John Williams
Five Oscars and the symphonic sound of adventure cinema: Star Wars, Indiana Jones, E.T., Schindler's List.
Essential film composers
Twenty-four names to get into film music: who they are, how they sound, which films to watch and which pieces to hear.
Ennio Morricone
He reinvented the western with Sergio Leone and wrote melodies that stand on their own, such as The Mission and Cinema Paradiso.
Hans Zimmer
He blends orchestra and electronics. He won Oscars for The Lion King and Dune, and scored Gladiator, Inception and Interstellar.
John Barry
The sound of James Bond, and five Oscars. Broad, slow string melodies in Out of Africa and Dances with Wolves.
Howard Shore
Three Oscars for The Lord of the Rings, a score built on dozens of leitmotifs. He is also Cronenberg's regular composer.
James Newton Howard
The Sixth Sense, The Village, The Hunger Games. He co-wrote Batman Begins and The Dark Knight with Zimmer.
Vangelis
Synthesisers instead of an orchestra. An Oscar for Chariots of Fire, and the soundscape of Blade Runner.
Jerry Goldsmith
The most versatile of his generation: Chinatown, Alien, Star Trek. He won his Oscar for The Omen.
Joe Hisaishi
The music of Miyazaki's Studio Ghibli films, from My Neighbor Totoro to Spirited Away.
Alberto Iglesias
Almodóvar's composer, with four Oscar nominations. Restrained, chamber-like and instantly recognisable.
Bernard Herrmann
Hitchcock's voice in Vertigo and Psycho. His last score was Taxi Driver.
Hildur Guðnadóttir
Icelandic cellist. She won the Oscar for Joker with music that grows out of a single instrument.
Alexandre Desplat
Two Oscars and a chamber orchestra that ticks like clockwork: Wes Anderson, Guillermo del Toro, The King's Speech.
Ludwig Göransson
Three Oscars before turning 42: Black Panther, Oppenheimer and Sinners. He mixes orchestra, folk and studio production.
Michael Giacchino
From video games to Pixar: The Incredibles, Ratatouille, Up and Coco. Oscar for Up.
Danny Elfman
The sound of Tim Burton: Beetlejuice, Batman, Edward Scissorhands. And The Simpsons theme.
Thomas Newman
The Shawshank Redemption, American Beauty, Finding Nemo, 1917. Fifteen Oscar nominations and no statuette.
Alan Silvestri
Back to the Future, Forrest Gump and the Avengers. Thirty years of films with Robert Zemeckis.
Nino Rota
Fellini's music for twenty-five years and the waltz from The Godfather. Oscar for The Godfather Part II.
Maurice Jarre
Three Oscars with David Lean: Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago and A Passage to India.
Ryuichi Sakamoto
From the electronics of Yellow Magic Orchestra to The Last Emperor, which won him an Oscar. He also scored High Heels for Almodóvar.
Roque Baños
From Torrente to Evil Dead, at ease in comedy and horror. Two Goyas.
Fernando Velázquez
J. A. Bayona's composer: The Orphanage, The Impossible, A Monster Calls. Goya for the last of them.
Javier Navarrete
Pan's Labyrinth and its wordless lullaby earned him an Oscar nomination.