Georgetown composer takes on Sundance

In a custom-made yurt on a quiet farm in Georgetown, a musical composer is gearing up for her next big project.

Danielle Furst recently traveled with the team of “Time: The Kalief Browder Story,” to Park City, Utah, for the world premier of the six-part documentary series at this year's Sundance Film Festival.

Directed by Furst's brother, Jenner Furst, the series chronicles the tragic story of a 16-year-old who was held at New York City's Rikers Island for three years, without a trial and without conviction, after he was accused of stealing a backpack in the Bronx.

Browder maintained his innocence, and he spoke out after the charges were finally dropped and he was released. His story made national headlines, including a profile in The New Yorker in 2014, leading to calls for reforming the city's criminal justice system and spurring legislative action to crack down on abuse of solitary confinement of juveniles.

Two years after his release, struggling to re-acclimate to a normal life, Browder killed himself.

The documentary uses archival footage of the abuse Browder experienced while in jail, interviews with Browder, his family and friends, and recreations of scenes to tell the dark story of what happened to this young, black man.

Danielle Furst and Los Angeles-based composer Khari Mateen were tasked with developing the film's music, a dark, compelling soundtrack intended to bolster the emotional scenes. The two musicians performed all the music they wrote, developing a lot of symphonic pieces using piano, guitar, bass and cello, underpinned by the sound of a hurdy-gurdy, a crank-operated string instrument capable of producing the ominous sounds needed for “Time.”

“Music can add a lot to the actual story,” the 37-year-old pianist said. “It was very intense and emotional for us to have to be in that space and help try to tell the story musically.”

Furst said she watched similar documentary series exploring injustice and racial discrimination, and studied composers tasked with sharing a dark narrative through music.

“I would just kind of sit at the piano with my emotion, and I would come up with these themes and ideas as a starting point,” she said. “Music was my first language, before I had words to express what I was feeling or what I was thinking. So, to me, I can somehow relay my emotion musically. It's just a language that I use to express what I'm feeling.”

Furst said she spent about six weeks working on the score in Los Angeles, and the idea of Rikers Island as “hell on earth” fueled inspiration for the dark, jarring chords that can be heard in the short trailer of the series.

“It's a layered story and there are so many parts to it,” she said. “There were a lot of different emotions we had to get though: angst, injustice, desperation, an investigative element … Rikers, family, childhood, the Bronx. There was a range of different styles and scenes.”

Since working on her first feature film with her brother nearly a decade ago, Furst said it was a moving experience to work on a film like “Time,” which was produced by Jay Z and the Weinstein Company.

“There is something that we can all do,” she said. “We can all affect change, even if it’s in small ways. The awareness is the first step, and a lot of people are not aware that this is going on. Based on the reaction at the premier, everyone was moved and wanted to do something about it.”

Furst, a pianist and composer who settled in Sussex County two years ago, said her rural life is a stark contrast to years of city life – she's lived in New York City, London and Sarasota, Fla. But she said the small, open-concept yurt she lives in, surrounded by fields and trees, provides the perfect place to reflect and concentrate on musical creations.

When she's not working on a project like “Time” or her own music – she recently released an album called “Lost is Found” – music lovers might catch her playing local gigs at Blue Moon in Rehoboth Beach or the Atlantic Hotel in Berlin, Md.

Growing up in a musical household, the Boston native quickly found she inherited her father's musical talents, Furst said, adding that she's been playing music since she was in diapers. While the message of “Time” is rife with struggle, Furst said music has always been her first language – and sometimes it's easier to convey deep emotions through notes rather than words.

“My father taught me everything – music theory, arranging, what makes a hit song,” she said. “It feels like it was a lifetime of training, learning and experience … that contributed to being able to do this, and having it feel natural. It's very exciting.”

“Time: The Kalief Browder Story” airs on Spike at 10 p.m., Wednesday, March 1. For more, go to spike.com/shows/time-the-kalief-browder-story.