The Story Behind the Mission: Impossible Theme

Is that Morse code I hear?

OK, OK, I know I said I was going to take this week off, but then I saw this…

It was made by Victor de Martrin, and it instantly captures that magic of the Mission: Impossible theme. (You can see a better version of his creation here).

Devoted readers of Curious Minds will know that my affinity to Tom Cruise goes a long way back…and hearing this theme takes me back to 1996 when I watched Ethan Hunt complete an impossible mission, while simultaneously making the best tourism promo for the city of Prague.

One ticket to Prague, please!

The theme from Mission: Impossible is so great!

Like exclamation perfume, it makes a statement —without saying a word.

But who wrote it?

I was curious…

“Make something exciting.”

That was the directive television writer and producer Bruce Geller gave composer Lalo Schifrin in 1966.

Geller was about to launch a new TV show, Mission: Impossible, and wanted Schifrin to compose the theme song.

But this was no easy mission.

Schifrin, a 32-year-old jazz pianist from Argentina, had never written for television before.

And the clock was ticking. 

“It was a bit of a production panic because they were so late with their deadlines,” Schifrin recalled.

“I didn’t have a clue what the television show was at first. I had never been to a TV shoot.”

“I had a very short time to write it. I had to do it right away.” 

Lalo Schifrin

And Schifrin was tasked to create something without title credit scenes to study – or even a script to read.

Instead, he was invited to the set to watch the actors film parts of the pilot episode – but the scenes were filmed out of order, adding to the confusion.

“I did not understand anything,” he said.

But Geller did offer Schifrin some guidance about the feeling the theme should convey.

“He said to me, ‘I want you to write a theme that’s exciting, promising, but not too heavy. Make some fun out of it.’”

“But at the same time, make it like a promise that there’s going to be a little bit of action.

“When people go to the kitchen and get a Coca-Cola, I want them to hear the theme and say, ‘Oh this is Mission: Impossible.’”

Schifrin also learned that the episode was likely to begin with an image of a fuse being lit by a match.

That image – along with Geller’s brief instruction – led to Schifrin writing a piece he would call “Burning Fuse.”

“I sat at my desk and wrote that theme in exactly one-and-a-half minutes. It was not inspiration; it was a need to do it.”

“It was my own little mission impossible,” he said.

“The whole thing, including the chorus, the bongos, and everything you hear, took me maybe three minutes. I was creating sound of impossible missions and making them swing. 

“I didn’t know it was going to be so successful.”

But if Schifrin was able to write the theme quickly, it’s because he had been preparing for this moment his whole life.

Born in Argentina in 1932, he fell in love with music at a young age.

His father was a violinist, and the concertmaster of the Philharmonic Orchestra of Buenos Aires, and had young Lalo studying piano, harmony, and counterpoint with private teachers. 

But Lalo also discovered a love for something forbidden – jazz. 

Obtaining American music in Argentina at the time was difficult – as the president had banned the import of American records.

Schifrin was able to listen to the latest jazz recordings thanks to an American merchant marine he befriended who would sneak him records from the USA.

“I was breaking the law,” Schifrin remembered. 

“Even in the summer, I had to put on an overcoat and put the records under the belly and covered them with my belt.”

He’d listen to his collection of Charlie Parker albums and “copy and learn from the records.”

His father did not approve, and expected his son to follow in his classical music footsteps. 

But in 1953, the Paris Music Conservatory granted Schifrin a composition scholarship – which he accepted, despite his father’s objections.

“Over there I led a double life,” Schifrin wrote in Music Composition for Film and Television.

“During the day, at the conservatory, and in the evenings, playing jazz with some of the best European musicians.”

When Schifrin returned to Argentina in 1956, he put together a concert jazz band and began appearing on television and radio. 

Later that year, he had the opportunity to meet his hero, Dizzy Gillespie, while he was on tour in Argentina.

And that changed everything for Lalo Schifrin.

After hearing Schifrin and his band, Gillespie invited Schifrin to join his NYC-based quintet.

Dizzy and Lalo, 1961

And soon, Lalo Schifrin was touring the world with Gillespie and playing with legends like Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, and Miles Davis.

He would go on to produce and arrange more than 100 jazz albums throughout the 1960s, including Gillespiana, a musical portrait of Dizzy Gillespie that earned Schifrin a lot of recognition – and an invitation to Hollywood.

Schifrin's knowledge – and love – of jazz infiltrated his compositions, including the theme for Mission:Impossible.

The piece is written in 5/4 time signature, an unusual choice, but one that gives it a sense of tension.

“I suppose the Dave Brubeck Quartet’s Take Five was in my heart, but the 5/4 tempo just came naturally. 

