Music by John Williams (courtesy Disney+) Photo: Supplied
There's a new movie out with a soundtrack by John Williams - only this latest release happens to be about the film composer himself.
Dan Slevin reviewed the documentary "Music by John Williams" for RNZ National's At the Movies earlier this month.
As well as being a good doco, it also rekindled Slevin's love for the maestro's music.
Slevin spoke to RNZ Concert host Bryan Crump about his first memories of a Williams soundtrack (the composer is now in his 90s and is still writing), his early influences (his father worked as a musician for live radio, then in Hollywood), and some of his lesser known scores.
Irony is, when Williams made his movie breakthrough with the sound track for the Steven Spielberg's early '70s thriller Jaws, orchestral movie music was considered old hat.
Slevin repeats a point made in the documentary: whether it be Jaws, Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Jurassic Park, Schindler's List, or Harry Potter, the movie scores of John Williams have been the gateway for thousands of people into the world of orchestral classical music.
Film critic, Dan Slevin. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
