Sandor

But the Hardinger is a Norweigan instrument right? I think DOTF will be IN THE MOVIE, but NOT on the soundtrack album. Perhaps there will be a volume 2 or something. Obviousley Sony has high hopes for this film too. Maybe Lament will be the stand-out piece for the second album.

How come I saw Joe as the writer of the above post and later it was from Stefancos and then Joe again???? Edit: Oh, I see now.... hahahahaha!

http://www.millenniumfalcon.com/phpbb/view...opic.php?t=3856 credit to Fatboy Roberts: I could begin by doing the John Williams career re-cap, which even the most basic film fan has partially memorized, or I could wax poetic about the partnership between Lucas and Williams, which we're all probably sick to death of hearing about, or I could rail about the injustices done to the last two prequel soundtracks, which is just as overdone, although the ranting, in that case, is usually justified. Or I could just talk about what will most likely be considered the best of the three prequel soundtracks by far. The bombast? It's here. Williams can write stirring, bombastic, blow your eardrums action sequences in his sleep--and he's definitely been accused of doing that recently, but his action work here is inspired. The opening track, "The Revenge of the Sith" explodes as the main titles (the same rendition as in Episode I) start to peacefully wind down--and it never really lets up, all military march and horn blasts. The classic themes? They're here in force. Most of the complaints leveled at the previous two soundtracks held the opinion that the thematic elements that made Star Wars scores so great were getting VERY short shrift. Not this time out. Recurring themes pop up and play out in a large number of cues, from the Force Theme in the opener, to Across the Stars stashed amongst dissonant strings and woodwinds fighting each other in "Anakin's Dream," "Qui-Gon's Funeral" shows up during "Padme's Destiny," even "Clash of Lightsabers" from Empire Strikes Back gets a quote or two in "Anakin vs Obi-Wan." And of course, the Imperial March and the Emperor's Theme get their licks in, although not as much as you'd think in a movie called "Revenge of the Sith." There's hardly any major theme that doesn't get it's time to shine in this soundtrack. Even themes that don't seem to have any place in the movie. For instance--the End Titles, after "Battle of the Heroes" winds down, kicks into a regal recital of "The Throne Room" from the original Star Wars, and the rendition played is an arrangement that has only been recorded once--on the "Star Wars/Close Encounters" LP from 1978, conducted by Charles Gerhardt. And when the track closes out, it goes out not with a sad coda, as did the last two, but the huge, triumphant, drawn out crescendo from the original Star Wars. Even aside from the arrangement of the medley, and the heart the orchestra plays with, the sheer nostalgia of hearing those themes, and that ending fanfare, its' going to light up many a Star Wars fan. And the new stuff? "Battle of the Heroes," is a brassy, almost mean sounding track, with choruses wailing over the top--it honestly sounds less like John Williams, and more like Don Davis' work on "Matrix Revolutions." Imagine, if you can, a mixture between those two, but with quotes from Obi-Wan's/The Force's theme cropping up and making their presence felt, and a series of orchestra hits destined to be the score for almost every Star Wars Fan Film trailer in the coming decade. And "The Immolation Scene" is a strings-laden, melancholy, dramatic piece that stands on it's own with no help from the Imperial March, or the Emperor's theme. It's an evocative piece that underlines the brutality of what will be playing along onscreen very well. But the track dedicated to Palpatine is best described as "unnerving" with low, guttural mumblings mixed in with atonal moaning as the track builds to the familiar Imperial March. Almost all the new pieces, as a matter of fact, have a very emotional, unique feel to them, a feel that gives the overall soundtrack a tone that's not at all dissimilar to the score for the original Star Wars, even down to using that movie's end credit sequence in THIS movie's end credits. It just feels like something he'd have written in 77, to me. There isn't much in the way of him recycling his scores from recent movies, outside from a couple moments in "Grievous speaks to Lord Sidious" that apparently come straight out of a Harry Potter movie. Most of his new work in this movie is truly NEW WORK, especially "General Grievous" which seems to build off of where "The Conveyor Belt" wanted to go, but does it in a much smoother, almost jazzier way that still manages to fit perfectly into the soundscape he's crafted here. Sure, there's little nitpicks here and there--the soundtrack almost sounds a little OVER-produced to me, at times. Too slick and shiny for it's own good, a complaint that's been leveled by many at the movies themselves. There's an odd little transitionary bump in the End Credits that doesn't seem all that well planned out, and I would prefer the soundtrack be in movie-order, but Williams has always preferred to set up his soundtracks more as concert suites than as straight scores. And I can see complaints cropping up that his reference to earlier themes is more like simply re-treading old ground, as he doesn't really do much more than have a new orchestra play the old arrangements, something that actually started to nag at the back of my brain during a couple tracks--but I'd prefer Williams do his OWN cutting and pasting from his history rather than let his producer or Lucas track existing recordings into those spots. At least they sound seamless and complete this time out. But this score, make no mistake, is the operatic finale that a lot of listeners have been hoping for. It's a full, emotional, evocative score, filled with some of Williams' best writing since his brilliant "Catch Me if You Can." Film Score fans, Williams fans, Star Wars fans..it's not like you need to be told, but this is definitely a piece of work you should add to your collection as soon as possible.

