20th Century Music

Acclaimed Italian composer renowned for his evocative film scores.Born in Rome, Italy. Studied piano and graduated in composition. Began composing for film in 1969....

Award-winning Japanese composer renowned for her evocative orchestral and electronic scores in video games, anime, and film.Michiru Oshima, born March 16, 1961, in Nagasaki, Japan, is a highly respected composer. She graduated from the Tokyo College of Music. Her career spans decades, marked by critically acclaimed scores for major video games like 'ICO' and 'The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes', popular anime series including 'Fullmetal Alchemist' (2003), and numerous films such as 'Lorele...

Iconic American jazz pianist and composer, renowned as a founding father of bebop and one of the most unique and influential figures in jazz history.Monk developed his highly idiosyncratic style in the 1940s New York jazz scene, pioneering bebop alongside figures like Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker. Known for his dissonant harmonies, complex rhythms, percussive attack, and unpredictable improvisations, he composed enduring jazz standards. Despite initial critical misunderstanding and peri...

Japanese composer, pianist, singer, producer, and actor, known for his innovative electronic music, film scores, and global activism.Born in Tokyo, Japan.Co-founded pioneering electronic group Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO) in 1978.Won an Academy Award, BAFTA, Golden Globe, and Grammy for scoring 'The Last Emperor' (1987).Composed acclaimed scores for films like 'Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence' (1983), 'The Sheltering Sky' (1990), and 'The Revenant' (2015).Released influential solo albums explori...

American composer and pianist renowned for creating outrageously complex and intentionally absurd musical scores.John Stump gained cult fame primarily through his composition "Faerie's Aire and Death Waltz", a piece deliberately overloaded with nonsensical performance instructions, impossible technical demands, and bizarre notations, satirizing the extremes of avant-garde and overly complex contemporary music....

John Rutter is an English composer, conductor, editor, arranger, and record producer, renowned worldwide for his accessible and profoundly moving choral compositions, particularly Christmas carols, anthems, and larger-scale works.Educated at Highgate School and Clare College, Cambridge, Rutter served as Director of Music at Clare College before dedicating himself full-time to composition. He founded the professional chamber choir The Cambridge Singers and the recording label Collegium Records...

American pianist and composer known for his serene, melodic neo-classical and contemporary instrumental music.A self-taught pianist and composer, Brian Crain emerged in the 1990s. He gained significant popularity, particularly in Asia, for his gentle, evocative piano pieces. His music is frequently used for relaxation, meditation, and film/TV soundtracks....

Austrian-born American virtuoso violinist and composer, renowned for his sweet tone, expressive phrasing, and charming compositions.Child prodigy who entered the Vienna Conservatory at age 7 and the Paris Conservatoire at 10. Made his American debut in 1888. Briefly studied medicine and served in the Austrian army....

Goran Bregović is a globally renowned Bosnian-born composer and musician, celebrated for his unique fusion of Balkan folk traditions (especially Romani music), rock, and film scores.Born in Sarajevo, Bregović first achieved massive fame in Yugoslavia as the guitarist and primary songwriter for the rock band Bijelo Dugme (White Button) during the 1970s and 1980s. Following the band's dissolution and the Yugoslav wars, he transitioned into a highly successful international career as a composer,...

Patrick Doyle is a celebrated Scottish composer, best known for his powerful and evocative orchestral scores for numerous major motion pictures.Born in Uddingston, Scotland, Patrick Doyle initially trained and worked as an actor before transitioning to music composition.His major breakthrough came composing the score for Kenneth Branagh's film adaptation of Shakespeare's 'Henry V' (1989), launching a prolific career in film.Doyle has scored over 60 films, including many for director Kenneth B...