R.I.P. James Roy Horner

The forum for petitions, theoretical discussion, gripes, or other off topic discussion.

Moderator: James Steele

Forum rules
The forum for petitions, theoretical discussion, gripes, or other matters outside deemed outside the scope of helping users make optimal use of MOTU hardware and software. Posts in other forums may be moved here at the moderators discretion. No politics or religion!!
Post Reply
User avatar
monkey man
Posts: 13918
Joined: Fri Apr 22, 2005 10:01 pm
Primary DAW OS: MacOS
Location: Melbourne, Australia

R.I.P. James Roy Horner

Post by monkey man »

A very sad day indeed.

To sum this man and his talent up is well beyond the scope of a mere amateur such as I. Perhaps Shooshie or someone else blessed with the necessary combination of eloquence and general knowledge will contribute something.

He contributed an awe-inspiring, even overwhelming body of work; an incredible feat. His passing will surely be felt by all.

May you rest in peace, James Horner. You shall be missed.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Horner

Mac 2012 12C Cheese Grater, OSX 10.13.6
MOTU DP8.07, MachFive 3.2.1, MIDI Express XT, 24I/O
Novation, Yamaha & Roland Synths, Guitar & Bass, Kemper Rack

Pretend I've placed your favourite quote here
artfarm1
Posts: 313
Joined: Tue Jul 12, 2005 10:01 pm
Primary DAW OS: MacOS
Location: Maryland, USA
Contact:

Re: R.I.P. James Roy Horner

Post by artfarm1 »

“I’m different from some other composers,” Horner once said of his own work, “because I don’t look at this as just a job. I see music as art.”

Agreed. He was an artist composing film music. We've all been touched by his music over the last 40 years, as he's been as 'copied' as any composer has ever been. Every human thought, emotion, etc. was musically realized by Horner over his career.

Did he have harsh words about some people? Did he rub some people the wrong way once in awhile? Sure... why not. He'd paid his dues, unlike many in the Hollywood business. He'd gone through the whole transition from having no electronics on the sound stage to having people with GarageBand and headphones complaining that Horner was too 'old school' and that they should be given his job.

Horner probably forgot more about music than most of us will ever know.

(I'm a staunch defender of good musicians!)

Like anyone, he borrowed from the past to move the present forward, and innovate as well. As Stravinsky said, "Great artists steal and make it their own." (rough quote)

Well.... Horner had his 'own' too. Let's not forget it!!

Some favorite Horner moments of mine:
- the opening 15 minutes of "Willow' (every motif and theme is worked into this amazing, long, opening sequence
- 'Aliens' (the benchmark for suspenseful, scary music!)
- 'Braveheart' (glorious, emotional, gut-wrenching yet subtle score that totally works with the film)
- 'Titanic' (the song is the culmination of the motif/melody being given to us at previous points in the film)
- 'Avatar' (blending of orchestra and electronics)
- ahh...too many to mention!

RIP, James Horner. Will be listening and celebrating one of your scores today for sure!
DP 11, OS Ventura
MacMini 2023 M2Pro, 16 gig RAM, MOTU M6, SSD drives for everything, various sound/sampled libraries from all major vendors, Logic Pro X, DSP-Quattro
MacBook Pro 2015, OSX Monterey, 2.5ghz, 16 gig RAM (w/duplicate software as in MacMini setup)
Trombones: King 2B SilverSonic, King 2B Liberty, & Conn 88H w/Doug Elliott mouthpieces!
http://www.cammillarmusic.com
User avatar
James Steele
Site Administrator
Posts: 21068
Joined: Fri Oct 15, 2004 10:01 pm
Primary DAW OS: MacOS
Location: San Diego, CA - U.S.A.
Contact:

Re: R.I.P. James Roy Horner

Post by James Steele »

Sad indeed. I actually got to meet him in the 90s I think it was. I was a big fan. The La Jolla Museum of Contemporary Art in the San Diego area was doing a series of screenings of movies, followed by discussion and audience Q&A with the composer. On the night featuring James Horner, the film shown was Field of Dreams followed by some very interesting Q&A. I believe Horner had attended the Royal Academy of Music and he talked about his deadlines and how that he'd sit down and write down his scores on staff paper and if he had to use his eraser too much, he'd worry about missing his deadline.

