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Loving it today! Our Mod, of his face from booze!

Our Mod Jason LeBlanc is drunk and said he loved me!

Well Stefan and Meghan got his autograph before the show! Me, Francis, and others were unsuccessful. Shows about to start!

OK I took a few pictures from last night's small dinner at The Pour House - here they are! Stefan and Foxfan: Me, Ren, Ren's fiancee Dan, Stefan, Foxfan: Ren and Stefan: I'll post the full size versions to Facebook as soon as I can And of course tonight, I will take lots of pictures at the larger group JWFan dinner, and of the concert itself, and of all of us waiting for John Williams outside Symphony Hall after the show. And maybe I'll even remember to turn my flash on!

Oh geez, I don't even remember that picture being taken! Boy is my shirt BLUE!

Steef was indeed dressed sharply, smiling too! He always looks like he's gonna kill someone, so its nice to see him pleased. Must have something to do with Ren being there.

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Definitely one of my more boring posts! Sorry ... I'll try to improve later this fall. D

Excellent fit on the suit Steefy. Looks very sharp. Almost made me feel a tingle of gay somewhere in my loins.

It plays to most common denominator. It's a very base emotional reaction that a million composers could have achieved. I hate to keep comparing Williams to Zimmer, but something like this just shows you why Williams is an painter and Zimmer is a colorist. Tim

You have something to look forward to then! People, come to the Chicago JW concert next November and let's have a big party!

Checkmate/Rhythm in Motion by John Williams: Nice collection of cool and snazzy crime jazz from the 1960's and wonderfully orchestrated standard big band tunes in one package. A swinging experience. Rosewood (Expanded Score (LLL)) by John Williams: A very interesting expansion of a score that I have begun to appreciate more only recently and this set has helped in it even more. Williams' more mature writing is combined with his Americana in orchestral and soloist guise as he uses the bluegrass, blues and folksy elements to a great effect in this score set in deep South. The way he conjures time and place is exemplary but he always retains a dramatic element in his music, the score never becoming entirely source music, rather an evocation of the story's many facets and subtexts. Guitar, harmonica and solo gospel voice are highlighted as central sounds of the soundtrack. The trio of original gospel songs complement this experience well, featuring in the major setpieces of the work and forming in part the thematic groundwork of Rosewood. Jeff Bond's essay in the liner notes is yet again an entertaining storehouse of background information and a great track-by-track analysis, which refamiliarizes a person like me who hasn't seen the film in ages, with the plot and Williams' musical narrative. This score fuses together Williams previous efforts in rural Americana, which featured similar ingredients, small scale orchestra and solo instruments, and his 1990's mature writing into an impressive package. The Fury (Expanded Score (LLL)) by John Williams: What can I say that hasn't been said already about this wonderful and powerful work. It is a more complete and sonically upgraded version of the Varese complete release of 2002. The score is a primal classic and will remain even more so after listening to this set. Bonus music is welcome if not incredibly essential for the listening experience. The calliope source for the Death on a Carousel is a wacky and eerie addition (5 somewhat different incarnations of the music for this scene can be heard on this double CD set) along with the 4 pieces of period source music (2 songs courtesy of the then only 18 year old Joseph Williams), making The Fury musical presentation finally just about as complete as possible. Julie Kirgo's liner notes feature a lively essay on the film and the score, eschewing track-by-track analysis but providing insights into individual setpieces and notable cues of the score. Another impeccable release from LLL.

I like it. It's not incredibly complex or new, but it's an emotionally effective listen.

Wow tonight was absolutely incredible! Lincoln and Hook were definitely two of my favorite pieces of the night. Being able to meet him for a brief second was amazing as well, he looked amazing for his age and the way he conducts with such vigor is so impressive. Meeting everyone was so great as well, I took so many photos but I won't be able to get around to them til at least tomorrow so ill have some up as soon as I can!

If John Williams never declares the piece finished, she will never record it!

I find it irritatingly insufferable.

For all the James Bond fans, here are my thoughts on John Barry's Moonraker score: http://www.filmmusicnotes.com/john-barrys-james-bond-scores-part-4-of-6-moonraker/ I thought it was a great score despite its comparatively limited use in the film. Your thoughts are welcome.

Rope is an underrated Hitchcock film not too many people talk about. I'd recommend that one.

At first I thought Jon Snow could become an interesting character but his random drift through the show is a bit disappointing, specially since he's one of the characters in the single most interesting location.

Exactly - even if you missed the main page article, it's always on the right side with the concert listings.

Were I extremely positive about the music in the first trailer, the music i hear now is shamelessly generic, there is no theme whatsoever but some bland repetitive motive and driving synthesized percussion. It sounds all like Batman 2.0. Nothing original. Disappointing. Let's hope it's not part of the score but actually from a stock of trailer music.

The list of reasons would contain many that have to deal with copyrights, licensing, and paying for the rights to record the music and release it in various formats. Pressing it to a CD, internet streaming, and video presentation are all different presentations and require different licenses, with different fees necessary for each. Not that they couldn't make their money back selling a CD of Williams with the Chicago Symphony (I'd buy it!), but fees are typically nonrefundable. If you pay ALL that money for the rights to record the concert, then somebody sneezes during a flute solo or something, that abnormality makes it a less-than-amazing recording. Groups like the CSO don't want to put out a sub-par recording, so paying all those fees and just betting/hoping the concert goes perfectly isn't really worth the risk. Of course I'm sure there's other reasons, but that's a big one, and it affects everyone from big groups like the CSO to small community bands.