Born in Kansas City, Missouri, Basil Poledouris credited two influences with guiding him towards music: the first was composer Miklós Rózsa, the second was his Greek Orthodox heritage. Poledouris was raised in the church, and used to sit in services, enthralled with the choir's sound. At age 7 he began piano lessons, and eventually enrolled at the University of Southern California to study both film and music. Several short films to which he contributed still reside in the university's archives.