The Score So Far
Karam Salem is an Emmy-nominated composer and multi-instrumentalist based in the US. Originally from Baghdad, Iraq, he is best known for his worldly and versatile approach to film and TV scoring.
Karam’s music has been presented in television series, feature films, web series, documentaries, as well as other visual media and performances. Recently, Karam scored a feature film Young King directed by Bryant Griffin and an Emmy Award-winning documentary L.A. Rebellion: A Cinematic Movement in collaboration with PBS SoCal and KCET. Karam has also scored numerous TV series produced in the Middle East.
Previously, Karam co-scored with Alex Geringas Woody Woodpecker (short TV series) for Universal and Chuggington (Season 6) for Disney Jr. In addition, Karam has written additional music for over 500 episodes of animation TV series, including Trollstopia, I Heart Arlo, Trolls: The Beat Goes On, and Home: Adventures with Tip & Oh.
Karam Salem was born and raised in Baghdad, Iraq. His career in music began at a very young age as a pianist. He had the honor to perform at historical stages such as Babylon and many others in the Middle East. At age 16, Karam was invited to represent his country as a pianist to perform in front of the First Lady of Jordan. By then, he had already developed a strong passion for music and found that music was his language of expressing emotion and ideas.
In 2006, Karam left Iraq and relocated with his family to Syria as a refugee. Two years later, he received a full-tuition scholarship to study at Holy Cross College in Notre Dame, Indiana. Later on, he enhanced his knowledge in composition through the Film Scoring Program at UCLA, where he worked and studied with Hollywood's award-winning composers and orchestrators.
Karam’s relentless passion for music and his diverse background have equipped him with a unique sensibility to bring together a variety of music genres in his creative story-telling process.