Bronte Horder’s inspirational journey

Bronte Horder (Class of 2010) was welcomed back to the College as our guest speaker for International Women’s Day. Bronte is an inspirational woman and she shared her uplifting and encouraging journey of perseverance and hard work to establish her career as a music producer for television and film. 

Who/what inspired you to pursue your passions in music?

I was lucky to grow up with parents who constantly told me nothing was out of reach and if I worked hard, I could achieve my goals. They instilled a ‘why not’ mentality that made me bold enough to think that if I worked super hard, it was possible the person who ‘made it’ in music could be me. 

Can you share your study/career journey, particularly your big break into the music production industry?

After graduating from USYD with a Bachelor of Arts/Media & Communications, I moved to LA to pursue music. I had writing sessions with everyone I met and spent over a year working in a studio for free while working in a bar at night for money. I wouldn’t say I had a ‘big break’ but more so I made tiny fractures over ten years to get the job I have now. I spent years teaching myself how to produce music and slowly expanded my networks over time going back and forth from LA. I did a Postgraduate Certificate in Screen Music at AFTRS which was a year-long part-time course that threw me together with other disciplines to make films – writers, directors, editors, producers, etc. This allowed me to move from the songwriting/pop world into composing for TV and film. 

My internship at Remote Control came about because I knocked on the door of the studio in 2018, sent multiple unanswered emails to the studio manager for close to a year, had coffee with him in 2019 when I was next in LA and then locked in a start date for later that year. It was an incredible experience working there which led to being recommended for an interview for a job as an assistant to a composer and then landing the job. I was juggling two assistant jobs at the same time and when COVID hit, I lost one of them. Luckily, I was able to ramp up the other job to a full-time gig and work based out of Sydney. Over the last five years my role has changed with my experience to go from being an assistant to being a Creative Director & Composer. I compose for TV shows & films including Master Chef, LEGO Masters, MAFS, Love on the Spectrum & Rose Gold. I also work as a session vocalist, lending my voice to other composers and singing on their scores such as the Aussie feature film The Dry. 

It is a project-based industry that operates on word of mouth so you are very reliant on being recommended by others. It is so important to not only create great work but to be a great collaborator that people want to work with again and again. 

What has been your biggest career highlight?

The best days are when you get to work with live musicians & hear something you worked on come to life. I played the piano & sang backing vocals for the end credits song Under The Milky Way for the feature film The Dry. I flew to London to sit in on the session at Abbey Road Studios where a 40 piece string ensemble recorded to my work. It was surreal. One day I hope to go back to record an original score there. 

What are your fondest memories of your time at St Ursula’s?

English with Mrs Dryden! She was such a brilliant storyteller and a good example of how being intelligent and super engaged in what’s going on in the world is cool. She was always interested in what everyone had to say – she took me seriously as a young adult. 

I also have to mention how special it is to have memories from school with friends who have remained close 15 years after graduation. I met Anna playing netball in Year 7 and Kim in Year 8 when we were in the same PC class. I’m very lucky to have these two incredible women in my life!