# Who is your favorite film composer?



## pegastar

I want to expand my breadth of knowledge so I have been asking everyone, who is your favorite film composer? What is your favorite score? Mancini? Hermann? Elfman? John Williams? John Barry? Michael J Lewis? Michael Kamen?


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## handlebar

I would say....

Hermann, Karaindrou,Horner,Newman and Williams.
Karaindrou is hardly mentioned as his Euro/Greek soundtracks are not well known here.


Jim


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## Weston

Can I count Shostakovich?

If not then Hermann, hands down - not for _Psycho_, but rather for _The Day the Earth Stood Still_ and _North by Northwest_

Miklos Rosza too.

Hmmm. I guess I don't care as much for contemporary film composers though I'm rather fond of Howard Shore's music.


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## Sid James

*French jazz film scores*

There were many good film composers who did jazz scores for French films during the 1950's and 60's.

My favourite would have to be Barney Wilen's score for _Un temoin dans la ville_. The recording has Wilen on sax, Duke Jordan on piano, Pierre Michelot on bass & the great Kenny Clarke on drums.

Another good one is Jean Wetzel's score for _Touchez pas au grisbi_. Art Blakey and Benny Golson also did a jazz score for _Des femmes disparaissent_.

Other composers worth mentioning are Martial Solal, Alain Goraguer, Michel de Villers, Andre Hodeir and of course, the most famous French film composer working in this genre of the period, Serge Gainsbourg.

Pardon me for including these on a classical site, but if you are into film scores generally, you should love these. They were reissued earlier this decade in the "Jazz in Paris" series put out by Gitanes/Universal. Not sure if they are still available, but it might be worth checking out for you (they were called Jazz et cinema vols.1, 2, 3 & 4)...


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## maestrowick

I must say John Williams


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## Edmond-Dantes

Overall, Hermann hands down. HOWEVER, my favorite Soundtrack goes to Dario Marianelli. The pride and prejudice soundtrack was just so amazing.


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## Tapkaara

Akira Ifukube.


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## jurianbai

john williams for sure, how to beat a list like Star War, Indiana Jones, harry potter.

alan menken for walt disney

howard shore for lord of the ring.


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## David C Coleman

Ron Goodwin should get a mention! love his 633 Squadron and Where Eagles Dare themes!!...


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## PostMinimalist

handlebar said:


> I would say....
> 
> Hermann, Karaindrou,Horner,Newman and Williams.
> Karaindrou is hardly mentioned as his Euro/Greek soundtracks are not well known here.
> 
> Jim


I know Eleni Karaindrou quite well. I have played in here sound tracks for the Weeping Meadow' and others whixh I can't remember the names. Here music is torture to play since there is literally nothing to do. It's all tenutos and little oboe solos!

She once said that I write brash flourishy music which is why she would never give me any orchestration to do!

She is so minimalist that she makes Phillip Glass look positively panicy!

MY own fav film composers are Jeff Beal and Alexander Desplat. Williams is of course the master.

F


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## Aramis

I think Michael Nyman wrote some fine music for a movie The Libertine. Good imitation of baroque style. I'm not very interested in film music, so my types would be rather standard: Ennio Morricone, Hans Zimmer, Danny Elfman, Howard Shore and maybe Krzesimir Dębski. I also like some various music from oldschool productions; 30's-70's.


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## handlebar

Aramis said:


> I think Michael Nyman wrote some fine music


I liked his music for "The Piano".The film was dreadful IMHO but the music well done.

Jim


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## Sid James

I also want to mention William Walton. His film scores for Olivier's Shakespeare films (_Hamlet, Henry V, Richard III_) were well known in his day, and a significant part of his output. I think that he was one of the composers who saw the music as an integral part of the film, not merely an accompaniment. They were arranged into concert suites ('scenarios') with narration by Christopher Palmer in the late 1980's and recordings are available on Chandos and Naxos.

Walton composed music for the 1960's move _The Battle of Britain_, but Hollywood turned his score down in favour of a local composer, whose name escapes me. So Walton was a bit peeved, and subsequently didn't compose much for the silver screen at all. Quite a pity, I think...


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## d.kowlesar

JAMES HORNER! I still listen to the music from Titanic and Troy almost daily!


