Film Composer James Horner Dies in Plane Crash at 61

Oscar-winning film composer James Horner – known for creating the musical scores for Titanic, Braveheart, Field of Dreams and many other classic movies – died Monday (June 22) in a plane crash near Santa Barbara, Calif. He was 61.

Horner was piloting the small aircraft when it crashed into a remote area of Los Padres National Forest about 60 miles north of the city, according to the Hollywood Reporter. He was the only person aboard. His death was confirmed by his assistant, Sylvia Patrycja. "We have lost an amazing person with a huge heart and unbelievable talent," Patrycja wrote on Facebook. "He died doing what he loved. Thank you for all your support and love and see you down the road."

Horner began composing music for film during the late '70s and made his breakthrough with 1982's Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. He continued composing for high-profile movies including Aliens in 1987, Braveheart and Apollo 13 in 1995 and Titanic in 1997 – the best-selling primarily orchestral soundtrack in history with more than 27 million copies sold. More recently, he composed the scores for Avatar in 2009 and The Amazing Spider-Man in 2012. Watch a feature on Horner's work on that film below.

James Horner: Scoring Spider-Man