Hugo Friedhofer

After taking lessons in harmony and counterpoint at University of California, Berkeley,[citation needed] he was employed as a cellist for the People's Symphony Orchestra.

[3] In 1929, he relocated to Hollywood, where he performed as a musician for Fox Studios productions such as Sunny Side Up (1920) and Grand Canary (1934).

[1] While at Warners he was largely assigned to work with Max Steiner and, because he could speak German, Erich Wolfgang Korngold.

When asked by fellow composer David Raksin as to the progress he was making on his score for Joan of Arc, he replied, "I've just started on the barbecue!".

When asked, in a 1975 profile/interview penned by lyricist Gene Lees, to evaluate his place in the pantheon of film musicians, Friedhofer quipped, "I am just a fake giant among real pygmies.