'Mission: Impossible,' 'Dirty Harry' composer Lalo Schifrin dies
June 26 (UPI) -- Composer Lalo Schifrin died Thursday at age 93. Schifrin's son confirmed the news to Deadline and The Hollywood Reporter.
Variety also reports the cause of death as complications from pneumonia.
Schifrin's film scores date back to 1957's Argentine film Venga e bailar el rock. Among his most famous scores are the Mission: Impossible theme, Bullitt, the Dirty Harry films, Enter the Dragon, Wait Until Dark and the Rush Hour trilogy.
It was his scores for Cool Hand Luke, The Fox, Voyage of the Damned, The Amityville Horror and The Sting II as well as the song "People Alone" from The Competition that earned Schirin Oscar nominations. The Academy awarded him an Honorary Oscar in 2019.
He also composed the scores to fan favorite films such as F/X, Money Talks, Black Moon Rising, Tank, and Class of 1984.
Schifrin also won four Grammys out of 19 nominations.
Notable deaths of 2025
Anne Burrell Anne Burrell arrives on the red carpet at the City Harvest "Red Supper Club" Fundraising Gala at Cipriani 42nd Street on April 26, 2022 in New York City. Burrell
Anne Burrell arrives on the red carpet at the City Harvest "Red Supper Club" Fundraising Gala at Cipriani 42nd Street on April 26, 2022 in New York City. Burrell died June 17. No cause of death was given. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo
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San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Lalo Schifrin, composer behind ‘Bullitt' and ‘Dirty Harry,' dies at 93
Lalo Schifrin, the trailblazing composer whose music helped define the sound of 1970s action cinema and turned San Francisco into a sonic landmark for filmgoers around the world, died Thursday of complications from pneumonia. He was 93. Schifrin's jazz-inflected, rhythmically daring scores for Steve McQueen's 'Bullitt' (1968) and Clint Eastwood's 'Dirty Harry' (1971) helped establish the musical identities of two of the most iconic films ever set in the Bay Area. He was also hand-picked by Bruce Lee to score his final film, 'Enter the Dragon' (1973). With a deft mix of suspense, funk and atmospheric cool, Schifrin's work elevated car chases down Potrero Hill and showdowns at Aquatic Park into unforgettable cinematic moments. 'Everybody tells me how great the music for the chase in 'Bullitt' is,' Schifrin told The Chronicle in a 2003 interview. 'I didn't do any music for the chase. Four minutes before the chase, where there is a foot chase in the hospital, I build and build the suspense and the tension. And finally, when Steve McQueen finds a way to get to the freeway, at that moment the music stops suddenly. I told the director it would be a mistake to continue the music on the chase. The audience should hear the sounds of the cars, so they know whether the villain or 'Bullitt' is coming. You know what? It worked.' Born Boris Claudio Schifrin in Buenos Aires in 1932, he trained in classical composition at the Paris Conservatory under Olivier Messiaen while moonlighting in jazz clubs. He emigrated to the U.S. after a serendipitous encounter with Dizzy Gillespie, eventually becoming his pianist and arranger. That genre-crossing instinct became the hallmark of his scoring career. In Hollywood, Schifrin's fusion of jazz, Latin rhythms and experimental time signatures made him one of the most distinctive composers of the late 20th century. Schifrin received six Academy Award nominations over his career, including Best Original Score nods for 'Cool Hand Luke' (1967), 'The Fox' (1968), 'Voyage of the Damned' (1976), 'The Amityville Horror' (1979) and 'The Sting II' (1983). He also earned a nomination for Best Original Song for 'People Alone' from 'The Competition' (1980). 'He really was such a genius at combining rhythm, texture, instrumentation and melody in such a powerful and unique way,' Daniel Pemberton, an English composer who wrote the score for the film 'Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,' wrote on X. His theme for the 'Mission: Impossible' television show — composed in 5/4 time and famously written in just three minutes — became a pop culture staple, earning him Grammy Awards and renewed fame with the Tom Cruise film franchise that launched in 1996. Schifrin applauded you artists who sampled his work, most notably Portishead, who sampled the main riff from 'Danube Incident' for its 1994 hit 'Sour Times.' 'These young people are rediscovering my music and using it in their own way,' he told The Chronicle. 'It's almost like a bridge to a younger generation. It rejuvenates me. The same thing happens with the fact that the two 'Mission: Impossible' movies made people rediscover that theme. That is a very positive sign. I'm not a purist. I'm very far from being a purist.'