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## PostMinimalist

I just read my post bout Karaindrou and realize I might have been a little tipsy when I wrote it. I know her personally, and I played on the recordings of her soundtracks for several films.
Sorry, hic..


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## LvB

Two names no one has mentioned yet are high on my list: Erich Wolfgang Korngold (especially his score for _The Adventures of Robin Hood_ (WB, 1938), which uses some material from his concert overture _Sursum Corda_) and Jerry Goldsmith (especially his score for _Star Trek: The Motion Picture_ (Paramount, 1979), which is one of the most evocative of all film scores). Of course Prokofiev's _Alexander Nevsky_ score is amazing, but in many ways it really belongs in a different category, given the amount of freedom he had in writing it. I'm also surprised not to see Ennio Morricone and Nino Rota listed.

Not, mind you, that I'm disagreeing with the many who've selected Herrmann and Williams, both of whom produced fabulous work....


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## PostMinimalist

David Raskin, Hank Mancini and Johny Mandel should be up there too.


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## pegastar

Just found out Michael J Lewis who is one of my favs and did the score for the animated The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is making his own movie and has samples of the score on his website http://www.youmakemydaythemovie.com definitely worth checking out. Wrote songs for it as well, can see music video here


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## ecg_fa

I like the names mentioned. I like many others too (no order): Bernard Newman, Jerry Goldsmith, Prokofiev's film music, Alex North, much of Morricone, Nino Rota, Eleni Karaindrou (she mostly does films by Theo Angelopoulos), Henry Mancini, sev. by
Lalo Schffrin, Michel LeGrand (mostly his films with Jacques Demy), Robert Farnon, Wally Stott/Angela Morley (he had a sex change). More I'm forgetting.

Ed


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## Lisztfreak

Howard Shore, Hans Zimmer and James Horner.


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## Bgroovy2

Tim Janis is awesome


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## Rondo

The "all-time" favorites who never disappoint: [Shostakovich, Prokofiev,] Herrmann, Elmer Bernstein, Goldsmith, Poledouris, Williams, and Silvestri.


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## PartisanRanger

John Williams, Howard Shore, Ennio Morricone, and Bernard Hermann for me. Hermann's scores for North by Northwest and Psycho were excellent, but he also wrote some interesting jazz-infused music in The Wrong Man.


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## Exordiom

Hermann by far.


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## Brahmsian Colors

Victor Young---long time


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## ST4

Jerry Goldsmith does it for me


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## QuietGuy

I would say John Williams, with one of his best scores being "E.T." (I read somewhere that his score for "The Reivers" is what led Steven Spielberg to seek Williams out as a composer for his own films.)

Others are Max Steiner ("Now Voyager", "Gone With The Wind") and Alfred Newman ("How The West Was Won")


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## SarahNorthman

Can I say any of the composers for the Harry Potter films? I know they differ slightly.


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## Bettina

SarahNorthman said:


> Can I say any of the composers for the Harry Potter films? I know they differ slightly.


Yeah, it's hard to keep track of who composed what for Harry Potter. I really enjoy Hedwig's Theme and all its variations. I think it was composed by John Williams. But then it re-appeared in some of the later films where he wasn't the main composer.


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## hpowders

So many. Henry Mancini and Ennio Morricone are two champs.


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## Pugg

Lalo Schffrin, Michel LeGrand and Rotta


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## SarahNorthman

Bettina said:


> Yeah, it's hard to keep track of who composed what for Harry Potter. I really enjoy Hedwig's Theme and all its variations. I think it was composed by John Williams. But then it re-appeared in some of the later films where he wasn't the main composer.


I agree! I love the variations as well. I am extremely that Hedwigs theme has made it to the new Fantastic Beasts movie.


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## tdc

Angelo Badalamenti


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## EdwardBast

Michael Kamen, who, alas, is no longer with us.


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## TxllxT

Hans Zimmer


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## ST4

tdc said:


> Angelo Badalamenti


Him too, Twin Peaks alone steals my heart :kiss:


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## Antiquarian

At the moment, my favourite is Richard Robbins.

He wrote a great deal of music for Merchant Ivory films, _Howards End_, _Remains of the Day_,_A Room With A View_, ect.


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## Gordontrek

Jerry Goldsmith and Elmer Bernstein fill out the top of my list. Also love Miklos Rosza, John Williams, Howard Shore, James Horner and Maurice Jarre.


