‘Celebrating John Williams’, LA Phil Conducted by Dudamel Double Album Now Available (UPDATED with 3 New Reviews)

On March 15, Deutsche Grammophon released “Celebrating John Williams”, a double album recorded during the four concerts of Williams music conducted by Gustavo Dudamel between January 24 and 27 at the Walt Disney Concert Hall. The album includes the first official release of ‘Adagio for Strings from The Force Awakens‘, a new concert arrangement of music from the seventh Star Wars score premiered by Williams in 2018.

Purchase the album from Amazon.com

“CELEBRATING JOHN WILLIAMS”
Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Gustavo Dudamel
Recorded January 24-27, 2019 at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, CA

TRACK LIST

Disc 1

01. Olympic Fanfare and Theme
02. Excerpts from Close Encounters of the Third Kind
03. Out to Sea / The Shark Cage Fugue from Jaws
04. Hedwig’s Theme from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
05. Fawkes the Phoenix from Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
06. Harry’s Wondrous World from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
07. Theme from Schindler’s List
08. Adventures on Earth from E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial
09. The Flight to Neverland from Hook

Disc 2

01. Theme from Jurassic Park
02. Scherzo for Motorcycle and Orchestra from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
03. Marion’s Theme from Raiders of the Lost Ark
04. The Raiders March from Raiders of the Lost Ark
05. Sayuri’s Theme from Memoirs of a Geisha
06. The Imperial March from The Empire Strikes Back
07. Yoda’s Theme from The Empire Strikes Back
08. The Throne Room and Finale from Star Wars
09. Adagio from The Force Awakens
10. Superman March

Total Time: 1:35:17

Listen to the full album on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_ll6sgiqDqqf99gUOws2nl–OF3RMPF8nI

REVIEWS

  • The Legacy of John Williams – Fans and admirers were probably not-so thrilled at reading the programme, which featured virtually all the most famous pieces of Williams’ repertoire that have been performed and recorded hundreds of times in the last three decades. And here is where Dudamel’s touch and the LA Phil’s impeccable performance make the real difference. Williams’ music leaps off the page and shines a new light and even the most ubiquitous pieces like the “Imperial March”, the theme from Jurassic Park and the “Raiders March” get a new compelling character. The music sounds lush, grand and more sparkling than ever before, revealing all its colours and intricacies. – Full review
  •  *NEW* Adventures in Music – There is one new piece on the disc, a string orchestra arrangement from The Force Awakens, titled simply as Adagio (2015/2019). Based on some of the most contemplative material from the original film score, the Adagio is a splendid addition to the encyclopedia of concert pieces from the Star Wars saga. Wonderfully performed by the LA Phil strings and Dudamel, the Adagio is a perfect gem. – Full review
  • *NEW* A Certain Point of View – The double album also celebrates the friendship that links “the Phil’s” current music and artistic director, Venezuela-born Gustavo Dudamel, and Maestro Williams. The 38-year-old conductor was only five months old when Steven Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark premiered in June of 1981, and Dudamel grew up listening to most of the themes presented on the two compact discs. The admiration is mutual, and Williams acknowledged his respect for Dudamel when, in 2015, he asked him to conduct the Main Title for Star Wars: Episode VII  – The Force Awakens during that film’s scoring session. – Full review
  • *NEW* Financial Times – Given the concert-hall treatment, John Williams’s music has no trouble standing on its own feet. Just put the films out of your mind and listen. A medley of excerpts from Close Encounters of the Third Kind opens with the sort of atmospheric cloud of sounds that could belong in any contemporary music score. Without a shark sending shivers down the spine, it is easy to hear extracts from Jaws as movements from some all-American symphony. – Full review

See also:

‘Celebrating John Williams’, Jan 24-27 concert reviews, photos and videos