James Newton Howard

James Newton Howard was born in Los Angeles, California, on June 9, 1951. His mother, Florence, was a violinist, and his father, James, worked as a stockbroker. Howard studied piano at the University of Southern California’s School of Music, but left before graduating to work professionally. In 1975 he joined the band of singer-songwriter Elton John, first as a keyboard player and later as music director. His touring and recording work with John continued into the 1980s. During that period, he regularly contributed arrangements and synthesizer programming to records by artists, notably Toto, Diana Ross, and Barbra Streisand, among others.

Howard’s first major film-score credit was the 1985 comedy Head Office. He soon developed a flexible Hollywood career, writing the music for Pretty Woman, Flatliners, The Fugitive, Dave, Junior, Space Jam, and My Best Friend’s Wedding. His score for The Prince of Tides brought his first Academy Award nomination, and The Fugitive earned another. Rather than relying on one musical signature, he has moved between orchestral drama, electronic textures, comedy, animation, and songs. In 1999, Howard and lyricist Will Jennings won the Golden Globe together for Best Original Song for “For the First Time,” from the film One Fine Day.

With Hans Zimmer, Howard composed the music for Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. Their Dark Knight work notably includes the Joker material built around an unsettling, electronically processed single-note idea associated with the character’s instability. Howard did not return for The Dark Knight Rises, explaining that the partnership had run its course. He also scored M. Night Shyamalan’s The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, Signs, The Village, Lady in the Water, and The Happening. For Francis Lawrence’s Hunger Games, he wrote scores to Catching Fire and the Mockingjay films and also produced Jennifer Lawrence’s recording of “The Hanging Tree.”

Howard’s other screen work includes Peter Jackson’s King Kong, Michael Clayton, Snow White and the Huntsman, Maleficent, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, and Disney’s Raya and the Last Dragon. Michael Clayton and Defiance received Academy Award nominations for Original Score; further nominations include The Village and The Dark Knight, shared with Zimmer. Elsewhere, he released solo albums including James Newton Howard and The Journey and wrote the theme for Gideon’s Crossing. In 2008 he received the BMI Richard Kirk Award for his work. His concert piece I Would Plant a Tree was specifically written for the Pacific Symphony.