"Without John Williams, bikes don't fly and neither do brooms in Quidditch matches nor do men in red capes. There is no Force, dinosaurs do not walk the earth. We do not wonder, we do not weep, we do not believe." -Steven Spielberg, AFI Lifetime Achievement Award speech for John Williams I couldn’t say it any better.
I absolutely love this music! I was at the 1984 Olympics closing ceremony. John Williams was conducting the orchestra. We'd been hearing for several days that the final closing show was going to be really amazing, but nobody knew what was going to be the "big surprise" before the final fireworks show. Finally, the lights were dimmed and the orchestra began to play, a somewhat subdued version of Williams' Olympic fanfare --as the lights dimmed further. All of us in the audience had been directed earlier to look under our seats, where we found, taped on, a plastic bag with a flashlight and we were told we'd get a signal when to turn those on. When the lights dimmed further down, we could hear heavy duty helicopter engines approaching the stadium in the dark and hovered over the stadium with no running lights, so we couldn't see anything yet. Then -- while the Olympic fanfare was still playing -- the signal was given and audience members all switched on their flashlights. (In the dark, the stadium was suddenly an oval filled with many thousands of individual stars.) And then -- above us -- bright lights flashed on from the gigantic "mother ship" of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and there, hanging over the stadium, was an enormous ring of complex lights. The "mother ship" then shone the lights and played the little 5-note progression of tones as in the film -- and the orchestra on the ground played the response! The two then began the musical and light-show "conversation" as in the film, only the orchestra incorporated its response into the Olympic fanfare! The audience members (including me) lost their collective minds and roared. In addition to the 100,000 or so people in the Colosseum, there were estimated to be about another 300,000 or more people who had gathered in the area outside the stadium in the surrounding park. Nearly half a million people were thus yelling at the top of their lungs, as the musical "conversation" ramped up speed. I'm not a musician, and I wish I could tell you exactly where and how John Williams layered the two themes so expertly and so powerfully -- but it was totally magical. John Williams is an absolute marvel and that moment (40 years ago now) is one I will never forget. Pure magic.
ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-FdW_4O7u3Gc.html The UFO was designed by none other than Bob Gerr, a Disney Legend and the designer of a great many of the most iconic rides and sights at the Disneyland Park.
Your recollection was spot on except for one small thing.... John Williams was not conducting that night. The only other live music being played other than Lionel Ritchie, was the Olympic All American Marching Band conducted by Art Bartner. Everything else was recorded and piped in. I know because I was in the band and John is a friend of mine. Now maybe you got confused as he DID conduct at the Opening Ceremonies. Either way it was a great show and yes John Williams is a national treasure. Truly Magic!😃
Hi everyone, I have a question. Is there a finite limit to musical compositions possible? For example, on a piano, say I theoretically wrote every 4 note melody possible, and every 4 beat chord progression possible on a piano. If I wanted to make a new song with an 8 note melody, wouldn’t I be just reusing two 4 note melodies I already used up if all had been written? And then, if I wrote a new song with a 16 note melody, wouldn’t I just be reusing four of the same 4 note Melodie’s put together? And so on. Does this prove music is finite?
I'm from L. A. and remember how the city was transformed for the 1984 Olympics. The night before the Opening Ceremonies a special concert, which I attended, was held at the Hollywood Bowl with the L. A. Philharmonic. John Williams was the conductor and he premiered his fanfare and theme, which he composed for the '84 Olympics, that night, the first time played in public. It was a very special evening.
Sounds like magic itself! I was 6 that year, in a totally different area of the country, but I remember hearing that music for the first time and I geeked out when I found out John Williams had written a majority of it. I was already a Williams fan because of "Superman" and "Star Wars." 😅
Hi everyone, I have a question. Is there a finite limit to musical compositions possible? For example, on a piano, say I theoretically wrote every 4 note melody possible, and every 4 beat chord progression possible on a piano. If I wanted to make a new song with an 8 note melody, wouldn’t I be just reusing two 4 note melodies I already used up if all had been written? And then, if I wrote a new song with a 16 note melody, wouldn’t I just be reusing four of the same 4 note Melodie’s put together? And so on. Does this prove music is finite?
