June 2, 2016
Shubert Theater
Program Notes
for
The Music of John Williams
Chelsea Tipton, conductor
NewHavenSymphony.org
John Williams in Concert
FIRST HALFSECOND HALF
Summon the Heroes
Cowboys Overture
E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial
“Hedwig’s Theme” from
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
“Theme” from Jaws
Harry’s Wonderous World
Jurassic Park
“Imperial March” from
The Mission Theme
Star Wars
Hymn to the Fallen
Star Wars Episode Seven:
The Force Awakens
Raiders March
Welcome to the NHSO!
Before the concert begins:
• Turn off any device that makes noise.
• Read the Program Notes for Kids.
• Locate the restrooms and exits.
• Look around at the architecture of the theater.
• Listen to musicians warm-up their instruments.
During the concert:
• Clap as people enter the stage.
• Listen quietly as the orchestra plays.
• Wait for every section (called movements) of a piece to be played, then clap. (Hint:
the conductor will turn to face you when it’s time.)
• During intermission, you are free to get up.
• At the end of the concert, people may stand up to show their appreciation. This is
called a standing ovation.
ENJOY!
Words & Music Literacy Project
supported by:
Instruments of the Orchestra
NewHavenSymphony.org
Tonight We’re Celebrating John Williams!
John Williams might be the most well-known movie music
composer in American history! Although he is best known for
this, he has also written a lot of other music - for the Olympics,
TV themes, and Classical compositions that major orchestras
play around the world. We’ll mainly be listening to his movie
music tonight.
Williams was born in New York in 1938, but moved to L.A.
when he was a teenager. He went to the famous Julliard
school in New York City to study piano after he finished his
time in the Air Force. Ever since then, he’s been composing
for a living.
In 1980, Williams became the Pops conductor for the Boston
Symphony Orchestra (BSO), but still kept composing full
time on the side! He kept this job until 1993, but still works
with the BSO every summer at Tanglewood.
Besides his Kennedy Center Honors that he won in 2004,
he’s won 5 Academy Awards, 4 Golden Globes, 22 Grammy
awards. Imagine how big his trophy collection is!
Here’s a list of some of John Williams’ films that he has written music for. Check off the ones that
you have seen or heard of!
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
The Patriot
Jaws
Sleepers
Harry Potter and the
Hook
Sorcerer’s Stone
Return of the Jedi
Star Wars
Seven Years in Tibet
Minority Report
Home Alone
Catch Me If You Can
Indiana Jones and the
Superman
Temple of Doom
The Terminal
Amistad
Jurassic Park
Memoirs of a Geisha
The Emperor Strikes Back
Empire of the Sun
Lincoln
Schindler’s List
Saving Private Ryan
Harry Potter and the
Chamber of Secrets
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Home Alone
The Adventures of TinTin
JFK
Angela’s Ashes
Summon the Heroes is the theme that Williams wrote for the
1996 Olympic Games that were held in Atlanta, Georgia.
Listen for LOTS of brass that call back and forth to one another.
“For my money, it’s Williams’ best concert piece, and maybe his
best piece, period.”
- American Journey Review
E.T.: Extra-Terrestrial is a movie from 1982 about a young boy,
Elliot, who finds an alien, becomes his friend, hides him from his
parents and the government, and helps him get back home.
Listen for unusual sounds from the celesta, harp, and piano.
Williams used them to help us picture E.T. as childlike and from
outer space.
The movie Jaws was made in 1975 and was based on a book that
came out the year before. It tells the story of a scary shark that hangs
around a beach-side town and how people try and get rid of it.
Listen for all the low notes played in the instruments - it makes the
music sound creepy!
Fun Fact
Even though the shark in the movie looks realistic, there were actually
three mechanical sharks used - no real ones!
Jurassic Park was made in 1993 and was based on a 1990 book. Imagine a
theme park where scientists made actual dinosaurs based off of DNA from
fossils...that’s what Jurassic Park was about! Everything was going fine until
one day the dinosaurs got loose...
The movie was so popular that we are still making Jurassic Park films today!
