Skip to content
    skip to navigation

    Classic FM

    Listen

    On Air Now

    Classic FM's More Music Drive with John Brunning 4pm - 7pm

    Classic FM's More Music Drive with John Brunning

    Now Playing

    Carmina Burana (21) Carl Orff Download 'Carmina Burana (21)' on iTunes

    Carmina Burana (21) artwork
    • Playlist
    • Schedule
    • Home
    • Radio
    • News
    • Discover Music
    • Composers
    • Artists
    • Lifestyle
    • Win
    • Charity
    • Podcasts
    • Events
    • Dating
    • Follow us on:
      Follow Classic FM on Twitter
      Follow Classic FM on Facebook
      Follow Classic FM on Instagram
      Follow Classic FM on Youtube

    Discover Music

    • Discover Music Home
    • Periods & Genres
    • Occasions
    • Mood
    • Instruments
    • Music Theory
    • Learning
    • Humour
    • Women in Music
    • More Classic FM

    The greatest director-composer partnerships

    Facebook share Twitter share

    Hitchcock and Herrmann, Spielberg and Williams, Burton and Elfman - here are the most enduring and successful collaborations between film directors and screen composers.

    1. Spielberg Williams E.T.

      1. Steven Spielberg and John Williams

      In Hollywood’s greatest collaboration, John Williams has scored practically every film directed by Steven Spielberg since The Sugarland Express. Their partnership has produced such magnificent scores as Schindler’s List, Jaws, Jurassic Park, Saving Private Ryan and E.T. For Close Encounters of the Third Kind, the two men developed their script and musical concept simultaneously, as in the film these are very closely associated.

    2. Maurice Jarre David Lean

      2. Maurice Jarre and David Lean

      Frenchman Jarre composed the scores to all of Lean's films from Lawrence of Arabia (1962) on. Jarre won three Academy Awards in totoal, in the Best Original Score category for Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Doctor Zhivago (1965), and A Passage to India (1984), all of which were directed by Lean.

    3. Janet Leigh in Psycho

      3. Alfred Hitchcock and Bernard Herrmann

      Herrmann composed the scores for some of Hitchcock's biggest films, including The Trouble with Harry, The Man Who Knew Too Much, Vertigo , North by Northwest and Psycho. He also served as ‘sound consultant’ on The Birds which does not use music, but electronic bird noises. Thieir relationship came to an abrupt end when they disagreed over the score for Torn Curtain.

    4. The Wind that Shakes the Barley

      4. George Fenton and Ken Loach

      Director Ken Loach and composer George Fenton who have collaborated on more than a dozen films together. Beginning in 1994 with Ladybird Ladybird, their successes including Looking for Eric, and the Palme d'Or-winning The Wind that Shakes the Barley (pictured).

    5. David Cronenberg Howard Shore

      5. David Cronenberg and Howard Shore

      Lord of the Rings supremo Shore’s first film score was to David Cronenberg's first major film The Brood. He would go on to score all of Cronenberg's subsequent films, with the exception of The Dead Zone. He even turned his score to Cronenberg’s The Fly into an opera.

    6. Elfman Burton Edward Scissorhands Depp

      6. Tim Burton and Danny Elfman

      Working on Pee-Wee's Big Adventure, Burton and Elfman developed an immediate rapport. Since then, they have worked their magic on Beetlejuice, Batman and Batman Returns, Edward Scissorhands , The Nightmare Before Christmas, Mars Attacks!, Planet of the Apes , Corpse Bride, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and Dark Shadows.

    7. American Beauty Spacey Thomas Newman Sam Mendes

      7. Sam Mendes and Thomas Newman

      In 1999, Newman composed the score to Sam Mendes' first feature film American Beauty (pictured), using mainly percussion instruments. This was his first collaboration with Mendes, and he would go on to score most of the director's subsequent films, including Road to Perdition, Jarhead, Revolutionary Road, and Skyfall.

    8. star trek into darkness abrams giacchino

      8. J. J. Abrams and Michael Giacchino

      Starting out as a video games composer, Giacchino has since written scores for movies and television series, including Abrams’ Lost, Alias and Fringe. Their film projects together have included Mission Impossible III, two Star Trek movies and Super 8.

    9. Black Swan Aronofsky Mansell

      9. Darren Aronofsky and Clint Mansell

      Clint Mansell started out as singer and guitarist for Pop Will Eat Itself. After they disbanded in 1996, Mansell was introduced to film scoring when director Darren Aronofsky hired him to score his debut film, π. Mansell then wrote the score for Aronofsky's next film, Requiem for a Dream. The Fountain was nominated for Best Original Score at the Golden Globe Awards. Their other notable collaborations include The Wrestler, and Black Swan.

    10. Subway Christopher Lambert Luc Besson Eric Serra

      10. Luc Besson and Éric Serra

      In 1982, French composer Serra met director Luc Besson and was asked to score his first film, Le Dernier Combat. Serra has scored all of Besson's directed films to date, except Angel-A. These include Subway, Le Grand Bleu, Nikita, Atlantis, Léon, The Fifth Element, Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc and Arthur and the Minimoys.

    11.  Henry V Branagh Brian Blessed Patrick Doyle

      11. Kenneth Branagh and Patrick Doyle

      Patrick Doyle joined Kenneth Branagh’s Renaissance Theatre Company in 1987 as composer and musical director composing for plays such as Hamlet, As You Like It, and Look Back in Anger. His song "Non Nobis, Domine" from Henry V was awarded the 1989 Ivor Novello Award for Best Film Theme. They have since worked together Dead Again, Much Ado About Nothing, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Hamlet , Love's Labour's Lost, As You Like It, Sleuth, Thor and Jack Ryan.

