By Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone | Alf Clausen, the longtime composer on The Simpsons who scored countless iconic moments on the animated series, has died at the age of 84. The Emmy-winning composer died Thursday at his home in Los Angeles following an eight-year battle with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), Clausen’s daughter told the Hollywood Reporter.
Clausen served as composer on The Simpsons from the series’ second season in 1990 (starting with the inaugural “Treehouse of Horror” episode) through its 28th season in 2017, after which he was – to the chagrin of the show’s fans – fired in a controversial cost-cutting move. However, Clausen maintained the honorary title of “Composer Emeritus” on subsequent seasons.
“Alf was the ‘Man of a Thousand Music Cues’ – actually probably more than 10,000 – during his decades on The Simpsons,” creator Matt Groening told Variety. “He was tireless, inspired, and always up for the musical challenges we threw at him. I called him our secret weapon.”
The Minneapolis-born, North Dakota-raised, and Berklee College of Music-educated Clausen began his career in movies and television in the mid-Seventies, working his way up from music copyist and arranger to orchestrater (including on Ferris Bueller’s Day Off) to conductor to composer, with the TV series Moonlighting his first major and prolonged gig in the role; Clausen received six of his unprecedented 30 Emmy nominations for his work on Moonlighting.
Following a stint as the composer (fittingly, given his name) on Alf, . . .
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Read more of Mr. Clausen’s life here:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/tv/news/alf-clausen-longtime-the-simpsons-composer-dead-at-84/
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OTHER NOTABLE MUSICIANS’ DEATHS
Although not a musician per se, we’d like to honor Loretta Swit, “Hot Lips” of M*A*S*H* fame. She brought a lot of love and laughter to our lives. So rock on, Ms. Swit. We will sorely miss you.
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Also of note: The Revered New Zealand Drummer Frank Gibson Jr. Has Died
Born in 1946 to renowned New Zealand musician Frank Gibson Sr., the Auckland-based drummer became one of the nation’s most acclaimed performers.
Singer Leo Sayer, a close friend, confirmed his death on social media.
“A marvellous man, an incredible player,” Sayer began, per The Daily Mail. “The years we worked and toured together, gigs played all over the world, come back to me now in wonderful flashbacks.”
“We talked jazz endlessly, boring the pants off most of the other guys in the band. My sincerest condolences,” he added.
> > > > > > > > Read more here:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/music/news/revered-drummer-frank-gibson-jr-has-died/
By Craig Garrett, Suggest (Magazine)
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Warning Signs of Suicide – National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or if you want to discuss, call the old numbers at 800-273-TALK or 800-273-8255 for English and 888-628-9454 for Spanish. Learn the signs of someone who may be contemplating suicide.
If you want to know more about any of the musicians we lost, please check them out at http://www.wikipedia.com
JUNE
4: Nicole Croisille, 88, French singer and actress (Erotissimo, Les Uns et les Autres, There Were Days… and Moons); Rashid Lombard, 74, South African jazz photographer; Raul WS, 23, Romanian rapper.
3: Eugen Doga, 88, Moldovan composer; Frankie Jordan, 86, French rock and roll singer, cancer.
2: Birgit Carlstén, 75, Swedish singer and actress (The Sacrifice); Colin Jerwood, 63, English punk singer (Conflict).
MAY:
31: Marcie Jones, 79, Australian singer (Marcie and The Cookies), leukemia.
29: Alf Clausen, 84, American composer (The Simpsons, ALF, Moonlighting), Emmy winner (1997, 1998), progressive supranuclear palsy; Susann McDonald, 90, American classical harpist; Charles Wadsworth, 96, American classical pianist and organizer of chamber music series (Festival dei Due Mondi, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Spoleto Festival USA).
28: Al Foster, 82, American jazz drummer; Per Nørgård, 92, Danish composer (Gilgamesh, Symphony No. 3) and academic teacher (Royal Academy of Music, Aarhus/Aalborg).