Paul J. Smith (October 30, 1906 – January 25, 1985) was an American music composer and violinist best known for his work at
Disney.[1]
Life and career
Smith was born in
Calumet, Michigan on October 30, 1906. Upon graduating high school, he studied music at The College of Idaho from 1923 to 1925 before he was accepted into the Bush Conservatory of Music in Chicago, Illinois. His abilities in theory and composition earned him a scholarship to study music theory at
Juilliard, however, it is unclear if he ever pursued this invitation.[2]
Smith spent much of his life working at
Disney as composer for many of its films' scores, animated and live-action alike, movie and television alike; from 1962 to 1963, he also composed music for Leave It to Beaver. In Fantasia, he is one of the studio employees in the orchestra. He also composed the scores for several of the True-Life Adventures episodes.[3]
^The College of Idaho Department of Music. A Tribute to Professors: Beale, Smith, Skyrm, Davidson, Cerveny, and Gabbard. The College of Idaho. pp. 5–7.
^Macdonald, Scott (Spring 2006). "Up Close and Political : The Short Ruminations on Ideology in the Nature Film". Film Quarterly. 3 (59).