Saunder Jurriaans

Saunder Jurriaans is a contemporary film composer writing alongside Danny Bensi. Born in Evanston, Illinois, in 1977, Jurriaans is the child of Dutch immigrants who bounced around the United States before settling in Seattle, Washington. After moving to Providence, RI ostensibly to study at the Rhode Island School of Design, Jurriaans instead dropped out to play in a band. Around the same time he met Danny Bensi for the first time, and the pair quickly became collaborators. After moving to New York in 2000, Jurriaans, Bensi and drummer Gregory Rogove formed the proggy, chamber-rock trio Tarantula, later renamed Tarantula A.D. and finally Priestbird. The scope of their music is best reflected in the eclectic range of bands they toured with, including Avant-jazz-funk band Medeski Martin & Wood, freak folk singer-songwriter Devendra Banhart, psychedelic duo Cocorosie and heavy-metal rockers, The Sword. In Europe, they opened for Pearl Jam. The first film Jurriaans and Bensi composed the score for was 2010 drama Two Gates Of Sleep. The director, Alistair Banks Griffin, was a friend of Jurriaans' from Rhode Island School of Design. The new way of working came naturally to the pair. The critical applause for their debut soundtrack led to 'Danny and Saunder' to score the 2011 thriller Martha Marcy May Marlene, starring Elizabeth Olsen and Sarah Paulson, and from then their career snowballed. Over the last decade their music has soundtracked over 100 films and television shows. Saunder Jurriaans also writes music outside of the film world - his first solo record "Beasts" will be released on Decca records September 18, 2020. Jurriaans lives and works in Los Angeles, CA.