After receiving first prizes for violin and composition at the Bucharest

Conservatoire of Music, he arrived in Paris in 1963 and continued his studies at

the Conservatoire national sup�rieur de musique de Paris, working with Nadia
Boulanger. As well as for classical music, he discovered early on a passion for
jazz, film music and all forms of popular music.

From 1964 he made a number of international tours as a concert violinist and began
to devote himself more and more to composing. He wrote various compositions
including: � Trois mouvements d��t� � for symphony orchestra, � Oblique � for
violoncello and string orchestra, music for theatre and ballet (� Volpone � for the
Com�die Fran�aise, the opera � Fant�mas ��).

In 1968, Yves Robert entrusted him with his first film music for � Alexandre le
Bienheureux �.

Vladimir Cosma has since composed more than three hundred scores for feature films
and TV series. His numerous successes in the cinema have notably been in
collaboration with Yves Robert, G�rard Oury, Francis Veber, Claude Pinoteau, Jean-
Jacques Beineix, Claude Zidi, Ettore Scola, Pascal Thomas, Pierre Richard, Yves
Boisset, Andr� Cayatte, Jean-Pierre Mocky, Edouard Molinaro, Jean-Marie Poir� and
among which: Le Grand Blond avec une chaussure noire, Diva, Les Aventures de Rabbi
Jacob, La Boum, le Bal, l�As des As, la Ch�vre, Les Fugitifs, Les Zozos, Pleure pas
la bouche pleine, Dupont Lajoie, Un �l�phant �a trompe �norm�ment, La D�robade, Le
P�re No�l est une ordure, L'�tudiante, La Gloire de mon p�re, Le Ch�teau de ma
m�re, Le d�ner de cons �

Vladimir Cosma also featured in major French and American television productions:
Michel Strogoff (fr), Kidnapped, Mistral�s Daughter, Ch�teauvallon, Les Myst�res de
Paris, Les C�urs Br�l�s�

Film music allowed him to approach and develop many different musical styles: jazz
(with music written for famous soloists such as Chet Baker, Toots Thielemans, Don
Byas, St�phane Grappelli, Jean-Luc Ponty, Philip Catherine, Tony Coe, Pepper Adams,
la chanson (pour Nana Mouskouri, Marie Lafor�t, Richard Sanderson, Diane Dufresne,
Herbert L�onard, Mireille Mathieu, Nicole Croisille, Lara Fabian, Guy Marchand,
original compositions inspired by folk-music (for Gheorghe Zamfir, Stanciu Simion �
Syrinx �, pan-flute, Liam O'Flynn- pipes, Romane-guitar), as well as classical
music (Berlin Concerto for violin and orchestra, Concerto for Euphonium and
orchestra, Concerto Ib�rique for trumpet and orchestra, Courts M�trages for brass
quintet�)

In 2006 he conducted the world premier of his composition � Eh bien ! Dansez

maintenant�, divertissement for narrator and symphony orchestra, from the Fables of
Jean de la Fontaine, at the Victoria Hall in Geneva, with the Orchestre de la
Suisse Romande and Lambert Wilson as narrator. Conducting the Orchestre National de
France he gave a first performance in Paris of this work in December 2010 at the
Th��tre des Champs-Elys�es, featuring Eric G�nov�se of the Com�die Fran�aise.

Vladimir Cosma wrote the opera �Marius et Fanny�, adapted from Marcel Pagnol, for
which the first production took place in September 2007 at the Op�ra de Marseille
with Roberto Alagna and Angela Gheorghiu in the title roles, as well as Jean-
Philippe Lafont in the role of C�sar. The performances were repeated several times
on television on the channels ARTE and FR3.

In 2008 he composed the music for the musical comedy � Les Aventures de Rabbi Jacob
� performed at the Palais des Congr�s in Paris, with Eric Metayer, Marianne James,
Spike, Julie Victor�

In June 2009, Vladimir Cosma conducted the world premier in the Eglise Sainte-
Madeleine de B�ziers, of his cantata �1209�, for soprano, narrator, children's
choir and orchestra, written especially for the 8th centenary of the Sac de
B�ziers.

He is dedicated to re-writing his film music with the intention of conducting

performances in symphonic concerts, thus approaching a wider audience than at the
cinema[citation needed]. Among others, he gave a concert in Geneva in 2003 with the
Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, a series of concerts in 2003 with the Orchestre
National de Lyon, three concerts in 2005 in Paris at the Grand Rex, a concert in
2010 with the Orchestre de l'Ile-de-France in the Th��tre du Ch�telet in Paris.

He has also appeared in many countries with major symphony orchestras and such
prestigious soloists as Ivry Gitlis, Vadim Repin, Wilhelmenia Fernandez, Patrice
Fontanarosa, Jean-Luc Ponty, Didier Lockwood, Stanciu Simion � Syrinx�, Philip
Catherine and others. A book of interviews with Vincent Perrot entitled � Vladimir
Cosma comme au cin�ma � was published in 2009 in the Editions Hors Collection and
an anthology of his film music regrouping 91 complete original soundtracks in two
volumes has just come out. Two evenings were devoted to him by the French TV
channel, France 3 in 2010, airing his concert at the Th��tre du Ch�telet and a
documentary �Vladimir Cosma intime �.

Vladimir Cosma received two C�sars for the best movie score, for Diva (1982) and Le
Bal (1984), two Golden Sevens for the best music for television, as well as a
number of prizes and awards in France and other countries.

He has also obtained numerous gold and platinum records all over the world (France,
Germany, Japan, England, Switzerland, Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands,
Scandinavia).

Vladimir Cosma is Chevalier de l'ordre National la L�gion d�Honneur, Grand Officier

du M�rite Culturel Roumain, as well as Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres.

Works[edit]

Film soundtracks[edit]

1960s[edit]
1966 : Le Plus Vieux M�tier du monde de Jean-Luc Godard, Claude Autant-Lara,
Philippe de Broca... � Film � sketches - Musique de Michel Legrand et Vladimir
Cosma.
1966 : Oum le dauphin blanc (Dessins anim�s � 52 �pisodes) Musique co-compos�e avec
Michel Legrand � arrangements et direction d�orchestre.
1967 : But de Dominique Delouche � court m�trage
1967 : Du mou dans la g�chette de Louis Grospierre � arrangements
1967 : L'Homme � la Buick de Gilles Grangier � arrangements
1968 : Alexandre le bienheureux de Yves Robert
1968 : Maldonne de Sergio Gobbi
1968 : Les Prisonniers de la libert� (Prisoners of freedom � Aserei Hahofesh) de
Yona Zaretsky
1968 : Sayarim de Micha Shagrir � arrangements et direction d�orchestre
1968 : Pour un amour lointain d�Edmond S�chan � arrangements et direction
d�orchestre
1969 : Cl�rambard de Yves Robert
1969 : Appelez-moi Mathilde de Pierre Mondy � arrangements et direction d�orchestre
1969 : Le Miroir de la terre d�Edmond S�chan - court m�trage
1969 : Les Aventures de Tom Sawyer de Wolfgang Liebeneiner � s�rie TV