An Interview with Lalo Schifrin

The Great Argentine-Jewish musician Lalo Schifrin was able to offer a moment from his busy schedule to J! for an interview. Schifrin has played with the DIzzy Gillespie big band and composed over 60 jazz and orchestral compositions and 100 soundtracks including Bullit, Enter the Dragon, Mission Impossible and Cool Hand Luke. He has won four Grammy Awards and earned Six Oscar nominations. His music career spans over a half-century, with a prolific output of Jazz, Classical,  and Soundtrack music. He has also penned an autobiography, Mission Impossible: My Life In Music.

WIthout further ado, the Q&A with Lalo Schifrin.   

Your music is often considered great spy music, What do you think compromises good spy music? 

I don’t know -- I mean, I have written a lot of music, different, genres, multiple genres. However, it is human nature. The genre that made me the most famous is spy, but that does not mean that I am a specialist.

How do you go about writing film music?

I get to see the rough cut of a film, and if I like it, I’ll do it.

I’m trying to write a book to answer your question, in this very minute. I think it’s going to be a textbook for how to write music for movies and television. It’s taking me a whole year to answer your question.

Do you prefer playing jazz?

I like all kinds of music, I like classical, I’ve been writing classical music. As a matter of fact, I conducted in Israel several times, and I wrote music that they performed in the Israel Philharmonic.

Where in Israel did you play?

I played not only Tel Aviv, but Eilat, Haifa, many of the cities.

Does your music have any Jewish connection?

The one who invited me wasn’t Jewish. He is the director of the Israel Philahrmonic, who is Hindu -- Zubin Mehta.

Are you religious at all?

I am not following [religion]. I used to go when I was a child, they used to make me to visit my grandmother with Yom Kippur and the biggest festivities.

I used to go and visit, and my father was a little religious. He couldn’t go to the temple too much because he was a concertmaster, first violinist of the philharmonic orchestra. He also had a chair in the National Conservatory of Music, and he was busy, but he was religious.

Have you gone back to Argentina recently? 

Unfortunately my friends and family are not there. My sister teaches at Columbia University, she teaches Latin American literature. She’s the only family I have.

Last time I went was two years ago, I conducted the National Symphony Orchestra.

How did you meet Dizzy?

I was back from my scholarship, four years in Paris, and I went back to Buenos Aires, and they asked me to put a big band together. I did television and radio and concerts. And the same year, it was 1956, Dizzy Gillespie came back with his big band, Quincy Jones was one of the trumpet players. He played one week in Argentina, matinees and evenings -- it was all sold out.

One evening I was asked to play with my band for him, for him and his band and his wife, and I went and I said yes, let's do it. After their dinner, we played for them several pieces. And after dinner he said, do you like these charts?

And I said, yes.

And he said, would you like to come to the United States? And that that’s why I’m here.

Did you play at all with Chano Pozo?

He was already dead, Chano Pozo. He died some years before I went.

What was it like to play in New York City? Where did you play?

It was a great experience. New York is a big city, I was already trained in that kind.

We played at the Carnegie Hall, we played at the Lincoln Center. Lincoln Center was opened while I was there. The first jazz composition ever played at Lincoln Center was the New Continent.

Before that, I played, I wrote the Gillespiana suite, a musical portrait of Dizzy. It was a success, it sold more than 1 million records.

That gold record went to Dizzy, but I have other gold records.

Where do you keep your gold records?

I keep them in my studio, I have a big studio in Los Angeles. 

My studio is a working studio, where I compose.

Do you have a recording studio there, as well? 

If I need a recording studio I rent.

Have you gifted any of your gold records?

The only gold records I got were for me. I am not stingy, if I had more I would give some.

Do you know any jokes?

All the jokes I know are X-rated, they’re not for publication.

Maybe, this one its not X-rated, its too technical. I have to remember the set up to remember the punchline. The problem is I remember the punchline and not how to set it up, it’s a pity because it’s a good joke. OK, I got it. 

There are two American tourists in Cairo. And they are just friends. And there’s a band in the hotel where they are staying. And they say to the drummer, “Do you who Max roach is?” No.

“Do you know who Buddy Rich is?” No.

You never heard of any American jazz drummers? No.

They say, “Tomorrow, we are going to bring you some records, if you like it you can play jazz.”

The next day they bring them several records, with a lot of jazz drummers, and they start playing, the band. And he [the drummer] starts playing, jazz, while the band is playing their music.

The band leader says, “Abdul, what are you doing!”

The drummer says, “I am playing what I can do, jazz.”

The band leader says, "No, forget jazz -- now give me a strong 11, and a strong 19."

Of your works, which are your favorites to listen to? 

One of my CDs is "Schifrin Plays Schifrin." It's David Schifrin, playing my music, and that one is probably my favorite.

Where would you direct a young listener interested in jazz, classical and soundtrack music?

There are so many choices, it’s impossible. Jerry Goldsmith, Alex North, all the great writers for all the classic movies. Classical -- everybody from Mozart, Stravinsky, Bartok. In jazz, its also impossible.

Thank you so much for making time for us, Mr. Schifrin.

Thank you.

You can visit Lalo Schifrin on the web at www.schifrin.com.

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