Christopher Gunning is perhaps most famous for his music for the TV series Poirot, but his career in film and TV music stretches back some forty years. He has won four BAFTA awards, for La Vie en rose, Agatha Christie's Poirot, Middlemarch, and Porterhouse Blue, and three Ivor Novello awards, for Rebecca, Under Suspicion, and Firelight. His scores for The Big Battalions, Wild Africa, Cold Lazarus, When the Whales Came, and Winalot have also received nominations for BAFTA and Ivor Novello awards, and his music for the Martini advertising campaign, heard around the world for thirty years, has won three Clio awards. His most recent film commission was the score for La Mome Piaf, also known as La Vie en rose, the feature film starring Marion Cotillard as Edith Piaf and directed by Olivier Dahan. In February 2008, he was presented with the BAFTA award for Best Music and on the same night, La Vie en rose won another three BAFTA awards, including one for Marion Cotillard as Best Actress, who went on to win an Oscar for her performance.
The Film and TV Music of Christopher Gunning is performed by the BBC Philharmonic, under Rumon Gamba who records exclusively for Chandos. It also features exquisite performances from a number of soloists with whom Gunning has worked over the years: the saxophonist Martin Robertson, soprano Nicole Tibbels, and guitarist Craig Ogden whose many recordings, including more than half a dozen for Chandos, have received wide acclaim.
' ...Maestro Gamba and his BBC virtuosos make it all sound golden. Superb sound and informative notes by the composer complete another welcome entry in the Chandos film music series.' American Record Guide
'...with the success of what might be his most moving and heartfelt score for the Edith Piaf biopic La Vie en Rose, Chandos has taken the opportunity to record a treasure trove of Gunning's greatest hits with the BBC Philharmonic, selections are no small revelation of the composer's classically-trained talents, especially now that he's been given the opportunity to revise them as lengthy concert suites. Gunning's Film & TV Music is an impressive revelation of his talent...' Film & Music Magazine
'...The BBC Philharmonic serves him [Gunning] well, drawing out all the music's colours to ensure it more than holds its own without visual accompaniment. Martin Robertson's silky saxophone solo in Poirot Variants is especially enjoyable. With much TV music having a glib, off-the-peg ring to it, Gunning's originality makes him a worthy investment for any supporter of contemporary, tonal classical music, This is powerful and highly agreeable stuff.' 
Classic FM Magazine
'... the performances are immaculate and idiomatic...' Gramophone
