James Horner
James Roy Horner (August 14, 1953 – June 22, 2015) was an American film composer renowned for his work on more than 160 film and television productions from 1978 to 2015. Born in Los Angeles, California, to Jewish immigrant parents, Horner began playing the piano at age five and later attended the Royal College of Music in London. He earned his bachelor's degree in music from the University of Southern California.
Horner was celebrated for integrating choral and electronic elements with traditional orchestrations and frequently employed motifs associated with Celtic music. He won two Academy Awards for his score to James Cameron's "Titanic" (1997), the best-selling orchestral film soundtrack ever. He also composed the score for Cameron's "Avatar" (2009), the highest-grossing film of all time.
His Oscar-nominated scores include "Aliens" (1986), "An American Tail" (1986), "Field of Dreams" (1989), "Apollo 13" (1995), "Braveheart" (1995), "A Beautiful Mind" (2001), and "House of Sand and Fog" (2003). Other notable works include "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" (1982), "Willow" (1988), and "The Mask of Zorro" (1998).
Horner collaborated with directors such as James Cameron, Ron Howard, and Mel Gibson, and producers like Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. In addition to his two Academy Awards, he won six Grammy Awards and two Golden Globes.
An avid pilot, Horner tragically died in a plane crash at 61 while flying his Short Tucano turboprop aircraft. His final film scores, including "Southpaw" (2015) and "The Magnificent Seven" (2016), were released posthumously.
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