Star Wars: How John Williams Composes a Theme
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 31 ธ.ค. 2017
- Learn how John Williams composes his themes for the famous Star Wars movies.
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This video looks at the music of Star Wars (the Original Trilogy), and examines how John Williams structures some of his greatest themes and leitmotifs. It also looks at the music that influenced the score, and compares the soundtrack with others, including Holst, Stravinsky, and Rey’s Theme from The Force Awakens, and The Last Jedi.
We’ll look at the difference between long, well-structured melodies over the shorter, motivic themes of much modern film music.
The film footage and music is taken from Star Wars: A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, and The Force Awakens. Other music is taken from Holst: The Planets, Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring, and Wagner: Das Rheingold.
We go behind the film score and look closer at analysing how the composer thinks about writing music for film with orchestra.
EXTRA CONTENT:
Key to the Leitmotifs and Themes from Star Wars Original Trilogy:
• Star Wars Music: Theme...
FURTHER LISTENING (*** = favourites):
A NEW HOPE:
- The Hologram/Binary Sunset
- Tales of a Jedi Knight/Learn About the Force
- Cantina Band
- Princess Leia’s Theme
- The Millennium Falcon/Imperial Cruiser Pursuit
- Ben Kenobi’s Death/The TIE Fighter Attack
- The Throne Room/End Title
EMPIRE STRIKES BACK:
- Main Title/The Ice Planet Hoth
- The Battle of Hoth ***
- The Asteroid Field ***
- Han Solo and the Princess
- Attacking a Star Destroyer
- Yoda and the Force
- Betrayal at Bespin
- Carbon Freeze/Darth Vader’s Trap/Departure of Boba Fett ***
- The Clash of Lightsabers ***
- Rescue from Cloud City/Hyperspace
- The Rebel Fleet/End Title ***
RETURN OF THE JEDI:
- The Pit of Carkoon/Sail Barge Assault ***
- The Emperor Arrives/The Death of Yoda/Obi-Wan’s Revelation
- The Levitation/Threepio’s Bedtime Story
- Brother and Sister/Father and Son/The Fleet Enters Hyperspace
- The Battle of Endor
- Leia’s News/Light of the Force ***
Future videos similar to this one will be released, so:
Like, comment, or subscribe for more!
This was awesome.
Thanks! I'm enjoying making more
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Binary sunset is definitely an emotional arc of longing, hope and end of childhood in that scene.
My favourite appearance of it is in the last bit of soundtrack to Return of the Jedi - 'Leia's News/Light of the Force'. It really gets me there. He's giving his father a funeral and it's incredibly expressive of the end of a journey, of a force beyond our understanding, and an epic saga. It's so sad you can barely hear it in the actual film, because the track is amazing.
Nice
Binary sunset gives me chills everytime
Somewhere in the original liner notes for the STAR WARS SOUNDTRACK ANTHOLOGY I believe it was explained the The Force Theme (which also doubles for Ben's theme) was used in the Binary Sunset scene. Originally, John had scored that scene with Luke's theme (STAR WARS main theme) but George Lucas asked him to go back and switch it out for the Force Theme. If I remember correctly, it was one of the only changes he asked for on that first film.
I literally started bawling when I heard it in this video
I'm a composer for film and theatre, and I always strive to right great memorable melodies, but the problem is, film directors actually don't want big memorable melodies anymore. I don't understand why, because if you look at the most successful films of all time, Titanic, The Lord Of The Rings, Gladiator, Star Wars ect, they are full of epic themes. I've had directors say to me, 'can we try it just the chords and without the melody'. James Horner also experienced this and knew that the industry had massively changed. Directors have it their head that you shouldn't pay attention to the music, you should just 'feel it', which scares them every time they hear a big sweeping melody. But these melodic soundtracks are part of the reason the film does so well. The audience remembers great music, great melodies, great emotion - and melodies they help tell the story! There's no doubt that film soundtracks have become more bland since 2005-ish. I hope the composers can come back and win this argument, because it's not that only John Williams can write a great theme, many great composers can, but they need to be given the opportunity and freedom by the directors.
What a shame. Part of the dumbing down and commercialization of so much music and film. Imagine reading a book when you can just stare at your phone for a few minutes. Art needs to lead the way.
These are dark times.
If I was on a set where a director turns down John Williams I would throw him in the Sarlaac Pit.
This is absolutely true. We have producers and directors to thank for the dumbing down of film music in the modern era. Composers are very capable and willing to create epic, emotional, melodic music, but they are vetoed by filmmakers. This has turned this modern era into one of the most boring for film music, despite all the technological and audio advances available. It’s kind of tragic.
"Joseph Purdue5 months ago
I'm a composer for film and theatre, and I always strive to right great memorable melodies, but the problem is, film directors actually don't want big memorable melodies anymore"
*Yep. Youre exactly right and if you want to know why? Theres a struggle thats been occurring in the 'church' world for about 20 years now between so called 'pastors' and their 'worship leaders' and its the struggle for supremacy.
