{"id":5279,"date":"2012-12-14T19:45:37","date_gmt":"2012-12-14T19:45:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jwfan.com\/?p=5279"},"modified":"2012-12-14T19:54:08","modified_gmt":"2012-12-14T19:54:08","slug":"john-williams-interview-in-bbc-radio-3s-composer-of-the-week","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jwfan.com\/?p=5279","title":{"rendered":"John Williams Interview in BBC Radio 3’s \u201cComposer Of The Week\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

BBC Radio 3 will be celebrating John Williams\u2019 life and music in a series of five daily programmes from\u00a0Monday 14th<\/sup>\u00a0to Friday 18th<\/sup>\u00a0January<\/strong>\u00a0as part of the station’s \u201cComposer Of The Week\u201d series.<\/p>\n

The programmes are based upon an exclusive two-hour interview the BBC conducted with John Williams in September this year at Universal Studios, with the composer in conversation with presenter Donald Macleod. The series will feature\u00a0more than four hours<\/strong>\u00a0of John Williams\u2019 music<\/strong>, spanning his entire career \u2013 and as well as excerpts from Star Wars<\/em>, E.T.<\/em>, Schindler\u2019s List<\/em>, Jurassic Park<\/em>, Harry Potter<\/em>, A.I.<\/em>, Tintin<\/em>\u2026and many many more \u2013 it\u2019ll be featuring a selection of his concert and jazz work, including his flute, violin and bassoon concertos, and his score to \u201cCheckmate\u201d.<\/p>\n

The series can be heard daily at noon (repeated 6.30pm), anywhere in the world on the BBC Radio 3 website:\u00a0www.bbc.co.uk\/radio3<\/a><\/p>\n

There will be further information on the BBC\u2019s website \u2013 including an exclusive \u2018teaser\u2019 of the interview \u2013 early in the New Year.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

PROMOTIONAL NOTE<\/h5>\n

Composer Of The Week: JOHN WILLIAMS<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Monday 14th<\/sup> \u2013 Friday 18th<\/sup> January, 1200-1300 and 1830-1930, BBC Radio 3<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Listen live online at http:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/radio3<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Film music legend John Williams speaks exclusively to BBC Radio 3\u2019s Composer Of The Week, with more than four hours of music spanning Williams\u2019 entire career \u2013 including his scores to Star Wars, E.T., Schindler\u2019s List, Harry Potter\u2026and many many more\u2026<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

John Williams is probably the most recognised \u2013 and popular \u2013 composer in the world today. In a career spanning more than half a century, he\u2019s delighted and entranced audiences with his scores to an unparalleled roll-call of movie blockbusters, and taken film music out of the cinema and into the living rooms of millions of people worldwide. He\u2019s been nominated for more Oscars than anyone in history, after Walt Disney.<\/p>\n

At the end of Williams\u2019 80th<\/sup> birthday year, he discusses his remarkable life in music and film with Donald Macleod, in an interview recorded last Autumn at Universal Studios, Los Angeles \u2013 with five hour-long episodes showcasing some of Williams\u2019 most beloved scores and works for the concert hall.<\/p>\n

Fans of Williams\u2019 famous music to Star Wars will enjoy Tuesday and Friday\u2019s programmes, as we feature extended excerpts from across all six movies in the Star Wars series, including one of Williams\u2019 most brilliant musical sequences \u2013 the Battle Of Hoth, from The Empire Strikes Back. Williams chats to Donald Macleod about how he and George Lucas dreamed up the score to this \u2018space opera\u2019, the plot clues he secreted deep in the musical score, and the challenge of returning to his music nearly two decades on\u2026<\/p>\n

But naturally, it\u2019s John Williams\u2019 relationship with Steven Spielberg that dominates the week, as he talks about how a chance meeting with a rookie director in 1974 blossomed into one of the most brilliant partnerships in movie history \u2013 and comments on Spielberg\u2019s own keen musical ear\u2026<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll hear extended excerpts from Williams\u2019 Spielberg scores throughout the week, beginning with E.T., Close Encounters<\/em> and Jaws <\/em>on Monday and Tuesday \u2013 before Wednesday\u2019s episode concentrates on Williams\u2019 tragic, Oscar-winning music to Schindler\u2019s List<\/em>, as the composer discusses how he approached the almost impossible task of composing music for Spielberg\u2019s Holocaust drama.<\/p>\n

