Read James Cameron’s Fond Farewell To James Horner
The film world is still reeling from news of a plane crash that appears to have taken the life of Oscar-winning composerJames Horner. I say “appears” because Horner’s own attorney remains unable to confirm the composer’s death, more than twenty-four hours after the crash. Astatementwas released, however, saying “Although we are all awaiting official confirmation that our dear friend and client James Horner was in fact the pilot, we are shocked and deeply saddened to learn that his single-engine aircraft was involved in a fatal crash yesterday morning in northern Ventura County.” A confirmation seems like a formality at this point, given everything we do know.
Other filmmakers are speaking out about Horner’s passing and his influence.James Cameron’s filmAliensled to Horner’s first Oscar nomination and also caused a rift between the two men that wasn’t healed for a decade. The two reunited to work onTitanic, which led to two Oscar wins for Horner, and they paired again another decade later forAvatar.
Now Cameron has released an extensive remembrance of James Horner, some of which you can read below.
THRreceived Cameron’s statement, which opens with,
Cameron discussesTitanicparticularly, saying,
My one regret after that production — or the one I remember in this context — is that I didn’t get to go to most of the orchestral scoring sessions. I made it to one. But the orchestra loved him. He always worked with a lot of the same players. Unlike most composers, he also conducted. He was classically trained. It was his room and they were sure to make something great. If I thought maybe there was something that wasn’t supporting the picture, he could turn on a dime and make it work.
Finally, he mentions a recent concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London, where the entireTitanicscore was performed live to accompany the movie.
It was emotional and I’m glad that was my last personal memory of James. They had to subtitle the film because when the orchestra was playing, you couldn’t hear the words. I thought, “This is how James would have imagined it.