I doubt he will be able to. Unfortunately he misses half his shows at the Hollywood Bowl because of health issues. I will be devastated when he is unable to conduct at all
Don't you get sick of the people that insist that Bach, Mozart, etc... are the pinnacle of musical ability and will never even be approached by a modern artist. They just dont understand that back then, they would have been seen as highly skilled, but "not as great as so and so" just like Williams, Zimmer, etc... get talked about now.
@kodywillnauer9422 I had someone telling me this in both this comment section and from other videos. That Williams is just an average composer and nothing special. That he could never live up to the likes of Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, etc... Tends to happen a lot, people deciding that they really like a particular person or time period. Therefore, it was the pinnacle of talent and can never be reached again.
Glad you gave Leo Arnaud his due here. I knew Leo in his later years after he retired to North Carolina. Not only was he a student of Ravel, he played in the trombone section at the premier of "Bolero" in 1928. Leo was quite a character with many great stories!
Hi everyone, I have a question. Is there a finite limit to musical compositions possible? For example, on a piano, say I theoretically wrote every 4 note melody possible, and every 4 beat chord progression possible on a piano. If I wanted to make a new song with an 8 note melody, wouldn’t I be just reusing two 4 note melodies I already used up if all had been written? And then, if I wrote a new song with a 16 note melody, wouldn’t I just be reusing four of the same 4 note Melodie’s put together? And so on. Does this prove music is finite?
@@jessebell186 I think by your reasoning, written language would be finite, because you could enumerate every 4-character sequence (a large number), and then every 8 character sequence is a combination of the 4's, and so on. But I think common sense tells us that written language is not finite -- no limit to the sentences or books that can be crafted -- and that's excluding the nonsensical strings of characters.
@@richarddoan9172 dude, u literally just explained why language is finite, and then just ignored it because "common sense". More cognitive dissonance (I'm not really trying to be mean or argue lol). But yeah, like what you said, language is finite, per amount of letters ur allowed to use. There's even a website ir something called the library of everything or something, where it's just a random or combinatorial generator of letters and spaces on a page, and people have recognized that there is sentences and stuff formed eventually. Somewhere in there, there is the full work of Shakespeare, all the world governments secrets, and the cure for cancer. But it's so impossibly massive that we would never find them.
@@mihailmilev9909 "But it's so impossibly massive that we would never find them." Exactly. _Hypothetically,_ it's finite. But _effectively,_ no, it's infinite. You will never randomly generate a full existing book without trying to - which is no longer generating it, but copying it. Not to mention new words that are invented all the time, and just plain nonsense.
@@jessebell186by your structure there's a limit to songs you can write in 4/4 time where the melody is straight quarter notes but there are other time signatures to use and other note values to use which broaden your horizons infinitely
I had the honor to see John Williams himself conducting in Berlin last year. He opened the concert with the Olympic Theme and I can‘t describe with words how fucking amazing that was. I will not forget this evening.
Epic is the word. The only modern piece that matches it in scope is Aaron Copland's Fanfare For The Common Man, perhaps Holsts Jupiter or Mars. But John William's has always knocked it out of the park. And like Copland, his,music just sounds American. Great video!
I saw Williams conduct the theme to Star Wars at Tanglewood in MA. It was spellbinding! The closest I think I’ve ever come to actual religious ecstasy. The audience was riveted to their seats, and the standing ovation at the end almost blew the roof off. Amazing performance!
You’d be surprised how much farther back Williams goes. He played the piano with Mancini for years before he started writing movie scores. He played the piano for the Peter Gunn theme, for example.
@FS2K4Pilot I think they mean that specifically the music written by Williams has essentially become the soundtrack for the time period. The majority of the most iconic soundtracks have come from him. That's why I find it insane that people say that he will just be forgotten because he isn't writing 4-5 hour long symphonies. Yeah, because nobody listens to stuff like that anymore. But his music is totally entwined with modern day entertainment and people think he'll be forgotten.
