Riz Ortolani
Sound
🎂 1926-03-25
Riziero "Riz" Ortolani (25 March 1926 – 23 January 2014) was an Italian film composer. Ortolani scored over 300 films working mostly within the Italian genres of Mondo, Giallo, and the Spaghetti Western. Ortolani also scored many Hollywood films and has had some of his compositions reused in films like Drive and Django Unchained. Ortolani's most famous composition is More, which he wrote for the infamous film Mondo Cane. It won the 1964 Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Theme and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song at the 36th Academy Awards. The song was later covered by Frank Sinatra, Kai Winding, Andy Williams, Roy Orbison, and others. Ortolani was born on 25 March 1926 in Pesaro, Italy. He was the youngest of six children. Ortolani's father, a postal worker, gave his son a violin at age 4. Ortolani later switched to flute after injuring his elbow in a car accident. He studied at the Conservatorio Statale di Musica "Gioachino Rossini" in his hometown of Pesaro before moving to Rome in 1948 and finding work with the RAI orchestra. Though the chronology is unclear, he also likely served as a musician in the Italian Air Force orchestra, formed a Jazz ensemble, and came to the United States as a Jazz musician in Hollywood, all before scoring his first film. Ortolani married Katyna Ranieri in 1956. In the early 1950s, Ortolani was founder and member of a well-known Italian jazz band. One of his early film scores was for Paolo Cavara and Gualtiero Jacopetti's 1962 pseudo-documentary Mondo Cane, whose main title-song More earned him a Grammy and was also nominated for an Oscar as Best Song. The success of the soundtrack of Mondo Cane led Ortolani to score films in England and the United States such as The Yellow Rolls-Royce (1964), The Spy with a Cold Nose (1966), The Biggest Bundle of Them All (1968) and Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell (1968). He also scored the 1972 film The Valachi Papers, directed by Terence Young and starring Charles Bronson. Ortolani scored all or parts of over 200 films, including German westerns like Old Shatterhand (1964) and a long series of Italian giallos, Spaghetti Westerns, Eurospy films, Exploitation films and mondo films. These include Il Sorpasso (1962), Castle of Blood (1964), Africa Addio (1966), Day of Anger (1967), Anzio (1968), The McKenzie Break (1970), The Hunting Party (1971), A Reason to Live, a Reason to Die (1972), Seven Blood-Stained Orchids (1972), The Fifth Musketeer (1979), From Hell to Victory (1979), the controversial Ruggero Deodato films Cannibal Holocaust (1980) and The House on the Edge of the Park (1980), and the first series of La piovra (1984). In later years he scored many films for Italian director Pupi Avati. His music was used on soundtracks for Grand Theft Auto: London 1969 (1999), Kill Bill: Volume 1 (2003), Kill Bill: Volume 2 (2004), Drive (2011) and Django Unchained (2012). In 2013, he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from the World Soundtrack Academy. Ortolani died on 23 January 2014 in Rome, aged 87. Source: Article "Riz Ortolani" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.
