Elmer Bernstein

Elmer Bernstein was born on April 4th, 1922 in New York City, where he was raised by parents who had supported many of his creative interests. He worked as a professional dancer and actor, but also displayed a talent for painting, even before he reached his teens. At age of 12 he decided to focus on music and was awarded scholarship by Henriette Michelson, a Julliard School instructor.

The composer Aaron Copland recognized the boy’s talent and assigned Israel Citkowitz, one of his top students, to continue Bernstein’s training. After graduation from Julliard, he continued his career as a concert pianist, but his joining the Army changed his plans.

During his service he has been scoring various broadcasts for Armed Forces Radio and worked for the Army Air Force band as their arranger with Glenn Miller as a director. By the time he finished with his service, he was deeply committed as a composer.

His first greater scoring task was to write the music for a UN broadcast on the founding of Israel state. Columbia Pictures were interested by this broadcast and gave Bernstein his first movie scoring opportunity, for the 1950 college football film ‘Saturday’s Hero’. This period was difficult and he was working the next several years wherever he could.

Here some of Elmer Bernsteins greatest hits in this movie

Elmer Bernstein wrote scores for the low production movies, like ‘Cat Women of the Moon’ and ‘Robot Monster’, which filled his time until he got other better opportunities, but nonetheless not lacking in inventiveness and effort.

His breakthrough arrived in 1955 when Cecil De Mille engaged him to write music for the movie ‘The Ten Commandments’, a biblical epic, although he has received a notable attention and an Academy Award nomination prior to finishing of this movie. It was for the jazz-score for the movie ‘The Man with the Golden Arm’, directed by Otto Preminger.

Bernstein remained a highly productive composer throughout his career. He scored many notable films, such as ‘To kill a Mockingbird’, ‘Birdman of Alcatraz’, ‘The Great Escape’, and also created TV themes for ‘The Beachcomber’, the National Geographic specials and ‘The Big Valley’. He released a few jazz albums and worked on the popular Western movie ‘The Magnificent Seven’, which created a genre standard followed ever since by many authors.

Although he received numerous award nominations throughout his career, he received his only Academy Award in 1967, for the musical comedy ‘Thoroughly Modern Millie’.

When director John Landis hired him in the late 70-ties, to score music for ‘Animal House’, it opened yet another aspect to Bernstein’s creativity. What followed were the numerous scores for popular comedies such as ‘Meatballs’, ‘Airplane!’, ‘Caddyshack’ and ‘Ghost Busters’.

He also maintained a collaborative relationship with Martin Scorsese, with whom he worked on ‘The Griffers’, ‘Cape Fear’ and ‘Bringing out the Dead’.

Elmer Bernstein actively worked on composing for film and various other projects till the early years of 21st century.

He died in his sleep in 2004 at the age of 82.

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