Henry Mancini (April 16, 1924 – June 14, 1994) was an Academy Award-winning… Read Full Bio ↴Henry Mancini (April 16, 1924 – June 14, 1994) was an Academy Award-winning American composer, conductor and arranger. He is remembered particularly for being a composer of film and television scores - his best-known works are the jazz-idiom theme to The Pink Panther film series and Moon River. Mancini won a record number of Grammy awards, including a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1995.

Mancini was born Enrico Nicola Mancini in the Little Italy neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio, and grew up near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the steel town of West Aliquippa, Pennsylvania. His parents emigrated from the Abruzzo region of Italy. Mancini's father, Quinto, was a steelworker, who made his only child begin flute lessons at the age of eight. When Mancini was 12 years old, he began piano lessons. Quinto and Henry played flute together in the Aliquippa Italian immigrant band, "Sons of Italy". After high school, Mancini attended the renowned Juilliard School of Music in New York. In 1943, after roughly one year at Juilliard, his studies were interrupted when he was drafted into the army. In 1945, he participated in the liberation of a South German concentration camp.

Mancini recorded over 90 albums, in styles ranging from big band to classical to pop. Eight of these albums were certified gold by The Recording Industry Association of America. He had a 20 year contract with RCA Records, resulting in 60 commercial record albums that made him a household name composer of easy listening music.

Mancini's range also extended to orchestral and ethnic scores (Lifeforce, The Great Mouse Detective, Sunflower, "Tom and Jerry: The Movie", Molly Maguires, The Hawaiians), and darker themes ("Experiment In Terror," "The White Dawn," "Wait Until Dark," "The Night Visitor").

Mancini was also a concert performer, conducting over fifty engagements per year, resulting in over 600 symphony performances during his lifetime. Among the symphony orchestras he conducted are the London Symphony Orchestra, the Israel Philharmonic, the Boston Pops, the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. He appeared in 1966, 1980 and 1984 in command performances for the British Royal Family. He also toured several times with Johnny Mathis and with Andy Williams, who had sung many of Mancini's songs.[citation needed]

Mancini had experience with acting and voice roles. In 1994 he made a one-off cameo appearance in the first season of the sitcom series Frasier, as a call-in patient to Dr. Frasier Crane's radio show. Mancini voiced the character Al, who speaks with a melancholy drawl and hates the sound of his own voice, in the episode "Guess Who's Coming to Breakfast?" Mancini also had an uncredited performance as a pianist in the 1967 movie Gunn, the movie version of the series Peter Gunn, the score of which was originally composed by Mancini himself.

Mancini was nominated for an unprecedented 72 Grammys, winning 20 Additionally he was nominated for 18 Academy Awards, winning four. He also won a Golden Globe Award and was nominated for two Emmys.

Mancini won a total of four Oscars for his music in the course of his career.

Mancini died at the age of 70 in Beverly Hills/Los Angeles, California of pancreatic cancer. He was working at the time on the Broadway stage version of Victor/Victoria. At the time of his death, Mancini was married to singer Virginia "Ginny" O´Connor, with whom he had three children. Ginny Mancini went on to found the Society of Singers a non profit organization which benefits the health and welfare of professional singers worldwide. Additionally the Society awards scholarships to students pursuing an education in the vocal arts and holds the annual Ella Awards.

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers(ASCAP) Foundation "Henry Mancini Music Scholarship" has been awarded annually since 2001.

Moon River
Henry Mancini Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Moon river, wider than a mile
I'm crossing you in style some day
Oh, dream maker, you heartbreaker
Wherever you're goin', I'm goin' your way

Two drifters off to see the world
There's such a lot of world to see
We're after the same rainbow's end, waitin' 'round the bend

My huckleberry friend, moon river, and me

Overall Meaning

The song "Moon River" by Henry Mancini is a melancholic ballad that paints a vivid picture of two wanderers seeking their fortunes in the wide-open spaces of the world. The first verse sets the tone with the opening line "Moon river, wider than a mile." This is a metaphor for the vastness of the world, and the idea that the two drifters are setting out to cross it in style someday. The dream maker referred to in the song is a reference to somebody who is going to help them overcome their fears and achieve their goals. However, this person is also a heartbreaker because the journey is never easy, and they have to be willing to take risks and push boundaries to get ahead.

The second verse continues the story by introducing two more characters, "Two drifters off to see the world." They are after the same rainbow's end, a reference to the mythical pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. The line "waiting' 'round the bend" implies that they are always looking towards the future, anticipating what's coming next, but also living in the moment. The final line of the verse, "My huckleberry friend, moon river, and me," is an expression of the deep friendship between the two wanderers and their love for the natural world.

Overall, "Moon River" is a beautiful, introspective song that captures the yearning for adventure and the deep bonds of friendship, and it continues to be one of the most beloved songs in the American Songbook.

Line by Line Meaning

Moon river, wider than a mile
The beauty of life's journey, full of experiences that are vast and abundant.

I'm crossing you in style some day
One day I will face this journey with confidence and poise, ready to take on what lies ahead.

Oh, dream maker, you heartbreaker
The creator of dreams that can also be the cause of heartbreak.

Wherever you're goin', I'm goin' your way
No matter where life takes me, I want to share that journey with those who are important to me.

Two drifters off to see the world
Two individuals who are seeking to explore the world and experience all that it offers.

There's such a lot of world to see
The world is vast and offers endless opportunities for exploration and adventure.

We're after the same rainbow's end, waitin' 'round the bend
We are both seeking to find our own personal pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, which is just around the corner waiting for us to discover it.

My huckleberry friend, moon river, and me
Together with my closest companion, we will navigate life's journey together and share in the beauty of the moonlit river.

Lyrics © Tratore
Written by: Johnny Mercer, Henry Mancini

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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