Favorite Film Music Composers
by ronswilliams-03171 | created - 29 Nov 2021 | updated - 30 Nov 2021 | Public
1. Bernard Herrmann
Composer | North by Northwest
The man behind the low woodwinds that open Citizen Kane (1941), the shrieking violins of Psycho (1960), and the plaintive saxophone of Taxi Driver (1976) was one of the most original and distinctive composers ever to work in film. He started early, winning a composition prize at the age of 13 and ...
Bernard Herrmann is one of my very favorite film music composers. I consider his scores for "North by Northwest," "Psycho," "Vertigo" and "On Dangerous Ground" to top a long list of my personal favorites. Many Herrmann Scores have elevated the impact and quality of many below average films. What his scores do for quality films is immeasurable.
2. John Williams
Composer | Jurassic Park
As one of the best known, awarded, and financially successful composers in US history, John Williams is as easy to recall as John Philip Sousa, Aaron Copland or Leonard Bernstein, illustrating why he is "America's composer" time and again. With a massive list of awards that includes over 52 Oscar ...
John William's "ET, The Extraterrestrial" score is his finest score. IMO it may be the BEST FILM SCORE ever composed in the history of Motion Pictures. "Jaws" is another one of his best scores. With far too many others to list.
3. James Horner
Music_department | Titanic
James Horner began studying piano at the age of five, and trained at the Royal College of Music in London, England, before moving to California in the 1970s. After receiving a bachelor's degree in music at USC, he would go on to earn his master's degree at UCLA and teach music theory there. He ...
4. Danny Elfman
Music_department | The Nightmare Before Christmas
As Danny Elfman was growing up in the Los Angeles area, he was largely unaware of his talent for composing. It wasn't until the early 1970s that Danny and his older brother Richard Elfman started a musical troupe while in Paris; the group "Mystic Knights of Oingo-Boingo" was created for Richard's ...
5. Alan Silvestri
Composer | The Polar Express
In his ongoing, decades-long career as a composer, Alan Silvestri has blazed an innovative trail with his exciting and melodic scores, winning the applause of Hollywood and movie audiences the world over. With a credit list of over 100 films Silvestri has composed some of the most recognizable and ...
6. Franz Waxman
Composer | Sunset Blvd.
Franz Waxman (Wachsmann) pursued his dream of a career in music despite his family's misgivings. He worked for several years as a bank teller and paid for piano, harmony and composition lessons with his salary. He later moved to Berlin, where he continued his study and progress as a musician. He ...
7. Miklós Rózsa
Composer | Ben-Hur
A child prodigy, Miklos Rózsa learned to play the violin at the age of five and read music before he was able to read words. In 1926, he began studying at the Leipzig Conservatory where he was considered a brilliant student. He obtained his doctorate in music in 1930. Moving to Paris the following ...
For "Ben Hur," "King of Kings" and "Time After Time."
8. Max Steiner
Composer | Casablanca
Austrian composer Max Steiner achieved legendary status as the creator of hundreds of classic American film scores. He was born Maximilian Raoul Walter Steiner in Vienna, Austria, the son of Marie Mizzi (Hasiba) and Gabor Steiner, an impresario, and the grandson of actor and theater director and ...
For "King Kong" 1033, "Gone With The Wind," "Now Voyager" and many other fine Film Scores
9. Ennio Morricone
Composer | The Hateful Eight
A classmate of director Sergio Leone with whom he would form one of the great director/composer partnerships (right up there with Eisenstein & Prokofiev, Hitchcock & Herrmann, Fellini & Rota), Ennio Morricone studied at Rome's Santa Cecilia Conservatory, where he specialized in trumpet. His first ...
For "The Untouchables," "Dressed to Kill" and many other fine scores.
10. Howard Shore
Music_department | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Howard Shore is a Canadian composer, born in Toronto. He was born in a Jewish family. He started studying music when 8-years-old, and played as a member of bands by the time he was 13-years-old. He was interested in a professional career in music as a teenager. He studied music at the Berklee ...
