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John Williams

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For other people named John Williams, see John Williams (disambiguation).
John Williams
Spouse(s)Barbara Ruick (1956 – 1974)
Samantha Winslow (1980 – )

John Towner Williams (born February 8 1932) is an American composer and conductor. In a career that spans six decades, Williams has composed many of the most famous film scores in history, including those for Jaws, Star Wars, Superman, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Jurassic Park, Schindler's List, and Harry Potter. In addition, he has composed theme music for four Olympic Games, numerous television series and concert pieces. He served as the principal conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra from 1980 to 1993, and is now the orchestra's laureate conductor.

Williams is a five-time winner of the Academy Award, and his 45 nominations to date make him joint second-most nominated individual with fellow composer Alfred Newman (only Walt Disney had more). He was a recipient of the Kennedy Center Honors in 2004.

Early life and family

John Williams was born on February 8 1932 in Long Island, New York, USA. In 1948, he moved with his family to Los Angeles, where he attended North Hollywood High School. He later attended the University of California, Los Angeles and Los Angeles City College, and studied privately with composer Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco. In 1952, Williams was drafted into the United States Air Force, where he conducted and arranged music for the Air Force Band as part of his duties.

After his service ended in 1954, Williams returned to New York City and entered Juilliard School, where he studied piano with Rosina Lhévinne. During this time he also worked as a jazz pianist at New York's many studios and clubs. He had played with composer Henry Mancini, and performed on the recording of the Peter Gunn theme. He was known as "Johnny" Williams in the early 1960s, and served as arranger and bandleader on a series of popular albums with singer Frankie Laine.

Williams was married to actress Barbara Ruick from 1956 until her death on March 3, 1974. They had three children together. One of those children is Joseph Williams, former lead singer for the band Toto. He married for a second time on June 9, 1980 to his current wife, Samantha Winslow. Williams is a member of Kappa Kappa Psi, the national honorary fraternity for college band members.[1]

Film scoring

After his studies at Juilliard, Williams returned to Los Angeles and began working as an orchestrator in film studios. Among others, he had worked with composers Franz Waxman, Bernard Herrmann and Alfred Newman. He was also a studio pianist, performing in scores by composers such as Jerry Goldsmith and Elmer Bernstein. Williams began to compose scores for television series in the late 1950s, eventually leading to Lost in Space and The Time Tunnel.

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Williams conducts the London Symphony Orchestra during a recording session for the score of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace

Williams's first major film composition was for the B-movie Daddy-O in 1958, and his first screen credit came two years later in Because They're Young. He soon gained notice in Hollywood for his versatility in composing jazz, piano and symphonic music. He received his first Academy Award nomination for his score to the 1967 film Valley of the Dolls, and was nominated again in 1969 for Goodbye, Mr. Chips. He won his first Academy Award for his adapted score to the 1971 film Fiddler on the Roof. By the early 1970s, Williams had established himself as a composer for large-scale disaster films, with scores for The Poseidon Adventure, Earthquake and The Towering Inferno (the last two films, scored in 1974, borrowing musical cues from each other).

In 1974, Williams was approached by Steven Spielberg to write the music for his feature directoral debut, The Sugarland Express. The young director was impressed by Williams's score to the 1969 film The Reivers, and was convinced the composer could provide the sound he desired for his films. They re-teamed a year later for the director's second film, Jaws. Widely considered a classic suspense piece, the score's ominous two-note motif has become nearly synonymous with sharks and approaching danger. The score earned Williams a second Academy Award, his first for an original composition.

Shortly afterwards, Williams and Spielberg began preparing for their next feature film, Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Unusual for a Hollywood production, Spielberg's script and Williams's musical concepts were developed at the same time and were closely linked. During the two-year creative collaboration, they settled on a distinctive five-note motif that functioned both as background music and the communication signal of the film's alien mothership. Close Encounters of the Third Kind was released in 1977.