    12. Coen brothers Burwell No country for old men

      12. The Coen Brothers and Carter Burwell

      As a film composer, Burwell has had a long-working relationship with the Coen brothers, providing music for almost every film they have made. These have included such classics as Blood Simple, Raising Arizona, Miller's Crossing, Fargo, The Big Lebowski, No Country for Old Men (pictured), and True Grit.

    13. Draughtsmans Contract Greenaway Nyman

      13. Peter Greenaway and Michael Nyman

      In 1980, British film maker Greenaway produced The Falls – a fantastical encyclopedia of flight-associated material. The score was composed by Michael Nyman who went on to work with Greenaway on his best-known films - The Draughtsman's Contract (pictured), A Zed & Two Noughts, The Belly of an Architect, Drowning by Numbers, The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover, and Prospero's Books.

    14. A Beautiful Mind Horner Howard

      14. Ron Howard and James Horner

      James Horner frequently collaborates with film director Ron Howard, a partnership that began with Cocoon in 1985. Coincidentally, Horner's end title music from Glory can also be heard in the trailer for Howard's Backdraft. Their films included Willow, Apollo 13, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, A Beautiful Mind and The Missing.

    15. Captain Corelli's Mandolin Warbeck Madden Cage

      15. John Madden and Stephen Warbeck

      English composer Stephen Warbeck won an Academy Award for his score for Madden’s Shakespeare in Love. They’ve also collaborated on Mrs. Brown, Captain Corelli's Mandolin (pictured) and Proof.

    16. Morricone Cinema Paradiso Tornatore

      16. Giuseppe Tornatore and Ennio Morricone

      Ennio Morricone produced one of his finest scores for Tornatore’s Cinema Paradiso in 1989. Since then they have collaborated on eight more films including The Legend of 1900 and Malèna – for which Morricone won an Oscar and a Golden Globe.

    Facebook share Twitter share

    Trending on Classic FM

    Lizzo plays virtuosic flute solo for James Corden in Carpool Karaoke sketch.

    Lizzo whips out a virtuosic 19th-century flute solo in Carpool Karaoke sketch with James Corden

    Doreen Carwithen is the step great-grandmother of Joe Alwyn, actor and long-term partner of Taylor Swift

    The world’s first fully-professional female film composer – with a surprising connection to Taylor Swift

    Most relaxing pieces of classical music

    10 most relaxing pieces of classical music

    The most relaxing classical violin music ever written

    The most relaxing classical violin music ever written

    Zeb Soanes to host Smooth Classics at Seven on Classic FM

    Broadcaster Zeb Soanes to host Smooth Classics at Seven, weekdays on Classic FM

    Remembering George Walker (1922 – 2018)

    Remembering George Walker, the first Black composer to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music

    A group trumpet lesson at a primary school

    Schools should offer at least ‘one hour of music a week’ – new music education plan revealed

    This week’s on-air highlights – including Album of the Week and Drive Discovery

    This week’s on-air highlights – including Album of theThis week’s on-air highlights – including Album of the Week and Drive Discovery

    Lang Lang performs in front of Sleeping Beauty’s Castle at Disneyland, California.

    Lang Lang performs nostalgic piano rendition of Mary Poppins song against Disney Castle backdrop

    Videos

    Composer John Williams

    John Williams hints at retirement from film music, says new score might be his last

    Williams

    Best classical music

    See more Best classical music

    10 pieces of classical music that will 100% change your life

    10 pieces of classical music that will 100% change your life

    4 eras of classical music

    The 4 eras of classical music: a quick guide

    The 15 most famous tunes in classical music

    The 15 most famous tunes in classical music

    Women composers gallery

    21 of the greatest women composers in classical music

    Best pianists of all time

    The 25 best pianists of all time

    Some of history's greatest composers were part of the LGBTQ+ community.

    15 LGBTQ+ composers in classical music history that you probably already know

    More Periods and Genres

    See more More Periods and Genres

    Baroque

    Classical

    Romantic

    Film & TV

    Opera

    Video Games

    Back to top

    Also on Classic FM

    • Listen to Global Player
    • Alexander Armstrong on Classic FM
    • Christmas Songs
    • Music for Pets
    • Quizzes
    • Handel
    • Debussy
    • Music theory
    • Instruments
    • Brahms
    • Vivaldi
    • Bach
    • Tchaikovsky
    • Chopin
    • Andrea Bocelli
    • Beethoven
    • Mozart
    • Best classical music
    • Classic FM Live
    • Classic FM Requests
    • Best pianists
    • Harry Potter music
    • Saturday Night at the Movies
    • Star Wars soundtrack
    • Composer or pasta
    • Music for Studying
    • Best violinists
    • Classical music tearjerkers
    • Relaxing classical

    Useful Links

    • Contact Us
    • Help
    • How To Listen
    • About Classic FM
    • Company Details
    • Cookies
    • Privacy
    • Terms & Conditions
    • Advertise
    • Global Jobs

    Download the app

    Get it on the app store Get it on Google Play

    Follow Us

    Follow Classic FM on Twitter
    Follow Classic FM on Facebook
    Follow Classic FM on Instagram
    Follow Classic FM on Youtube
    © Global 2022
    30 Leicester Square, London, WC2H 7LA
    Privacy Manager