The Mission Theme was composed in 1985 and if you overhear
your parents listening to the news at night, you’ll definitely recognize
the theme! NBC commissioned (hired) John Williams to write this
piece for their Nightly News program with Tom Brokaw. When Brian
Williams took over for Tom Brokaw in 2007, the music was updated
and changed a little.
Hymn to the Fallen is from the 1998 movie Saving Private Ryan. The
movie is about people looking for one specific soldier (Private Ryan)
during World War II. For this film, director Steven Spielberg didn’t want
any music during any of the battle scenes, so Williams only wrote music
to be played during the credits and scenes with talking. Listen for drums
that are heard in the military, and the sounds of trumpet calls.
“Raider’s March” is the main theme for all of the Indiana Jones
movies. The first one, Raiders of the Lost Ark, was made in 1981
and tells the story of famous professor and archaeologist, Indiana
Jones, who must help defend the Ark of the Covenant (made in
ancient Egypt) from the Nazis. Listen for exciting brass music you can really picture Indiana Jones on his adventures!
The Cowboys is a 1972 film starring the legendary cowboy actor, John Wayne.
The story is about an older cowboy who needs to find new ranch hands. He
visits a school and decides to train some young boys to be his new workers.
“Cowboys Overture” is the movie’s title song, and really helps paint the
picture of open prairies and plains where horses and cowboys roam free.
In 1997, J.K. Rowling wrote Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s
Stone and began a series that possibly everyone has read!
(Or at least heard about...) You’ll hear two pieces today
from these movies. The first is Hedwig’s Theme, which
is named for Harry’s pet owl, Hedwig. Listen for the
special percussion instruments that make it sound eery
and magical! The second piece is Harry’s Wonderous
World, which is the main theme that comes from Harry
Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.
Darth Vader is the ultimate “bad guy” character! As the “Lord of the Darkside”
from the Star Wars movies, he has appeared in the Galactic Empire since the
first Star Wars movie in 1977. Although the “Imperial March” will be played
first (and was played in the movie whenever he was on screen), the Star Wars
Suite will be played last, and features themes found in the newest movie in the
series, The Force Awakens.
Fun Fact
“Darth Vader” means Dark Father and comes from the Dutch and German
languages.
How does a film composer.....compose for film?!
All film composers have different ways of writing music. Some read the film’s script and start
jotting down ideas before they even see the movie. Others wait until the movie starts shooting,
watch the actors perform their parts, and then start writing the music from there.
The hardest part about their job is that they often have very little time to write a long score. An
average score takes about a month to complete, but some film composers only have 2 weeks to
finish writing two hours of music!
After the score is complete, the composer, director, and other sound engineers record the
musicians playing the music with the movie playing in the background so that they can line up
the music with the movie.
Now it’s YOUR turn!
Pretend that you’ve been asked to write a film score for the following scenes in a movie. Picking from the
idea bank on the right (and using your imagination), how would you make the music sound to match
the action on the screen?
a cymbal crashes
1. A space shuttle is blasting off into outer space.
the orchestra plays quietly
____________________________________________________
the orchestra plays loudly
____________________________________________________
a piano plays by itself
2. Someone is trying to sneak up behind someone else.
the brass section plays
____________________________________________________
the music crescendos (gets
____________________________________________________
louder)
3. It’s a rainy day and a person is looking out a window.
____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________
the music decrescendos
(gets softer)
a solo violin plays
the orchestra plays slow music
If you like John Williams and want to hear other film
composers that are well-known, check out the following
people:
Thomas Newman
Howard Shore
Danny Elfman
Rachel Portman
Hans Zimmer
James Horner
James Newton Howard
Concert Review
Write about your experience at the concert tonight.
Who did you see? What did you hear?
What did you think about the music and the experience?
What would you like to tell the Maestro and the musicians?
We would love to know what you think!
Scan or copy this page and send it to us:
KidTix
Did
You
Know?
Kids go FREE to
ALL NHSO concerts!
The NHSO offers free KidTix for children
ages 7-17 with the purchase of an adult
ticket. Additional child tickets available
for $10 each. KidTix must be purchased
by phone by calling the NHSO box office
at 203.865.0831 x20.
Education Department
New Haven Symphony Orchestra
545 Long Wharf Drive, Sixth Floor
New Haven, CT 06511