What was really cool though is that film composers aren't really used to getting the accolades... at least they weren't then. So I was the only person who came up to him after the event and actually asked him for his autograph. It was actually quite fun for me because I was indeed a big fan... I told him I loved his score in Aliens, and asked him to sign some slip of paper I had in my stuff and he was genuinely surprised and flattered at the time. I could tell that wasn't something that happened to him very often. He seemed like a very nice person as well. Ridiculously talented, as we all know.
JamesSteeleProject.com | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

Mac Studio M1 Max, 64GB/2TB, MacOS 14.4.1 Sonoma, DP 11.31, MOTU 828es, MOTU 24Ai, MOTU MIDI Express XT, UAD-2 TB3 Satellite OCTO, Console 1 Mk2, Avid S3, NI Komplete Kontrol S88 Mk2, Red Type B, Millennia HV-3C, Warm Audio WA-2A, AudioScape 76F, Dean guitars, Marshall amps, etc., etc.!
User avatar
mikehalloran
Posts: 15134
Joined: Sun Jan 25, 2009 5:08 pm
Primary DAW OS: MacOS
Location: Sillie Con Valley

Re: R.I.P. James Roy Horner

Post by mikehalloran »

Impressive body of work by a creative artist and skilled craftsman. Still, I always felt that his scores served the films well -- you didn't just know it was one of his in the opening bars unlike many others. His blending of folk tunes and other sources into the score as the story called for it was something I particularly admired.

Damn, he was my age. Way too young. RIP.
DP 11.31; 828mkII FW, micro lite, M4, MTP/AV USB Firmware 2.0.1
2023 Mac Studio M2 8TB, 192GB RAM, OS Sonoma 14.4, USB4 8TB external, M-Audio AIR 192|14, Mackie ProFxv3 6/10/12; 2012 MBPs Catalina, Mojave
IK-NI-Izotope-PSP-Garritan-Antares, LogicPro X, Finale 27.4, Dorico 5.2, Notion 6, Overture 5, TwistedWave, DSP-Q 5, SmartScore64 Pro, Toast 20 Pro
User avatar
mhschmieder
Posts: 11282
Joined: Wed Jul 06, 2005 10:01 pm
Primary DAW OS: MacOS
Location: Annandale VA

Re: R.I.P. James Roy Horner

Post by mhschmieder »

Although I haven't seen many of his films, as I so rarely go to Hollywood fare, I saw Avatar at my company's theatre a couple of years back (with of course an awesome sound system) and was blown away by how well the music served that film, with every detail clearly having been carefully thought out and individually spun (no "shortcuts" using stock sounds/loops/etc.).

Never "in your face" or calling attention to itself, ever-shifting in mood and style (and yes, I too love his tendency to pull in folk elements), but also not suffering from the modern tendency to "overdo" it just in case the audience isn't feeling the "correct emotion" for the moment.

I had made a mental note to study his scoring if I ever find a new partner for soundtrack work (my main film collaborator died in a tragic accident a year and a half ago, so this is a bit of deja vu for me when someone died before their time and in their prime).

My understanding from those I know who worked with him in a professional capacity, is that he was one of the warmer people in the business, with a very agreeable personality.
iMac 27" 2017 Quad-Core Intel i5 (3.8 GHz, 64 GB), OSX 13.6.1, MOTU DP 11.31, iZotope RX 10
RME Babyface Pro FS, Radial JDV Mk5, Hammond XK-4, Moog Voyager

Eugenio Upright, 60th Anniversary P-Bass, USA Geddy Lee J-Bass, Yamaha BBP35
Select Strat, 70th Anniversary Esquire, Johhny Marr Jaguar, 57 LP, Danelectro 12
Eastman T486RB, T64/V, Ibanez PM2, D'angelico Deluxe SS Bari, EXL1
Guild Bari, 1512 12-string, M20, Martin OM28VTS, Larivee 0040MH
User avatar
monkey man
Posts: 13918
Joined: Fri Apr 22, 2005 10:01 pm
Primary DAW OS: MacOS
Location: Melbourne, Australia

Re: R.I.P. James Roy Horner

Post by monkey man »

Sorry to hear about your loss, Mark. I can surely relate to the young & tragic aspects of it.

Mac 2012 12C Cheese Grater, OSX 10.13.6
MOTU DP8.07, MachFive 3.2.1, MIDI Express XT, 24I/O
Novation, Yamaha & Roland Synths, Guitar & Bass, Kemper Rack

Pretend I've placed your favourite quote here
marc1348
Posts: 1
Joined: Mon Aug 10, 2015 7:14 am
Primary DAW OS: Windows

Re: R.I.P. James Roy Horner

Post by marc1348 »

Definitely a very sad day. Although I haven't heard that much of James' work, what I did hear I did like a lot. He didn't sound like so many film composers do nowadays, he stood out.

Any composer that can utilize melody in an constructive way will always have my ear.

Loved the brass at the start of this ;-)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s35C8DquuMw

Godspeed James!

M
Post Reply