Pastors are usually very jealous and contemptuous of their musicians. Why? Because they always get more attention. People dont talk about the 'sermon' or the 'story' they ooh and awe over the music. Growing up in that environment I observed it pretty quick and I looked at the director/film composer paradigm as parallel. Directors want ALL the glory and attention on what they perceive as THEIR WORK. A GREAT composer can steal the show for good. John Williams is the star of Star Wars. He stole the show and George Lucas has admitted this and responded with great maturity and with great appreciation. Hollywood is becoming less mature by the minute. Directors are just brats in underoos. Just like a lot of church leaders are children playing dress up. Its the age old battle of the ego supremacy.*
An elegant composition, for a more civilized trilogy.
onebeforetwo General Williamsi! You are a bold one
#nailedit
love the references!
A plagerised score ripped straight off of Wagner, for a more musically ignorant and unsophisticated age.
@@mrlopez-pz7pu I won't pretend to be a music expert, but I don't think Williams is ripping off Wagner. True, Williams uses leitmotifs and similar orchestration to Wagner, but that doesn't mean he is ripping off Wagner. Williams is looking to great composers of the past for compositional inspiration just like Wagner looked at Beethoven's and Weber's music for inspiration. For example: Listen to Weber's opera Der Freischütz. Not only is the opera's story similar thematically to Der Fliegende Holländer, but the orchestral color is similar to early Wagner. One not familiar with Der Freischütz could easily mistake it for early Wagner. I'm sure music experts could spot differences easily, but there is enough similarity that even a casual listener could notice that it sounds vaguely similar to early Wagner but not able to quite put a finger on it (like me, unfortunately). Also, in the complete version of the Rienzi overture (conducted by Edward Downes) Wagner starts the prayer melody in the lower string section and builds to include the entire string section and then the whole orchestra. This is same way Beethoven builds up the main melody towards the beginning of the fourth movement of his ninth symphony. The resemblance is extremely noticeable. True, Wagner went far beyond Beethoven and Weber, but how can a modern composer like Williams further progress music? Williams is playing with an art form that is basically fully developed. Thus it's expected for his music to be similar to past music. The composers "progressing" music today do so with atonality, dissonance, and abstractions which in excess are unpalatable to most listeners.
This is why people will remember the Star Wars themes hundreds of years from now, but I forget the music from every Marvel movie 5 minutes after I walk out the theatre.
David Denis , so true!
The avengers theme is pretty good
That is so true!!
There's a video here in TH-cam explaining that. The Marvel music is made in a different way, it is used only to enhance the mood in consecutive scenes. It is never composed as a theme. For example, the video makes you realize that there is no music dedicated for any character, like a theme music for Thor, a theme music for Ironman, etc. All the music is very "Hollywood generic" and lame, and that is why is so forgettable. It is only background music to help with the plot. Nothing more.
@@bobbywillis1466 the avengers theme is 30 seconds. It doesn't develop after that.
The soundtrack on Empire Strikes Back really should have won an Academy Award, but it’s hard to find a more complete technical and musical score as the Phantom Menace. It’s just brilliant! Also loved the Revenge of the Sith one. Man these two weren’t even nominated !
They're great scores, I do think Empire is something else though. Hard to find a film score that lives up to its constant musical brilliance
Inside the Score yes but even Empire didn’t win an Academy Award
There used to be a rule preventing film scores from winning the award if it recycled material from a previous score. This meant that sequels basically never won the award, as they'd use themes from the earlier films. This was conveniently repealed for the year Return of the King came out, meaning Howard Shore won Oscars for Fellowship of the Ring, and Return of the King, but not Two Towers, because the rule was still in place for that film. Don't remember where I learnt that but it's interesting
Fair enough - I stand corrected. Fame beat it (Yikes). This is the But I'm also not totally wrong - this rule did exist; I'll have to find out when exactly it did exist. ET was not in the same ceremony as Empire Strikes Back.
Union Lizzard that's impossible, Empire came out in 1980, E.T. in 82
John William's music in the original trilogy is pure ecstasy, no other music moves me in the same way. Just by listening to the track alone I can tell you what movie and scene it belongs to because of the emotion it elicits. Star Wars simply wouldn't be the same without it.
Yes it's his best work, imo
Midnorme I would also say that about his work in the prequels. Both are amazing!
The prequels is a little better tbh
wow, I can do the same thing. I mean it probably helps that I saw each of the oribinals a minimum of 100 times each, but who's counting lol :)this was so aswesoem to learn about the actual development. I love it
Same. You can play the original trilogy soundtrack and I can narrate the scenes one by one. When we watch Star Wars I sometimes annoy the hell out of my folks. :)
Being a SW nerd is so tough sometimes. XD
People like John Williams make me so grateful I can hear sound
John Williams is truly a master of his craft.
John Williams is my Great Uncle. My grandmother had 3 brothers, one of them, the man himself
OMfG
Are you a musician?
Fr?
Wtf you are a relative of Jhon William? Wow that increible
Can you be my new best friend?
John Williams will go down in history as one of the greatest composers who ever lived.
You're wrong, that's subjective.
He already has, my friend.
@@overlex It is not, music and composition is a craft, and to be able to stand out as much as John do, in terms of orchestration, an understanding of harmony that is beyond whats normal compared to other movie composers, atmosphere, to be able to apply various aesthetics to the music, and the talent of writing instantly recognizable Melodic lines that are iconic, makes John an extraordinaire even among other great movie composers. John is considered as the greatest movie composer by other composers and musicians all over the world, because his talent and skill is outstanding, that is not subjective.
