Lalo Schifrin

An Oscar- and Emmy-nominated film and television composer, classical composer, and acclaimed jazz pianist, Lalo Schifrin was best known for his urgent, jazz-injected film and TV themes. He emerged as a big-band leader in the mid-'50s, collaborating with the likes of Dizzy Gillespie and Xavier Cugat before beginning to score films in the mid-'60s. His iconic theme to TV's Mission: Impossible was first broadcast in 1966; its orchestral jazz instrumentation (including prevalent flutes, brass, piano, bongos, and jazz drums) and adrenalized staccato, syncopated rhythms helped to de...