Black Field is a very special film for me. It's an historical drama that tells of a love triangle about two sisters Maggie (Sara Canning) and Rose McGregor (Ferron Guerreiro) and the man that comes between them. It is a period piece, set in the 1870's. So I wanted to create a soundtrack made up of acoustic instruments that would have been available at that time. I wanted the music to be simple, dark, and heartfelt. I wanted to convey a sense of longing and sadness. The film was made in the early spring of 2009 in Manitoba, Canada. A cold, wet spring that year made for difficult shoots but added so much realism to the finished result. The instruments I used were piano, mandolin, mandocello, uillean pipes and bodhran. The strings were in the form of viola, played beautifully by Jennifer Thiessen. The director, Danishka Esterhazy, is a good friend. It was her first feature film. I had already scored three short films for her previously, so we had already established a good working rapport. I wrote much of the music after only reading the script, before shooting had started. This made editing much easier because no temp scores were required. It also gave us plenty of time to fine tune the music to the picture. Well worth it, I think. Marina Antunes of Row Three wrote: "The film is notable for both its visuals and Canning’s performance but also for its score composed by Joe Silva which, in the opening credits alone, beautifully sets up the sorrowful story. It makes a quiet appearance from time to time throughout the film but it never feels intrusive or overbearing; it’s simply beautiful." I'm very proud of this soundtrack. I hope you will enjoy it!