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## georgedelorean

John Williams, Michael Kamen, Hans Zimmer, Lalo Schifrin, Brad Fiedel, James Horner, Alan Silvestri.


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## Totenfeier

Thomas Newman tops my list, followed by John Williams and Howard Shore.

I find Horner's relentless stealing from himself quite tiresome.


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## JJF

I am still fully infatuated with the score for The Merchant of Venice by Joceyln Pook.

Might anyone have a recommendation of something in a similar vein?


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## Tallisman

Hermann for Taxi Driver. I also like Lalo Schifrin: nothing epitomises those 60s/70s crime movies like that tight, acid funk/jazz he churned out.


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## TennysonsHarp

John Williams will always be my absolute favorite, but I also like Howard Shore (mostly for his work on LOTR), as well as some work by Hans Zimmer and Nino Rota (Godfather, anyone?)

Are there any film composers who also write non-cinematic work? I've heard that John Williams has written tons of concert and chamber work.


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## Brahmsian Colors

Franz Waxman and Victor Young are my favorites.


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## Bulldog

Thomas Newman's my favorite. He has a string of winners, especially The Shawshank Redemption.


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## eljr

pegastar said:


> I want to expand my breadth of knowledge so I have been asking everyone, who is your favorite film composer? What is your favorite score? Mancini? Hermann? Elfman? John Williams? John Barry? Michael J Lewis? Michael Kamen?


How does one not mention the best when asking this question, Philip Glass and Max Richter?

Koyaanisqatsi and Mary Queen of Scots


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## Pat Fairlea

I'm going to put in a word here for Malcolm Arnold. Wrote a fair few film scores, all of them worth a listen.


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## cayoma

Bernard Herrmann. Sit and watch the 1991 remake of 'Cape Fear'


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## Guest

I like Max Steiner. I could name some other film composers like Korngold and Frankel, but it is not their film music that I listen to.

(And I hate to be a pedant, but there is a board here called "Music for Cinema and TV" that might have been suitable for this thread.)


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## Art Rock

Nothing pedantic about it, you're right. I moved it.


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## Craveoon

Bernard Hermann, Ennio Morricone, and Nino Rota. Hermann's thrills, Morricone's SPhagettis, and Nino's subtleness as well as the melancholy!


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## SanAntone

*Randy Newman* is one of my favorite songwriters, but he also has written a number of great movie scores - and his music is unlike most film scores, which is why I like it so much. His writing for strings, I think, is unique and excellent; I can always recognize his hand.

A few of his movies:

Ragtime
The Natural
Seabiscuit
Awakenings 
Avalon

He comes from a legendary film music family, the Newmans have produced at least 5 or 6 major figures: three uncles who were Hollywood film-score composers: Alfred Newman, Lionel Newman and Emil Newman. Newman's cousins, Thomas, Maria, David and Joey, are also composers for motion pictures.


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## MAS

John Barry, and those guys from the 1930s and 1940s. I also like Ennio Morricone. There are others, but faves? Barry is at the top (some of his film scores: *Born Free, James Bond films, The Lion in Winter, Dances with Wolves, The Pink Panther*, etc.


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## Tempesta

John Barry
Bernard Hermann
Henry Mancini
Johnny Mandel 
Ira Newborn
Mark Isham, his score for Reversal of Fortune always haunts me
Miklós Rózsa


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## Forster

MAS said:


> John Barry, and those guys from the 1930s and 1940s. I also like Ennio Morricone. There are others, but faves? Barry is at the top (some of his film scores: *Born Free, James Bond films, The Lion in Winter, Dances with Wolves, The Pink Panther*, etc.


Barry - Pink Panther?


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## Tempesta

Tempesta said:


> John Barry
> Bernard Hermann
> Henry Mancini
> Johnny Mandel
> Ira Newborn
> Mark Isham, his score for Reversal of Fortune always haunts me
> Miklós Rózsa


Michel Legrand
and Jack Nitzsche


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## HenryPenfold

Arnold
Alwyn
Rawsthorne
Morricone
Mancini
Herrmann


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## 1846

I've looked enough threads here to realize that this is a trick question and that John Williams is the wrong answer, so I'll just say Erich Korngold and go with that.


