Award-winning film composer James Horner, whose stirring musical scores were an unforgettable part of films like Titanic, Field of Dreams, Glory, and Walt Disney Studios’ The Rocketeer, passed away on June 22. He was 61.
Horner may be best known for his work in James Cameron’s Titanic, for which he composed the Academy Award®-winning score, along with the music for the film’s iconic ballad, “My Heart Will Go On,” which was sung by Celine Dion. Over the course of Horner’s prolific career, which began in 1979 with The Lady in Red, the celebrated composer won two Oscars® for Titanic, and was nominated eight other times for his work in films that included Apollo 13, Braveheart, and Avatar.
Born in Los Angeles but raised in London, where he attended the Royal College of Music, Horner attended the University of Southern California, where he received a B.A. in music. After earning a master’s degree, he started his doctorate at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Horner’s list of credits is more than 100 titles long, and there are so many that Disney fans will remember that feature his unparalleled talent. Horner’s work is heard in The Journey of Natty Gann and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, in Swing Kids and Mighty Joe Young, and in Bicentennial Man and, of course, The Rocketeer. For many years, James Horner also had a presence in Disney parks with his score for Michael Jackson’s Captain EO.
Composer Michael Giacchino (Up, Ratatouille, Inside Out) said, via Twitter, “You were one of my childhood heroes, James. Thank you for the inspiration, you will be greatly missed.”
In an interview with a fan site, James Horner Film Music, Horner spoke about the role of music in film, saying, “The music’s job is to get the audience so involved that they forget how the movie turns out.”