Thursday and Friday bring us right up to date, as Williams chats about creating music for the fantastical worlds of Harry Potter <\/em>and Jurassic Park<\/em>, and his recent scores to A.I.<\/em> and Tintin<\/em>. Williams also lifts the lid on his work on a host of other Hollywood directors, including his scores for Richard Donner\u2019s Superman<\/em>, Oliver Stone\u2019s J.F.K.<\/em>, and \u2013 most surprisingly perhaps \u2013 his score to Alfred Hitchcock\u2019s last film, Family Plot<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n

But this week is not just about film. John Williams has enjoyed an acclaimed career as jazz bandleader and conductor and composer for the concert hall. Throughout the week, we\u2019ll be hearing about this less well-known side of his career \u2013 as he talks about his early life as a jazz pianist, writing TV scores in the studio hothouses of Los Angeles, and the orchestral concert works that have spanned his career. Listeners who thought Williams was \u2018just a film composer\u2019 might be surprised, as he evokes Stravinsky, Bernstein and Tippett in a series of acerbic and effervescent instrumental concerti.<\/p>\n

John Williams speaks exclusively to Donald Macleod in \u201cComposer Of The Week\u201d, from 14th<\/sup> \u2013 18th<\/sup> January on BBC Radio 3.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

FULL PLAYLIST<\/h5>\n

COMPOSER OF THE WEEK: JOHN WILLIAMS<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

BBC Radio 3 \u2013 14th<\/sup>-18th<\/sup> January 2013 \u2013 1200, repeated at 1830<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Listen online at http:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/radio3<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

MONDAY<\/p>\n

John Williams talks to Donald Macleod about a meeting with a young rookie director that changed movie history. Williams discusses the lunch date with Steven Spielberg in 1972 that precipitated one of the film\u2019s greatest partnerships \u2013 as well as introducing his pioneering score to Spielberg\u2019s \u201cClose Encounters Of The Third Kind\u201d.<\/p>\n

Before that, we hear about Williams\u2019 early life in jazz, working with Henry Mancini and Andr\u00e9 Previn, and composing big band jazz scores for television \u2013 including the detective drama Checkmate<\/em>. He discusses the perils of the hothouse studios of the 1960s, and introduces his score to the TV film Jane Eyre, for which he visited the Yorkshire Dales.<\/p>\n

The programme ends with the first of a series of Williams\u2019 concert works \u2013 the pungently dissonant, Bart\u00f3k-tinged Flute Concerto from 1969.<\/p>\n

E.T. \u2013 Flying Theme <\/strong><\/p>\n

LSO \/ John Williams<\/p>\n

Checkmate (1960)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Main Theme \u2013 2.14<\/em><\/p>\n

The Bishop\u2019s Retreat \u2013 3.10<\/em><\/p>\n

Cyanide Touch \u2013 2.35<\/em><\/p>\n

The Johnny Williams Orchestra<\/p>\n

Jane Eyre (1971)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Theme from \u201cJane Eyre\u201d \u2013 3.18<\/em><\/p>\n

Restoration \u2013 3.43<\/em><\/p>\n

City Of Prague Philharmonic \/ Nic Raine\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Suite: Close Encounters Of The Third Kind (1977)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra \/ Zubin Mehta\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Flute Concerto (1969)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Peter Lloyd (flute)<\/p>\n

LSO \/ Leonard Slatkin<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

TUESDAY<\/p>\n

Star Wars: the greatest movie score of all time, according to the American Film Institute \u2013 exclusively introduced by the composer himself on BBC Radio 3.<\/p>\n

John Williams talks to Donald Macleod about the most famous film score in history. He discusses the moment George Lucas proposed his \u201cspace opera\u201d, and explains why he chose the \u2018old-fashioned\u2019, lush Romantic style of Tchaikovsky and Korngold to accompany this futuristic tale of aliens and spaceships.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll hear some of the most memorable musical moments from the first three films to be made (Episodes IV-VI), including the iconic Main Title, the Imperial March, and Luke and Leia\u2019s Theme. Donald Macleod also introduces perhaps the finest extended musical sequence in the series: Williams\u2019 mesmerising score to the battle on the ice planet of Hoth.<\/p>\n

The programme ends with a deeply personal work in Williams\u2019 career \u2013 his Violin Concerto, written by the grieving composer after the tragic death of his first wife, Barbara Ruick Williams; a tragedy that overshadowed the huge success his music enjoyed in the mid 1970s.<\/p>\n