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Williams holds the Oscar statuette upon winning an Academy Award for his score to Star Wars in 1978

In the same period, Spielberg recommended Williams to his friend and fellow director George Lucas, who needed a composer to score his ambitious space epic, Star Wars. Williams produced a grand symphonic score in the fashion of Richard Strauss and Golden Age Hollywood composers Erich Wolfgang Korngold and Max Steiner. Its main theme is among the most widely-recognized in motion picture history, and the Force Theme and Princess Leia's Theme are also well-known examples of leitmotif. The film and its soundtrack were both immensely successful, and Williams won another Academy Award for Best Original Score. In 1980, Williams returned to score The Empire Strikes Back, where he famously introduces The Imperial March as the theme for Darth Vader and the Galactic Empire. The original Star Wars trilogy concluded with the 1983 film Return of the Jedi, for which Williams's score provides the Emperor's Theme.

Williams worked with director Richard Donner to score the 1978 film Superman. The score's heroic and romantic themes, particularly the main march, the Superman fanfare and the love theme (known as "Can You Read My Mind"), would appear in the four subsequent sequel films.

For the 1981 film Raiders of the Lost Ark, Williams wrote a rousing main theme known as The Raiders' March to accompany the film's hero, Indiana Jones. He also composed separate themes to represent the Ark of the Covenant, the character Marion and the Nazi villains of the story. Additional themes were featured in his scores to the sequel films Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

Williams composed an emotional and sensitive score to Spielberg's 1982 fantasy film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. The music conveys the film's benign, child-like sense of innocence, particularly with a spirited theme for the freedom of flight, and a soft string-based theme for the friendship between characters E.T. and Elliott. The film's final chase and farewell sequence marks a rare instance in film history, in which the on-screen action is edited to conform to the composer's musical interpretation. Williams was awarded a fourth Academy Award for this score.

The 1985 film The Color Purple is the only feature film directed by Steven Spielberg for which John Williams did not serve as composer. The film's producer, Quincy Jones, wanted to personally arrange and compose the music for the project. Williams also did not score Twilight Zone: The Movie, but Spielberg had directed only one of the four segments in that film. The film's music was written by another veteran Hollywood composer, Jerry Goldsmith. The Williams-Spielberg collaboration resumed with the director's 1987 film Empire of the Sun.

While skilled in a variety of twentieth-century compositional idioms, his most familiar style may be described as a form of neoromanticism,[2] inspired by the large-scale orchestral music of the late 19th century, especially Wagnerian music and leitmotif, and that of Williams's film-composing predecessors.[3]

Conducting and performing

Williams signing an autograph after a concert

From 1980 to 1993, Williams succeeded the legendary Arthur Fiedler as Principal Conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra. His arrival as the new leader of the Pops in the spring of 1980 allowed him to devote part of the Pops' first PBS broadcast of the season to presenting his new compositions for The Empire Strikes Back, in addition to conducting many Fiedler audience favorites.

He is now the Laureate Conductor of the Pops, thus maintaining his affiliation with its parent, the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO), resident of Symphony Hall in the Massachusetts capital. Williams leads the Pops on several occasions each year, particularly during their Holiday Pops season and typically for a week of concerts in May. He also frequently enlists the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, official chorus of the BSO, to provide a choral accompaniment to films (such as Saving Private Ryan).

He is an accomplished pianist, as can be heard in various scores in which he provides solos, as well as a handful of European classical music recordings.