John Williams is the sound of USA Olympics. He created another masterpiece 12 years later at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics - “Summon the Heroes”. And here’s hoping that we will be graced with another epic new theme when it returns to LA 4 years from now.
@@tanyarobinson1146 I was a volunteer for Salt Lake 2002 and so got to attend the dress rehearsal for the Opening Ceremonies the day before. As it was the dress rehearsal, it was the full show minus the VIPS/athletes (we had volunteers stand in for them). So John Williams, the Utah Symphony Orchestra and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir performed "Call of the Champions", the piece Williams wrote for 2002. That was just an electric piece when hear in person.
In other words, everything John William touches, turns into gold. From Jaws to Star Wars and here the Olympics, John is the living embodiment of the word epic. Giving the Olympics its own special fanfare for the 1984 Olympics to outdo the Soviets and their Moscow 1980 opening was the perfect opportunity that changed Olympic broadcasting forever 1:45 just a head's up that the footage you used to represent the 1964 Winter Olympics is actually from the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, I know this because that big sign in the background with the rings is still there to this day as the Squaw Valley welcome sign. Also important to note that only American broadcasts of the Games continuously use the Fanfare and theme. The BBC does their own special intro for each Olympics, with each one more different than the last (their Beijing 2008 animated one that incorporated Journey to the West and Gorillaz is my favorite). Even the official Olympic broadcasting group, OBS, doesn't even use the fanfare.
There is an official Olympic Anthem from 1896 that also has some interesting chords. But perhaps also David Foster's 1988 "Winter Games" (Calgary) should be investigated further! Maybe just because it is the entire 80s collapsed into one song/video.
Did you know John Williams even composed the Thursday Night Football theme for NBC?! It's so much more rock than he's known for and I had no idea it was him, and yet it's still just as epic as all his other stuff!
Hi everyone, I have a question. Is there a finite limit to musical compositions possible? For example, on a piano, say I theoretically wrote every 4 note melody possible, and every 4 beat chord progression possible on a piano. If I wanted to make a new song with an 8 note melody, wouldn’t I be just reusing two 4 note melodies I already used up if all had been written? And then, if I wrote a new song with a 16 note melody, wouldn’t I just be reusing four of the same 4 note Melodie’s put together? And so on. Does this prove music is finite?
@@jessebell186 i dont think there is unless you have some sort of restraints just thinking in the timing of a piece there is an infinite amount of ways you could compose things although there is probably a limitation of it sounding good but it would still be a ridiculously high number thats just what i think tho it’s probably up to personal opinions
As a former tuba player (in high school, I dreamt of going to Ohio State University and auditioning for Marching Band (TBDBITL) so I could dot the "i" in Script Ohio and play the Buckeye Battle Cry solo while the rest of the band sang), I finally realized why the low brass existed when I heard my first John Williams movie score. I think it was Superman. Then Star Wars was released, and I was hooked. THEN, he goes and hits it out of the park with the Olympic Fanfare and Theme, and I LOVE how @Charles gets actually giddy when the basses get to punctuate the music as the instruments were intended to be used!! Love, LOVE, *LOVE* it!!! Thanks for this analysis and explanation of how our brains are teased along dissonance and atypical progression, only to return to home in glorious, full brass majesty to mighty orchestral power!
John Williams was a huge part of the reason I ended up deciding to pursue music as a career. His music was my childhood, and I don't think I'll ever stop loving the work he and those he worked with have done. Truly the most iconic composer of our time.
Same here man! That guy is seriously unbelievable, and still kicking at 90 now! He’s the one that made me want to pursue Composition, primarily for games TV and film. If you’re open to answering what’s your specific music major if you have one? It’s always fun to hear what people are pursing music wise
He’s the only reason why I play the French Horn. That has eventually brought me on a highly musical path and even has landed me in my state’s All State Band. Love John Williams.
@@expilectakunai I'm a high school band and orchestra teacher now. Best job in the world, in the sense that I just get to share my passion for music just like this every day. Also, best wishes in your compositional endeavors!
Charles it is not just you. I have been in love with this since I was nine years old watching the LA 84 games. I would come running when it came on for commercials for the Olympics. This anthem is so iconic. Even if I could not understand why it affected me, it always has, chills everytime...
I was 6 that year, and I was the same, not just for the music, but also to see Mary Lou Retton totally make the 84 Olympics her crowning achievement. Williams, King of Olympic music, and Mary Lou Retton, Queen of the gymnastics arena. Track & Field and swimming events are also my favorites.
Over the years, Williams has written 4 pieces for the Olympics. Besides the "Olympic Fanfare and Theme", "The Olympic Spirit" and "Summon the Heroes" are also incredible and still used extensively by NBC during their biennial Olympic broadcasts. (Speaking of NBC, John Williams also composed the theme for NBC Nightly News, still used every weekday, as well as the NBC Sunday Night Football theme song.)
Thank you for mentioning these other great Williams works. Olympic Spirit is my favorite of them. I remember that poor swimmer (Eric "The Eel" Moussambani) who was struggling to finish the race and hearing this accompany his event, like a superhero theme brought tears to my eyes😢 still does. Bless him, he got it done!!💪 The embodiment of "don't quit"
As an Olympian and lifelong Olympics nerd the music of the Games always brings me life and honestly helps to play when I’m in the middle of tough training days as a reminder of what I’m working for it’s just so iconic and ever since I was a kid it was the most instantly recognizable part of the Olympics and hearing that at the actual Games is something else entirely that is truly incredible
He's a great musician, but not one of the greatest composers of all time. That honor goes to the Masters- Bach, Mozart, Chopin, Debussy etc...Williams is beyond brilliant, but the great composers are in their own class of genius.
I absolutely LOVE watching someone have the same reactions as I do when listening to something so powerful. And is NOT JUST YOU!!! That chord gets me EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.
Perfection...this is Mr. Williams. I worked with him on 1st live performances of Star Wars. Talk about a wild rock concert! Audience went completely Nuts. Now re the Fanfare...I have always heard in my mind a chimes playing a descending scale heading into the final resolution. Am i the only one out there hearing this? Wow this was a great experience bringing so many warm memories of Mr. Williams
This is definitely one of my favorite compositions by John Williams! His arrangement of Bugler's Dream is great, but it is not the original intro to the song. Eventually, the Bugler's Dream intro was edited onto the beginning of John Williams's Fanfare and Theme, but it's not how he originally wrote it (that's why they aren't in the same key). Here's the song with its original introduction if you are interested: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-jlC9Bxzr5Oc.html
Thank you! I was hoping someone would know that the original ‘Fanfare’ section is not in this analysis. I love the original Williams fanfare - as a trombonist, particularly the second half when they take the fanfare melody.
had to scroll for way too long to find this. this version is highkey better but i guess the nbc execs wanted the nostalgia pull (not that i can blame them, bugler's dream slaps)
@@andrew23456able Nope. ABC wouldn't let NBC use the music, so NBC commissioned JW to write his version. As @arnhuizinga1574 points out, it was not part of the original JW composition. It was only after ABC was shamed into releasing the music that it was included in JW's music.
Surely I'm not the only one who gets teary-eyed with a lump in her throat while watching and listening to you so excitedly and enthusiastically remind all of us that music is amazing and BEAUTIFUL ❤ Thank you for that, Charles!
So cool to watch someone get as excited about this masterpiece from John Williams as I do when I hear it. I used to blast this on my commute to work every day. It doesn't get much more epic than this.
Late to the conversation, but the original public unveiling of William's theme can be seen here, along with a few minutes later another piece (by composer Marvin Hamlisch) "Welcome": ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-KhEpFaNTSng.html
not a musician, but a HUGE John Williams fan. so i knew. i even thought to myself even before that 84 Olympics that the organizers should hire JW to do their theme.
I was in the SMB drumline for a couple years and we had a John Williams themed show. It was AMAZING! Unfortunately, due to copyright there are NO videos of it 😭😭😭 It was the most difficult drill and music we did all season. So many people didn’t realize how great of a reach John Williams has had in music.
Our local Top 40 station played this on rotation during the 1984 Olympic season. This theme became the theme of my life's moment that time. And I relive it when I hear it.
I'll never forget when I heard in its entirety the recording you're using. Vinyl. Childhood home. Bedroom. Late 90s. Full volume. Teenager. The final C Major sforzando. Immediate goosebumps. I felt like I could barely breathe. The little needle skipping on the record player. Me: "Music is my purpose." And in one way or another, it always has been.
I played French Horn in concert band and a little orchestra through elementary, junior high, high school, college and, later, military band. I played a few Williams pieces and this one one of them! Soooooooo AWESOME! He loves French Horn and I always got a kick out of playing his stuff.
12:23 as I always say, the minor 9th is the only truly dissonant interval. It’s such good spice that it needs to be first mitigated with strong consonances (the 4th and b6th over the pedal also being maj3rd and 5th of the dissonant note) and then only used sparingly. But when it’s executed like how JW executes it… oh mama
So COOL!!! Along with thousands of others, I performed in the 1984 Olympics Opening Ceremonies (I was the Pioneer Dad in the family of “settlers” a la Little House on the Prairie that led the covered wagons on to the field!) I think because I was also one of 12 Assistants to Ron Field, the Broadway Choreographer who choreographed segments of the Opening Ceremonies, I ended up with a cassette tape of just the orchestral trac for the entire opening ceremonies, including all the spectacular John Williams compositions. I’m fairly certain a handful of us were given these for the 3 months of rehearsal. One core memory was hearing this at our rehearsals in the LA Coliseum the day & night before the ceremonies. We also saw the rehearsal for the TORCH! THRILLING!!!
His work with the 2002 winter olympics is forever burned in my mind. The Call Of Champions. It not only is a incredible musical piece. But was accompanied by one of the most incredible fireworks displays I've ever seen. I really pray that when Salt Lake city hosts the winter olympics in 2034 it will be used again for a spectacular finale to the Olympic games
Not to be overlooked is the absolutely fantastic performance given by the orchestra on this recording. The beautiful dynamics, the super clean articulation, and the insane swells knock me out every time I listen to this.
As long as John Williams is still with us, I hope to god that he continues composing. Hey International Olympic Committee, hire this man every single year to make another masterpiece! (just saying)
Your enthusiasm for brass is something I adore! I may not play myself, but my parents were in brass bands, and I grew up loving it, but I never found it in anyone else. It's wonderful to see
I love brass myself. In high school, I played a flute. The music teacher arranged the flutes to sit in front of the trumpets instead of the clarinets. Getting blasted by the brass in rehearsal turned me into a real brass fan.
Omg the pedal tone demo at 10:04. Of ALL the songs to find its way into a John Williams deconstruction lmao. The connections, his mind. This is why we love Charles.
I was fortunate enough to attend some Olympic events in 1984 and got to hear this live.....like changing. Watching the drumline in the opening ceremonies was what made me want to be in my middle school drumline.......have been fortunate enough to have made a career out of teaching/writing for drumlines and teaching percussion/general music full time at an elementary school.......crazy that watching the 1984 Olympics would have impacted me the way it did
Great analysis and engagement! As John Williams himself said in an interview, it tells the whole story of the athlete's journey from preparation, through the strain of the activity and finally ending up victorious with a medal in hand at the end. "The Olympic Spirit" and "Summon the Heroes" he wrote for subsequent Olympic Games are equally stunning, but this is by far my most favourite use of Willams' signature drum roll-cymbal clash-bass drum hit. Looking forward to the next tme you discuss more about John Williams goodness!
I like to think of the fanfare as a symbol of the timelessness of the Olympics, a tradition dating back to Ancient Greece. The bugle notes represent the past and the complex harmonies represent the present.
I can recall where I was and what I was doing when I first heard this fanfare. I'm a retired K-12 music educator from Minnesota. I taught band grades 5-12. A few of the groups could handle an easier arrangement of the fanfare. They absolutely loved it. Thanks very much for the analysis.
I’m so glad I’m not the only one who used to listen to this on repeat while riding the bus in school. That final brass run always gave me the chills, and watching you break it down brought them all right back 🎺
The feeling I always get when listening to the full fanfare is that each sport has its own mini-theme. John Williams is simply a blessing in our lives.
John Williams film music for "The Cowboys" is reminiscent of this particular composition and his incredible orchestral composition for NBC News. I so loved seeing your incredible analysis. I would sit mesmerized at a music conservatory listening to you. What made the video interesting for me, as well, is that I'm a professional trumpet player and pianist, and fake well on a church organ. THANK YOU for this incredible video. Your nearly 30 minute video felt like 15 minutes. 😊
As a trumpet player by trade, I applaud Charles’ quick and concise explanation of the trumpet and its history. Well done, keep the great analysis vids coming!
In the spring of 1996, our symphonic band played the concert band arrangement of this piece. Our high school is in Athens, GA, an hour due east of where they held the Summer Olympics, in Atlanta. I was principal tuba in that band, and the arrangement was in B-Flat Major instead of the original C Major. When I ripped that Bb0 -- which wasn't written in the arrangement (Bb1 was the written note) -- the whole band stopped playing and gawked at me. The band director asked me to play it again -- while the room was silent -- and his jaw dropped. He then told me to keep that note in the piece. That was one of the most epic moments of my junior year in high school.
It's not just you, Charles. Despite this being my first time hearing the Olympic fanfare, I am also losing my mind over those small but crucial details that just smack you in the face. Also, can we appreciate how excited he got when he realised the chord progression he was playing fit that song? His excitement is palpable and infectious. I love it!
The way John Williams does the volume on that last brass Bb maj7 (add 9) where he has a quick mf down to a p and then a crescendo that speeds up is the key to me that makes that one shower over you with the knowledge you’re about to witness epic stuff.
There are four actually, Fanfare and Theme (the theme in this video) Summon the Heroes Olympic Spirit Call of the Champions I personally prefer Summon the Heroes
I was 15 in 1984. My recollection is that ABC toggled being playing the fanfare theme and Williams' new theme. They weren't played together. The fanfare theme espoused the tradition of the Games while the Williams' theme, sounding like the Star Wars and Superman themes, made the athletes seem like superheroes.
This was nostalgic overload. I lived this more in 1996 Atlanta Olympics when I was a teenager, but this was a huge part of developing my love for the Olympics and music at the same time. Now do Summon the Heroes!
If I could give this a thousand thumbs up, that would not be enough. My GOSH Charles GETS IT and shows us in such a simple and entertaining way WHAT THE HECK WE ARE HEARING.
This theme, and the one he wrote for the broadcast of the '88 Games in Seoul are seared into my brain from watching the coverage of the '92 Games in Barcelona. Tears every time.
As a classical percussion player John Williams is one of my absolute favorite composers. You know you're probably in for a very fun and challenging time when it says "John Williams" in the top right corner. Olympic Fanfare is a challenging piece and the bridge with the double bass drum hit is cathartic. Also tuba players absolutely love this piece.
I was so happy to see that he brought this piece back last year by performing it with the berlin philharmonic. That recording is absolutely stunning. Probably the worlds best orchestra
Every french horn melody that I hear that JW uses (Leia's theme, the Harry Potter theme, Olympic Fanfair and theme) turns what is already an amazing song into a epic, memorable, singble theme.
John Williams is FANTASTIC! You can hear bits of Star Wars and Jurassic Park in the Olympic Theme. You could easily do an entire series of videos on Williams, going through all of his works. I'd watch that!
What you've said is literally impossible. Jurassic Park was not produced until nine years after the Los Angeles Olympics. So no you cannot "hear bits of ... Jurassic Park" in it. The other way round may be true but that's different.
@@davidpnewtonJohn Williams can have a few nice ideas that get put in small doses into one piece and then gets fully fleshed out in a later piece. It’s not that serious.
I did not know this! I do, however, remember hearing the difference in 1984 - the added fanfare, majesty & excitement of the theme. I love your unbridled enthusiasm talking us through it! John Williams rocks! Brilliant!
The Olympic fanfare usually makes me tear up just from the shear majesty of the piece in context with the amazing stories and sports moments I am about to watch from the games. Watching you break it down, left me just as emotional. Great content!
I grew up with this music, John Williams and his musical scores are a gift to humankind, what a time to be alive and hear those masyer compositions for the first time.
That B flat Major with the 9 on top is my absolute favorite too and I do feel exactly the same as you describe, like sunshine to my ears. John Williams writing for brass is epic!
Besides the musical composition genius of this piece, I love how his music gives space to be used for the broadcasters to tell and weave a story over the music to bring a little extra to the Olympic games. We don't really get that these days.
I got to meet Sir Leo when I was 13. He spent his latter years in rural Yadkin County, NC, where I grew up. As an aspiring musician, I was in awe of him and loved the stories he told about growing up and honing his craft. Changed my life!!
Agreed... follow up perhaps the masterpiece of Fanfare with Copland's majestic haunt. William's Olympic fanfare (with proper cue to Leo) makes my eyes water... it is not crying, it is something much more primal. Copeland's fanfare makes my hair stand on end. Both are brass at its best
This analysis is soooo gooood. So much history and depth to this iconic piece. I also appreciate this video so much because it brings back memories of when I played the Bugler's Dream in 6th grade before the Torino games and the Olympic Fanfare before the Vancouver games
This is a truly inspiring video. I have always loved this theme; it encompasses the hard work of the athletes and the true magic that happens when all the countries of the world come together and put aside their differences. The magic and power of achievement. Together as humanity we aspire to stars and soar amongst them. John Williams is able to take people on that journey; his music is awe inspiring.
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You are not the only kid who was listening to this on their ipod. As a french horn player, I always listened to all John Williams music and this was and still is one of my favorite pieces of music. Every time I listen to it, I get massive goosebumps. I loved this breakdown! Thanks for your work!
I'm not an expert-- or even an advanced beginner-- in music theory, but I love the deep analysis of this piece. You have to dig deep to find a short orchestral piece that tells such a clear story-- the orderly beginning, the chaos of competition, and the thrill of victory in turn. It's not just a great piece of music-- although it is-- it's a great piece of music that fits the context perfectly. Side note: very interesting to learn of the connections to Ravel-- "Bolero" is, of course, also inseparably linked to the Olympic Games through Torvill and Dean's GOAT ice dancing performance (and a hundred lesser imitators since then-- to the point where it's almost become cliched).
My thoughts exactly! It makes their choice to do the iconic Bolero routine even more perfect! What a wonderful connection to know. :) (T&D were always my faves, and established my lifetime love of watching ice dance; I have a whole playlist here in YT just for them!)
12:15 I feel like this chord is kind of what makes John's music for me. Other than the unforgettable melody writing of course. It's a sound that demands attention. It sounds... Wondrous... Mysterious... Ripe with anticipation? We feel the tension but the untrained ear probably couldn't tell you why, because it sounds so good at the same time.
I saw John Williams conducting this music at the Hollywood Bowl a couple of years back. It was accompanied by Olympic footage of athletes doing amazing things. It was a sight to behold and I'll never forget it.
I remember hearing this for the first time during the 1984 Opening Ceremonies broadcast when I was 19. It moved me to tears, it was so amazing. It still gives me chills.
Charles, thank you so much for this video. It is incredibly informative and entertaining as always, but more importantly to me, it has solved one of my greatest musical mysteries. I remember playing the Olympic Games on my grandfather's Commodore 64 and in the opening fanfare, there is a B section that I've never been able to find. It turns out that it is from Arnaud's Bugler's Dream. They probably included this because it was cheaper to license than Williams' piece. I've been unable to place this section for decades because I did not know that Arnaud's piece existed. Thank you so much for this musical peace of mind!
I love, love, love, love this analysis. I'm a church organist, playing since I was 12 (and am now 61). I've been entranced w/Williams' movie scores for as long as I can remember. He is BRILL-I-ANT, and I am absolutely fascinated at your analysis of what he's doing w/the Olympic score.
I’m in my 9th year in the Navy after only doing 1 year of music in college. I haven’t picked up my horn in 4 or 5 years but this 18:20 is exactly how I listen to orchestral music. This warms my heart.