New York Post
3 hours ago
- New York Post
Lalo Schifrin, composer of the ‘Mission: Impossible' theme, dies at 93
Lalo Schifrin, the composer who wrote the endlessly catchy theme for 'Mission: Impossible' and more than 100 other arrangements for film and television, died Thursday. He was 93. Schifrin's sons William and Ryan confirmed his death to trade outlets. The Associated Press' messages to Schifrin's publicist and representatives for either brother were not immediately returned. The Argentine won four Grammys and was nominated for six Oscars, including five for original score for 'Cool Hand Luke,' 'The Fox,' 'Voyage of the Damned,' 'The Amityville Horror' and 'The Sting II.' Advertisement 7 Composer Lalo Schifrin has died at 93. WireImage 'Every movie has its own personality. There are no rules to write music for movies,' Schifrin told The Associated Press in 2018. 'The movie dictates what the music will be.' He also wrote the grand finale musical performance for the World Cup championship in Italy in 1990, in which the Three Tenors — Plácido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti and José Carreras — sang together for the first time. The work became one of the biggest sellers in the history of classical music. 'The most contagious tune ever heard' Advertisement Schifrin, also a jazz pianist and classical conductor, had a remarkable career in music that included working with Dizzy Gillespie and recording with Count Basie and Sarah Vaughan. But perhaps his biggest contribution was the instantly recognizable score to television's 'Mission: Impossible,' which fueled the just-wrapped, decades-spanning feature film franchise led by Tom Cruise. Written in the unusual 5/4 time signature, the theme — Dum-dum DUM DUM dum-dum DUM DUM — was married to an on-screen self-destruct clock that kicked off the TV show, which ran from 1966 to 1973. It was described as 'only the most contagious tune ever heard by mortal ears' by New Yorker film critic Anthony Lane and even hit No. 41 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1968. 7 Perhaps Schifrin's biggest contribution was the instantly recognizable score to television's 'Mission: Impossible.' ©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection Schifrin originally wrote a different piece of music for the theme song but series creator Bruce Geller liked another arrangement Schifrin had composed for an action sequence. Advertisement 'The producer called me and told me, 'You're going to have to write something exciting, almost like a logo, something that will be a signature, and it's going to start with a fuse,'' Schifrin told the AP in 2006. 'So I did it and there was nothing on the screen. And maybe the fact that I was so free and I had no images to catch, maybe that's why this thing has become so successful — because I wrote something that came from inside me.' When director Brian De Palma was asked to take the series to the silver screen, he wanted to bring the theme along with him, leading to a creative conflict with composer John Williams, who wanted to work with a new theme of his own. Out went Williams and in came Danny Elfman, who agreed to retain Schifrin's music. 7 Schifrin originally wrote a different piece of music for the theme song but series creator Bruce Geller liked another arrangement. Penske Media via Getty Images Hans Zimmer took over scoring for the second film, and Michael Giacchino scored the next two. Giacchino told NPR he was a hesitant to take it on, because Schifrin's music was one of his favorite themes of all time. Advertisement 'I remember calling Lalo and asking if we could meet for lunch,' Giacchino told NPR. 'And I was very nervous — I felt like someone asking a father if I could marry their daughter or something. And he said, 'Just have fun with it.' And I did.' Mission: Impossible' won Grammys for best instrumental theme and best original score from a motion picture or a TV show. In 2017, the theme was entered into the Grammy Hall of Fame. 7 Hans Zimmer took over scoring for the second film, and Michael Giacchino scored the next two. U2 members Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. covered the theme while making the soundtrack to 1996's first installment; that version peaked at No. 16 on the Billboard 200 with a Grammy nomination. A 2010 commercial for Lipton tea depicted a young Schifrin composing the theme at his piano while gaining inspiration through sips of the brand's Lipton Yellow Label. Musicians dropped from the sky as he added elements. Early life filled with music Born Boris Claudio Schifrin to a Jewish family in Buenos Aires — where his father was the concertmaster of the philharmonic orchestra — Schifrin was classically trained in music, in addition to studying law. After studying at the Paris Conservatory — where he learned about harmony and composition from the legendary Olivier Messiaen — Schifrin returned to Argentina and formed a concert band. Gillespie heard Schifrin perform and asked him to become his pianist, arranger and composer. In 1958, Schifrin moved to the United States, playing in Gillespie's quintet in 1960-62 and composing the acclaimed 'Gillespiana.' 7 Lalo Schifrin appears at the Governors Awards in Los Angeles on Nov. 18, 2018. Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP Advertisement The long list of luminaries he performed and recorded with includes Ella Fitzgerald, Stan Getz, Dee Dee Bridgewater and George Benson. He also worked with such classical stars as Zubin Mehta, Mstislav Rostropovich, Daniel Barenboim and others. Schifrin moved easily between genres, winning a Grammy for 1965's 'Jazz Suite on the Mass Texts' while also earning a nod that same year for the score of TV's 'The Man From U.N.C.L.E.' In 2018, he was given an honorary Oscar statuette and, in 2017, the Latin Recording Academy bestowed on him one of its special trustee awards. Later film scores included 'Tango,' 'Rush Hour' and its two sequels, 'Bringing Down The House,' 'The Bridge of San Luis Rey,' 'After the Sunset' and the horror film 'Abominable.' Writing the arrangements for 'Dirty Harry,' Schifrin decided that the main character wasn't in fact Clint Eastwood's hero, Harry Callahan, but the villain, Scorpio. Advertisement 7 'Mission: Impossible' won Grammys for best instrumental theme and best original score from a motion picture or a TV show. 