we reached out to three students feature in the films about Maryam, Akihiko and Aernout. For the film about Falana, we exclusively used Falana's own compositions.
Patrick Vu composed "No Longer Alone", "Where They Fly", and "Stargazer" used for Akihiko Hoshide's portrait
"My name is Patrick Vu and I am currently a freshman at Texas Christian University studying Vocal Music Education and Music Theory. I am an IB DP graduate from Allen High School as of last spring. I have always desired to write and compose music, but I could never find the time or inspiration to do so. It was my senior year when I finally took a shot and composed something. After completing Shakespeare's Hamlet, we were assigned a creative presentation over any part of the work, so I decided to turn the famous Act III monologue "To be, or not to be" into a musical number using the text as lyrics. Later a few of my peers graciously asked if I would compose a film score for their school short film project, and I immediately accepted. To those friends, I am so thankful they trusted me with their film score. The opportunities that IB has granted me are too many to count. Had it not been for IB, I would not have gone on to write a film score or compose original songs I would later debut at a voice recital later that year. I would not have had experience in composition had it not been for the IB programme, so when I found a post of Twitter announcing this competition, I could not refuse. I wanted to use what IB has taught me and repay the wonderful organization by providing music for their 50th Anniversary Films. However, I was on the fence about composing music for this competition. I was worried that I would spend all summer writing to no avail. Then my family, high school friends, and IB teachers expressed their support and encouragement and gave me the courage to compose. I found it fitting that the theme was "inspiration." Throughout high school, I struggled to find that spark that would give me ideas to write, but it was an IB class that ignited that passion within me to compose music."
Ohm Atiwat Kaovilai composed “Untitled” used for Aernout van Lynden's portrait
"My name is Atiwat (Ohm) Kaovilai. I am a Grade 11 student currently studying at KIS international School, Thailand. I’ve joined KIS since EY2, and the school has inspired me to do amazing things. Aside from photography, my current obsession, I’ve loved playing music as my side hobby since I was in Primary school. As I play multiple instruments, I am able to visualise my improvisation through different aspects (rhythm, tone, etc). Whenever there’s a music that catches my ear, I would always Shazam it and give it a try with my own improvisation. When I learned about IB’s 50th Anniversary Music contest, I saw it as a great opportunity for me to apply my skills and explore my musical side without the thought of winning. Being selected was a great honour and a nice surprise - one of the proudest accomplishments in my life. I would like to thank everybody in my life who helped me develop the passion and most importantly, thank IB for giving me this chance."
Jedaia Tanthai Samart composed “Where the Protector Lies” used for Maryam Al-Ammari's portrait
"Hi, my name’s Jedi, and I’m a 9th grade student from KIS International School in Bangkok, Thailand. I’ve been playing guitar for about two years now, and it’s pretty much become a huge part of my life. Music at this point in time feels like a second home to me, so when I heard about this competition, I knew I had to join it and try to share my music with other people. It’s kind of surreal to think that I’ve won such a great opportunity, and I’d just like to thank the IB Organization and everyone who has helped me get to where I am now. "
