What on earth is John doing with the strings here?

[Quintus 6,495]

6:50-7:06

The fabled (and stupidly disregarded) missing section.

I've never heard strings arranged and played in such a way in any other film score. Within the context of the scene, it's at once terrible, horrible impending doom (read: awesome); and Bee Gees late 70s' disco backing track, rolled into one!

Am I imagining and overstating its cue-uniqueness in the Maestro's oeuvre? Is it genuinely completely barking, or something much more normal/common than it seems?

[MSM 194]

edited

[crocodile 9,724]

Oh yeah I remember this bit from the film. It's pretty cool.

Karol

[Sharkissimo 1,978]

What you're hearing are violins, violas and cellos playing in 3 octaves (Williams loves writing for strings in several octaves) - very in their respective range. The Bee-Gees feel is Williams trying to work on-top of that funky timbales, conga, bongo, log drum, gourd, bass drum groove he's got going on. Lots of semiquavers and quaver rests.

It's unique in the canon in that it's something Williams would usually do in the low strings doubled by piano + bass and contrabass clarinets + bassoons and contrabassoons. Clearly the shrill sound here was meant to mimic Eddie's death cries as he's ripped apart by a Tyrannosaur couple.

[MSM 194]

Yes that passage sounds quite frenetic. It's just JW's thorough counterpoint writing at display.

[Sharkissimo 1,978]

ff

[MSM 194]

What you're hearing are violins, violas and cellos playing in 3 octaves (Williams loves writing for strings in several octaves) - very in their respective range. The Bee-Gees feel is Williams trying to work on-top of that funky timbales, conga, bongo, log drum, gourd, bass drum groove he's got going on. Lots of semiquavers and quaver rests.

I think from 7:00 it's just violins and high WW are playing the counterpoint, the celli are joining the basses. Sounds a bit unusual indeed.

[Quintus 6,495]

What you're hearing are violins, violas and cellos playing in 3 octaves (Williams loves writing for strings in several octaves) - very in their respective range. The Bee-Gees feel is Williams trying to work on-top of that funky timbales, conga, bongo, log drum, gourd, bass drum groove he's got going on. Lots of semiquavers and quaver rests.

It's unique in the canon in that it's something Williams would usually do in the low strings doubled by piano + bass and contrabass clarinets + bassoons and contrabassoons. Clearly the shrill sound here was meant to mimic Eddie's death cries as he's ripped apart by a Tyrannosaur couple.

Thank you.

So, unique it is most probably is. Is it catalogued as such? It ought to be.

[Sharkissimo 1,978]

What you're hearing are violins, violas and cellos playing in 3 octaves (Williams loves writing for strings in several octaves) - very in their respective range. The Bee-Gees feel is Williams trying to work on-top of that funky timbales, conga, bongo, log drum, gourd, bass drum groove he's got going on. Lots of semiquavers and quaver rests.

I think from 7:00 it's just violins and high WW are playing the counterpoint, the celli are joining the basses. Sounds a bit unusual indeed.

No WWs. Just strings in octave. Basses are doubling low brass and synth.

See here:

[MSM 194]

What you're hearing are violins, violas and cellos playing in 3 octaves (Williams loves writing for strings in several octaves) - very in their respective range. The Bee-Gees feel is Williams trying to work on-top of that funky timbales, conga, bongo, log drum, gourd, bass drum groove he's got going on. Lots of semiquavers and quaver rests.

I think from 7:00 it's just violins and high WW are playing the counterpoint, the celli are joining the basses. Sounds a bit unusual indeed.

No WWs. Just strings in octave. Basses are doubling low brass and synth.

But a few bars later, video from 6:59 I clearly hear violins + flutes/piccolo in unison.

[Sharkissimo 1,978]

What you're hearing are violins, violas and cellos playing in 3 octaves (Williams loves writing for strings in several octaves) - very in their respective range. The Bee-Gees feel is Williams trying to work on-top of that funky timbales, conga, bongo, log drum, gourd, bass drum groove he's got going on. Lots of semiquavers and quaver rests.

I think from 7:00 it's just violins and high WW are playing the counterpoint, the celli are joining the basses. Sounds a bit unusual indeed.

No WWs. Just strings in octave. Basses are doubling low brass and synth.

But a few bars later, video from 6:59 I clearly hear violins + flutes/piccolo in unison.

Your ears are deceiving you. Winds returns at 7:!7.

[MSM 194]

What you're hearing are violins, violas and cellos playing in 3 octaves (Williams loves writing for strings in several octaves) - very in their respective range. The Bee-Gees feel is Williams trying to work on-top of that funky timbales, conga, bongo, log drum, gourd, bass drum groove he's got going on. Lots of semiquavers and quaver rests.

I think from 7:00 it's just violins and high WW are playing the counterpoint, the celli are joining the basses. Sounds a bit unusual indeed.

No WWs. Just strings in octave. Basses are doubling low brass and synth.

But a few bars later, video from 6:59 I clearly hear violins + flutes/piccolo in unison.

Your ears are deceiving you. Winds returns at 7:!7.

Hm ok But still (low) octaves in the strings? It sounds like the celli are joining the basses, but I am not sure now.

[Datameister 2,586]

It's a brilliant passage. In addition to the ever-ascending panic in the strings, you've got the low brass plodding through those enormous T rex footstep chords. Those are doubled with chimes (great for death knells) and synth organ (just for a little more gothic immensity).

But of course, all these associations are the sort of thing any reasonably imaginative fellow could come up with. What's truly remarkable is the way Williams was able to take all of these (whether consciously or subconsciously) and blend them together to create a passage that makes perfect musical sense and truly doesn't sound quite like anything else I've heard.