Jaws (1975): Main Title<\/strong><\/p>\n

Universal Studios Orchestra \/ John Williams\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Star Wars: Episode IV \u201cA New Hope\u201d (1977)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Main Title \u2013 Rebel Blockade Runner <\/em><\/p>\n

Leia\u2019s Theme <\/em><\/p>\n

The Millennium Falcon \/ Imperial Cruiser Pursuit<\/em><\/p>\n

LSO \/ John Williams<\/p>\n

Star Wars: Episode V \u201cThe Empire Strikes Back\u201d (1980)<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Battle Of Hoth <\/em><\/p>\n

The Imperial March \u2013 Darth Vader\u2019s Theme<\/em><\/p>\n

LSO \/ John Williams<\/p>\n

Violin Concerto \u201cIn Memory of B.R.W.\u201d (1976)<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

I. Moderato<\/em><\/p>\n

Gil Shaham (violin); Boston SO \/ John Williams<\/p>\n

Star Wars: Episode VI \u201cReturn Of The Jedi\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Luke and Leia<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

WEDNESDAY<\/p>\n

John Williams talks to Donald Macleod about working with Steven Spielberg on the Holocaust drama, Schindler\u2019s List<\/em> \u2013 and how he approached the enormous challenge of writing music to complement such a tragic and harrowing story. We\u2019ll hear excerpts from his Oscar-winning score, infused with the inflections of Jewish traditional music.<\/p>\n

Before this, a very different \u2013 and much loved \u2013 Spielberg score: Williams\u2019 music to the \u201cIndiana Jones\u201d series of films, and the composer\u2019s Olympic Fanfare, written for the Los Angeles Summer Games of 1984, and reprised every games since.<\/p>\n

We end with a real rarity, and likely a real surprise to many: John Williams\u2019 score to Alfred Hitchcock\u2019s last film, Family Plot. Williams is one of the very few people in history to have worked closely with both Hitchcock and Spielberg \u2013 and he tells us how these two directorial giants compare\u2026<\/p>\n

Superman (1978): Main Title<\/strong><\/p>\n

LSO \/ John Williams<\/p>\n

Indiana Jones and the Raiders Of The Lost Ark (1981)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull (2008)<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Adventures Of Mutt <\/em><\/p>\n

Raiders March<\/em><\/p>\n

Hollywood Studio Orchestra \/ John Williams<\/p>\n

Olympic Fanfare (1984)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Orchestra of the Brandenburg State Opera, Cottbus \/ Evan Christ\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

J.F.K. (1991): Arlington and End Titles<\/strong><\/p>\n

City of Prague Philharmonic \/ Nic Raine<\/p>\n

Schindler\u2019s List (1993) <\/strong><\/p>\n

Theme From Schindler\u2019s List <\/em><\/p>\n

Oyf\u2019n Pripetshok \/ Nacht Aktion <\/em><\/p>\n

Remembrances <\/em><\/p>\n

Theme From Schindler\u2019s List (Reprise)<\/em><\/p>\n

Itzhak Perlman (violin); Giora Feldman(clarinet);<\/p>\n

Li-Ron Herzeliya Children\u2019s Choir + Boston Symphony Orchestra \/ John Williams<\/p>\n

Family Plot (1976): End Title<\/strong><\/p>\n

City Of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra \/ Paul Bateman<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

THURSDAY<\/p>\n

Music of the fantastical and the fabulous today, as John Williams explains to Donald Macleod how he created his scores to Jurassic Park and to the Harry Potter series \u2013 with musical highlights from the first three Williams-scored films, in which the composer\u2019s love of Viennese waltzes, big band jazz, and Victorian Gothic are given free rein\u2026<\/p>\n

After a unique concerto for bassoon and orchestra, inspired by trees and the writings of Robert Graves, John Williams introduces a score unique in his output \u2013 his music to Spielberg\u2019s A.I.: Artificial Intelligence,<\/em> in which he draws upon the minimalist style of Philip Glass and John Adams to create one of his finest futuristic scores.<\/p>\n