Williams has written many concert pieces, including a symphony, Concerto for Horn written for Dale Clevenger, principal hornist of the Chicago Symphony, Concerto for Clarinet written for Michele Zukovsky (Principal Clarinetist of the Los Angeles Philharmonic) in 1991 [2], a sinfonietta for wind ensemble, a cello concerto premiered by Yo-Yo Ma and the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Tanglewood in 1994, concertos for the flute and violin recorded by the London Symphony Orchestra, tuba, and a trumpet concerto, which was premiered by the Cleveland Orchestra and their principal trumpet Michael Sachs in September 1996. His bassoon concerto, The Five Sacred Trees, which was premiered by the New York Philharmonic and principal bassoon player Judith LeClair in 1995, was recorded for Sony Classical by Williams with LeClair and the London Symphony Orchestra. In addition, Williams composed the well-known NBC News theme "The Mission" (which he has occasionally performed in concert for surprised audiences), "Liberty Fanfare" for the re-dedication of the Statue of Liberty, "We're Lookin' Good!," for the Special Olympics in celebration of the 1987 International Summer Games, and themes for the 1984, 1988, 1996, and 2002 Olympic games. His most recent concert work "Seven for Luck", for soprano and orchestra, is a seven-piece song cycle based on the texts of former U.S. Poet Laureate Rita Dove. "Seven for Luck" was given its world premiere by the Boston Symphony under Williams with soprano Cynthia Haymon.

The Olympics

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Olympic Fanfare and Theme
Theme music for the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles
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Williams has composed music for four of the Olympic Games held in the last 26 years. They are:

  • "Olympic Fanfare and Theme" - 1984 Summer Olympics, Los Angeles
    • In a 1996 re-release, the opening trumpet fanfare was replaced with Bugler's Dream, a previous Olympic Theme written by Leo Arnaud. This recording has been used as theme for NBC's Olympic coverage ever since.
  • "The Olympic Spirit" - 1988 Summer Olympics, Seoul
    • The 1988 theme was commissioned by NBC Sports and was the theme for their television coverage of the 1988 Summer Games.
  • "Summon the Heroes" - 1996 Summer Olympics, Atlanta It commemorates the Centennial Celebration of the Modern Olympic Games and was premiered on July 19, 1996. The piece features heavy use of the brass and wind sections and is approximately six minutes in length. It is featured on the album Summon the Heroes. The opening trumpet solo in that recording is played by Timothy Morrison, then–principal trumpet of the Boston Pops. The piece has been arranged for various types of ensembles, including wind ensembles. This theme is now used prevalently by NBC for intros and outros for commercial breaks of the Olympics.

Notable compositions

Film scores

The following list consists of select films for which John Williams wrote the score and/or songs. Those films for which his music won an Oscar are in bold-face.

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Television themes

Concertos

  • Concerto for Flute and Orchestra (1969), premiered only in 1981 by the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra under Leonard Slatkin.
  • Concerto for Violin and Orchestra (1976 rev. 1998), premiered in 1981 by the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra under Slatkin.
  • Concerto for Tuba and Orchestra (1985), premiered by the Boston Pops for their 100th anniversary.
  • Concerto for Clarinet and Orchestra (1991).
  • Concerto for Bassoon and Orchestra (The Five Sacred Trees) (1993).
  • Concerto for Cello and Orchestra (1994).
  • Concerto for Trumpet and Orchestra (1996).
  • Elegy for Cello and Piano (1997), later arranged for Cello and Orchestra (2002). Based on a theme from Seven Years in Tibet.
  • TreeSong, Concerto for Violin and Orchestra (2000).
  • Heartwood: Lyric Sketches for Cello and Orchestra (2002).
  • Concerto for Horn and Orchestra (2003).

Celebration pieces and other concert works

  • Prelude and Fugue (1965), for orchestra. Available for download in MP3 at the United States Marine Band website.
  • Symphony #1 (1966), premiered by Houston Symphony under André Previn in 1968. Williams reworked it in 1988 but the piece was never performed.
  • Thomas and the King (musical, 1975), premiered in London. Recorded in 1981 by the Original Cast.
  • Jubilee 350 Fanfare (1980), it was premiered by the Boston Pops conducted by Williams. Piece celebrating the 350th anniversary of the City of Boston.
  • Liberty Fanfare (1986), premiered on July 4 1986 by the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra. Piece composed for the Centennial of the Statue of Liberty.
  • A Hymn to New England (1987).
  • For New York (Variations on theme by Leonard Bernstein) (1988). Composed for Leonard Bernstein's 70th birthday celebrations.
  • Celebrate Discovery (1990), composed for the 500th anniversary celebration of the arrival of Columbus to America.
  • Sound the Bells! (1993).
  • Song for World Peace (1994).
  • Variations on Happy Birthday (1995).
  • American Journey (1999). Portions premiered as accompaniment to a film by Steven Spielberg as part of the Millennium Celebration in Washington D.C. December 31, 1999.
  • Three Pieces for solo Cello (2001).
  • Soundings (2003), composed for the Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Awards