“It’s forceful, and the listener never feels comfortable.”

And Schifrin’s forceful composition would become iconic.

When Mission: Impossible’s burning fuse appeared on screen, complemented by Schifrin’s music, it grabbed the audience’s attention.

The theme was popular with both critics and audiences, climbing the charts in the US and abroad. 

The instrumental single sold more than half a million copies in the US and became a No. 1 hit from Europe to Australia.

Schifrin won two Grammy Awards for his work on Mission: Impossible – Best Instrumental Theme and Best Original Score For a Motion Picture or TV Show.

And Mission: Impossible would become one of the most recognizable theme songs of all time.

Schifrin would go on to score more television shows (including Mannix and Starsky & Hutch) as well as films, including classics like Cool Hand Luke, Bullitt, and the Dirty Harry series.

I like any movie that recognizes the importance of communication

And in 1996, director Brian de Palma brought Mission: Impossible — and Schifrin’s theme — to the big screens.

Though Schifrin was not asked to score any of the big-screen adaptations of Mission: Impossible, he is not unhappy about it, and even met with other composers and encouraged them to “have fun” with his theme. 

“I feel great because new generations of filmgoers and people in general are becoming acquainted with the theme.

“It’s like a bridge across time.

“I’m really lucky and really glad and I thank God and everybody who helped me . . . very few television shows extended their life to motion pictures.”

Over his career, Schifrin has scored hundreds of productions, been nominated for six Academy Awards, and 21 Grammy Awards (including four wins). 

But the theme from Mission: Impossible may be the most enduring of all his compositions.

Accepting an Honorary Oscar in 2018

In 2018, Schifrin was given an Honorary Oscar for his contributions to the art of film scoring.

Accepting the award, he said:

“Composing for movies has given me a lifetime of joy and creativity.

“Receiving this Honorary Oscar is a culmination of a dream.

“It is a mission accomplished.”

Have a listen to Lalo explaining the difference between writing music for films and television. And hear him play the Mission: Impossible theme with the support of an orchestra.

One more thing…

Director Brian de Palma originally wanted composer John Williams (whose classic scores include Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Jaws), to compose the music for the first Mission: Impossible film.

But Williams wanted to change the theme and write an original piece.

De Palma said no, and instead hired composer Danny Elfman, who put his own touch on Schifrin’s legendary theme.

And one more…

(Because I really liked learning about Lalo —and this relates to communication!)

During a press tour in Vienna in the 1960s, Lalo was asked why he had used the 5/4 time signature for the Mission: Impossible theme.

He responded that he had created the song for a “different” kind of listener.

“The people in outer space have five legs and couldn’t dance to our music, so I wrote this for them.”

Though Schifrin was joking, the reporter took him at his word and several outlets printed the quote.

Though I’ll surely be going down the Robert Oppenheimer rabbit hole soon, Curious Minds will now be taking a short break, but will be back with more curious stories soon!

Hope you enjoy some movies over the next few weeks!

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I’m Still Curious About This…

Did Morse code inspire Lalo Shifrin’s score for Mission: Impossible?

The good ol’ interweb told me that:

“Schifrin started from the Morse code for M.I. which is “_ _ ..”; if a dot is one beat and a dash is one and a half beats, then this gives a bar of five beats, exactly matching the underlying rhythm.”

The footnote on one site listed the source as this book:

Well, I bought this book (because that’s how curious I am), and the only mention of Morse code Lalo mentions is for his score for The Concorde …Airport ‘79, an aviation disaster movie released in 1979.

If you’ve got a source (that isn’t twitter or reddit) that says differently, please let me know!

I’m still curious!

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I don’t just write about Mission: Impossible…

Here are three recent stories from my blog:

The Best Father's Day Gift of All Time — Here’s a story that mixes communication, forgiveness, and joy (and baseball!).

Don’t Miss This Lesson from Chris Licht — The story of the ousted CEO of CNN offers an important leadership lesson.

The Helpers Are Out There — Mr. Rogers was right. The world is not as bleak as the news might have you believe.

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How Can I Help?

I’ll keep saying it: Communication matters.

And if you want to improve your communication (and get all the good things that come with that), I’m your gal.

So many companies could reap significant benefits – from performance and culture to retention and engagement – by improving their communication.

So, if you know someone who could benefit from some help (as even the most seasoned leaders do), please get in touch and check out my website for more information.

You can also see my Top 10 list of what I can (and can’t) do for you here.

And if you see any communication examples (the good, the bad, and the ugly) that you think are worth analyzing or sharing, please send them my way!

Until next time, Stay Curious!

-Beth

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