Cast credits(8)
Sound (200)
Original Music Composer
1984
Original Music Composer
1966
Music
1985
Original Music Composer
1991
Music
1975
Original Music Composer
1980
Music
1983
Music
1994
Music
1985
Original Music Composer
1971
Original Music Composer
1968
Music
1986
Original Music Composer
1987
Original Music Composer
1973
Original Music Composer
1981
Original Music Composer
1967
Original Music Composer
1965
Music
1971
Conductor
1971
Original Music Composer
1976
Original Music Composer
1984
Conductor
1984
Original Music Composer
1962
Original Music Composer
1981
Original Music Composer
1977
Original Music Composer
1972
Conductor
1972
Music
1972
Conductor
1964
Original Music Composer
1964
Original Music Composer
1980
Original Music Composer
1972
Conductor
1972
Music
1970
Original Music Composer
1972
Original Music Composer
1971
Music
1984
Music
1964
Original Music Composer
1968
Conductor
1968
Original Music Composer
1979
Original Music Composer
1969
Original Music Composer
1978
Music
1968
Original Music Composer
1969
Original Music Composer
1989
Music
1964
Music
1987
Original Music Composer
1973
Original Music Composer
1979
Original Music Composer
1979
Original Music Composer
1969
Music
1962
Conductor
1967
Original Music Composer
1967
Original Music Composer
1972
Original Music Composer
1990
Music
1978
Original Music Composer
1981
Original Music Composer
1979
Original Music Composer
1971
Original Music Composer
1978
Original Music Composer
1968
Music
1968
Music
1982
Original Music Composer
1961
Original Music Composer
1977
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2010
Original Music Composer
1967
Original Music Composer
1979
Music
2010
Original Music Composer
2007
Music
1977
Original Music Composer
1999
Original Music Composer
1967
Original Music Composer
1968
Original Music Composer
1967
Original Music Composer
1968
Original Music Composer
1966
Original Music Composer
1970
Conductor
1970
Original Music Composer
1963
Original Music Composer
1970
Original Music Composer
1977
Original Music Composer
1968
Original Music Composer
1973
Original Music Composer
1986
Original Music Composer
1990
Original Music Composer
1973
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1975
Original Music Composer
1974
Original Music Composer
1964
Music
1969
Original Music Composer
1975
Original Music Composer
1979
Original Music Composer
1984
Original Music Composer
1971
Original Music Composer
1973
Original Music Composer
1972
Music
1978
Original Music Composer
1973
Original Music Composer
1967
Music
2004
Conductor
1977
Original Music Composer
1977
Original Music Composer
1975
Original Music Composer
1965
Original Music Composer
1973
Original Music Composer
1983
Original Music Composer
1964
Original Music Composer
2007
Original Music Composer
1970
Music
1972
Original Music Composer
1981
Original Music Composer
1990
Original Music Composer
1969
Original Music Composer
1972
Original Music Composer
1979
Music
1976
Original Music Composer
1970
Original Music Composer
1973
Music
1965
Original Music Composer
1961
Original Music Composer
1973
Original Music Composer
2005
Original Music Composer
1964
Original Music Composer
1990
Original Music Composer
1992
Original Music Composer
1968
Original Music Composer
1969
Music
1965
Original Music Composer
1971
Original Music Composer
1969
Original Music Composer
1973
Original Music Composer
1982
Original Music Composer
1971
Original Music Composer
1976
Original Music Composer
1980
Original Music Composer
1985
Original Music Composer
2003
Music
1998
Music
1964
Original Music Composer
1972
Original Music Composer
1982
Original Music Composer
1999
Music
1971
Original Music Composer
1982
Original Music Composer
1987
Original Music Composer
1985
Music
2005
Original Music Composer
1970
Original Music Composer
1963
Original Music Composer
1970
Original Music Composer
1963
Music
1966
Original Music Composer
1988
Original Music Composer
1981
Original Music Composer
1970
Music
2008
Original Music Composer
1968
Original Music Composer
1989
Original Music Composer
2003
Original Music Composer
1969
Original Music Composer
1983
Original Music Composer
1993
Original Music Composer
1982
Original Music Composer
1973
Music
1975
Original Music Composer
1973
Original Music Composer
1989
Music
1970
Original Music Composer
1978
Original Music Composer
1965
Music
1997
Music
1966
Original Music Composer
1986
Original Music Composer
1977
Music
1973
Original Music Composer
1962
Original Music Composer
1986
Music
1955
Music
1989
Original Music Composer
1979
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1992
Original Music Composer
1980
Music
1966
Original Music Composer
1980
Music
1970
Music
1974
Music
1969
Original Music Composer
1963
Music
1965
Music
1975
Music
1990
Original Music Composer
1956
Original Music Composer
1981
Music
1957
Original Music Composer
1970
Original Music Composer
1980
Music
1983