Yes, he should be next to mozart, beethoven, Liszt and all the other great composers.
*I disagree. Its not subjective. His body of work is objective. Its quantifiable. Its the massive volume of GREAT WORKS that qualify him for this prestige*
It's always refreshing to find people who share this view; the mistake of leaving melodies behind in the 90s and earlier times. I find it absolutely mind-boggling. But they will come back. Of that I am sure. I find music to be THE most underestimated part of filmmaking. Nothing cuts as easily through to your emotions. Especially when done right, with melody.
oskararnarson agree 1000000000%
Yes. Lack of melody I think is one reason that music by modern classical composers is not regularly performed by orchestras. If it's not schmaltzy or just trivial, it's often excessively dissonant, overly abstract, or too atonal. Melody is such a basic part of music, yet too many seem eager to forget it.
Just gonna say that The Asteroid Field is legit one of my favorite pieces of music, in any category or genre. Genius.
Back in my UCLA days, I was in a film music class taught by David Raksin. One of the tricks he suggested was to NEVER have your melody end on a tonic chord until the very end of the film. That way, there is always unresolved tension that draws the listener/viewer into the next scene or the next segment.
Yes! Like the Tristan Chord! 👍🏻😃
No wonder I always get goosebumps on the force theme(the emotional peak part)
My favourite appearance of the Force theme is in the track "Leia's News/Light of the Force" - I don't know why but I find that particularly emotionally powerful
Inside the Score Really great when people pay attention to that detail. I’ve got a mate who loves films and music, when he explains things like how Williams and Howard Shore construct such beautiful pieces I’m blown away. I say I don’t pretend to understand it but it must be so fulfilling to be able to fully appreciate how a score works
Same
@@FrankieHchannel look into music theory classes? They're cheap at city colleges. And you'll get the same info from people who DID go to the expensive school.
God, the double sunset always brings tears to my eyes....amazing how it's done, manipulating my emotions like that.
imagine watching star wars with no music. would have half the impact. john williams made star wars amazing. just listening to the pieces in this video had me getting emotional about it all
The Yoda theme when he raises the x wing from the swamp gets me every damn time. John Williams combined with that photography and editing is just unmatchable.
The dude is literally a Genius, It's to the point that by hearing his music, you automatically know what"s happening in the movies.
A. Atrium yep
You mean thief, he's genius for stealing other people's work and putting his name on it, yeah, genius!
I've always been intrigued by how composers write such beautiful music for every instrument in an original score.
"Inside the Score:" Sure wish I'd had you for a music teacher back in the day. In 10 minutes, you taught me more about musical notation than my junior high teacher did in an entire semester!
Go get an old edition of Tonal Harmony. It's what they teach music majors.
Try ThriftBooks. They always send a cheap and clean copy.
You, sir, have earned a favorite from me. I have loved John’s music in Star Wars, and this makes me appreciate his musical genius even more.
I can even see your point about the music providing a statement, then reaching a climax in the answer with his “Welcome to Jurassic Park” theme.
Yes - in a different kind of way, but yes! Glad you enjoyed, thank you for watching
gcHK47 same
I love that for just about any John Williams theme out there, you'll find a full suite version of it.
I guess that's the benefit of writing a catchy tune!
I think this is just the benefit of a composer being nice enough to do that or producers putting that extra money into the album
Zimmer also has suites for many of his scores...and often those are not "catchy tunes" :D
But these suites really help to get a grasp on themes
Yes....as I recall, the full suite version of E.T. was called Mahler's 4th Symphony.
Sorry... couldn't help myself.
You won't find a concert arrangement or "full suite" as you call it for Bens Theme.
There has never been one.
And "Light of the Force" from RETURN OF THE JEDI doesn't count.
In reality, I believe you mean "concert arrangement" because by definition a full suite contains several pieces of music that are supportive of one main idea.
For example-The Grand Canyon Suite by Ferde Grofe.
Needless to say, Star Wars wouldn't be as epic without John Williams' participation. You knew when you first saw it that you were in for something special.
The theme you analyzed halfway through is most commonly referred to as just "The Binary Sunset"
I've seen film of John Williams directing an orchestra with the movie playing on a screen during recording.
It reminds me of the old days of pianists in silent movies describing the action and emotion.
John Williams themes got me really interested in Classical music.
Good luck with the channel.
Brilliant. Empire is my overall favorite too, i really think the finale in that soundtrack is the greatest. It ties all the major themes together and ends with a punch. Thanks for this! I look forward to more
Thanks! Yes for sure, you can listen to the Empire soundtrack in its own right, without any film and it still holds up as consistently outstanding music
Great analysis. Williams understand music in traditional way and uses its musical expressions to their finest. Of course he uses a lot of material from musical genius but that happened in classical music all the time. He is the maestro of film music. No one could compare.
Chills every time at the end of Empire. That score...good lord.
... "a tapestry of emotion in musical form." What an amazing line, grouped with Empire's final scene and accompanying music -- incredible!
Wonderful stuff. It's all about the editing and the freedom this gave Williams to express the themes he devised. I've loved these scores since the release of the original films, but I learnt something today. Thanks for the video.
