Maurice-Alexis Jarre (; 13 September 1924 – 28 March 2009) allmusic Biography/ref> was a French composer and conductor. Jarre is best known for his

film score A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to ...

s, particularly for his collaborations with film director

David Lean Sir David Lean (25 March 190816 April 1991) was an English film director, producer, screenwriter, and editor, widely considered one of the most important figures of Cinema of the United Kingdom, British cinema. He directed the large-scale epi ...

composing all of his films from 1962 to 1984. Jarre received numerous accolades including three

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...

, three BAFTA Awards, four Golden Globes, and a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

. Jarre won three Academy Awards for Best Original Score for the David Lean films '' Lawrence of Arabia'' (1962), '' Doctor Zhivago'' (1965), and '' A Passage to India'' (1984). He was Oscar-nominated for '' Sundays and Cybèle'' (1962), '' The Message'' (1976), ''

Witness In law, a witness is someone who, either voluntarily or under compulsion, provides testimonial evidence, either oral or written, of what they know or claim to know. A witness might be compelled to provide testimony in court, before a grand jur ...

'' (1985), '' Gorillas in the Mist'' (1988), and ''

Ghost In folklore, a ghost is the soul or Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit of a dead Human, person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely, from a ...

'' (1990). Notable scores also include '' Eyes Without a Face'' (1959), '' The Longest Day'' (1962), '' The Train'' (1964), '' The Collector'' (1965), '' Grand Prix'' (1966), '' The Man Who Would Be King'' (1975), '' The Year of Living Dangerously'' (1982), '' Fatal Attraction'' (1987), and '' Dead Poets Society'' (1989). He worked with such directors as

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...

Elia Kazan Elias Kazantzoglou (, ; September 7, 1909 – September 28, 2003), known as Elia Kazan ( ), was a Greek-American film and theatre director, producer, screenwriter and actor, described by ''The New York Times'' as "one of the most honored and inf ...

John Huston John Marcellus Huston ( ; August 5, 1906 – August 28, 1987) was an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He wrote the screenplays for most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered classics. He rec ...

Luchino Visconti Luchino Visconti di Modrone, Count of Lonate Pozzolo (; 2 November 1906 – 17 March 1976) was an Italian filmmaker, theatre and opera director, and screenwriter. He was one of the fathers of Italian neorealism, cinematic neorealism, but later ...

, John Frankenheimer, and Peter Weir. Three of his compositions spent a total of 42 weeks on the UK singles chart; the biggest hit was "Somewhere My Love" (to his tune " Lara's Theme", with lyrics by Paul Francis Webster) performed by the Mike Sammes Singers, which reached Number 14 in 1966 and spent 38 weeks on the chart. He was the father of musician

Jean-Michel Jarre Jean-Michel André Jarre (; born 24 August 1948) is a French composer, performer and record producer. He is a pioneer in the Electronic music, electronic, Ambient music, ambient and New-age music, new-age genres, and is known for organising out ...

and the adoptive father of screenwriter Kevin Jarre.

Early life

Jarre was born in

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

, the son of Gabrielle Renée (''

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

'' Boullu) and André Jarre, a radio technical director. He first enrolled in the engineering school at the Sorbonne, but decided to pursue music courses instead. He left the Sorbonne against his father's will and enrolled at the Conservatoire de Paris to study composition and

harmony In music, harmony is the concept of combining different sounds in order to create new, distinct musical ideas. Theories of harmony seek to describe or explain the effects created by distinct pitches or tones coinciding with one another; harm ...

and chose

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...

as his major instrument. He became director of the Théâtre National Populaire and recorded his first film score in France in 1951. He wrote the score for '' Toute la mémoire du monde'' by Alain Resnais.

Film scoring

In 1961, Jarre's music career experienced a major change when American film producer Sam Spiegel asked him to write the score for the 1962 epic '' Lawrence of Arabia'', directed by

. The acclaimed score won Jarre his first

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

and he would go on to compose the scores to all of Lean's subsequent films. He followed with '' The Train'' (1964) and '' Grand Prix'' (1966), both for director John Frankenheimer, and in between had another great success in David Lean's '' Doctor Zhivago'', which included the lyricless tune " Lara's Theme" (later the tune for the song "Somewhere My Love"), and which earned him his second

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People and fictional and mythical characters * Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar * Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...

. He worked with

on '' Topaz'' (1969): although Hitchcock's experiences with the film were unhappy, he was satisfied with Jarre's score, telling him, "I have not given you a great film, but you have given me a great score." Jarre's score for

's '' Ryan's Daughter'' (1970), set in Ireland, completely eschews traditional Irish music styles, according to Lean's preferences. The song "It Was a Good Time," from ''Ryan's Daughter'' went on to be recorded by musical stars such as Liza Minnelli who used it in her critically acclaimed television special '' Liza with a Z'' as well as by others during the 1970s. He contributed the music for

's '' The Damned'' (1969), and

's '' The Man Who Would Be King'' (1975). He was again nominated for an Academy Award for scoring '' The Message'' in 1976, for the director and producer

Moustapha Akkad Moustapha al Akkad (; July 1, 1930 – November 11, 2005) was a Syrian Americans, Syrian-American film producer and Film director, director, best known for producing the original series of ''Halloween (franchise), Halloween'' films and dire ...

. He followed with ''

'' (1985) and '' Dead Poets Society'' (1989), for which he won a British Academy Award. In the 1970s and 1980s, Jarre turned his hand to science fiction, with scores for '' The Island at the Top of the World'' (1974), '' Dreamscape'' (1984), '' Enemy Mine'' (1985), and '' Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome'' (1985). The latter is written for full orchestra, augmented by a chorus, four

grand piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

s, a

pipe organ The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurised air (called ''wind'') through the organ pipes selected from a Musical keyboard, keyboard. Because each pipe produces a single tone and pitch, the pipes are provide ...

