Buddy Baker (composer)
Encyclopedia
Norman "Buddy" Baker was an American composer
who scored
many of Walt Disney
's films, such as The Apple Dumpling Gang
, The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again
, The Shaggy D.A.
, The Million Dollar Duck
and The Fox and the Hound.
Baker was born and raised in Springfield, Missouri
, and got his degree in music from Southwest Baptist College
. He later went to the West Coast
in the 1930s to arrange music scores for radio. He became the Musical Director on Bob Hope
's radio show.
One of his first hits as a big band
arranger on record was "And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine" for the Stan Kenton Orchestra. He later became a professor at L.A. City College
in the early 1950s. Among his early students was Jerry Goldsmith
.
At about this time, his friend George Bruns
asked him to compose music for the Disney television show Davy Crockett and the River Pirates
. He stayed on at the Disney studio, and eventually became its music director, as well as chief composer for Disneyland and other Disney theme parks.
Baker was nominated for an Academy Award for his score the film Napoleon and Samantha
. His work appears in many Disney cartoons and featurettes, including Donald in Mathmagic Land
, which was nominated for a 1959 Academy Award (Best Documentary - Short Subjects). In 1978, he composed the music for the first Walt Disney Home Video logo, known as the "Neon Mickey" logo. The music was a loud string fanfare.
Baker arranged and conducted most of the Winnie-the-Pooh
musical
featurettes. In 1999 at the age of 82 he conducted the music for the The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh theme park attractions
worldwide.
The eerie music played throughout the Haunted Mansion
at Disneyland was another work by Baker, as was the infectious theme to Walt Disney World's If You Had Wings
. Baker arranged the medley of French classical music that accompanies the film Impressions de France at EPCOT Center, which artfully integrates works by Camille Saint-Saëns
, Claude Debussy
and Erik Satie
, among others. The music to the Tokyo DisneySea
theme park attraction Journey to the Center of the Earth
, which opened in 2001, was also composed by Baker.
Baker retired from Disney having been the last contracted music staff composer still on contract at any studio. Although occasionally returning to work on theme park, film and television projects, he spent the majority of his later years teaching film scoring at the USC Thornton School of Music
in Los Angeles
. He held that job until his death in 2002. In 2004, Buddy Baker's wife Charlotte donated his papers to the Fales Library
at NYU.
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
who scored
Film score
A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film, forming part of the film's soundtrack, which also usually includes dialogue and sound effects...
many of Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
's films, such as The Apple Dumpling Gang
The Apple Dumpling Gang (film)
The Apple Dumpling Gang is a 1975 Disney film about slick gambler Russel Donavan who is duped into taking care of a group of orphan children who eventually strike gold during the California Gold Rush....
, The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again
The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again
The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again is a 1979 sequel to the 1975 family film The Apple Dumpling Gang starring the comedy duo of Tim Conway, and Don Knotts. Conway and Knotts reprise their roles as Amos and Theodore. The film also stars Tim Matheson, Harry Morgan, and Kenneth Mars. Laugh-In star...
, The Shaggy D.A.
The Shaggy D.A.
The Shaggy D.A. is a 1976 film sequel to 1959's The Shaggy Dog by Walt Disney Productions. It was directed by Robert Stevenson and written by Don Tait, based on the original film and inspired by the long out-of-print Felix Salten novel, The Hound of Florence.It starred Dean Jones as the adult...
, The Million Dollar Duck
The Million Dollar Duck
The Million Dollar Duck is a 1971 Disney comedy film that was directed by Vincent McEveety, and stars Dean Jones, Sandy Duncan and Joe Flynn.-Plot:...
and The Fox and the Hound.
Baker was born and raised in Springfield, Missouri
Springfield, Missouri
Springfield is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County. According to the 2010 census data, the population was 159,498, an increase of 5.2% since the 2000 census. The Springfield Metropolitan Area, population 436,712, includes the counties of...
, and got his degree in music from Southwest Baptist College
Southwest Baptist University
Southwest Baptist University is a private institute of higher education affiliated with the Missouri Baptist Convention which is part of the Southern Baptist Convention. In 2003 there were approximately 3,600 students attending at one of SBU's four Missouri, United States campuses in Bolivar,...
. He later went to the West Coast
West Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
in the 1930s to arrange music scores for radio. He became the Musical Director on Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
's radio show.
One of his first hits as a big band
Big band
A big band is a type of musical ensemble associated with jazz and the Swing Era typically consisting of rhythm, brass, and woodwind instruments totaling approximately twelve to twenty-five musicians...
arranger on record was "And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine" for the Stan Kenton Orchestra. He later became a professor at L.A. City College
Los Angeles City College
Los Angeles City College, known as LACC, is a public community college in the East Hollywood section of Los Angeles, California. A part of the Los Angeles Community College District, it is located on Vermont Avenue south of Santa Monica Boulevard...
in the early 1950s. Among his early students was Jerry Goldsmith
Jerry Goldsmith
Jerrald King Goldsmith was an American composer and conductor most known for his work in film and television scoring....
