Steven Spielberg at the Recording of the Music for Saving Private Ryan

[The Dark Trilogy 40]

Never seen it before. I think those ones are worth enough to open a new thread. I didn't want to put those in the youtube clips thread, because this is Williams' related and not general discussion. Hope you don't mind.

[Once 1,083]

Two really interesting clips! Thanks!

[Uni 307]

LOVE these two clips. It's fun to see the director and composer BSing with the players during some down time. I think we get a natural picture of them as being too big and important for the little people, even at something like this. It's great to know they take time for the folks who are lending their talent to the entire sound of such a great score.

The first clip is both totally cool and completely frustrating. We get to see the process live and in action, but—which #@*%&! transition are they referring to? What I wouldn't give to know which piece this is, and how it sounded originally compared to Spielberg's revision. That would be a chance for us to truly experience film scoring as it happens.

- Uni

[indy4 160]

Wow that is awesome. Thanks for sharing! Always wondered what conversations between these two were like. JW doesn't seem too happy about the change in the first clip, although maybe he's just thinking.

[chinaismine 64]

Really cool videos, thanks for posting!

[publicist 4,650]

Ha, Williams in passive-aggressive mode in the first clip when Spielberg demands more strings. At least that's the way i keep stalling on undesirable tasks.

[indy4 160]

Is there anyway to contact the uploader? I can't seem to find anything, and I'd like to ask them to upload any more of these things if they are willing!

[Thor 9,362]

God, these are fantastic! Thank you so much for sharing.

I could see hours and hours of this stuff.

[fommes 165]

Interesting stuff. I'd like to know what cue they're talking about too

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 12,386]

Hours and hours? Thats far too long and boring. I would like interviews like that to be nice and short, and arranged in such a way that they maximize viewing pleasure

[Quintus 6,496]

I could watch this stuff for fifty seven years.

[ZackR 187]

So could I. This is great to see and definitely thread-worthy!

[Uni 307]

Wow that is awesome. Thanks for sharing! Always wondered what conversations between these two were like. JW doesn't seem too happy about the change in the first clip, although maybe he's just thinking.

I promise you, he was just thinking. There's nothing "passive-aggressive" in his interaction with Spielberg. This is what directors and composers do during the scoring sessions—or what they should do. The composer's job is to make the director happy, and they're always ready to make adjustments on the fly in order to cater to the needs of the film. (Goldsmith was legendary for this.)

That's especially true when a) the relationship between the two goes back decades; b) said relationship is predicated on common understanding and and easy rapport; and c) the director considers music as important an element in the film as any other component (as Spielberg always has). Spielberg doesn't necessarily understand the intricate language and technicalities of music, but he knows the palette available to him, and how much he can reasonably draw from it. In this case, we see him making a request that's not a simple matter of adding a few measures in one section of the orchestra. It requires modulation at the very least, and a possible transposition for another section at the most. There are logistics involved in such a change—the time needed to reorchestrate, get the changes to the musicians, make sure everyone's on the same page with it, etc.—and you can see Williams taking those logistics into account here. Spielberg's aware of them too, which is why he suggests moving the recording for that cue back a day to compensate.

But Williams isn't seething with resentment at the idiotic director interfering with his masterpiece. He's just working through the puzzle, looking for the right fix. They've done this a hundred times together before. If only we could hope they'd both be around to do it a hundred more. . . .

- Uni

[Thor 9,362]

Yeah, I interpreted it as thinking too -- i.e. how to solve whatever the problem was in the best possible way for his artistic director.

[nightscape94 968]

This just further illustrates the apparent stockpile of footage that Spielberg has of Williams during recording sessions. Great stuff.

[karelm 3,271]

Fantastic! I'm very impressed with how Spielberg really shaped the final result too. So wonderful to see two geniuses at work! These videos are inspiring to me.

[russds 8]

Great videos! Thanks for posting! Definitely warranted a new thread in my opinion.

What struck me most, was the first video: here's Spielberg who I assume can move a mile a minute when making a movie, and who's mind is racing with ideas, and bursting with creativity to get his vision out....But simply explains his ideas, and then patiently....patiently waits while JW ponders the request and looks over the score. I could probably count on one hand the times I've seen a big wig celebrity type sit and wait for something like that. You can really see the decades of friendship and comradery.

Please, anyone who finds these gems on youtube or wherever, please don't hesitate to post them, make a new thread, whatever. This stuff is gold as far as I can tell.

[Quintus 6,496]

But Williams isn't seething with resentment at the idiotic director interfering with his masterpiece.

I think you read it wrong. Honestly, I think Williams wants to end Steven's life here.

[Ollie 1,375]

Great stuff, maybe just maybe one of these days Spielberg will put together the footage from their scoring sessions.

[wanner251 18]

I think that's amazing! Although, what I find extra interesting is the fact that the time stamp is in the 7th hour mark... meaning, who knows how much footage there is? I know that Spielberg always archives all of the scoring sessions.... He basically has my own personal holy grail in his basement.

[Crimson Nagus 55]

The timecode hour mark doesn't always refer to actual hours. A lot of times on productions the hour digit is used to denote a camera number or reel number. I doubt it means they are in there 7th hour of recording, I bet it means this they are on there 7th tape of the shoot or day (that's just a guess). At least this is what I was taught 12 years ago in film school, I could be completely wrong these days.

[gkgyver 1,647]

"That's exactly right, it's a matter of key!"

I bet in moments like this, Williams regrets not always staying in the same key like Zimmer.

[Uni 307]

This is just speculation (of course), but I'm guessing this is a place where JW brought the music to a full stop with a slight pause to change gears and head in a different direction—in an entirely different key. His intention in doing so might've been to accentuate the transition. Spielberg then says he wants to connect the two parts, paint straight through the pause so there's no break at all. It makes sense to him and his limited ear; he probably doesn't realize the nature of what he's asking. John likely just did a bit of transposing to connect the two parts and pushed the modulation back a few bars. Nothing too big . . . except you have to wonder if composers in this situation feel any regret about what they're losing. I'm sure by this time Williams is able to shrug it off pretty easily. (Other composers who have a harder time letting go learn what it means to have a score rejected. . . .)

- Uni

[Bellosh 4,531]

Hours and hours? Thats far too long and boring. I would like interviews like that to be nice and short, and arranged in such a way that they maximize viewing pleasure

dude this was good. was i the only one to get it?

[Jay 46,244]

No.

[Bellosh 4,531]

word