BEING HUMAN: Meet FM Le Sieur – The Man Behind The Music

FM Le Sieur is a talented musician and composer whose career has spanned over 15 years. This Canadian composer has worked on Tony and Ridley Scott’s series “The Hunger” starring David Bowie, and television series “Musée Eden”, “Nos Étés et Music Hall”, “Les Soeurs Elliot”, and “Charlie Jade” to name a few.

North American audiences were introduced to FM’s modern music when he became the composer for Syfy’s Being Human. It is amazing that such beautiful music was inspired by a Vampire, a Werewolf and a Ghost all trying to live together as roommates. I was fortunate to talk with FM about composing for Being Human as well as his music inspirations and getting into the music business.

NiceGirl Lisa:  How did you get involved with composing music?

FM Le Sieur: I studied piano for a year when I was 8 years old. I was not a very good student, but I was good at improvising and inventing songs.  Later, I decided to study music in college and a film student asked me to write the musical score for his short movie.  During college, I also wrote songs for a band I played in, but when the group ended I started composing music for advertising, then short movies, and finally for TV series and movies.

Lisa:  Who are some of your biggest influences in music?

FM: As a music lover and a musician there’s so many people who have influenced me and my music. When I was younger, I discovered British rock music, but at the same time was influenced by the great classical composers. If I had to choose composers for the screen, I would have to say John Williams, who did all the Spielberg movies, Maurice Jarre, for a movie I love called, “Lawrence of Arabia,” and Bernard Herrmann, who scored all the Hitchcock movies. I watched those movies many times and listened carefully to the role the music played in the story-telling.

I think I’ve been influenced by everything I’ve listened to since I was a teenager – from Rock to Classical to Electronic music.  It all influences my writing process.

Lisa:  Can you describe the hiring process for composing for Syfy’s Being Human?

FM: Being hired to work on a TV show generally all starts with, what we call a pitch. Basically, that means they [the producers] ask different composers to score a particular scene from the show with music sketches. I met with the show runners, Jeremy Carver and Anna Fricke, and they briefed me about the series and what they were looking for in a musical score. Then, I went home and wrote the music that I felt would bring the best sound to the show. They ended up liking what they heard, and chose me!

Lisa: That’s awesome!  I am a huge fan of Being Human and I love the eerie piano music that seems to be attached to Sally’s character. Do you have a specific theme for each character? 

FM: Yes, I do have a musical theme for each character and sometimes even more than one, or many variations of one theme. Sally also has a cello theme that I wrote last year for the big problem she had with the “Reaper”.  Sometimes new situations or a new story plot simply needs a new theme that might not necessarily be attached to a character.  I always try to be faithful to the initial mood or pallet of sounds according to that character.

Lisa: Do you have a favorite scene/episode that you scored on Being Human?

FM: The first episode of Season 3, “It’s a Shame About Ray”, was so fun to do. It had a lot of action and a lot of music! Last season, there were some scenes I especially enjoyed scoring, like the season finale, “Partial Eclipse of the Heart,” when all the bodies that Sally reaped reappear at the time of the eclipse, and the scene in the same episode when Josh reveals himself as a werewolf to Julia.  I also enjoyed the big challenge that came with working on the orphan scene from “I’ve Got You Under My Skin.”

Lisa: Are some types of scenes more difficult to score than others? If so, what type of scenes are they?

FM:  Every scene is a different challenge, but fight scenes take longer to score and are more demanding, but they are also the more gratifying. As a composer, you have to decide how you want to illustrate a scene musically, and sometimes that means having a cue that is the opposite of what we actually see on screen.

Lisa:  Do you find yourself watching TV shows differently after being a composer?

FM: I really think that as a composer you watch TV and movies differently. Most of the time, I can’t help but notice the music, but sometimes I surprise myself and get totally lost in the story. That’s why I like to watch TV shows or movies more than once. That way I can really focus on the music.

Lisa: What TV shows do you like to watch? 

FM:  I love “Homeland” and I like “Mad Men” very, very much. I watch “Girls,” “Game of Thrones,” “Downton Abbey,” and “Enlightened.” As you can see, I watch a lot of TV!

Lisa: I do too! That’s a great list. I can’t wait for Game of Thrones to come back.  What advice would you give to aspiring Film and TV composers?

FM: You have to listen to a lot of different music genres and watch a lot of TV series and a lot of movies. You have to be curious and open minded to all kinds of music. It also helps if you hang out with film students who are in need of music for their projects!

Lisa: Other than Being Human, do you have any other projects coming up? 

FM: Yes, as soon as I finish Being Human Season 3, I’m starting a TV series in France called “Les Limiers,” a cop show shot in Paris. Then back in Canada, I will write the music for a TV series called “The Godmother,” and a movie called “The Champ de Mars.”

Lisa: That’s awesome! We will definitely look out for those! Thank you so much for taking time to talk with me. 

You can keep up with FM on his website  and a digital album and booklet of FM’s music from Seasons 1 and 2 of Being Human is now available on iTunes (which I highly recommend. FM’s music is beautiful).

Being Human airs Monday nights at 9/8c on SyFy.