Henry Mancini
If the recognition of one's peers is the true measure of success, then few men are as successful as composer, arranger, and conductor Henry Mancini. In a career that spanned 40 years, writing for film and television, Mancini won four Oscars and twenty Grammys, the all-time record for a pop artist. For 1961's Breakfast at Tiffany's alone, Mancini won five Grammys and two Oscars. Breakfast at Tiffany's includes the classic "Moon River" (lyrics by Johnny Mercer), arguably one of the finest pop songs of the last 50 years. At last count, there were over 1,000 recordings of it. His other notable songs include "Dear Heart," "Days of Wine and Roses" (one Oscar, two Grammys), and "Charade," the last two with lyrics by Mercer. He also had a number one record and won a Grammy for Nino Rota's "Love Theme From Romeo and Juliet." Among his other notable film scores are The Pink Panther (three Grammys), Hatari! (one Grammy), Victor/Victoria (an Oscar), Two for the Road, Wait Until Dark, and 10. His television themes include "Peter Gunn" (two Grammys, recorded by many rock artists), "Mr. Lucky" (two Grammys), "Newhart," "Remington Steele," and The Thorn Birds television mini-series.
As a child, Mancini learned how to play a variety of musical instruments and as a teenager, he became enamored with jazz and big bands. He began to write arrangements and sent a few to Benny Goodman, who wrote the teenager back, encouraging him to pursue a career in music. Mancini enrolled in the Julliard School of Music in 1942, but his studies were cut short when he served in the military during World War II. After the war, he was hired by Tex Beneke, the leader of the Glenn Miller Orchestra, as a pianist and arranger. In the late '40s, he began writing scores for record and film studios, first for a recording session by the Mel-Tones, which featured his wife Ginny O'Connor, and then the Abbot & Costello film Lost in Alaska, the first movie he scored.
Lost in Alaska led to more film scores, in particular 1954's The Glenn Miller Story and 1956's The Benny Goodman Story, which both showcased his big band roots. Soon, he was working on a large number of films and television, including Orson Welles' Touch of Evil and the TV show Peter Gunn. Mancini's scores frequently straddled the line between jazz and Hollywood dramatics, making his music both distinctive and influential.
Mancini's heyday was the early '60s, when his score for Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) yielded the Oscar-winning hit single "Moon River," which instantly became a pop standard. The following year, he wrote the music for Days of Wine and Roses, which also won an Oscar for its title song. Throughout the next three decades, he continued to be one of the most successful film composers in the world, as well as a popular concert conductor. He continued working until his death in 1994; just prior to his demise, he was writing the score for the musical adaption of Victor/Victoria.
What kept Mancini's work fresh was his ability to write in almost any style imaginable and his successful experimentations with unusual sounds and instruments. In his 1989 memoir Did They Mention the Music?, Mancini's co-author Gene Lees wrote that "More than any other person, he Americanized film scoring, and in time even European film composers followed in his path," and that Mancini wrote scores that "contained almost as many fully developed song melodies as a Broadway musical." Had he not remained true to his first love, film scoring, Mancini would have more than likely made as large an impact on the Broadway stage as he made on the silver screen.
© Kenneth M. Cassidy & Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo
Artistas similares
-
Easy Listening Vol. 1
Jazz - Editado por Listener's Choice el 7 nov. 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Music Of Henry Mancini
Bandas sonoras de cine - Editado por Legacy - Columbia el 1 sept. 1994
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Pink Panther (Original Soundtrack With Bonus Tracks)
Pop - Editado por Soundtrack el 1 ene. 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
From Glenn Miller Story to the Pink Panther (1954-1962)
Jazz - Editado por Fremeaux Heritage el 31 jul. 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Days Of Wine And Roses
Pop - Editado por RCA Records Label el 10 oct. 1995
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Legends
Bandas sonoras de cine - Editado por RCA Camden el 23 may. 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Moon River: The Henry Mancini Collection
Ambientes - Editado por Sony Music Entertainment el 1 ene. 1975
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Romantic Movie Themes
Bandas sonoras de cine - Editado por RCA Camden el 24 ago. 1996
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Breakfast at Tiffany's (Blake Edwards's Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Bandas sonoras de cine - Editado por Milan el 11 nov. 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Themes From The Godfather, Romeo & Juliet, Jaws, Earthquake, Love Story, Summer of '42
Bandas sonoras de cine - Editado por RCA Victor el 25 mar. 1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Anthology: The Deluxe Collection (Remastered)
Lounge - Editado por Master Tape Records el 12 mar. 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Music from Peter Gunn
Jazz contemporáneo - Editado por Music Manager el 29 abr. 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Condorman (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Bandas sonoras de cine - Editado por Walt Disney Records el 1 ene. 1981
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Pink Panther And Other Hits
Bandas sonoras de cine - Editado por RCA Victor el 28 ene. 1992
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Theme From "Z" And Other Film Music
Bandas sonoras de cine - Editado por Legacy Recordings el 17 sept. 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
What Did You Do in the War, Daddy? (Music From the Film Score)
Bandas sonoras de cine - Editado por RCA Victor - Legacy el 9 dic. 1966
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
The Great Race (Instrumental)
Jazz - Editado por Play Music el 18 dic. 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
-
Our Man In Hollywood/ Dear Heart & Other Songs About Love
Pop - Editado por RCA Records Label el 22 jun. 2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Two For The Road (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Bandas sonoras de cine - Editado por Master Classics Records el 1 feb. 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Latin Sound Of Henry Mancini
Pop/Rock - Editado por Legacy Recordings el 16 ago. 1965
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo