I love your 2-piano arrangement so much that my friend and I recorded your arrangement in this video here: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-FC0cGzZshEo.html
That is actually the only example if a memorable piec of this score. Let's face it: Williams' inner well of inspiration has dried up long ago. Now he makes up for it with his experience.
@@Quotenwagnerianer Yeah, because Rey's Theme, Poe's Theme, Kylo's Theme, March of the Resistance, and the Scherzo for X-Wings haven't become iconic classics for Star Wars. Plus a lot of the hidden gems like "Rey Meets BB-8", "The Falcon", and "The Starkiller". Also it's not like he got nominated for an Oscar and won a Grammy for it. Sometimes I think people hate just for the sake of hating.
+ikschrijflangenamen It's a bit of notation I borrowed from the harp, it just means "let the notes ring". Really, it's just there to indicate that the arpeggio should ring till the end of the piece, which can simply be achieved with the sustain pedal (as signified with the "Ped."). It doesn't require any specific technique from the player.
This is great but i'm not a piano player. I love 1:34 to 2:53, I could listen to it all day.... if only I could play it I would but on my trumpet the super fast part is crazy hard.
Hi Thomas, I'm having a little trouble getting the file of the sheet music. Can you email it to me, or is there a better way for me to get that from you? Thanks and keep up the good work!
It's amazing how he gets away with breaking all those rules, I'm referring mostly to the voice leading and chord progressions, particularly the parallels and non-harmonic chords, but I guess that's in part why his music is so different from the great classical masters. To me, John's tonal palette is richer, more varied and nuanced, but it is understandable considering when he is doing his work. Forgive me for saying this, I am a huge fan of Mr. Williams, but in spite of what I just wrote above, this is not particularly good or memorable music, the inspired themes are just not there(here) in my opinion.
I don't see JW as "breaking" any rules. He's very good at setting the right tone for the occassion, and this is in large part due to his immaculate technique. His counterpoint and orchestrations are all very lucid and logical, and it all sounds very effortless (though not effortless to compose of course). His harmonic language is, let's say, complex when you compare it to vi-IV-I-V, but it's not that out there, especially when you consider his jazz beginnings. A lot of his harmonies are derived from polychords, and/or derived from modal scales. Not to get started on his classical work. A rule such as "do not use parallel fifths" only applies in specific cases, i.e. cases where you should not use parallel fifths... ;) As for your second point, I would say that the end credits is one of those pieces where the whole really does surpass the sum of its parts.
"A rule such as "do not use parallel fifths" only applies in specific cases, i.e. cases where you should not use parallel fifths... ; )" I generally agree, but while I cannot see the exact instrumental scoring here, based on the transcription(excellent job by the way, I'm not impugning your work in any way, it is fantastic and I greatly appreciate it) it seems he uses parallel fifths and thus overlapping chords a lot, like the sequence starting at 2:19 for example. This is absolutely breaking the rules of tradition, which do exist for a reason, to promote the independence of the individual voices. By the way, I'm not necessarily saying he does a bad job of it, he actually does it quite deftly, with great skill demonstrating his mastery, I'm just pointing out that he does do it. Off the top of my head(and based in large part on your work making it able for me to see the music), I can say he does the same in the Imperial March, the Superman prelude and March, and the Raider's March(all incredible musical works) just to name a few. Okay, I will admit to sort of liking Rey's theme, just a little bit, but it is quite simplistic and really repetitive to the point of redundancy. I will refrain from giving my thoughts on the March of the Resistance and Scherzo for X wings in respect for your channel and my reticence(or is it reluctance) to speak negatively and with profanity. Actually, I'll just call it some of the most pedestrian, uninteresting music he has ever written.
Parallel voicing stretches back all the way to Medieval times (i.e. parallel organum). The "rules of tradition" you say are really just rules of promoting independent voices, and Williams certainly does focus on writing independent voices when the music calls for it. But obviously the bit at 2:19 is not written with the intent of promoting independent voices. And anyway, John Williams is far and away not the first person to play with these techniques of planing chords, "non-harmonic" chords etc...But he is one of the best at it, and that is really where my credit for him goes, not as a rule-breaker. I am glad you liked the transcription!
Nah, the tune is slightly similar for the first few notes, but then goes in a completely different direction. Also, it's harmonized completely differently. Star Wars sounds more like King's Row than Debussy, and even that is a stretch.