Biography
Ian Arber is a British composer known for his work on Hulu action-thriller Paris Has Fallen (2024), ITV thriller Red Eye (2024), BBC deep fake thriller The Capture (2019), the "Hollywood Music in Media Award" winning series Ed Sheeran: The Sum of It All (2023) for Disney+, feature film Bolan's Shoes (2023), Netflix's DNA-matching viral hit The One (2021), season 3 of Disney+ series War of the Worlds (2019), Showtime psychological thriller The Stranger in Our Bed (2022) and Acorn TV's detective drama The Chelsea Detective (2022), which was recorded with the London Metropolitan Orchestra at British Grove Studios in London.
Ian's rapid rise is underpinned by his bold and multi-faceted approach to composing - writing memorable themes that fuse traditional, electronic and experimental instrumentation.
In 2024 Ian scored ITV's most viewed new series of the year, Red Eye (2024), shortly followed by the Gerard Butler produced series Paris Has Fallen (2024), based on the "Has Fallen" movie franchise.
Ian scored the BBC's most viewed new drama of 2019, The Capture (2019), with Blur's Dave Rowntree. The score featured manipulated organic textures with experimental analogue synths, and memorable motifs to depict the world of duplicity and intrigue. Starring Holliday Grainger, Paapa Eissiedu and Ron Pearlman, season 2 aired on BBC One in the UK and Peacock in the US in 2022.
He has recently collaborated with Imogen Heap on the vocal elements for Netflix's The One, Dave Rowntree on the BAFTA-winning documentary After the Screaming Stops (2018), and hip-hop legend Nas on the title theme for I Am Bolt (2016).
A classically-trained cellist and pianist, and collector of exotic instruments, Ian often incorporates these in his scores in unconventional ways, blurring the lines between traditional and modern experimental techniques. He is inspired by collaboration, working closely with filmmakers to create a truly original concept and musical language for each project. He relishes the opportunity to create a powerful and productive working relationship with filmmakers, maximizing the collaboration to produce distinct work.
Ian broke out into the British film and television industry with his distinctive scores for BBC comedy drama Quacks, starring Rory Kinnear and Rupert Everett, feature-film My Name is Lenny starring John Hurt, followed by award-winning documentaries I Am Bolt, Hitsville: The Making of Motown, the Oscar-qualifying Sisters of the Wilderness and the Grierson Award-winning Show Me The Picture: The Story of Jim Marshall.
Ian is represented by COOL Music Ltd.
