Ennio Morricone cancels US dates due to back injury

Morricone was expected to conduct a 100-piece orchestra and a 75-strong choir

Italian film composer Ennio Morricone has had to cancel concerts in New York, Los Angeles and Mexico City due to a back injury suffered earlier this year.

Morricone is renowned for his work on spaghetti westerns such as The Good, the Bad and the Ugly and Once Upon a Time in the West.

The show at Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles on 15 June was set to be his first performance in the city.

In a statement he apologised to fans, saying he was "extremely disappointed".

"I was very much looking forward to my first Los Angeles performance and only my second New York City performance," said Morricone, who was also scheduled to perform at Brooklyn's Barclays Center on 13 June and in Mexico City on 18 June.

'Great disappointment'

"Hollywood has been instrumental in bringing my work to American audiences, and my 2007 performance in New York was one of the high points of my career to date," he continued.

"I apologise to my fans for having to cancel these shows, and hope that I am able to make it back soon."

Morricone was expected to conduct his own 100-piece orchestra during the performances and would have been accompanied by a 75-voice choir in LA.

The singers were informed on Sunday that the show had been cancelled, according to Variety, due to Morricone's "serious health issues".

According to Deadline Hollywood, the composer's lawyer has revealed that the injury prevents him from conducting or flying.

Morricone previously postponed a series of April dates in Europe with "great disappointment", following medical advice after a recent "back procedure".

They were rescheduled for June, July and October, with the first due to take place in Cologne on 22 June. It is not yet known if these dates will go ahead.

Some of Morricone's film scores have also featured on The Simpsons and The Sopranos

Morricone has composed more than 400 film scores, ranging from Italian westerns with directors such as Sergio Leone to working with Hollywood directors like Oliver Stone, John Carpenter and Brian De Palma.

Notable films include The Mission, Cinema Paradiso, Once Upon a Time in America, The Untouchables and Bugsy.

Many of his compositions have been reused by director Quentin Tarantino in films including Kill Bill and 2012's Django Unchained, for which he also composed an original track, Ancora Qui.

Morricone has been nominated for five Academy Awards and was given an honorary Oscar in 2007, only the second composer to be recognised for his body of work.

The LA Times reported that Morricone had said he would continue to compose while he recovers.