'You would think the composer would pay more attention to the hero. But in this case, no, I did it to Scorpio, the bad guy, the evil guy,' he told the AP. 'I wrote a theme for Scorpio.' It was Eastwood who handed him his honorary Oscar. 'Receiving this honorary Oscar is the culmination of a dream,' Schifrin said at the time. 'It is mission accomplished.' Beyond film and TV Advertisement Among Schifrin's conducting credits include the London Symphony Orchestra, the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, the Israel Philharmonic, the Mexico Philharmonic, the Houston Symphony Orchestra, the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. He was appointed music director of Southern California's Glendale Symphony Orchestra and served in that capacity from 1989-1995. Schifrin also wrote and adapted the music for 'Christmas in Vienna' in 1992, a concert featuring Diana Ross, Carreras and Domingo. He also combined tango, folk and classical genres when he recorded 'Letters from Argentina,' nominated for a Latin Grammy for best tango album in 2006. 7 Lalo Schifrin attends 34th Annual BMI Film, TV & Visual Media Awards attends at Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel on May 9, 2018 in Beverly Hills, California. Getty Images for BMI Schifrin was also commissioned to write the overture for the 1987 Pan American Games, and composed and conducted the event's 1995 final performance in Argentina. Advertisement And for perhaps one of the only operas performed in the ancient Indigenous language of Nahuatl, in 1988 Schifrin wrote and conducted the choral symphony 'Songs of the Aztecs.' The work premiered at Mexico's Teotihuacan pyramids with Domingo as part of a campaign to raise money to restore the site's Aztec temple. 'I found it to be a very sweet, musical language, one in which the sounds of the words dictated interesting melodies,' Schifrin told The Associated Press at the time. 'But the real answer is that there's something magic about it. … There's something magic in the art of music anyway.' In addition to his sons, he's survived by his daughter, Frances, and wife, Donna.
Los Angeles Times
3 hours ago
- Los Angeles Times
Lalo Schifrin, award-winning composer known for ‘Mission: Impossible' theme, dies at 93
Lalo Schifrin, the six-time Oscar nominee and prolific composer best known for his Grammy-award winning 'Mission: Impossible' theme, has died. He was 93. Schifrin died Thursday morning at a hospital in Los Angeles, his son Will Schifrin told The Times. He reportedly died of complications from pneumonia. The Argentine-born composer was known for his ability to infuse elements of jazz, rock and funk into classical orchestral music, and is credited for helping to change the sound of movies. Schifrin was recognized for his scores on films such as 'Cool Hand Luke' (1967), 'The Fox' (1967), 'Voyage of the Damned' (1976), 'The Amityville Horror' (1979) and 'The Sting II' (1983). In 2018, Schifrin was presented an honorary Oscar from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Schifrin wrote more than 100 scores for film and television over the course of his Hollywood career, including for films such as 'Dirty Harry' (1971), 'THX 1138' (1971), 'Enter the Dragon' (1973) and the 'Rush Hour' trilogy, as well as TV shows including 'The Man from U.N.C.L.E.' and 'Starsky and Hutch.' 'I learned to be a chameleon,' Schifrin told The Times in 2018. 'In motion pictures, the real creator is the screenwriter and the director and the producer. I have to work for what they have made. Like a chameleon, I do whatever is necessary.' In 2011, Schifrin modestly described himself as simply a 'music maker.' While the catchy theme for the spy series 'Mission: Impossible' remains one of his best known pieces, Schifrin told The Times in 2016 that 'it was just work.' 'For everything I've done, I did my best,' Schifrin said. 'I like what I did. I don't think it's a masterpiece, but it's OK. ... If people like it, to the point of embracing it, great. That doesn't happen too often.' Born in Buenos Aires in 1932, Schifrin was exposed to music from a young age. His father Luis served as the concert master of the Philharmonic Orchestra of Buenos Aires at the Teatro Colón. And he was just 5 years old when a trip to the movies with his grandmother made him realize that it was the music that helped make the horror film so scary. Schifrin began studying piano under Enrique Barenboim, the father of pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim, when he was 6. He discovered and fell in love with modern American jazz as a teenager. Upon the suggestion of one of his teachers, he applied for a scholarship to attend the Paris Conservatory. During his time there, he made money playing at jazz clubs. After returning to Buenos Aires, Schifrin started his own jazz band to perform at concerts and on TV. He eventually met American jazz trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie, who invited him to come work for him in the U.S. In 1963, while he was working with Gillespie after moving to New York, Schifrin was offered a job in Hollywood. 'My first movie was called 'Rhino,'' Schifrin told The Times in 2011. 'It was a low-budget movie, but it was the beginning.' Schifrin is survived by his wife, Donna, and his children, William, Frances and Ryan.
