In addition to his orchestral arrangements, Zimmer, no stranger to stepping outside the confines of traditional film scoring, has assembled two unique musical entities to contribute music to Man of Steel. The first, a drum orchestra, which was brought together for the album, is described by soundtrack co-producer Peter Asher as some of the best drummers in the world all playing simultaneously in a space designed for a symphony orchestra using not only rock drum kits but tympani and field drums as well.
The membership of this elite assembly consisists of many of today s top musicians including John JR Robinson, Jason Bonham, Josh Freese, Pharrell Williams, Danny Carey, Satnam Ramgotra, Toss Panos, Jim Keltner, Curt Bisquera, Trevor Lawrence Jr., Matt Chamberlain, Ryeland Allison, Bernie Dresel, Vinnie Colaiuta and Sheila E. Their contribution, under Zimmer's musical direction, creates a towering and powerful musical accompaniment to the film.
Another distinctive group the composer assembled was a gathering of eight of music's finest pedal steel guitarists who play classical string section parts. This collective, consisting of Chas Smith, Marty Rifkin, Skip Edwards, Boo Bernstein, Peter Frieberger, Rick Schmidt, JD Maness, John McClung, was described by Asher as, a uniquely new metallic orchestra added it's own distinct and soaring musical stamp to the soundtrack.
