Twilight Zone composer has died

Twilight Zone composer has died

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norman lebrecht

May 17, 2015

Robert Drasnin, director of music for CBS television from 1977 to 1991, has died after a fall, aged 87.

His own credits include composing the Mission Impossible theme music for the second series, according to Variety, and working with the Grateful Dead on Twilight Zone.

bob drasnin

Comments

  • Anon says:

    ?? I believe the great Argentinian film score composer LALO SCHIFRIN write the Mission Impossible Theme? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lalo_Schifrin

  • Anon says:

    Mission Impossible = Lalo Schifrin, composer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theme_from_Mission:_Impossible

  • william osborne says:

    Robert Drasnin wrote incidental music for the show, but Lalo Schifrin wrote the theme, famous for its 5/4 meter.

  • Anon says:

    MUCH better! I think Bernard Hermann wrote the famous theme for Twilight Zone, but Mr. Drasnin did right a lot of music for the series, apparently. At least Hermann isn’t still alive to complain! We Schifrin fans were VERY uncomfortable with the previous caption.

    It’s interesting, looking at Mr. Drasnin’s body of work, he was a highly respected, prolific
    but not very well-known composer. He wrote for lots of top tv shows, but it was always the background music, never the actual themes.

    Made me start thinking about the huge quantities of backround music composed for tv shows that we don’t pay much attn. to. But if it were missing it would be horrible! Mr. Drasnin was apparently one of the composers they called in frequently to score episodes
    of Twilight Zone, Man From Uncle, Wild Wild West, Barnaby Jones and more.

    We watched those shows, but probably weren’t aware that there was a composer’s score behing each episode. All we remember are the theme songs!

    Robert Drasnin was a real unsung hero of a composer! The fuss everyone made about correcting the title of this article was well worth it, because we had to look a little harder for his actual musical accomplishments. I, for one, learned a great deal. May he rest in peace. . .

  • Chas Reskin says:

    The famous opening theme to Twilight Zone was written by the excellent French composer, Marius Constant. Interestingly, the music begins not on the beat, as we commonly feel it, but on an eighth note pick-up.

  • Chas Reskin says:

    The famous opening theme to Twilight Zone was written by the excellent French composer, Marius Constant. Interestingly, the music begins on an eighth-note pick-up, not on the beat as is commonly thought.

    • Anon says:

      @ Chas Reskin: all reports I’ve read say the noted film composer Bernard Herrmann wrote the Twighlight Zone theme. Mr. Drasnin composed for many of its episodes, so Norman got it absolutely right here.

      Where are you getting Marius Constant, please?

    • Patrick says:

      It was Marius Constant. This is true.

  • Stephen A says:

    Bernard Herrmann (not Hermann) wrote the opening theme of Season One of TTZ. Producers replaced it in Season Two with Marius Constant’s iconic theme music. TTZ producers thought Herrmann’s theme was ‘too down,’ and Constant’s much catchier. They were right.

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