Bernard Herrmann facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Bernard Herrmann
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Bernard Herrmann in 1970
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| Born |
Max Herman
June 29, 1911 New York City, U.S.
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| Died | December 24, 1975 (aged 64) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
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| Cause of death | Heart failure |
| Resting place | Beth David Cemetery Elmont, New York, U.S. |
| Other names | Bernard Maximillian Herrmann |
| Occupation | Composer, conductor |
| Years active | 1941–1975 |
| Spouse(s) |
Lucy Anderson
(m. 1949; div. 1964)Norma Shepherd
(m. 1967) |
| Children | 2 |
| Awards | 1941 Academy Award for Music Score of a Dramatic Picture, The Devil and Daniel Webster a.k.a. All That Money Can Buy 1976 BAFTA Award for Best Film Music, Taxi Driver |
Bernard Herrmann (June 29, 1911 – December 24, 1975) was an American composer. He is famous for creating music for movies. His music often made films more exciting or scary!
He won an Academy Award in 1941 for the movie The Devil and Daniel Webster. Bernard Herrmann worked a lot with the famous director Alfred Hitchcock. Together, they made classic movies like Psycho, North by Northwest, and Vertigo. He also wrote music for other well-known films such as Citizen Kane and Taxi Driver. Besides movies, he composed music for radio dramas, including some for Orson Welles, and many television shows. He also wrote music for several fantasy movies by Ray Harryhausen.
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Movie Music Highlights
Bernard Herrmann wrote music for many movies. Here are some of his most famous works:
- 1941: Citizen Kane – This movie was nominated for an Oscar for its music.
- 1941: The Devil and Daniel Webster (also known as All That Money Can Buy) – He won an Oscar for this one!
- 1947: The Ghost and Mrs. Muir
- 1951: The Day the Earth Stood Still – This science fiction movie's music was nominated for a Golden Globe.
- 1955: The Trouble with Harry – One of his first movies with Alfred Hitchcock.
- 1956: The Man Who Knew Too Much – Another Hitchcock film.
- 1958: Vertigo – A very famous Hitchcock movie with memorable music.
- 1958: The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad – A fantasy adventure movie.
- 1959: North by Northwest – Another exciting Hitchcock thriller.
- 1959: Journey to the Center of the Earth – A classic adventure film.
- 1960: Psycho – His music for this horror movie is incredibly famous, especially the shower scene music!
- 1962: Cape Fear – A suspenseful thriller.
- 1963: Jason and the Argonauts – Another fantasy adventure.
- 1963: The Birds – A horror film by Alfred Hitchcock.
- 1966: Fahrenheit 451
- 1976: Taxi Driver – This movie's music was nominated for an Oscar and a Grammy, and won a BAFTA award.
Music for Radio Shows
Bernard Herrmann also composed music for radio shows. These were often special pieces written for a speaker and a full orchestra. This was important because the human voice needed to be heard clearly over the music.
Some of his radio works include:
- La Belle Dame Sans Merci (1934)
- The City of Brass (1934)
- Annabel Lee (1934-1935)
- Brave New World (1956)
Concert Music
Besides movies and radio, Bernard Herrmann wrote music for concerts. These pieces were meant to be played by orchestras or small groups of instruments.
Some of his concert works include:
- The Forest: A tone poem for a large orchestra (1929). A tone poem is a piece of music that tells a story or describes a scene.
- Sinfonietta for Strings (1935) – A sinfonietta is like a small symphony, usually for a smaller orchestra.
- Violin Concerto: An unfinished piece for violin and orchestra (1937).
- Moby Dick: A cantata (1937). A cantata is a piece of music for voices and instruments, often telling a story.
- Symphony (1941)
- Wuthering Heights: An opera (1951). An opera is a play where the words are sung to music.
- Echoes: A String Quartet (1965). A string quartet is a group of four string instruments, usually two violins, a viola, and a cello.
Related Pages
- Columbia Workshop - This was a radio series where Herrmann was the music director. He wrote music for many of its episodes.
- High Anxiety - This is a comedy movie that makes fun of many of Alfred Hitchcock's films and Bernard Herrmann's music.
- Hitchcock & Herrmann - This is a play about the working relationship between Bernard Herrmann and Alfred Hitchcock.
Images for kids
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Herrmann conducts the CBS Radio orchestra at a rehearsal of The Mercury Theatre on the Air directed by Orson Welles (1938)
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Herrmann conducting the orchestra in a scene from The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
See also
In Spanish: Bernard Herrmann para niños