The reason why even Williams can't write more fleshed out themes to modern film is due to the collapse of Hollywood into amateurism. New directors don't seem to know how to conduct a story, so in the editing room, they swap scenes around, shorten or lengthen them and re-shoot even down to the wire. To compensate, composers have to create very flexible and modular, isolated cues, rather than write long, symphonic forms with foreshadowing and call-backs to established figures that encompass the entire film. Of course this means the bar for entry as a film composer is much, much lower these days. All you have to do is write a bunch of hyped ostinati or brooding drones and buy samples to play them.
Hans Zimmer has said that "modern films reject melody". Given that his career spans the gap between amazing thematic works as The Lion King and dull, trend-setting novelties like Inception, that observation of the climate is probably the most objective.
Fascinating stuff. I think you're totally right. A lot of 'directors' don't have an ear... or an eye really. It's as if they just want to be a director because it's cool, rather than to serve a potentially amazing art form. And so people don't realise what's lost when we sacrifice beauty, whether visual, musical, or in terms of good acting. You can go to modern cinema as much as you like and you'll rarely have one of those moments where you realise "Holy hell, this acting is just phenomenal" - you rarely get those moments where it sends shivers down your spine, not because something spectacular has happened, but because the actor has played something truly human, truly worth empathising with. Most films are cheap entertainment - even those which score highly on imdb
And the other thing is the way film music is written nowadays - see my video on Hans Zimmer. Most film music needs to be mocked up on computers nowadays, and so, because the 'means' have changed, it means that the style changes too. It's hard to make symphonic music sound good on a mock up. But ostinatos, and cool sound effects and drum beats sound great, so they become the dominating force. It's a shame, but I think that's a big reason why there's a shift in genre - the fact that composers need to create realistic mockups before they'll be allowed near a real orchestra
Wourghk well written. Zimmer for me is a symbol of killing a good thematic movie music. And sterille trendy cool movies without soul not help this either
Not much I can add to that great truism. Save this: Directors have forgotten about melody, yes, because of the quickness of the edits they apply to their scenes, presumably for the ADD audience. But, on a deeper level, they really do it because they don't believe in the power of what they have filmed anymore, at least enough to give those certain scenes additional emotional weight. Zimmer's cue at the end of "Boss Baby," of all films, is not only inspired by Howard Hanson's "Romantic" Symphony but could have driven the themes for the rest of the film, such is its power. The fact that this great piece comes out of nowhere to floor you after over 100 light, forgettable minutes from the score is indicative of the assembly line approach becoming an afterthought in Hollywood film. You could tell the director had no confidence in any scenes you saw previously to ask Zimmer to score it with the real tenderness he is still very capable of. Scenes are nervously, almost fervently thrown up on screen, and not made to work via score, but instead just quickly moved on to the next one, like there's someone out there who wouldn't like it. It's terribly insecure and destroys pacing.
I agree with you on most points! Whilst i agree that it is a shame that melody is something that is absent from modern film scoring, I would disagree with your points about later Zimmer.
Zimmer's later music is more textural, and more about the sound design, traditional analysis doesn't do this justice to it. It is less about the melody yes, but that doesn't make it dull as it makes up for it in the sound design and the texture. think the slowly rising tension of the jokers soundscape, like a wire that's getting ever tighter, or the Shepard tone ideas in the Dunkirk soundtrack creating ever rising tention.
Or the score to inception, which uses the french song 'no regrets' extremely slowed down as the basis for the entire soundtrack. Wouldnt you say that's similar to leitmotif? As this song is a pivotal song throughout the film and is what is used to wake them up and time stretches as they go deeper into the dreams, this is really appropriate.
I would agree that a lot of the copycat composers can get quite dull as you are suggesting, but not Zimmer, to suggest that is missing what his music is about and what sets him apart from a lot of other composers.
Nobody makes this argument about Penderecki, his music is highly textural and effects based and yet he is praised by a lot of the traditional music listeners.
For me it's 'The Force' theme... and it's my favorite... especially when Darth Vader is set to flames in Return Of The Jedi... I still get goosebumps when I see this scene with John's music... thanks for the vid, liked it!
Williams, Horner, Silvestri, Barry, Goldsmith, Bernstein... these guys all managed to give movies of the 70s/80s/90s character. You nailed it in this video. Great stuff.
Try Bernard Hermann (Psycho, 1960) and John Carpenter did Halloween with one synth and a few minor seconds (notes right next to each other on the keyboard, sounds dissonant).
Wonderfully summarized. I always believed that Star Wars was only half as good if there was non of such incredibly rich and moving soundtrack - and this counts not only for the score but also the complete audio effects. I am happy to have not only the visual icons but also the sound of Star Wars in my life and one I get never tired of.
This is wonderful. I love the music of John Williams already, and this helps me appreciate it even more!
I'm really glad you've enjoyed it! Stay tuned for more - more John Williams related vids are coming, amongst other things
Even tho john was a new composer in the 80s he made something that we'll remember in a galaxy far far away
This is a great vid--I was afraid I wasnt musical enough to understand but you made it very clear. thx so much!
Thank you - I'm so glad you said that, means a lot to be accessible to anyone, thanks for telling me! Try out some of my other film videos - others on Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Hans Zimmer etc :)
We're all home, why not look into Music Theory? It's cheap at city collages. You don't have to major in it.