John Williams has won a total of five Academy Awards and four Golden Globe Awards. He has been nominated for 45 Academy Awards and holds the record for the most Oscar nominations for a living person, having the same number of nominations as Alfred Newman.

Williams has received two Emmy Awards, seven BAFTAs, twenty Grammy Awards, and has been inducted into the American Classical Music Hall of Fame and the Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame. In 2004 he received a Kennedy Center Honor. He also won a Classical Brit award in 2005 for his soundtrack work of the previous year.

Williams's richly thematic and highly popular 1977 score to the first Star Wars film was selected in 2005 by the American Film Institute as the greatest American movie score of all time. His scores for Jaws and E.T. also appeared on the list, at #6 and #14, respectively.

Academy Awards

  • Fiddler on the Roof (1971) (Scoring: Adaptation and Original Song Score)
  • Jaws (1975) (Original Score)
  • Star Wars (1977) (Original Score)
  • E.T. (1982) (Original Score)
  • Schindler's List (1993) (Original Score)

Grammy awards

  • Jaws (1975) (Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture)
  • Star Wars (1977) (Best Pop Instrumental Performance)
  • Main Title from Star Wars (1977) (Best Instrumental Composition)
  • Star Wars (1977) (Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture)
  • Theme from Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1978) (Best Instrumental Composition)
  • Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1978) (Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture)
  • Main Title Theme from Superman (1979) (Best Instrumental Composition)
  • Superman (1979) (Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture)
  • The Empire Strikes Back (1980) (Best Instrumental Composition)
  • The Empire Strikes Back (1980) (Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture)
  • Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) (Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture)
  • Flying (Theme from E.T.) (1982) (Best Instrumental Composition)
  • E.T. (1982) (Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture)
  • Flying (Theme from E.T.) (1982) (Best Arrangement on an Instrumental Recording)
  • Olympic Fanfare and Theme (1984) (Best Instrumental Composition)
  • Schindler's List (1993) (Instrumental Composition for a Motion Picture or Television)
  • Saving Private Ryan (1998) (Best Instrumental Composition Written for a Motion Picture or for Television)
  • Theme from Angela's Ashes (2000) (Best Instrumental Composition)
  • Memoirs Of A Geisha (2007) (Best Score Soundtrack Album For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media)
  • A Prayer For Peace (Theme from Munich) (2007) (Best Instrumental Composition)

Golden Globe Awards

  • Jaws (1975) (Best Original Score)
  • Star Wars (1977) (Best Original Score)
  • E.T. (1982) (Best Original Score)
  • Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) (Best Original Score)

Emmy Awards

  • Heidi (1968) (Outstanding Achievement in Musical Composition)
  • Jane Eyre (1971) (Outstanding Achievement in Musical Composition)

Pop-Culture References

  • In the Family Guy episode Brian Does Hollywood, John Williams is presented as a nominee for Best Musical Score in the fictional Adult Movie Awards. Unlike the other nominees, he is shown conducting a 48-piece orchestra.

See also

References

  1. ^ [1]
  2. ^ "Romanticism". Retrieved 2006-08-25. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  3. ^ "Behind the Scenes". Retrieved 2006-08-25. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
Wikiquote has quotations related to John Williams.
Preceded by Conductor, Boston Pops Orchestra
1980 – 1993 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
 
 Laureate Conductor, Boston Pops Orchestra
1993 – 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
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