Conrad Pope Interview about Harry Potter scores

[Will 2,215]

Also there's the photo at the top of this thread that shows JKMS proofing a Williams Book Thief sketch. So at the very least apparently that sketch went directly to JKMS in condensed form, and they had to "expand" it:

 

 

3 minutes ago, karelm said:

There is no mystery here.  JW is an a list composer and uses A list team.  They are not amateurs at what the do.  They know how to take JW's sketches and translate it to a full score and exactly what he wants.  He is very clear in his intentions.

 

Well, yes, I suppose it doesn't really matter whether it's Williams "expanding" the sketches, or JKMS, or an orchestrator...

 

They're all good at it, plus it's basically a copyist job as Pope has said.

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

Exactly.  I don't think that at any point in Williams' career, Pope or any other orchestrator would actually have truly been necessary.  Skilled copyists can extract clear, complete parts from a "short score" format as Williams composes in as readily as from a previously prepared conductor's score. 

 

And you can conduct from such a condensed score as well, although maybe the JKMS people combine the parts into an engraved conductor's score once everything else is done?  It's probably as easy as clicking a button to do that, though I shy away from notation software and don't know for sure.

[Will 2,215]

Okay, @TheWhiteRider you've basically answered my question. Thanks.

[Sharkissimo 1,973]

3 hours ago, karelm said:

By the way, I think "6 horns, 2 tubas play with horns" means tubas are "col horns" so this is probably a low ominous passage where the 2 tubas are playing along "with horns" in unison.  I don't think JW has ever used a wagner tuba nor cimbasso. 

 

I haven't encountered any other examples but Williams has the 6 horns double on Wagner tubas for this short passage in ESB.

 

 

 

[karelm 2,913]

11 hours ago, Sharkus Malarkus said:

 

I haven't encountered any other examples but Williams has the 6 horns double on Wagner tubas for this short passage in ESB.

 

 

 

 

Good call.

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

Heartwood also sounds, to me, like there could be tubens in the brass, or else it's just some crafty and particularly lush doublings in the traditional section.

[Disco Stu 15,495]

Wasn't sure where to post this so I just chose the most recent Potter-related thread in the John Williams section.

 

Here's a nice 5-6 minute discussion of Williams' Harry Potter music with David Arnold participating in the discussion!

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07vw5mn

 

The part about Potter starts at about 25:00 in.

[Skelly 261]

A little weird that they'd have one composer try to dissect the composition of another. But Arnold got it spot-on.

[toothless 963]

Really interesting, thanks