Maurice Jarre

Career overview

Maurice-Alexis Jarre was a French composer and conductor born in Lyon on September 13, 1924. While he produced various concert works throughout his career, he is primarily recognized for his extensive contributions to film music. After completing his studies at the Conservatoire, Jarre worked as a percussionist and played the Martenot Waves at Jean-Louis Barrault's theater. His transition into film scoring began in 1950 when he was commissioned by Jean Vilar to compose the music for a production of The Princess of Homburg.

Jarre is noted for his long-standing professional partnership with director David Lean, having composed the scores for all of Lean's films released between 1962 and 1984, including Lawrence of Arabia and Dr. Zhivago. Beyond his work with Lean, Jarre composed scores for numerous other films, such as The Train, Mohammad, Messenger of God, Lion of the Desert, Witness, Fatal Attraction, and Ghost. His musical impact extended to the music charts, where three of his compositions spent a combined total of 42 weeks on the UK singles chart, most notably with the piece Somewhere My Love. Jarre, who was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, died on March 28, 2009, in Malibu, California.