.
At about this time, his friend George Bruns
George Bruns
George Bruns was a composer of music for film and television who worked on many Disney films. He was nominated for four Academy Awards for his work.-Career:...
asked him to compose music for the Disney television show Davy Crockett and the River Pirates
Davy Crockett and the River Pirates
Davy Crockett and the River Pirates is a 1956 live-action Walt Disney adventure film starring Fess Parker as Davy Crockett. It was shot in Cave-In-Rock, Illinois...
. He stayed on at the Disney studio, and eventually became its music director, as well as chief composer for Disneyland and other Disney theme parks.
Baker was nominated for an Academy Award for his score the film Napoleon and Samantha
Napoleon and Samantha
Napoleon and Samantha is a 1972 family/adventure/drama directed by Bernard McEveety and written by Stewart Raffill. Filmed in and around John Day, Oregon, it stars Michael Douglas, Jodie Foster, and Johnny Whitaker.-Plot:...
. His work appears in many Disney cartoons and featurettes, including Donald in Mathmagic Land
Donald in Mathmagic Land
Donald in Mathmagic Land is a 27-minute Donald Duck featurette released on June 26, 1959. It was directed by Hamilton Luske. Contributors included Disney artists John Hench and Art Riley, voice talent Paul Frees, and scientific expert Heinz Haber, who had worked on the Disney space shows. It was...
, which was nominated for a 1959 Academy Award (Best Documentary - Short Subjects). In 1978, he composed the music for the first Walt Disney Home Video logo, known as the "Neon Mickey" logo. The music was a loud string fanfare.
Baker arranged and conducted most of the Winnie-the-Pooh
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh is the 22nd full-length animated film produced by Walt Disney Productions and first released on March 11, 1977....
musical
Musical film
The musical film is a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, though in some cases they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate...
featurettes. In 1999 at the age of 82 he conducted the music for the The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh theme park attractions
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (attraction)
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh is a dark ride based upon the film The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, itself based on the Winnie-the-Pooh books by A. A. Milne. The attraction exists in slightly different forms at the Magic Kingdom in the Walt Disney World Resort, Disneyland, and Hong...
worldwide.
The eerie music played throughout the Haunted Mansion
Haunted Mansion
The Haunted Mansion is a dark ride located at Disneyland, the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World and Tokyo Disneyland. A significantly re-imagined incarnation of the ride, known as Phantom Manor, is located in Disneyland Paris...
at Disneyland was another work by Baker, as was the infectious theme to Walt Disney World's If You Had Wings
If You Had Wings
Category:Wikipedia articles needing style editing If You Had Wings was one of the original attractions at Walt Disney World. It was a two-person Omnimover dark ride in Tomorrowland in the Magic Kingdom, sponsored by Eastern Air Lines...
. Baker arranged the medley of French classical music that accompanies the film Impressions de France at EPCOT Center, which artfully integrates works by Camille Saint-Saëns
Camille Saint-Saëns
Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns was a French Late-Romantic composer, organist, conductor, and pianist. He is known especially for The Carnival of the Animals, Danse macabre, Samson and Delilah, Piano Concerto No. 2, Cello Concerto No. 1, Havanaise, Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, and his Symphony...
, Claude Debussy
Claude Debussy
Claude-Achille Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
and Erik Satie
Erik Satie
Éric Alfred Leslie Satie was a French composer and pianist. Satie was a colourful figure in the early 20th century Parisian avant-garde...
, among others. The music to the Tokyo DisneySea
Tokyo DisneySea
is a 176-acre theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, just outside Tokyo. It opened on September 4, 2001. It is owned by The Oriental Land Company, which licenses the theme from The Walt Disney Company. Tokyo DisneySea attracted an estimated 12 million visitors in...
theme park attraction Journey to the Center of the Earth
Journey to the Center of the Earth (attraction)
Journey to the Center of the Earth is an attraction at Tokyo DisneySea, based on Jules Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth.The attraction uses similar technology to Epcot's Test Track.-Story:...
, which opened in 2001, was also composed by Baker.
Baker retired from Disney having been the last contracted music staff composer still on contract at any studio. Although occasionally returning to work on theme park, film and television projects, he spent the majority of his later years teaching film scoring at the USC Thornton School of Music
USC Thornton School of Music
The University of Southern California Thornton School of Music, founded in 1884 and dedicated in 1999, is one of the premier music schools in the United States...
in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. He held that job until his death in 2002. In 2004, Buddy Baker's wife Charlotte donated his papers to the Fales Library
Fales Library
New York University's Fales Library and Special Collections is located on the third floor of the Elmer Holmes Bobst Library at 70 Washington Square South between LaGuardia Place and the Schwartz Plaza, in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It houses nearly 200,000...
at NYU.
External links
- The Fales Library Guide to the Buddy Baker Papers
- Buddy Baker at Find-A-Grave