And all the instructors went to the expensive schools. Use what they learned.
I found theory ridiculously easy after years of music lessons.
Back in 05, I was taking summer computer classes for 4 weeks. Every Friday, my parents would take me to buy something I wanted. 1st week, OST Empire Strikes Back, 2nd Week, OST A New Hope, 3rd week, OST Return of the Jedi, 4th week, we went looking everywhere for Shadows of the Empire, but we couldn't find it, so I decided I didn't want anything. To this day, those three albums are among my most cherished possessions. I have loaned albums to people before, but I've never loaned those. I never will. The tracks have always been on my mp3 player, and every time I listen to them, I notice something new.
That's such a lovely story!
For Williams:
Explosion=Sudden and loud chord
Hectic fight=Fast music
That’s what makes it great!
I'm literally about to cry, just thinking about his genius.
I could just 'watch' John Williams movies through my ears alone. Great video.
He’s made so many classic soundtracks to classic films it’s mind-blowing almost. One of the best to ever do it. His music will live forever
Taking me a half hour to watch because I'm writing notes on almost every sentence! Amazing video and topic, thanks so much
I enjoy Jerry Goldsmith, James Horner, John Barry, Elmer Bernstien, John Carpenter, Barry Gray and others as film composers, but John Williams is the absolute master.
Have you noticed Poltergeist and Allen sound alike?
Don't forget Bernard Hermann, 1960s Psycho. There's a whole score, which i never noticed til I saw it played live with a full orchestra.
First album I wanted at 8 yrs old...this (unknowingly at the time) helped shape my musical tastes and i started to develop my musical ear. 40 yrs later Im a long time musician and owe so much inspiration from these iconic scores. Great video!
Star Wars OT soundtrack is absolutely phenomenal.
Finally: Somebody else understands that for all the (deserved) populism for John Williams' Oscar-winning scores, it is his music for "The Empire Strikes Back" that is the man at his creative peak. Key reason: Modulation. Princess Leia's theme from "Star Wars" is gone, but not really: It just modulates into the Love Theme. In the original score album, you hear in the opening film cue (deleted to focus on Luke's dialogue riding the Tauntaun) how the Rebels' theme no longer achieves completion, but is modulated into a more sinister-sounding "riding" accompaniment. And Williams does this with ALL of the key themes in this film--the new and the familiar. To this day, the transformation of Yoda's Theme from the sweepingly powerful notes you don't hear until the lifting of the X-wing to the light, airy dance of its appearance in the end credits defies the proper words of praise to encapsulate it. I cannot listen to that theme in those End Credits, to this day, without being completely transported somewhere else, the same place I was the first time I heard it as a 6-year-old in the movie theater. Thank you, John Williams, for the Beethoven's Fifth of the 20th century, your "Empire Strikes Back" score.
Such amazing insights in this video. My personal favourite John Williams score is Raiders of the Lost Ark, there's so much meaning in every part of it. I'd love to see a video taking apart that score so much, keep up the good work!
Thanks! Wow really? I never really took much notice of that score before - I'll have to try again
No problem, and yeah I at least find it to be that way. Perhaps a good way to approach it would be to see the film and then listen to the score separately, you really gain an appreciation for subtitles. I think one of the best examples of visual storytelling in cinema lends a part of its mastery to Williams' score in the background. Here's a clip: th-cam.com/video/gFDM7JGHGYo/w-d-xo.html the coir in the background and the edgy feeling you get from the instruments really creates a supernatural feel, almost religious which heavily connects to the motion picture. I also love how 'The Ark' leitmotif develops throughout the score, you almost get a sense of scale with it. Nearer the start of the film in 'The medallion' it's so quiet and faint, like an old relic but as the film progresses (culminating at 'the miracle of the ark') it gets louder and more developed. Truly amazing
The Temple March in Episode 3 was one of my favourites
Amazing video! I've watched it 10 times now and I'm still coming back because this hits it bang on. Thank you for this!!!!!
Wonderful summary of Williams' music composition, with brilliant sample selections. Great job.
Thanks! Stay tuned for more!
Most films would be lucky to have a main theme as epic as the falcon being brought onto the Death Star.
Happy to have found the video. Saying exactly what I was thinking about a lot of modern filmsoundtracks. And what makes Star Wars special.
Well YOU Sir are a very talented editor. That conclusion almost got me crying :)
Amazing the way you articulated why Star Wars is the most iconic movie and movie soundtrack of all time.
This was a great video. I'm just discovering your channel it seems excellent.
it always give me chills, no matter what, where or when.
This was so much more than what I could've imagined! You my friend just made a permanent impact on me all the way into my heart, through the way you highlited how the Star Wars music works its effect on people, and now that you've highlighted it, I see it all the more clearly. Beautiful video my friend! You have definitely gotten another subscriber today! :)
Thanks for making this. Music theory has always fascinated me, yet I don't know much about it and in the past year I've lost interest. There are depths to it that I have yet to even begin to uncover, and this video has sparked my interest once more.
Thanks - really glad you enjoyed it. Well why not check out some of my other videos? There's a whole series which covers a lot of ground on crucial bits of music theory to help you appreciate classical and film music with a greater depth!
John Willisms...you will never find a more gifted or talented composer
Have you considered Bernard Hermann (Psycho. 1960) or Jerry Goldsmith (you'll note Poltergeist, 1984 and Alien 1978, sound similar...)
