film scores

Van Alexander co-wrote “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” with Ella Fitzgerald while both worked in the Chick Webb Orchestra back in 1938. The success of that song led to a job as arranger for Webb as well as Benny Goodman and Paul Whiteman and super stardom for Ella. Van formed his own band during the wonderful swing era but gave it up to work in the movies when Bing Crosby offered him a job in 1948.

Jimmy Cheatham was one of the coolest jazz cats in the industry. Having worked with many of the top jazz players such as Duke Ellington and Ornette Coleman, Jimmy brought the sounds of tradition jazz to film scores and television programs over several decades. Jimmy’s warm personality was only watched by the smooth sounds of his trombone. When teamed with his wife, the jazz and blues pianist Jeannie Cheatham, the tones were unmistakable, clear and often strikingly intimate.

James Decker has been an active music maker ever since performing with his mother on radio broadcasts while he was a child. Over the years, he continued his pursuit of music study and eventually developed into one of the most sought-after symphonic hornists in the country. Jim later worked in nearly every movie and recording studio from Washington DC to Los Angeles. After years as a university music professor, he achieved the completion of his method book and his design of the IVASI video system. The IVASI products were created to provide training for conductors through reviewing videos of themselves – facilitating personal critiques and improvement as never seen before. 

Milton DeLugg wrote many remarkable and popular songs such as "Orange Blossom Sky," recorded by Nat King Cole. He wrote TV theme songs and stacks of movie music. All the while, he was working with and becoming friends with the great American tunesmiths, being one of them himself. Luckily for our archives, Milton's interview includes several incredible stories from the all-but-forgotten days of Tin Pan Alley.

Ralph Grierson’s father was a sawmill operator who loved playing music after work and on the weekends. As Ralph grew up, his father encouraged him to develop a career in music. After college, while playing in several bands in the Los Angeles area, Ralph was asked to record a film score. Over the years Ralph became one of the most sought-after studio musicians in the film industry. Ralph had a fascination with electronic musical instruments, playing the Moog and ARP on countless sessions over the years. During his career he recorded for television on many occasions and soon began composing for TV and film himself.
 

Jim Hughart was born into a family of professional musicians and is proud of the many musical experiences he had growing up in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Right after graduation from the University of Minnesota with a Bachelor’s degree in Music Theory, Jim was drafted into the Army. For two years, he traveled throughout Europe performing bass with the 7th Army Symphony Orchestra. After his discharge from the Army, he joined Ella Fitzgerald, with whom he toured for three years. He settled in Southern California and has been very active in the recording studios, having participated in over 200 record albums, 300 motion picture scores, and countless television shows. 

Bernie Krause teamed with Paul Beaver to form the popular and innovative team of Beaver & Krause and recorded a number of early electronic albums in the 1960s and 70s. They also worked on hundreds of movies using synthesizers such as the APR 2600 and the Module Moog, for which they were the official west coast distributor in the early days of the company. Bernie was also an early pioneer in recording the sounds of nature, which lead to the forming of the organization Wild Sanctuary (named after an album he completed with Paul Beaver).

Johnny Mandel is the arranger and composer who may be best known for writing the theme to the movie and television series M*A*S*H*. As a songwriter he spent several years in the 1940s and 50s plugging his songs in the Brill Building in New York, the then hub for music publishing. He spent years working in Hollywood and for big bands as well as penning popular songs for artists such as Tony Bennett.
 

Jackie Mills as a drummer put down the beat for jazz and big band stars such as Tommy Dorsey, Charlie Barnet, Dizzy Gillespie and Billie Holiday. As a record producer, he played a critical role in the careers of Janis Joplin, Irene Kral and Bobby Sherman. As the co-founder of Choreo Records (later known as Ava Records) he worked with Tommy Wolf to create a music publishing company (Choreo Music) that provided a wide range of songs by several key songwriters for over 40 years. As a songwriter, he gave songs to cartoon and other children’s programs including three classic songs for the Brady Bunch in the early 1970s. And all the while Jackie Mills loved being a part of music making! 

Vic Mizzy wrote a number of hit songs for popular music, movies and television beginning in the 1940s. He wrote “The Jones Boy” for the Mills Brothers and is perhaps best known for writing TV theme songs for Green Acres and The Addams Family (for which he also sang on the original recording). As he began to work in the movies in the 1960s, Vic became active in ASCAP and other elements within movie contracts to ensure the rights of the songwriter and his art was protected.