For: "Silence of the Lambs," "Hugo," and "Ed Wood"
11. David Buttolph
Music_department | The Three Musketeers
Prolific screen composer, arranger, and conductor, educated at Juillard and the Academie fur Musik in Vienna. He played in night clubs in Vienna and Munich from 1923 to 1926, then was an opera coach in Munich, 1926-1927. In 1927 he conducted for NBC, and then became music director for WGY in ...
For "House of Wax" 1953
12. David Arnold
Soundtrack | Casino Royale
David Arnold was born on January 23, 1962 in Luton, England, UK. He is a composer and actor, known for Casino Royale (2006), Independence Day (1996) and Godzilla (1998). He has been married to Ellie Pole since June 8, 1996. They have three children.
For "Stargate" The Film
13. Mark Mancina
Music_department | Twister
Known for his wide-ranging talents, Mark Mancina's film scores traverse almost every genre: drama, action, comedy, suspense, and period epic. His dark, edgy music for the Oscar-winning Training Day (2001), is a benchmark score that expanded the boundaries of scoring street-wise drama, and is widely...
For "Speed"
14. Michael Giacchino
Composer | Star Trek
Michael Giacchino is an American composer of music for films, television and video games.
Giacchino composed the scores to the television series Lost, Alias and Fringe, the video game series Medal of Honor and Call of Duty and many films such as The Incredibles (2004), Star Trek (2009), Up (2009), ...
For "John Carter"
15. Alex North
Music_department | Spartacus
Alex North studied music at the Curtis Institute of Philadelphia, then won a scholarship to Juilliard in New York (1929) and the Moscow Conservatoire (1933), making him the first-ever American to become a member of the Union of Soviet Composers. In Europe, he worked as music director for the ...
"Spartacus" 1960, His greatest film score.
16. John Barry
Soundtrack | Out of Africa
John Barry was born in York, England in 1933, and was the youngest of three children. His father, Jack, owned several local cinemas and by the age of fourteen, Barry was capable of running the projection box on his own - in particular, The Rialto in York. As he was brought up in a cinematic ...
For James Bond films, especially "Goldfinger" And for "Out of Africa."
17. Carmen Dragon
Composer | Invasion of the Body Snatchers
Composer, conductor and arranger, educated at San Jose College (MA degree). He made many records as conductor of the Hollywood Bowl (which he conducted for ten years) and Capitol Symphony orchestras, and he composed, conducted and arranged for a number of American radio and television programs (...
For "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" 1956
18. Harold Rome
Composer | Fanny
Harold Rome was born on May 27, 1908 in Hartford, Connecticut, USA. He was a composer and writer, known for Fanny (1961), Call Me Mister (1951) and Thousands Cheer (1943). He was married to Florence Miles. He died on October 26, 1993 in New York City, New York, USA.
For FANNY 1961 Music only adaptation from his B'way Show "Fanny".
19. Erich Wolfgang Korngold
Composer | The Adventures of Robin Hood
Erich Wolfgang Korngold was the son of a well-known music critic. A child prodigy, he accompanied his father in playing four-handed piano arrangements by the age of five. By the age of eleven he drew his first plaudits from enthusiastic Viennese audiences (including the emperor Franz Josef) with ...
For "Kings Row," "The Adventures of Robin Hood," "The Sea Hawk" and may Fine Film Scores
20. John Powell
Composer | How to Train Your Dragon 2
John Powell was born on September 18, 1963 in London, England, UK. He is a composer, known for How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014), Happy Feet (2006) and Shrek (2001). He was previously married to Melinda Lerner.
For "How to Train Your Dragon," his most brilliant Film Score.
21. Dimitri Tiomkin
Soundtrack | High Noon
Dimitri Tiomkin was a Russian Jewish composer who emigrated to America and became one of the most distinguished and best-loved music writers of Hollywood. He won a hallowed place in the pantheon of the most successful and productive composers in American film history, earning himself four Oscars ...
22. Alfred Newman
Music_department | The King and I
Alfred Newman is an American composer, arranger, and conductor of film music.
From his start as a music prodigy, he came to be regarded as a respected figure in the history of film music. He won nine Academy Awards and was nominated 45 times, contributing to the Newmans being the most nominated ...
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