, digeridoo, fujara, a battery of exotic percussion, and three ondes Martenot, which feature in several of Jarre's other scores, including '' Lawrence of Arabia'', '' Jesus of Nazareth'', '' The Bride'' and '' Prancer''. The

balalaika The balalaika (, ) is a Russian string instrument, stringed musical instrument with a characteristic triangular wooden, hollow body, fretted neck, and three strings. Two strings are usually tuned to the same note and the third string is a perf ...

features prominently in Jarre's score for ''Doctor Zhivago''. In 1990, Jarre was again nominated for an Academy Award scoring the supernatural love story/thriller ''

''. His music for the final scene of the film is based on "

Unchained Melody "Unchained Melody" is a 1955 song with music by Alex North and lyrics by Hy Zaret. North wrote the music as a theme for the prison film '' Unchained'' (1955), hence the song title. Todd Duncan sang the vocals for the film soundtrack.Robert ...

" composed by fellow film composer Alex North. Other films for which he provided the music include ''

A Walk in the Clouds ''A Walk in the Clouds'' is a 1995 period romantic drama film directed by Alfonso Arau and starring Keanu Reeves, Aitana Sánchez-Gijón, Giancarlo Giannini, Angélica Aragón, Evangelina Elizondo, Debra Messing and Anthony Quinn. An in ...

'' (1995), for which he wrote the score and all of the songs, including the romantic "Mariachi Serenade". Also to his credit is the passionate love theme from '' Fatal Attraction'' (1987), and the moody electronic soundscapes of '' After Dark, My Sweet'' (1990). He was well respected by other composers including John Williams, who stated, on Jarre's death, "(He) is to be well remembered for his lasting contribution to film music ... we all have been enriched by his legacy." Jarre's television work includes the theme for the short-lived 1967 Western series on CBS, Cimarron Strip, his score for the miniseries '' Jesus of Nazareth'' (1977), directed by Franco Zeffirelli, ''

Shōgun , officially , was the title of the military rulers of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, except during parts of the Kamak ...

'' (1980), and the theme for PBS's '' Great Performances''. Jarre scored his last project in 2001, a television mini-series about the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

titled '' Uprising''. He was "one of the giants of 20th-century film music" who was "among the most sought-after composers in the movie industry" and "a creator of both subtle underscoring and grand, sweeping themes, not only writing for conventional orchestras ... but also experimenting with electronic sounds later in his career".

Style and artistry

Jarre wrote mainly for

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...

s, but began to favour synthesized music in the 1980s. Jarre pointed out that his electronic score for ''

'' was actually more laborious, time-consuming and expensive to produce than an orchestral score. Jarre's electronic scores from the 1980s also include '' Fatal Attraction'', '' The Year of Living Dangerously'', ''

Firefox Mozilla Firefox, or simply Firefox, is a free and open-source web browser developed by the Mozilla Foundation and its subsidiary, the Mozilla Corporation. It uses the Gecko rendering engine to display web pages, which implements curr ...

'' and '' No Way Out''. A number of his scores from that era also feature electronic / acoustic blends, such as '' Gorillas in the Mist'', '' Dead Poets Society'', '' The Mosquito Coast'' and '' Jacob's Ladder''.

Personal life

Marriages and family

Jarre was married four times, the first three marriages ending in divorce. In the 1940s, his marriage to Francette Pejot, a

French Resistance The French Resistance ( ) was a collection of groups that fought the German military administration in occupied France during World War II, Nazi occupation and the Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy#France, collaborationist Vic ...

member and concentration camp survivor, produced a son,

, a French composer, performer, and music producer, who is one of the pioneers in

electronic music Electronic music broadly is a group of music genres that employ electronic musical instruments, circuitry-based music technology and software, or general-purpose electronics (such as personal computers) in its creation. It includes both music ...

. When Jean-Michel was five years old, Maurice split up with his wife and moved to the United States, leaving Jean-Michel with his mother in France. In 1965, Jarre married French actress Dany Saval; together they had a daughter, Stephanie Jarre. He next married American actress Laura Devon (1967–1984), resulting in his adopting her son, Kevin Jarre, a

screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...

, with credits on such films as '' Tombstone'' and '' Glory'' (1989). From 1984 to his death, he was married to Fong F. Khong.

Death

Jarre died of cancer on 28 March 2009 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

Jarre received three Academy Awards and received a total of nine nominations, eight for Best Original Score and one for Best Original Song. He also won four Golden Globes and was nominated for ten. The American Film Institute ranked Jarre's score for '' Lawrence of Arabia'' #3 on their list of the greatest film scores. His scores for the following films were also nominated for the list: '' Doctor Zhivago'' (1965), '' A Passage to India'' (1984), and '' Ryan's Daughter'' (1970). Numerous additional awards include ASCAP's ''Lifetime Achievement Award'' in 1993. He received a star on the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...

References

External links

*
Filmography, soundtrack reviews, capsule biography

Obituary
by the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

on Legacy.com * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jarre, Maurice 1924 births 2009 deaths 20th-century French composers 20th-century French male musicians 21st-century French composers 21st-century French male musicians Barclay Records artists Best Original Music BAFTA Award winners Best Original Music Score Academy Award winners Capitol Records artists César Honorary Award recipients Conservatoire de Paris alumni Deaths from cancer in California European Film Awards winners (people) French expatriates in the United States French film score composers French male film score composers Golden Globe Award–winning musicians Grammy Award winners Honorary Golden Bear recipients Jarre family MCA Records artists MGM Records artists Musicians from Lyon Ondists University of Paris alumni Varèse Sarabande Records artists Warner Records artists