Photo: FERT98 / CC BY-SA 4.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
James Horner was a conductor, orchestrator and film score composer, born on August 14, 1953 in Los Angeles, California, United States. Death is recorded on June 22, 2015, at the age of 61. James Horner was educated at Royal College of Music. Awards on record include Grammy Award for Song of the Year (1987), Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media (1987), Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media (1990) and 5 more. Credited works include Titanic: Music from the Motion Picture and Avatar: Music from the Motion Picture.
My Take
Horner was, to my ear, one of the great architectural minds of film scoring. He didn't just accompany images; he built emotional weather, fusing choirs, electronics, and Celtic motifs into something instantly recognizable yet endlessly flexible. Titanic and Avatar are the household names, but his 160-plus credits reveal a composer who took the same care on smaller pictures. Royal College of Music training gave him rigor, and his instincts gave him soul. His death in a 2015 plane crash robbed us of decades of music. The consolation, as always with composers, is that the work keeps playing.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- James Horner
- Name (Japanese)
- ジェームズ・ホーナー
- Reading
- じぇーむず・ほーなー
- Born
- August 14, 1953 – June 22, 2015
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Leo / Snake
- Origin
- Los Angeles, California, United States
- Occupation
- composer / conductor / orchestrator / film score composer / musician
2. Background
- University
- Royal College of Music
Awards & achievements
- 1987 Grammy Award for Song of the Year
- 1987 Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media
- 1990 Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media
- 1998 Academy Award for Best Original Song
- 1997 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score
- 1997 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song
- 1998 Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Song
- 1998 Satellite Award for Best Original Song
3. Works & records
| Category | Title | Role | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notable work | Titanic: Music from the Motion Picture | — | |
| Notable work | Avatar: Music from the Motion Picture | — |
4. Links
- Official sitehttp://www.jameshorner.de/
- Wikipedia (English)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James%20Horner
- Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%B8%E3%82%A7%E3%83%BC%E3%83%A0%E3%82%BA%E3%83%BB%E3%83%9B%E3%83%BC%E3%83%8A%E3%83%BC
- Wikidatahttps://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q106221
5. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-17
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.
Frequently asked questions
When was James Horner born?
Born August 14, 1953.
When did James Horner die?
Died June 22, 2015, aged 61.
Where was James Horner from?
James Horner was from Los Angeles, California, United States.
What did James Horner do?
James Horner worked as composer, conductor, orchestrator, film score composer, musician.
What was James Horner known for?
Notable works include Titanic: Music from the Motion Picture, Avatar: Music from the Motion Picture.
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