Suite From Jurassic Park (1993)<\/strong><\/p>\n

City Of Prague Philharmonic Philharmonic \/ Paul Bateman<\/p>\n

Bassoon Concerto: Five Sacred Trees (1995)<\/strong><\/p>\n

III. E\u00f3 Rossa <\/em><\/p>\n

IV. Craeb Uisnig<\/em><\/p>\n

Judith Le Clair (bassoon); LSO \/ John Williams<\/p>\n

Excerpts from the \u201cHarry Potter\u201d series<\/strong><\/p>\n

Harry Potter and the Philosopher\u2019s Stone (2001)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hedwig\u2019s Theme<\/em>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Aunt Marge\u2019s Waltz <\/em><\/p>\n

The Knight Bus <\/em><\/p>\n

Professor Hagrid
\nThe Dementors Converge<\/em><\/p>\n

Studio Orchestra \/ John Williams<\/p>\n

A.I.: Artificial Intelligence (2001)<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Mecha World<\/em><\/p>\n

Rouge City<\/em><\/p>\n

The Reunion<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Studio Orchestra \/ John Williams<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

FRIDAY<\/p>\n

John Williams talks exclusively to Donald Macleod for the final time this week, with Star Wars once more taking centre stage\u2026<\/p>\n

Williams discusses the challenges of returning to the series, nearly two decades on, and the hidden plot clues hidden deep in his music\u2026We\u2019ll hear highlights from Williams brand new music for the three \u2018prequels\u2019 (Eps I-III), including \u201cDuel Of The Fates\u201d and the climactic \u201cBattle Of The Heroes\u201d.<\/p>\n

The programme opens with two works that throw back to his background in big bands and concert halls some of his most recent scores \u2013 the effervescent, jazz-infused Main Title from Tintin \u2013 and a spiky, Stravinskyan Horn Concerto. We also showcase one of Williams\u2019 most haunting scores of the previous decade \u2013 his music to Rob Marshall\u2019s Memoirs Of A Geisha.<\/p>\n

Donald ends the week with thoughts on Williams\u2019 career and position as \u201cAmerica\u2019s composer\u201d, a unique musical voice transcending popular and classical music, and the inheritor of a mantle once held by Gershwin, Copland and Bernstein. The week plays out with Williams\u2019 music for the inauguration of Barack Obama in 2008 \u2013 his \u201cAir and Simple Gifts\u201d.<\/p>\n

The Adventures of Tintin (2012): Main Title<\/strong><\/p>\n

Studio Orchestra \/ John Williams<\/p>\n

Memoirs Of A Geisha (2005)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sayuri\u2019s Theme<\/em><\/p>\n

Chiyo\u2019s Prayer<\/em><\/p>\n

The Chairman\u2019s Waltz<\/em><\/p>\n

Sayuri\u2019s Theme And End Credits<\/em><\/p>\n

Horn Concerto (2003)<\/strong><\/p>\n

I. Angelus: \u201cFar Far Away, Like Bells\u2026At Evening Pealing\u201d \u2013 5.40<\/em><\/p>\n

II. The Battle Of The Trees: \u201cSwift Oak\u2026Stout Guardian Of The Door\u201d \u2013 2.11<\/em><\/p>\n

Karl Pituch (horn); Detroit SO \/ Leonard Slatkin<\/p>\n

Excerpts from Star Wars Eps 1-3 (1999-2005)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Star Wars: Episode 1 \u201cThe Phantom Menace\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Duel Of The Fates<\/em><\/p>\n

Anakin\u2019s Theme<\/em><\/p>\n

Star Wars: Episode 2 \u201cAttack Of The Clones\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Across The Stars<\/em><\/p>\n

Star Wars: Episode 3 \u201cRevenge Of The Sith\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Battle Of The Heroes<\/em>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

London Voices & LSO \/ John Williams<\/p>\n

Air and Simple Gifts (2008)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Anthony MacGill (clarinet); Itzhak Perlman (violin); Yo-Yo Ma (cello); Gabriela Montero (piano)<\/p>\n

\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BBC Radio 3 will be celebrating John Williams\u2019 life and music in a series of five daily programmes from\u00a0Monday 14th\u00a0to Friday 18th\u00a0January\u00a0as part of the station’s \u201cComposer Of The Week\u201d series. The programmes are based upon an exclusive two-hour interview…<\/p>\n

Read more →<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5279","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-interviews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jwfan.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5279","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jwfan.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jwfan.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jwfan.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jwfan.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5279"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/jwfan.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5279\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5291,"href":"https:\/\/jwfan.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5279\/revisions\/5291"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jwfan.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5279"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jwfan.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5279"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jwfan.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5279"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}