E.S. Posthumus was an independent music group that produced what some call Indie music while others call 21st Century Classical Music. The group consisted of two brothers, Helmut and Franz Vonlichten. They were born and raised in Los Angeles, California, and studied piano with their mother. After high school, Helmut went on to graduate from UCLA with a degree in Archaeology, while Franz worked in recording studios. They formed E.S. Posthumus in 2000; it was decided that "E.S." would stand for "Experimental Sounds", and "Posthumus" would refer to "all things past".
E.S. Posthumus' music has been used in a variety of television and movie shows and trailers. Their single "Rise to Glory" has also been used as the NFL theme song on CBS since the 03/04 season. Additionally, they collaborated with Jay-Z to create a remix of Run This Town and their second single Posthumus Zone for the CBS broadcast of Super Bowl XLIV. Unfortunately, Franz died in May 2010, at which point Helmut stated that the group would no longer be active. In the years they were active, they released three albums and three singles. Their 3rd single, Christmas Eve, was released in November 2010 as a tribute to Franz.
This group is a personal favourite of mine. Their music ranges from being tender and calm, to uplifting and inspiring, to energetic and adrenaline inducing. I first stumbled upon them back when I was in university. As a result, when I listen to them nowadays, I'm reminded of the times gone by - time spent trying to evaluate never-ending double and triple integrals, but also, time spent growing up. Besides just the sheer beauty of it all, their music also appeals to me a on personal level because of how much it reminds me of the past. The fact that the group no longer exists is truly unfortunate, but everyone would agree that there is no E.S. Posthumus without Franz. If you're a fan of classical and epic music, I recommend you check these guys out. Some of their compositions are ideal study music.
The following goes through the three albums and also lists the shows and movies that have used the tracks in either the show/movie or the trailers.
Unearthed
Unearthed, their first album, was released in January 2001. Its distinctive sound is partly thanks to the Northwest Sinfonia; Franz is quoted as saying "We wanted the chance to blow an ungodly sum of cash working with a big orchestra". Each track in the album is named after an ancient city.
- Antissa
-
Tikal
-
Harappa
- Ulaid
-
Elba
-
Nara
-
Cusco
-
Nineveh
- Spider-man
- Two for the money
- Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
-
Lepcis Magna
-
Menouthis
- Estremoz
-
Pompeii
- Isfahan
Cartographer
Cartographer, their second album, was released in January 2008. It was inspired by the ancient
Piri Reis map discoverd in Istanbul in 1929. This album consists of two discs;
Luna Sans sings vocals on the first disc, while the second disc replaces those vocals with instrumental solos and choirs.
Disc 1: Luna Sans
- Nolitus
- Isunova
- Vorrina
- Selisona
- Marunae
- Mosane
- Decifin
- Sollente
- Caarano
- Raptamei
- Oraanu
- Nivaos
- Nasivern
Disc 2: Piri Reis Remixes
-
Ashielf Pi
-
Oraanu Pi
-
Marunae Pi
-
Mosane Pi
- Isunova Pi
- Nasivern Pi
- Selisona Pi
- Raptamei Pi
- Caarano Pi
- Nivaos Pi
- Sollente Pi
- Decifin Pi
- Vorrina Pi
- Nolitus Pi
-
Odenall Pi
Makara
Makara, their third and final album, was released in February 2010. A fair number of tracks in this album are named after the Hindu pantheon of gods.
-
Kalki
- Varuna
-
Unstoppable
- Durga
- Manju
-
Kuvera
-
Ushas
- Lavanya
-
Vishnu
- Money, Power, and Wall Street
- Indra
-
Arise
- 2008 AFC Championship theme on CBS
- World Without End
- Avatar
- Saint Matthew Passion
- Krosah
-
Anumati
- Moonlight Sonata
Sources:
http://www.esposthumus.com/about/
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1465518/bio?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E.S._Posthumus
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unearthed_%28E.S._Posthumus_album%29
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cartographer_%28album%29
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Makara_%28album%29