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## Hunt Stromberg

Bernard Herrmann. This is stunning, particularly the dying falls which were so characteristic of Herrmann and found also in "Vertigo". An example of a film's music score being better than the film - and there are plenty of those.


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## Hunt Stromberg

1846 said:


> I've looked enough threads here to realize that this is a trick question and that John Williams is the wrong answer, so I'll just say Erich Korngold and go with that.


Korngold did the musical arrangements for this famous version of "*A Midsummer Night's Dream*" in 1935. For Warner Brothers.

Under Irving Thalberg's leadership,MGM was the premium studio and seeking legitimacy as a producer of high quality, literary films. During this period there were many adaptations of famous books and Shakespeare was represented at MGM with "Romeo and Juliet".

Warners was considered the lower budget end of the studio spectrum and mostly made gangster and noir films at this time, so it was a huge surprise for audiences to see "*A Midsummer Night's Dream*" from Warner Brothers. Note that famous Austrian theatre director Max Reinhardt was brought to the USA and co-directed this film with William Dieterle (a German actor and director who settled in the USA in 1930). Korngold was himself a refugee from Nazism.






These people enriched American cinema incalculably.


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## Hunt Stromberg

Here is Bernard Herrmann's superb suite for "*Fahrenheit 451*". You can hear those circular, unresolved chains of V7s right at the beginning of the score - hallmarks of "*Vertigo*", in particular. For now, though, my favourite section of the "Suite" for the film: this is a terrific recording of Herrmann's film scores, with the LAPO/Salonen.






So very modal in the final bars!!


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## Tempesta

Hunt Stromberg said:


> Bernard Herrmann. This is stunning, particularly the dying falls which were so characteristic of Herrmann and found also in "Vertigo". An example of a film's music score being better than the film - and there are plenty of those.


I've lost count of the number of films in which their music scores far more impressed me than anything else.


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## nikola

Yes, it's a good piece by Herrman.

My favorite composer is Ennio Morricone.


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## JackRance

maestrowick said:


> I must say John Williams


Williams for me is overrated. His only good music score is Schindler List, the others are stolen from classical music...


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## MAS

Forster said:


> Barry - Pink Panther?


No, sorry that was an error - *Henry Mancini *. My bad!


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## 89Koechel

Well, here's a vote for Kenyon Hopkins - "Twelve Angry Men", from 1957 ... and, of course, "The Hustler", from 1961. The latter is probably the BEST fit, of a jazz-type score, for the actual film (with Paul Newman, Jackie Gleason, George C. Scott, et. al.) that's ever been!


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## 89Koechel

Hunt - Very fine, in your recommendation of Fahrenheit 451! ... and Herrmann was SO-original, in so many of his scores. I'd still vote for the all-strings score for "Psycho", in it's occasional dulcet, almost-pastoral "tones", esp. at the beginning ... and then the MENACE of cellos, basses, etc., as the murderous actions unfold ... from scene to scene. Maybe the best sequence of all, is when "Marion's sister"/Vera Miles approaches the big house on the hill (trying to find Norman's "mother"), and she goes from one room to another ... leading to the penultimate scene, in the basement ... and, of course, the slashing strings of the score, when "Norman"/Anthony Perkins is finally throttled, and the costume and wig come OFF. ... Also, I have an LP with Herrmann, in his LP recording of the score, but I'd STILL prefer the conductor (maybe Muir Matheson?) on the original film.


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## Forster

89Koechel said:


> Also, I have an LP with Herrmann, in his LP recording of the score, but I'd STILL prefer the conductor (maybe Muir Matheson?) on the original film.


According to IMDB, the (uncredited) conductor was Herrmann himself.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054215/fullcredits/?ref_=tt_cl_sm


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## Red Terror

Bernard Herrmann


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## John Zito

My entry points to orchestral music were Howard Shore's scores for _The Lord of the Rings_ films (2001 - 2003) and John Williams' scores for the _Star Wars_ prequels (1999 - 2005) and the early _Harry Potter_ films (2001 - 2004). I was born in 1993, so these were the big, tentpole blockbusters that really excited me when I was in grade school. It's because of them that I went looking for "more music that sounds like this" and found my way to proper concert music.

