Elmer Bernstein

A trained pianist, he reached Hollywood in the early fifties. The jazz of The Man with the Golden Arm broke with the usual orchestra, and The Ten Commandments gave him epic scale. He moved from westerns to eighties comedy (Airplane!, Ghostbusters) and ended his career with Todd Haynes's Far from Heaven. He was not related to Leonard Bernstein.

Style

Open, rhythmic themes, brass up front and, when the story asks for it, jazz or an intimate piano.

Awards

Oscar for Thoroughly Modern Millie (1968) and 14 nominations in all, the last for Far from Heaven.

Essential films

• The Man with the Golden Arm (1955)
• The Ten Commandments (1956)
• The Magnificent Seven (1960)
• To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)
• The Great Escape (1963)
• Ghostbusters (1984)
• Far from Heaven (2002)

Listen

• The Magnificent Seven · The Magnificent SevenSpotifyYouTube
• The Great Escape March · The Great EscapeSpotifyYouTube
• To Kill a Mockingbird Main Title · To Kill a MockingbirdSpotifyYouTube

Everything on Spotify Everything on YouTube Full biography on Wikipedia