Musician Lalo Schifrin, composer of 'Mission: Impossible,' dies

BarcelonaOne of the most popular rhythmic progressions of the 20th century was created by Argentine musician Lalo Schifrin, who died this Thursday in Los Angeles at the age of 93 due to pneumonia. It's the theme song for the series (and later film) Mission: Impossible, composed in 1966. Schifrin, a contemporary of Henry Mancini, was one of the great innovators of film and television music in the 1960s, when the audiovisual industry recognized the potential of jazz, precisely at a time when the clubs of the French capital were hosting many jazz musicians. big band in Argentina. Later contacts with Dizzy Gillespie and Quincy Jones further oriented his career. His knowledge of symphonic and jazz music shaped Schifrin's personality, and he settled in New York (where he wrote arrangements for Xavier Cugat's orchestra) before making the leap to Hollywood. In addition to Mission: Impossible, also composed the main theme of the series Mannix (1967), which thirty years later served as the theme song for the program APM? from TV3, and which Quentin Tarantino paid tribute to Once upon a time... Hollywood (2019). In those years he also made the soundtracks for films such as The king of the game (1965), The legend of the indomitable (1967), Bullitt (1968) and The human jungle (1968). That is, he worked on films by directors such as Norman Jewison, Stuart Rosenberg, Peter Yates, and Don Siegel.

Once established in Hollywood, Schifrin became one of the most prolific composers in American cinema. Although he didn't win an Oscar, he was instrumental in the paradigm shift experienced by the world of soundtracks, thanks to the rhythmic vitality of jazz and the prominence of instruments like the saxophone. Furthermore, his compositions had a special touch that made them very suitable for suspense and action scenes.

The Argentine musician's legacy is impressive, with pieces that have permeated popular culture over the last sixty years, such as the main theme of the series Starsky & Hutch and the soundtracks ofKelly's Heroes (1970), Harry the Brut (1971), Enter the Dragon (1973), The eagle has arrived (1976) and The Amityville Horror (1980), among many others.