I saw the CSO do Psycho live. I had no idea there was a whole score for the entire movie.
Without knowing anything about music I still could recognize the mastery of John Williams. I enjoyed your video letting me in on the elements & how he uses them. Thanks!
Great informative video. Thanks for uploading.
+1 for using original footage, not the remastered garbage
Haha you're the first person to comment on that! I completely agree, I can't stand the updated versions, they make the films look so stupid and the updates themselves are just juvenile
Inside the Score Not all the updates are bad it but a large chunk of them are. It depends on what order you watch the films to an extent and what purpose you watch the films for. It’s hard to say out of the millions of changes made to these films they are all useless and bad.
I noticed it was the '77 footage when you showed them flying away from the death star. Then again when Han gets scared by the squad of troopers. lol.
It made me think that the music goes better with these tones than the altered scenes. The picture, sound and story were considered with the alterations, ...but what about what the music? And what it meant to the original scene, that's now been replaced?
Could be nostalgia talking but I find the 97 special edition edits fine. They looked like they were just trying to enhance things that I guess due to lack of technology couldn't be achieved. I think and edits since then have just been uncessary (okay Jedi Rocks probably being the only exception, but I'm used to it and in a way I like the juxtaposition). Oh and I think the CGI actually looks worse in later versions.
RAF 523 You can look up comparisons and decide for yourself it’s fairly subjective though there are changes that I’d argue make the films better or worse everything in between isn’t worth arguing about. Knowing Star Wars fans we will never move on with our lives.
*Revenge of the Sith* was his musical masterpiece.
And yet, I can't remember any of the music from that film...
@@ElectoneGuy so you cant remeber battle of the heroes or anakin vs obi wan im so sorry or griievous theme ? you must be so oblivious its insane
@@Belmont796 That nigga just trippin😂😂Dumbfuck who can't respect anything
The Battle of Coruscant is also quite heroic.
@@iberius9937 True man most of the themes from rots were truly amazing...
Your channel deserves more recognition! You just got a new fan from Brazil
I've studied piano since I was 7 years old and I've been a fan of Star Wars as far back as I can remember. In my heart, I always knew that there was something special about John Williams's music, but I could not find a way to explain it or fully fathom it. Your video described it best, and I'm glad I took the time to watch this. Thank you, sir. :)
I love your videos, the star wars music has had such an impact on my life!!! Would love to see you talk about the tragic yet most underated theme of the Star Wars saga which is that of Revenge of the sith. Revenge of the sith's music is beautiful and would like to hear your breakdown of it
I actually agree with you, I think it's stunning. I had an inclination to talk about the Original Trilogy (more to come on that... Much, much, more) but I agree that RotS, and particularly the downfall of Anakin has some of JW's best music. I'd love to do that - but it's also a question of finding something in particular to say about it, more than just 'listen to how amazing this is'. So I'll have to have a think!
Yes, the score for the downfall of anakin is beautifully written. Thank you for your answer, I totally agree. If you need any inspiration, the Star Wars Oxygen Podcast on Rebel Force Radio, does a fair job of breaking down the music also! Keep up the great work!
Never come across this before - I'll have to have a listen when time. I have a bunch of ideas for Star Wars videos coming up, but as I say, most are them are associated with the Original Trilogy, which is overall my favourite soundtracks and the ones I know most intimately.
Yes please listen to Star Wars Oxygen, it's phenomenal! Also man, can you cover how Williams does action music? I've recently become almost addicted to studying it in his various films, most specifically the Indiana Jones movies (yes even Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) and Star Wars. Two that I've been listening to a lot lately are "General Grievous" from Episode III and "Scherzo for X-wings" which almost quite literally has its musical structure in the title. He is a master at creating tension through sound and just like you said, he doesn't waste any musical moment.
Yeah definitely a great score
2:32 I think I just spotted Kylo Ren's theme in this short sequence. Wow, so many similarities everywhere. Great video man!
Also, the breakdown in your Han and Leia theme, and the Yoda theme, AMAZING!
Thanks! Glad you liked it - check out my other video on the Yoda theme
Inside the Score i did. Really loved that video too!
SixTuber Productions YEEEEEEP
Well done video! I got goosebumps all throughout the video.
Great commentary and stirring musical examples. I can feel those entire films from John Williams scores.
As a French Horn player. I have so much respect for Williams. He can take ANY instrument in a orchestra (or band) and give it such an important part, it brings the whole piece together. This can also go with sections. Example; Imperial March [Low brass/ all brass] or Leias theme [Strings and woodwinds]. I’m so glad I took band. And continue to go on. My respect for music increases every day that goes by. Another great composer would be Bear McCreary. Not as good as Williams of course.
Here's another great one: John Barry. His scores from Dances With Wolves and Out Of Africa are the reason I attempt to compose music.
as a bass player, i love the epicness given to music by the french horn.
with just two notes you can make a whole song epic.
@@sabin97 Two notes: see Jaws (E and F). The minor second interval.
Also in Halloween (the real tense musuc, played harmonically, ie, together), and Psycho (1960, not the awful remake), those damned violins...
Reys theme is a long and extended theme that is manipulated variously throughout the film. (A,C',E,A,D',E...). The motific structure is only one part of the theme.