In adulthood, my favorite single score might be Franz Waxman's music for _Sunset Boulevard_, and this recording on Varèse Sarabande with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra is a real treasure:









Frankly, I think the score is so strong that it works on its own as a big tone poem.

Other favorites:


 Miklós Rózsa - _Double Indemnity_;
 Elmer Bernstein - _Sweet Smell of Success_;
 Philippe Sarde - _Tess_;
 Wojciech Kilar - _Bram Stoker's Dracula_;
 Ennio Morricone - _Lolita_;
 Joe Hisaishi's music for the Studio Ghibli films.


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## atsizat

Ennio Morricone is my favourite film composer without a doubt. I believe I let everybody know it on this forum.


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## Sumantra

Morricone by far


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## Chibi Ubu

My first and still greatest love is Bernard Herrmann. I wonder how much traction Hitchcock would have gotten without him. Their partnership was a fine marriage.:tiphat:

Here's a fine recording of Herrmann's Suites:


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## verandai

My favourite film composer is John Williams - no matter how much people classify him as overrated!

In my opinion his music is often inspired by classical music, but not "stolen". He developed these inspirations in his own style.


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## NoCoPilot

verandai said:


> My favourite film composer is John Williams - no matter how much people classify him as overrated!
> 
> In my opinion his music is often inspired by classical music, but not "stolen". He developed these inspirations in his own style.


 Well if you Google "John Williams" + "plagiarism" you'll find more than a few examples where he was a little more than "inspired by."

My own favorite cinema composer is, by far, Nino Rota. Instantly recognizable, able to stand on its own without the movie, yet still somehow perfectly supportive of Fellini's and Francis Ford Coppola's movies.


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## Rogerx

On this moment : Zbigniew Preisner from film music Three Colors: Blue/Blanc/Rouge from Krzysztof Kieślowski.


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## arpeggio

Jerry Goldsmith


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## Heck148

I like Elmer Bernstein


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## Forster

Carter Burwell
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
Johan Johansson
Hans Zimmer
Max Richter
Lorne Balfe


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## pianozach

verandai said:


> My favourite film composer is John Williams - no matter how much people classify him as overrated!
> 
> In my opinion his music is often inspired by classical music, but not "stolen". He developed these inspirations in his own style.


I haven't commented here until now . . . I had to sort out that it's OK to say that my "favorite film composer is *John Williams*". Sure, there are some great film composers out there, but Williams is _legend_, prolific, catchy, excellent orchestrations and arrangements, music that lifts the film up so well consistently.


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## verandai

pianozach said:


> I haven't commented here until now . . . I had to sort out that it's OK to say that my "favorite film composer is *John Williams*". Sure, there are some great film composers out there, but Williams is _legend_, prolific, catchy, excellent orchestrations and arrangements, music that lifts the film up so well consistently.


I just wanted to point out that I'm fine with other people having different opinions about John Williams - but he'll stay my favourite film composer 

I also went to a concert where an orchestra played a lot of his film music (they also get more and more popular in Germany), and I really enjoyed it!


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## PathfinderCS

My favorite, without question, is James Newton Howard.

It started from Disney's "Dinosaur" and was fully confirmed with "Atlantis: The Lost Empire." Add in stellar scores for other films like King Kong (05), Waterworld, Devil's Advocate, and anything Shyamalan; his scores are just genius for me.


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## smoledman

Bernard Herrmann is tops by far. 

After that, Morricone and Goldsmith. 

John Williams is totally derivative and overrated!


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## Chibi Ubu

smoledman said:


> Bernard Herrmann is tops by far.
> 
> After that, Morricone and Goldsmith. John Williams is totally derivative and overrated!


John Williams is just trying to make a living as a composer _as they all are_. Some of his soundtracks have great appeal, others do not for me. I'm not much of a "Boston Pops Greatest Hits" type of fan!

I actually try to judge the soundtrack on it's own merit vs. how I feel about the movie. That's not to say that the movie has no influence on my judgement and tastes. Having said that, *Bernard Herrmann* is at the top of my list too!


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## geralmar

I have nothing against John Williams; but he simply doesn't appeal to me-- like he belongs in the 1940s or something. That said it's inevitable that I have several of his soundtracks, Jurassic Park and Dracula (1979) come to mind, both of which I respect highly. (Jurassic Park because it does NOT sound like dinosaur music).


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