James Roy Horner was an American composer, conductor, and orchestrator of the film score. Horner has scored over 100 films, frequently collaborating with directors, such as Don Bluth, James Cameron, Mel Gibson, and Ron Howard. Other scores he has composed on included those for Commando, Braveheart, Willow, Apollo 13, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Cocoon, Legends of the Fall, Aliens, Glory, The Mask of Zorro, Field of Dreams, Enemy at the Gates, Casper, Troy, Bicentennial Man, The Rocketeer, A Beautiful Mind, Mighty Joe Young, The Perfect Storm, Deep Impact, Avatar, An American Tail, The Land Before Time, Titanic, and more recently, The Amazing Spider-Man.
His Disney compositions included Something Wicked This Way Comes, The Journey of Natty Gann, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, The Rocketeer, A Far Off Place, Swing Kids, Bicentennial Man, and Mighty Joe Young.
His Touchstone Pictures compositions included Apocalypto, Bicentennial Man, Flightplan, Off Beat, and Ransom.
Horner also composed the soundtrack for the short film Captain EO, which was made for and shown in Disney parks.
Horner, who was an avid pilot, died at the age of 61 in a single-fatality crash while flying his Short Tucano turboprop aircraft. His death was widely lamented in both the film and music industry.
Feature Film Filmography[]
| Year | Film | Position | Subsidiary | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Something Wicked This Way Comes | Music/Conductor/Music Producer | Walt Disney Pictures | Replaced Georges Delerue |
| 1985 | The Journey of Natty Gann | Music/Conductor | Walt Disney Pictures | Replaced Elmer Bernstein |
| 1986 | Off Beat | Music/Conductor | Touchstone Pictures | |
| 1989 | Honey, I Shrunk the Kids | Music/Conductor | Walt Disney Pictures | |
| 1991 | The Rocketeer | Music/Conductor | Walt Disney Pictures | |
| 1993 | Swing Kids | Music/Conductor | Hollywood Pictures | |
| 1993 | A Far Off Place | Music/Conductor | Amblin EntertainmentWalt Disney PicturesTouchwood Pacific Partners | |
| 1993 | Hocus Pocus | Musical Arrangement/Additional arrangements | Walt Disney Pictures | Only wrote Sarah's Theme with Brock Walsh; film score composed by John Debney |
| 1996 | Ransom | Music/Conductor/Orchestrator | Touchstone Pictures | Replaced Howard Shore |
| 1998 | Mighty Joe Young | Music/Conductor/Orchestrator | Walt Disney PicturesRKO Pictures | |
| 1999 | Bicentennial Man | Music/Conductor/Orchestrator | Touchstone Pictures (North America)
Columbia Pictures (International) |
Also wrote "Then You Look At Me" with Will Jennings and Celine Dion |
| 2005 | Flightplan | Music/Conductor/Orchestrator | Touchstone Pictures | |
| 2006 | Apocalypto | Music Composed | Touchstone Pictures |
Gallery[]
James Horner at premiere of Avatar in December 2009.
James Horner attending the 82nd annual Academy Awards in February 2010.
James Horner at premiere of the 3D re-release of Titanic in March 2012.