You're right - spot on. I'm wrong. However, interestingly, it's fundamentally harmonically and melodically very simple - I think some of JW's most recent films (take WarHorse, Star Wars, some Spielberg) have lost the touch of his early facility with writing an incredible melody. But you might disagree
No I actually completely agree with you. Compare it to something like Hook and it does appear to be very simple indeed. In fact, my friend and I discuss this quite a bit thinking that John has lost his touch a bit (definitely in The Last Jedi, probably because he's getting old and reserving his time more).
I don't believe that John has lost his touch, I think it's more rather the movie itself as there is barley any time to breathe in the Last Jedi and the film (Story-Wise) is really not as strong as the other Star Wars, its really sad to say but under Disney, Star Wars is becoming increasingly like other big-hit Hollywood movies.
1000% agree
There are countless times in the film where the music is simply temp music from the other star wars films, as was the case with the scoring arrangement (John had scored the music before seeing the film).
Wauw - great video. Spot on 👍 Makes me want to see the old trilogy again now, even more
A video so well-done!! BRAVO!!!
"John Williams was a relatively new film composer in the 70s"....uhm yeah no, not at all. He was an established film composer in the 70s. His first credits were in the mid 60s with Lost in Space, How To Steal a Million and None But The Brave. Later on in the early 70s he did Jane Eyre, Fiddler on the Roof (contributions), The Cowboys, Cinderella Liberty and then big budget movies such as Earthquake and The Towering Inferno all this in the first half of the 70s. By the time Star Wars came around in 1977 he was active for over 10 years, had some big titles under his belt and was a well known name. So saying "relatively new" is a bit off. That would be the same as saying Hans Zimmer was relatively new when he did Pirates of the Carribean in the early 2000s while he was already active since the late 80s and had already done big titles in the 90s (Drop Zone, Broken Arrow, Crimson Tide).
Good point. By '77 and "Star Wars," Williams had already won his first Oscar for "Fiddler."
Don't forget Jaws
Hans Zimmer didn't even do the Pirates. Klaus Badelt did.
Hans gradually started stealing the credit starting with movie two.
And lo and behold, he has succeeded.
Fly Beep You're actually being generous. By the time Star Wars came around in 1977 he was active for nearly 20 years. His first film score was in 1958, not the mid 60s. And he had already had three Oscar nominations before 1970. "Relatively new composer in the 70s" is WAY off, not a bit off.
You're right, of course, which was a bit jarring to me to realize. I remember very well reading an account of Spielberg recommending Williams to Lucas, and he was described as this jazz composer who he took a chance on. After reading your comment, which is spot on, I began to doubt that I ever read that. Thankfully I wasn't insane, and I found corroboration of what I had read. Spielberg did recommend Williams to Lucas, as he had already had two films scored by him, and it was just Lucas who only knew him as a jazz guy at the time.
"Lucas said his choice of Williams for Star Wars in 1976 was "primarily on Steven's recommendation. I said I was looking for a composer who could write in the classic Hollywood style of the '30s and '40s, and he said 'John's the man for you, he's fantastic.' I was a little nervous at first because I only knew him primarily as a jazz guy; I wasn't that aware of his film work. "
I wonder what it says about me that even though I knew this was a video focused on John Williams' work in the OT, when you mentioned "the love theme" at 6:41 my first thought was "The love theme? But that isn't Across the Stars?"
It's a very good and interesting video, though.
That's a great theme as well. I prefer the OT love theme.
Inside the Score That's the great thing with the Star Wars music - everyone loves it, if not all, then at least one of the songs. I find myself favoring one, other times another, but I never fall out of love for any of it. It's like a big nostalgia buffet.
Both themes are nice but I prefer Across the Stars.
Great vid, thanks for uploading! In Empire Strikes Back there's some great musical stuff going on when Yoda and Obi-Wan are trying to get Luke to stay and complete the training. Throughout the earlier Dagobah scenes you keep getting an excerpt of the main Star Wars theme in a minor key, but at the moment Luke decides to leave, the theme starts up again and you expect it to again be in a minor key, but it plays major instead. A great moment of musical language, seeming to signify hope and determination
Congratulations for this great video, it's indeed great educational material, concise and well structured.
Thanks!
ROTS is his best soundtrack imo
It has some stunning moments, for sure
Empire Strikes Back imo
Battle of heroes , is one of the best :)
Empire.
I agree.
Unpopular opinion, but Attack of the Clones was probably my favorite film musically.
yeah i respect that, there are some amazing themes in that film, like across the stars and the kamino theme whatever it’s called
I love "Across the Stars" 👍🏻😊
Huge video! This is a terrific analysis! Thanks for posting
John Williams is just absolutely brilliant.
John Williams: The 20th Century's Greatest Composer.
Agreed
I disagree, I think John Williams is the best of the late 20th century, but Rachmaninov, Shostakovich, Strauss and Mahler were better than he
*And the 21st century
@@hamgil You can't say that for another 80 years.
Rose English Deluxe it’s the 21st century right now?
In short: back in the days music used to be art.
Filmmaking too.
John Williams still does produce amazing music now though, love or hate the Disney trilogy, Rey’s theme is perfect and sounds amazing
😣 I know. We are heading into bad days for art.
