David Snell
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia David L. Snell (10 September 1897, Milwaukee, Wisconsin – 27 March 1967, Glendale, California) was a pianist, conductor, composer and music director. He composed the music for over 170 shorts, series or feature films. Snell studied at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music, Wisconsin College and the Meyer Conservatory of Music. He formed his own orchestra, and was the musical director for several stage productions. He joined Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's music department in 1937, turning out music for a range of films from low-cost "B" movies to expensive features. He would spend his entire film career with MGM. He was conductor, composer, and music director for MGM for twenty-one years. The work could be high pressure. In November 1938 Franz Waxman had just five days to put together the fifty-minute score for A Christmas Carol so it could be released in time for the holiday season. Snell helped out, writing the opening and closing credit cues and half a dozen other cues based on themes provided by Waxman. Snell wrote music for many full-length films, shorts and B-movie series such as Dr. Kildare, Maisie and The Thin Man. His songs include Under The Stars, Downstream Drifter, Come Back Little Girl Of Mine and Once Over Lightly. His scores often showed first-rate craftsmanship, but his work has generally been ignored, perhaps because in most cases he chose to simply underscore the dialog as opposed to contributing complementary musical ideas. However, for the 1947 Lady in the Lake, based on the Raymond Chandler novel and set around Christmas time, Snell chose to use a choir singing a cappella, providing an austere and effective "black and white" score to accompany the stark black and white cinematography. The moody music echoed Christmas carols. David L. Snell died in 1967.
Lady in the Lake
(Original Music Composer)
Gallant Sons
(Music)
Life Is Sweet
(Conductor)
Grand Central Murder
(Original Music Composer)
Kid Glove Killer
(Original Music Composer)
Thunder Afloat
(Music)
Married Before Breakfast
(Music)
A Way in the Wilderness
(Music)
Out West with the Hardys
(Music)
Mad Love
(Original Music Composer)
The Hardys Ride High
(Music)
Killer McCoy
(Original Music Composer)
Judge Hardy and Son
(Original Music Composer)
Andy Hardy Gets Spring Fever
(Music)
Dr. Kildare's Crisis
(Original Music Composer)
Andy Hardy Meets Debutante
(Music)
Where Angels Fear to Tread
(Conductor)
Andy Hardy's Blonde Trouble
(Music)
The Courtship of Andy Hardy
(Music)
The Golden Fleecing
(Music)
Calling Dr. Kildare
(Music)
These Glamour Girls
(Original Music Composer)
Henry Goes Arizona
(Music)
Alias a Gentleman
(Music)
My Dear Miss Aldrich
(Music)
What Do You Think? Tupapaoo
(Music)
What Do You Think? (Number Three)
(Music)
See Here, Private Hargrove
(Music)
The Emperor's New Clothes
(Conductor)
Missing Persons
(Music)
Twice Blessed
(Music Director)
Tarzan's Secret Treasure
(Music)
Washington Melodrama
(Music)
Dangerous Partners
(Original Music Composer)
Wyoming
(Music)
The People Vs. Dr. Kildare
(Music)
Phantom Raiders
(Music)
20 Mule Team
(Music)
Blackmail
(Music)
Third Dimensional Murder
(Original Music Composer)
Sirens
(Conductor)
The War Against Mrs. Hadley
(Music)
The Thin Man
(Orchestrator)
Nazi Agent
(Music)
Billy Rose's Casa Mañana Revue
(Music)
The Women
(Original Music Composer)
Third Finger, Left Hand
(Music)
Angel of Mercy
(Original Music Composer)
Sunday Punch
(Original Music Composer)
Dr. Kildare Goes Home
(Music)
Jackass Mail
(Music)
The Secret of Dr. Kildare
(Music)
Young Dr. Kildare
(Music)
Dr. Kildare's Strange Case
(Music)
We Must Have Music
(Music)
Twenty Years After
(Music)
Ringside Maisie
(Original Music Composer)
Up Goes Maisie
(Original Music Composer)
The Forgotten Step
(Music)
Love Crazy
(Original Music Composer)
Hollywood: Style Center of the World
(Music)
Love with a Perfect Stranger
(Conductor)
Another Romance of Celluloid: Electrical Power
(Music)
Dreams Lost, Dreams Found
(Conductor)
Billy the Kid
(Original Music Composer)
The Ghost Comes Home
(Original Music Composer)
Joe and Ethel Turp Call on the President
(Original Music Composer)
My Old Town
(Music)
My Old Town
(Music Director)
Hollywood Goes to Town
(Sound Director)
The Magician's Daughter
(Original Music Composer)
Acro-Batty
(Music)
You're Only Young Once
(Original Music Composer)
A Family Affair
(Original Music Composer)
Radio Hams
(Music)
Tarzan's New York Adventure
(Original Music Composer)
The Story of Alfred Nobel
(Music)
The Man from Down Under
(Music Score Producer)
The Vanishing Virginian
(Music Score Producer)
Love Laughs at Andy Hardy
(Music)
Liberace Live
(Conductor)
Stronger Than Desire
(Music)
Swing Fever
(Music Director)
The Hidden Eye
(Music)
Carnival in Paris
(Music)
Somewhat Secret
(Music)
Nostradamus
(Music)
The Man on the Rock
(Music)
The Great Heart
(Music)
That Mothers Might Live
(Music)
Prophet Without Honor
(Music)
Faithless
(Original Music Composer)
Accident
(Musician)
The Giant of Norway
(Music)
Madame X
(Original Music Composer)
Yankee Doodle Goes to Town
(Music)
Cliffhanger
(Conductor)
It's in the Stars
(Music)
Flag of Mercy
(Music)
Once Over Lightly
(Music)
Dark Delusion
(Music)
Football Thrills of 1940
(Original Music Composer)
Bravest of the Brave
(Original Music Composer)
Party Fever
(Music)
Mary Shelley's Frankenstein
(Conductor)
Joaquin Murrieta
(Music)
Heroes at Leisure
(Music)
Song of Revolt
(Music)
Snow Gets in Your Eyes
(Original Music Composer)
Ponette
(Conductor)
The Story of Dr. Jenner
(Original Music Composer)
Between Two Women
(Original Music Composer)
Sky Murder
(Original Music Composer)
Anaesthesia
(Music)
Football Thrills of 1937
(Music)
Grid Rules
(Music)
The Canary Comes Across
(Music)
Love Finds Andy Hardy
(Original Music Composer)
Judge Hardy's Children
(Original Music Composer)
Shadow of the Thin Man
(Music)
Song of the Thin Man
(Music)
The Thin Man Goes Home
(Music)
Gold Rush Maisie
(Original Music Composer)
Maisie Was a Lady
(Original Music Composer)
Maisie Goes to Reno
(Original Music Composer)
Gentle Annie
(Music)
Rationing
(Music)
Bad Bascomb
(Music)
Undercover Maisie
(Original Music Composer)
Captain Spanky's Show Boat
(Music Arranger)
Emma
(Conductor)
Hetty Wainthropp Investigates
(Music)