---
name: "Irwin Kostal"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/irwin-kostal"
fi1m_id: "irwin-kostal"
imdb_id: "nm0467348"
tmdb_id: 68137
wikidata_id: "Q329998"
roles: ["Music supervisor"]
born: "1 October 1911"
died: "23 November 1994"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 4
average_fi1m_score: 80
average_over: 4
updated: "2026-09-24T02:10:19.898996+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Irwin Kostal

## Identity

Irwin Kostal

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/irwin-kostal
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** irwin-kostal
- **IMDb ID:** nm0467348
- **TMDB ID:** 68137
- **Wikidata ID:** Q329998
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irwin_Kostal, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q329998, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0467348/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/68137

Music supervisor. Born 1 October 1911 in Chicago, Illinois, U.S.. Died 23 November 1994.

## Details

- **Work:** Music supervisor
- **Born:** 1 October 1911, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
- **Died:** 23 November 1994
- **Active:** 1961–1968
- **Academy Awards:** 2 Oscars (2 won · 3 nominated)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 80 to 75 across 4 titles
- **Score spread:** 3 at 80+, 1 at 60–79, 0 under 60
- **Genres:** Family 3, Comedy 2, Drama 2, Fantasy 2, Romance 2, Adventure 1
- **Screen time:** 10 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $441m across 4 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irwin_Kostal, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q329998, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0467348/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/68137

## Streaming the US now

- **Disney+:** [*The Sound of Music*](https://film.one/film/the-sound-of-music.md) (86)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Biography

Irwin Kostal (1911–1994) was an American musical arranger, orchestrator and conductor who worked extensively in film, television and theatre. Born in Chicago, he taught himself arranging by studying scores at his local library and began his professional career as a staff arranger for the NBC radio programme Design for Listening.

He later arranged for Sid Caesar’s Your Show of Shows and The Garry Moore Show on television, and orchestrated several Broadway productions including the original stage version of West Side Story. In film he served as music arranger, conductor and supervisor on West Side Story (1961), for which he shared an Academy Award, and on The Sound of Music (1965), which earned him a second Oscar for Best Music Scoring of Music, Adaptation or Treatment. He contributed to numerous Disney productions including Mary Poppins (1964), Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968), Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971) and Pete’s Dragon (1977). Kostal was named a Disney Legend in 2004 and served as president of the American Society of Music Arrangers and Composers.

*Sources: imdb.com, en.wikipedia.org, catalog.afi.com, latimes.com, nytimes.com.*

## On Fi1m (4)

- *Chitty Chitty Bang Bang* (1968), Fi1m 70, Music Supervisor, Conductor — [page](https://film.one/film/chitty-chitty-bang-bang.md)
- *The Sound of Music* (1965), Fi1m 86, Music Arranger, Original Music Composer, Music, Conductor, Music Supervisor — [page](https://film.one/film/the-sound-of-music.md)
- *Mary Poppins* (1964), Fi1m 83, Music Arranger, Conductor, Music Supervisor — [page](https://film.one/film/mary-poppins.md)
- *West Side Story* (1961), Fi1m 80, Music Supervisor, Orchestrator — [page](https://film.one/film/west-side-story.md)

## Complete filmography (22)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Mickey's Christmas Carol* (1983), Original Music Composer, Songs
- *Perfectly Frank: Frank Loesser Revued* (1981), Orchestrator
- *The Magic of Lassie* (1978), Original Music Composer
- *The Million Dollar Dixie Deliverance* (1978), Original Music Composer
- *Pete's Dragon* (1977), Original Music Composer
- *The Blue Bird* (1976), Music
- *Charlotte's Web* (1973), Music, Original Music Composer
- *Bedknobs and Broomsticks* (1971), Original Music Composer
- *Chitty Chitty Bang Bang* (1968), Music Supervisor, Conductor — Fi1m 70, [page](https://film.one/film/chitty-chitty-bang-bang.md)
- *Half a Sixpence* (1967), as Songs · Original Music Composer
- *Lucy in London* (1966), Music
- *Brigadoon* (1966), Music Arranger, Conductor
- *The Sound of Music* (1965), Music Arranger, Music Supervisor, Conductor, Original Music Composer — Fi1m 86, [page](https://film.one/film/the-sound-of-music.md)
- *Mary Poppins* (1964), Conductor, Music Supervisor, Music Arranger — Fi1m 83, [page](https://film.one/film/mary-poppins.md)
- *Julie and Carol at Carnegie Hall* (1962), Orchestrator
- *West Side Story* (1961), Music Supervisor, Orchestrator — Fi1m 80, [page](https://film.one/film/west-side-story.md)
- *The Adventures of Marco Polo* (1956), Orchestrator
- *Paris in the Springtime* (1956), as Songs · Music Arranger
- *Heidi* (1955), Music
- *The Desert Song* (1955), Music Arranger
- *A Connecticut Yankee* (1955), Music Arranger
- *Satins and Spurs* (1954), Music Arranger

## Awards

### Academy Awards — 2 won, 3 nominated

- 1978: Best Original Song Score (nominated), for *Pete's Dragon*
- 1972: Best Original Song Score (nominated), for *Bedknobs and Broomsticks*
- 1966: Best Score, Adaptation or Treatment (won), for *The Sound of Music*
- 1965: Best Score, Adaptation or Treatment (nominated), for *Mary Poppins*
- 1962: Best Original Musical Score (won), for *West Side Story*

### Other awards — 1 won

- Disney Legends 2004: Disney Legends (won)

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/irwin-kostal