Noga, you sang with the Haifa Symphony Orchestra’s Opera Choir for ten years since you were a child, an incredible foundation in classical music. How has that early experience influenced your sense of drama, phrasing, and emotion when scoring films today?

Of the three subjects you mentioned, the one most affected by my choir experience would be phrasing.  Phrasing of musical sentences – with time and dynamics – comes through more than anything in a  cappella choir singing, and I carried that with me. For drama and emotion, I surprisingly feel that it’s the group work in rehearsals and the connection between minds in professional choir singing that taught me the most about emotions and creating drama, more than the actual opera stage.

Your background spans everything from classical singing to prog-metal, pop music, musicals, and film scoring, an extraordinary artistic range. How do you think this versatility shapes your unique musical voice and approach to storytelling through music?

I get asked that a lot. I feel like it didn’t just affect my musical voice, but it simply created it. The music I learned through the years developed the taste, knowledge, and musical language that I have today.

You’ve had the opportunity to collaborate with the legendary Klaus Badelt, whose work on films like Pirates of the Caribbean and Gladiator has inspired generations of composers. What was it like to not only meet one of your musical heroes but to work alongside him so closely? And what are some of the most valuable lessons or insights you took away from that experience?

Mainly, it changed so much in my approach to composition. It was fascinating to watch him write, how he makes an idea whole, how he deals with obstacles and challenges. I also learned many lessons in high- end technology and top-notch workflow techniques for composition. For a specific example, I learned that correct communication and good relationships will be the rise or the fall, or at least a game-changer, to change situations altogether.

Your recent film score for Forbidden Holiness has been widely celebrated and internationally awarded. How do you feel about this recognition and the fact that the film reaches such a broad audience around the world?

I feel incredibly honored to be a part of such a film and that our hard work paid off. I’m so grateful to have worked with Doron Ne’eman and the crew and cast on this one.

Your orchestrations for films like Valensole and Rebel Royals demonstrate both precision and brilliant technique. You also orchestrated Tyler Perry’s Sisters in Italy for Amazon MGM, which is still in production. How do you balance the technical and expressive sides of orchestration to bring a score to life?

For me, these are not contrary sides but a goal and a tool. In the end, the goal is to bring the music to life emotionally and energetically, but that wouldn’t happen if it’s not made technically correct, actually, to come through. So I search for creative and unique ways to use my technical knowledge to help me bring out the expressiveness of the score.

It’s rare to find a musician equally fluent in composition, songwriting, music production, and performance. How do you manage to bridge all these worlds and keep your creative energy flowing across so many disciplines?

Working in different disciplines brings a breath of fresh air to all those fields. The lessons learned in each field might come in handy in the others. It’s also amazing to have the privilege of not letting go of any of the things I love doing, like EDM, singing, and producing songs, while I mainly compose for the screen.

With such an inspiring body of work already behind you, it’s exciting to imagine what’s next.  Are there any upcoming projects or dream collaborations you’re particularly excited about?

Well, I’m glad you asked, since I can now, for the first time, say that I will be working on the next Candlelight (by Fever) creative live show. I can’t tell any more about the project, but I will say that the work is very innovative, and I get to bring out my personal musical voice on a large scale, working in that worldwide, enormous production.  There are also many more films on the way, including one documentary that I cannot talk about yet, but I’m very excited about!

Interview by Nami Melumad

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