Victor Young was a renowned violinist, conductor, and prolific composer, who had an impressive career spanning over twenty years. He was born into a poor but musically inclined family and received his early training on the violin at the Warsaw Imperial Conservatory. Later, he studied piano in Paris under the tutelage of the renowned French master Isidor Philipp.
As a prodigious talent, Young made his professional debut as a teenager with the Warsaw Philharmonic. However, his career was interrupted by World War I, during which he was interned in a Russian prison facility for several months. After his escape, he made his way to the United States and resumed his career as a violinist with the Central Park Casino Orchestra in Chicago.
Young's career took a significant turn when he secured a position as assistant director with the Balaban and Katz cinema chain, where he wrote and arranged scores for as many as five silent films a week. This experience laid the foundation for his future work in the film industry.
During the late 1920s, Young worked as the musical director for the radio show "Harvest of Stars" and as a talent scout for Edison Records. He also arranged music for bandleader Ted Fiorito and fronted his own orchestra in 1935, backed by a recording deal with Decca.
Young's high profile brought him to the attention of Paramount, which signed him to a one-year contract in 1936. He worked for the studio again between 1940 and 1949, during which time his reputation grew, and he became the pre-eminent film composer. He was assigned the lion's share of A-grade features, and his music was seamlessly integrated into dramas like "Reap the Wild Wind" (1942),"For Whom the Bell Tolls" (1943),"So Evil My Love" (1948),"The Quiet Man" (1952),and the western classic "Shane" (1953).
Young also wrote countless evergreen songs, many of which were recorded by top-flight singers like Bing Crosby. Some of his notable hits include "Sweet Sue," "Stella by Starlight," and "When I Fall in Love." He also wrote music and lyrics for the Broadway show "Seventh Heaven" in 1955.
Throughout his career, Young was nominated for a staggering 22 Academy Awards, and he won one for "Around the World in 80 Days" (1956). Despite his untimely death from a stroke at the age of 56, Young's music has endured, and he is remembered as one of the great songwriters and film composers of the 20th century.
