Ennio Morricone, OMRI^[1] (Italian: [ˈɛnnjo morriˈkoːne]; 10 November 1928 – 6 July 2020) was an Italian composer, orchestrator, conductor, and trumpet player who wrote music in a wide range of styles. He composed over 400 scores for cinema and television, as well as over 100 classical works. His best-known compositions include "The Ecstasy of Gold", "Se telefonando", "Man with a Harmonica", "Here's to You", the UK No. 2 single "Chi Mai", "Gabriel's Oboe" and "E Più Ti Penso". In 1971, he received a "Targa d'Oro" for worldwide sales of 22 million,^[2] and by 2016 Morricone had sold over 70 million records worldwide.^[3] In 2007, he received the Academy Honorary Award "for his magnificent and multifaceted contributions to the art of film music." He was nominated for a further six Oscars, and in 2016, received his only competitive Academy Award for his score to Quentin Tarantino's film The Hateful Eight, at the time becoming the oldest person ever to win a competitive Oscar. His other achievements include three Grammy Awards, three Golden Globes, six BAFTAs, ten David di Donatello, eleven Nastro d'Argento, two European Film Awards, the Golden Lion Honorary Award and the Polar Music Prize in 2010. Morricone has influenced many artists from film scoring to other styles and genres, including Hans Zimmer,^[4] Danger Mouse,^[5] Dire Straits,^[6] Muse,^[7] Metallica,^[8] and Radiohead.^[9]

Academy Awards

Morricone received his first Academy Award nomination in 1979 for the score to Days of Heaven (Terrence Malick, 1978).^[10]

Eight years later, Morricone received his second Oscar nomination for The Mission.^[10] He also received Oscar nominations for his scores to The Untouchables (1987), Bugsy (1991), Malèna (2000), and The Hateful Eight (2016).^[11] In February 2016, Morricone won his first and only competitive Academy Award for his score to The Hateful Eight.^[12]

Morricone and Alex North are the only composers to receive the Academy Honorary Award since its introduction in 1928.^[13] He received the award in February 2007, "for his magnificent and multifaceted contributions to the art of film music."^[14] In conjunction with the honor, Morricone released a tribute album, We All Love Ennio Morricone, that included as its centerpiece Celine Dion's rendition of "I Knew I Loved You" (based on "Deborah's Theme" from Once Upon a Time in America), which she performed at the ceremony. Behind-the-scenes studio production and recording footage of "I Knew I Loved You" can be viewed in the debut episode of the QuincyJones.com Podcast.^[15] The lyric, as with his Love Affair, had been written by Alan and Marilyn Bergman. Morricone's acceptance speech was in his native Italian tongue and was interpreted by Clint Eastwood.^[16]

American Film Institute

In 2005 four film scores by Ennio Morricone were nominated by the American Film Institute for an honoured place in the AFI's Top 25 of Best American Film Scores of All Time.^[17] His score for The Mission was ranked 23rd in the Top 25 list.^[18]

Golden Globe

9 Nominations, 3 Wins.^[19]

Globo d'oro (Italian Golden Globes)

Grammy Awards

Morricone was nominated seven times for a Grammy Award. In 2009 The Recording Academy inducted his score for The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) into the Grammy Hall of Fame.^[20]

Nastro d'Argento (Silver Ribbon)

ASCAP Awards

BAFTA Awards

British Academy Awards: 6 Wins.^[22]

César Awards

David di Donatello