By Joe Puccio

The name Alan Howarth might not be as recognizable as Harrison Ford, Kurt Russell, or Jamie Lee Curtis. Yet in many ways, his contributions on films like Raiders of the Lost Ark, Escape from New York, and Halloween II are just as pivotal as that of their respective stars.

Howarth has worked on sound design for a wide range of Hollywood movies for nearly a half-century, in a variety of specific roles. From receiving his first break in 1979 as a sound effects creator on Star Trek: The Motion Picture to creating the score for Christine in 1983 to supervising the entire auditory process on 1992’s Army of Darkness, Howarth has fittingly earned his reputation as one of the most lauded composers in the business.

Perhaps best known for his collaborations with renowned director John Carpenter, the Cleveland, Ohio native is still very much active today, traveling around the world to cities like Los Angeles, Toronto, Paris, and London, where he regularly performs a repertoire from his vast catalogue. The latest stop on his itinerary was Huntington, located in Suffolk County, New York.

An impressive number of fans crowded the Cinema Arts Centre on August 30 to not only hear the musician play his signature scores, but for the opportunity to converse with him as well. An informative question and answer session at the beautiful venue preceded the concert, where admirers had an array of assorted inquiries for the esteemed guest of honor.

Queries ranged from Howarth’s methods for entering show business to his techniques for constructing the soundtracks to some of cinephiles’ favorite motion pictures to his admittedly brief rock and roll stint opening for The Who and Cream to his long-standing relationship with the eccentric Carpenter and the artist thoroughly and satisfyingly answered them all in his typical carefree, frenetic fashion.

At the conclusion of the Q&A, a few technical glitches delayed the start of the evening’s main event but once rectified, proved to be captivating. The house lights were lowered just enough to create an intimate ambiance as Howarth, aided by a laptop, keyboard, guitar, and requisite background tracks, took the audience on a journey spanning his entire, lengthy career.

Scenes from Christine, Big Trouble in Little China, They Live, and naturally, various Halloween installments, to name a few, jaggedly aired on a large screen in an artsy, abstract manner, while Howarth precisely played along, adding his own offbeat, trademark touches to the material.

To cap off the night, Howarth had an extensive merchandise table located in the theater’s popular Sky Room Café, where he signed autographs, took pictures, and sold a variety of memorabilia, including CDs, 8x10s, and songbooks.

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