Really nice and clever analysis!
Thanks for sharing
Thank you very much! Really liked this video and look forward to see more of 'Inside the Score'!
5:35 compare with “The Planets, Venus, the Bringer of Peace” by Willem Holst
I don't get why the modern soundtracks can't mix pure soundscape/sound design with traditional leitmotific themes
Thank you for this. Very thoughtful .
Thank you new subscriber here. I have been a fan of John Williams since I was small child and his music brought life to Star Wars.
The way in which the music was composed and recorded for the new films must also be considered when making (what I'd consider to be unfair) comparisons; TFA wasn't scored to picture, certainly not the same extent as something like Empire, so it lacks the mickey-mousing intricacy of earlier work, and TLJ used extensive temp tracking from JW's own repertoire to guide the mood. Even within that restriction, TLJ was to me a richer score even if it lacked the thematic development some criticised it for.
He still created great and memorable melodies and his predictably stirring action cues for the new films, which I wouldn't dismiss as mere Hollywood action films as you do. I'd also disagree with your comment below that he's lost his early facility and that his music has become simple; his famous themes _are_ often simple, that's why they're memorable. He saves the complex writing for underscore and action and his melodic leitmotif writing is both simple and perfectly moving, with his more famous character themes often starting with the same two-note interval. His classic themes have had three or four decades to germinate in our consciousness, yet criticism of his newer work or the work of newer composers never takes into account that such criticism can't be truly fair until the same amount of time has elapsed.
Taking Rey's theme - it has many parts/cells but the meat of it, after the lengthy buildup, is imo just as moving and memorable as his earlier work. Also going to disagree that melodic writing is a lost art, there are countless composers still serving the primacy of melody and not every director creates quick-cut films and scenes lacking importance. Just my . . . *counts* . . . 345 cents. Fundamentally, JW is the master and we certainly agree on that.
How fascinating - where did you learn about how TLJ was scored? Would love to watch/read more about this!
I see what you're saying about criticism, but I think it's not unreasonable to say that it's possible to recognise great or bad music when you hear it, regardless of whether it was written 40 years ago or yesterday.
I find Ray's theme lacks the movement, tension, flow, or musical thought of his early works.
*Rey's
Not Ray's
The temp-tracking approach to TLJ would explain a great many things about Williams' interpolations of his OT themes into new material. As a flag-bearer that the End Credits of ESB were truly one of the all time great coup de graces of film scores, to not hear those takes in the End Credits of TLJ (original Yoda's Theme vs. modulated one of ESB's credits, for instance) put me at a bit of a distance.
Not really, ITS - it's too subjective. You can of course listen to any music and say whether you like or dislike it, regardless of when it was composed, but time _is_ a factor in the overall impact of a composer's work, as is the accompanying media and success thereof if that composer is scoring to film. To fairly judge a composer's work against itself, such criteria should be taken into account. I wouldn't work up an argument to justify the very simple fact that you simply don't like Rey's theme much, and I do. Probably a mistake to elevate this to having "recognised bad music".
DaveDexterMusic You make a good point, I like John Williams, but there are certain pieces I like more than others. For example, the only piece I like from Superman is the Theme “The Planet Krypton”. The rest of them don’t interest me, they seem to be fillers. I saw it as a child, but I was not a Superman kid. I preferred Star Wars.
His work in Jurassic Park is better to me than most of his 70s work. The only piece I like of Star Wars is the main theme, rest don’t resonate with me. But this is likely due to my having grown up with Jurassic Park, I didn’t grow up with the Prequels for Star Wars, which was one of my favourite movie series, mainly the sequels. It’s the same with Harry Potter. I love the soundtrack for the first Harry Potter film, I like the later ones too, but the first one holds a special place for me. I only like the main theme for Jaws, the rest are filler to me, here’s where it’s different because I grew up with Jaws. But For Jurassic Park, and Harry Potter, every piece in the film is important. Timing makes a difference in people’s emotional and even intellectual judgement to film scores. I grew up with a certain sound in film score that when I hear that approach, it stands out more to me than what came out before or after. I also didn’t like the score for Home Alone, but I loved the movie as a kid. I think his work in the Color Purple was good.
To reeling it in, you make a good point about time in your original context. Often times people criticise an artist’s work when it’s new, over time, when they compare it to the future new interpretations, that older work becomes glorified. This is often due to those who grew up with or are used to experiencing music written a certain way. Whereas the critics are a lot of times the older generations who expect art to be a certain way. When the next generation grows up and hears a change or shift, they express issue with it. Truthfully there was a lot of poorly written music when they growing up, in fact, a lot of stuff they claim to love had flaws. But they don’t see the flaws, they see what’s great about it.
By being absolutely awesome, duh.
Yes!
Wanna buy some deathsticks?
I really enjoyed this. Thankyou.
EXCELLENT musical critique. Kudos!!
John Williams is the Bach/Beethoven/Mozart of our time
Well I think John did a good job for the 3rd trilogie
@a ggoogle user 454 well I love them but everyone have is opinions
This is one of the best youtube videos I've ever seen
Brilliant video! I share your sentiments completely. I'm a performing musician who's getting into film scoring, and videos like this give me massive inspiration.
Also, John Williams is the greatest film score composer of all time, IMO.