Sheridan Tongue:
A Biography
EMMY-winning, Belfast-born composer Sheridan Tongue is one of Northern Ireland’s most successful television composers, best known for working on award-winning drama series and documentaries that have reached a global audience. He has a studio in London Fields, London.
Having started his career working in London working in recording studios with icons such as Robert Plant, Johnny Marr and Blur, Sheridan was presented with a gold record for his work on the album ‘Prodigal Sista’ by Beverly Knight. He segued into film and television composition and worked on numerous UK contemporary drama series including DCI BANKS (5 series), SEA OF SOULS (1 series) and SILENT WITNESS (12 series).
He has scored the music to five television series for The Discovery Channel, PBS and Curiosity Stream with Professor Stephen Hawking, bringing to life his theories (INTO THE UNIVERSE WITH STEPHEN HAWKING, GRAND DESIGN, DID GOD CREATE THE UNIVERSE, STEPHEN HAWKING’S FAVORITE PLACES – SERIES 1 AND 2).
In 2021 he won an EMMY for his work on the quirky and fun film THE LAST ARTIFACT that featured scientists from all over the planet searching for a new way to redefine the Kilogram.
In 2021 Sheridan scored the soundtrack to the new 13 part series Meerkat Manor: Rise of the Dynasty, for AMC+ and BBC America.
He scored the music to the film BERTIE starring Alison Steadman, Arthur Darvil and Jemima Rooper which won best short film at the Beverly Hills Film Festival.
Sheridan created a magical and moving score for the children’s drama SUMMERHILL, a BBC film based on the real-life court case of a school that took the British Government to court and won. The film took home two BAFTA awards.
Demonstrating his versatility, Sheridan composed the music for WOUNDED on BBC One about soldiers injured in action in Afghanistan, which won a BAFTA for Best Single Documentary.
Sheridan also composed the music for the BBC series WONDERS OF THE UNIVERSE (and WONDERS OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM) starring Brian Cox, which won a RTS Award for Best Documentary Series.
He has also worked on other acclaimed documentaries such as ATLAS 4D (Discovery).
Sheridan draws on a wide range of musical experiences, from orchestral and electronic to folk-influenced world music, to create his unique and diverse musical scores. He has spent years recording and creating a unique library of bespoke sounds and instruments that he uses in many of his compositions.
Ensuring originality throughout his work, he strives to avoid the traditional routes of composition, including field recordings and extensive research in his compositional toolkit. This approach to writing was influenced by many years working in the recorded music industry as a producer, remixer, orchestrator and arranger. He often brings musicians from the pop world into his soundtracks to add another dimension to the mix.
Sheridan’s formal training started on the University of Surrey’s Tonmeister course. It was there that he explored his love of sound recording and acoustics alongside that of orchestration, composing and conducting.
Sheridan’s continued success in scoring highly popular TV projects is a result of the close personal rapport he establishes with each director and producer he works alongside. In a rare combination of gifts, he is a true collaborator and a multi-talented musician.
PANELS
Sheridan has spoken on panels at SOUTH BY SOUTHWEST (Interactive, Film & Music festivals Austin, Texas), BELFAST MEDIA FESTIVAL (Northern Ireland), AVA London (Electronic Music Festival Printworks, London), Sound of Belfast (Northern Ireland), SENSORIA (Film, Music & Digital festival Sheffield, UK), and held composing for film and television workshops at SURREY UNIVERSITY (Guildford, UK), TILEYARD EDUCATION (London, UK), ACADEMY OF CONTEMPORARY MUSIC (Guildford, UK), HILLS ROAD SIXTH FORM COLLEGE (Composer in Residence 2006-7, Cambridge, UK), R.B.A.I (Belfast, NI).
BRITISH TINNITUS ASSOCIATION AND HELP MUSICIANS NI
Sheridan is an ambassador for the British Tinnitus Association (BTA) and regularly helps to promote awareness of safe listening levels. In 2019 Sheridan is fronting a ‘Champion’ role with Help Musicians Northern Ireland to help promote their “Hear for Musicians” campaign.
WORKSHOPS
In 2014 he was invited onto the BMI conducting workshops in Los Angeles with acclaimed conductor and composer Lucas Richman, which culminated in working with a full orchestra at the Eastman Scoring stage at Warner Brothers studios.
IN-IS
In 2016 he released a debut album of original music as the artist IN-IS entitled ‘Seven Days’. available on iTunes and Spotify through NW1 Records. His follow-up album ‘2068’ was released in October 2020 in collaboration with artists from around the world.
