Dennis Dreith

Dennis Dreith is a film composer, conductor, orchestrator, and jazz bandleader who is also known behind the scenes for his work on behalf of musicians' rights. He has served as a consultant and member of the American Federation of Musicians (AFM) Negotiating Committee, as International President of the Recording Musicians’ Association, and as Executive Director of the AFM & SAG-AFTRA Intellectual Property Rights Distribution Fund. A native of Southern California, Dreith began earning composing credits for TV in the late '70s, and he formed the jazz group the Dennis Dreith Band in the early '80s. His main instruments are woodwinds. As a composer, some of Dreith's earliest television credits included work on the animated series Jana of the Jungle and Battle of the Planets, both in 1978. He went on to compose for live-action shows such as Columbo and Partners in Crime, in addition to scoring numerous made-for-TV movies. On the big screen, he provided additional music for comedies such as Howard the Duck (1986) and Purple People Eater (1988), earning his first feature-film main composer credit for 1987's Party Camp. Dreith also conducted and orchestrated for films spanning Stephen King's Misery (1990) and the Steve Martin comedy Leap of Faith (1992). His score for the 1989 film The Punisher saw release by Perseverance Records in 2005. The label also issued his original scores for the horror films Gag (2006) and Creep Van (2013). In 2015, Perseverance released Reunion, an album by the Dennis Dreith Band that reunited some of the many successful session musicians that had taken part in the expansive jazz outfit over the years. A vinyl release followed on Merlin's Nose in 2017. At the time, Dreith was continuing his work with the AFM & SAG-AFTRA fund.
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