Maurice Jarre
About
Biography
Filmography
Family & Companions
Notes
Over the years, Jarre has conducted numerous renowned orchestras ranging from the London Philharmonic Orchestra to the Osaka Symphonic Orchestra to the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
". . . when I worked with Fred Zinnemann on "Behold a Pale Horse" (1964), he wanted a smaller sound, almost chamber music. William Wyler wanted a medium-sized score for "The Collector" (1965). On the other hand, for "Topaz" (1969) Alfred Hitchcock wanted a big score. So it's not a question of Hollywood. You work for the film, not the studio." --Maurice Jarre quoted in The Hollywood Reporter Deauville Film Festival Special Edition, August 31-September 6, 1999.
Biography
One of the most prolific film composers of the late 20th Century, Lyon-born Maurice Jarre had been crafting film underscores for a decade when he came to international prominence in 1962 with his Oscar-winning score for the sweeping David Lean-directed epic "Lawrence of Arabia."
Jarre studied percussion and composition at the Paris Conservatory under Arthur Honneger, Jacques de la Presle and Louis Aubert. Following military service in the French navy during WWII, he was tapped by Jean Louis Barrault to serve as orchestral composer and arranger for Barrault's theater company. When he left Barrault after four years, Jarre joined with Jean Vilar's recently formed Theatre National Populaire and honed his craft preparing incidental music for classical works by Moliere, Victor Hugo and Shakespeare. Shortly thereafter, the composer crossed over into films, debuting with the music for George Franju's short "Hotel des Invalides" (1952) and following up over the next six years with the scores for several shorts and documentaries, including "Toute la memoire du monde" (1956), directed by Alain Resnais, and "Le Bel Indifferent" (1957), helmed by Jacques Demy. Franju tapped the musician for the full-length feature "La Tete contre les murs/The Keepers" (1958) and Jarre's career began to take off in earnest. He wrote the rare horror score for "Eyes Without a Face/Les Yeux sans visages" (1959) and collaborated with Richard Fleischer on "Crack in the Mirror" (1960) and "The Big Gamble" (1961).
But it was his association with Lean that yielded Jarre's best-known work. Following the award-winning "Lawrence of Arabia," the two once again worked together on "Doctor Zhivago" (1965), which brought Jarre his second Academy Award and included the haunting, seemingly ubiquitous "Lara's Theme." After a five year absence, the duo reunited to collaborate on the uneven "Ryan's Daughter" (1970) and then enjoyed one last pairing with "A Passage to India" (1984), which earned Jarre his third Oscar.
In addition to his work with Lean, Jarre also has enjoyed successful teamings with John Huston (including the stirring music for 1975's "The Man Who Would Be King") and Peter Weir (five features to date, including the all electronic scores for 1982's "The Year of Living Dangerously" and 1985's "Witness"). As of 2000, he has amassed a career total of nine Academy Award nominations (eight for original score and one for Best Song for "Marmalade, Molasses and Honey" from 1972's "The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean"). Among the numerous TV projects that have borne his creative stamp are the acclaimed miniseries "Jesus of Nazareth" (NBC, 1977), "Shogun" (NBC, 1980) and the small screen remake of "Samson and Delilah" (ABC, 1984).
In addition to his illustrious career as a film composer, Jarre has also written the scores for several ballets, symphonic pieces and other classical works. Additionally, he has appeared as conductor of some of the world's most renowned orchestras. After more than fifty years as a musician and composer, Jarre obviously has not lost his touch: filmgoers in 2000 were treated to two of his lilting scores in the films "Sunshine" and "I Dreamed of Africa."
Filmography
Music (Feature Film)
Cast (Special)
Producer (Special)
Music (Special)
Music (Short)
Music (TV Mini-Series)
Life Events
1946
Served as a musician with Radiodiffusion Francaise
1952
Made motion picture debut as a composer with the short film "Hotel des Invalides"
1958
First full-length feature score, "The Keepers/La Tete contre les murs"
1959
Penned the score for the horror film, "Eyes Without a Face"
1962
Composed the dramatic underscore for "The Longest Day"
1962
First collaboration with director David Lean, "Lawrence of Arabia"; received first Academy Award
1963
Picked up second Oscar nomination for the music for "Sundays and Cybele"
1965
Second collaboration with Lean, "Doctor Zhivago"; produced the haunting "Lara's Theme"
1966
Wrote the music for the race film, "Grand Prix"
1968
Scored the Isadora Duncan biopic, "Isadora" starring Vanessa Redgrave in the title role
1969
Collaborated with Alfred Hitchcock to provide the underscore for "Topaz"
1970
Third film with Lean, "Ryan's Daughter"
1972
First of three collaborations with director John Huston, "The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean"; received only Oscar nomination to date for the Best Original Song category for "Marmalade, Molasses and Honey"
1973
Scored the John Huston directed, "The Mackintosh Man"
1974
Composed the music for the NBC TV-movie, "Great Expectations"
1975
Final film with Huston, "The Man Who Would Be King"
1976
Wrote the score for Elia Kazan's "The Last Tycoon"
1977
Penned the music for the James Bond film, "The Spy Who Loved Me"
1977
Earned an Oscar nomination for scoring, "Mohammad Messenger of God"
1977
Provided the music for the NBC biblical miniseries, "Jesus of Nazareth"
1979
Composed the score for the award-winning, "The Tin Drum"
1980
Created the background music for the film, "Resurrection"
1980
Wrote the underscore for the NBC miniseries, "Shogun"
1982
Initial film with Peter Weir, "The Year of Living Dangerously"
1984
Final collaboration with Lean, "A Passage to India"
1984
Returned to the small screen with the music for the ABC remake of "Samson and Delilah"
1985
Received an Oscar nomination for scoring Peter Weir's "Witness"
1985
Scored "Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome"
1986
Hired by Weir to score "The Mosquito Coast"
1986
Penned the score for "Tai-Pan," based on a James Clavell novel
1987
Wrote the background music for the box-office hits "No Way Out" and "Fatal Attraction"
1988
Crafted the score for the NBC miniseries, "The Murder of Mary Phagan"
1988
Received an Oscar nomination for scoring "Gorillas in the Mist"
1989
Again collaborated with Weir on "Dead Poets Society"
1990
Earned ninth career Academy Award nomination for the score for "Ghost"
1992
Penned the music for "School Ties"
1993
Re-teamed with Weir for "Fearless"
1993
Headlined the PBS special tribute to David Lean, "Lean by Jarre"
1994
Received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
1995
Garnered praise for his musical compositions for "A Walk in the Clouds"
1999
Composed the score for the historical drama, "Sunshine" (released in the US in 2000)
2000
Wrote the music for "I Dreamed of Africa"
2001
Final film, Jon Avnet's holocaust drama, "Uprising"
Videos
Movie Clip
Trailer
Family
Companions
Bibliography
Notes
Over the years, Jarre has conducted numerous renowned orchestras ranging from the London Philharmonic Orchestra to the Osaka Symphonic Orchestra to the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
". . . when I worked with Fred Zinnemann on "Behold a Pale Horse" (1964), he wanted a smaller sound, almost chamber music. William Wyler wanted a medium-sized score for "The Collector" (1965). On the other hand, for "Topaz" (1969) Alfred Hitchcock wanted a big score. So it's not a question of Hollywood. You work for the film, not the studio." --Maurice Jarre quoted in The Hollywood Reporter Deauville Film Festival Special Edition, August 31-September 6, 1999.
