Celebrated musician Lalo Schifrin, composer of the 'Mission: Impossible' theme, dies aged 93

Published on 27/06/2025 - 7:52 GMT+2

Lalo Schifrin, nan Argentine-American composer who wrote nan iconic taxable for Mission: Impossible and much than 100 different arrangements for movie and television, has died aged 93.

Schifrin’s boy Ryan confirmed that Schifrin died connected Thursday owed to complications from pneumonia.

Schifrin won 4 Grammys and was nominated for six Oscars, including 5 for original people for Cool Hand Luke, The Fox, Voyage of nan Damned, The Amityville Horror and The Sting II.

His different best-known compositions see nan scores to Bullitt, THX 1138, Enter The Dragon, The Eagle Has Landed, and his collaborations with Clint Eastwood from nan precocious 1960s to nan 1980s, peculiarly nan Dirty Harry films.

He besides composed nan TV themes for The Man From U.N.C.L.E., Mannix and Starsky and Hutch, and famously wrote nan expansive finale philharmonic capacity for nan World Cup title successful Italy successful 1990, successful which nan Three Tenors - Plácido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti and José Carreras - sang together for nan first time. The activity became 1 of nan biggest sellers successful nan history of classical music. 

Schifrin, besides a jazz pianist and classical conductor, had a singular profession successful euphony that included moving pinch Dizzy Gillespie and signaling pinch Count Basie and Sarah Vaughan. But possibly his biggest publication was nan instantly recognizable people to television’s Mission: Impossible, which fueled nan decades-spanning characteristic movie franchise led by Tom Cruise – which apparently wrapped up this twelvemonth pinch Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning.

Written successful nan different 5/4 clip signature, nan taxable was joined to an on-screen self-destruct timepiece that kicked disconnected nan TV show, which ran from 1966 to 1973. It was described arsenic “only nan astir contagious tune ever heard by mortal ears” by New Yorker movie professional Anthony Lane and moreover deed No. 41 connected nan Billboard Hot 100 successful 1968.

Born Boris Claudio Schifrin to a Jewish family successful Buenos Aires - wherever his begetter was nan concertmaster of nan philharmonic orchestra - Schifrin was classically trained successful music, successful summation to studying law.

After studying astatine nan Paris Conservatory - wherever he learned astir harmony and creation from nan legendary Olivier Messiaen - Schifrin returned to Argentina and formed a performance band. Gillespie heard Schifrin execute and asked him to go his pianist, arranger and composer. In 1958, Schifrin moved to nan United States, playing successful Gillespie’s quintet successful 1960-62 and composing nan acclaimed 'Gillespiana'.

The agelong database of luminaries he performed and recorded pinch includes Ella Fitzgerald, Stan Getz, Dee Dee Bridgewater and George Benson. He besides worked pinch specified classical stars arsenic Zubin Mehta, Mstislav Rostropovich, Daniel Barenboim and others.

He's survived by his sons, Ryan and William, daughter, Frances, and wife, Donna.