???? The Imperial March I can understand, especially in the Miami Convention track, although it never becomes a carbon copy or anything. It's more similatities in the soundscape, the opening of the Nixon theme that suggests Vader's Theme. As for Across The Stars I can only give you the following thought-out, intellectual response: ????

What theme? Across The Stars?

No, no, no that Grievous track plays more at the beginning of the film (just after the Space Battle and all), when Grievous contacts Palpatine (hologram) and asks him about the POSSIBLE SPOILERS!!!! death of Dooku and Palpatine informs Grievous that he has already found a potential new Sith apprentice. Clearly the track titles are out of order (suprised anyone?)

No no, no... Can't Across The Stars just be Across The Stars? You'll always find some similarities between pieces (especially coming from the same composer!), but why do John Williams fans in particular have this obsessive need to claim that two different pieces are IDENTICAL to one another?

I just played them on the piano just to convince myself of something I already knew; those pieces are vastly different! I've heard people comparing Across The Stars to the Amazing Stories theme, to The Face Of Pan and others and although there are SOME similarities the idea that it is a 'carbon copy' is not true.

I'm just a very complaintive person.

I've heard this so many times, but what theme from Hook are we actually talking about?

Yeah it's morning here in the Lowlands... But...why are you people so shortsighted? Jurassic Park doesn't sound like a Dinosaur film score? Than I'm sorry, but what WOULD? The Lost World? That theme is sooooo cliche! It's like people complaining about the 1977 score for Star Wars that it is not sounding like a SCIENCE FICTION score!! What do you want then: Ennio Morricone's The Humanoid? I don't like The Lost World theme because it's way too conventional! The same goes for The Patriot Theme; no heart, all the clichés. It's exactly the kind of music you'd expect upon reading the track title 'The Patriot'. And I DO like the Love Theme; that's NOT the theme I'm talking about.

Sounds extremely promising to me. Too bad they couldn't confirm whether the Final Duel music is a part of Battle Of The Heroes. If it were; I'm sure they would have mentioned it. I guess we'll have to see until this thing leaks.

The worst theme? Ah man that's too easy: The Lost World ofcourse! After the highly memorable score for Jurassic Park John Williams comes up with this?! I'm beginning to like the percussion-driven underscore (Rescueing Sarah and all), but the theme doesn't do anything for me. Second: the Patriot theme. After all the sweeping melodies written for epic-films like Braveheart, Gettysburg, Dances With Wolves, even Gladiator, Williams comes up with a melody that sounds like it could have been written by a 2 year old. da-da-daaa-da-da-da-daa-da-da-daaa-da-da-da-daaa. Ah man; that theme is so irritatingly mediocre!

Monica Gellar style: "I KNOW!"

By the way; CyclonusArmada - do you by any means like Battlestar Galactica? I'm really excited about that new series. Never had much enthusiasm for the old ones, but that re-imagined series looks way cool! And Starbuck's a girl now!

I digged up some old Groovy Yak material and I calculated that this is actually the 5567830277th time! I'm gonna sleep man! (Yeah I know it's way too early!) Thanks for the fun again!

Check the definition dude! HAHAHAHA (I'm bluffing here. Damn! I wish I knew if Alex was right or not!)

Ok, ok, Stefan... Didn't see that one coming you ol' prankster! But anyway... But still; at least their praising is GENUINE! Why would you want to take that away from anyone? Why would you care so much? Why do you feel the need to play Jesus on them? Why am I so upset that I fell into another trap by the, sigh admittingly, ... Master!

Oh please! Not another Minority Report!

If Stefan is an expert and you are too than we are ALL experts here!

I don't think you need this reminder, but you are on a John Williams FAN messageboard. Hello? That doesn't mean that we should start worshipping John Williams and even go so far as to secretly recording the sounds the man would make on the toilet after a bad dish of Dutch food (bloemkool or something) and proclaiming it as another brilliant composition from the master. It doesn't mean that people should not be able to critisize a score either. Ofcourse not. But if anyone wants to be joyous about 60 minute soundclips THIS is the place to be! At least they say WHAT THEY MEAN! You couldn't answer my question: "So please Master tell me WHY is it ?dramatically lacking any cohesive structure??", because you don't really know what you're saying do you? You give critisism just for the sake of being negative it seems. I'm happy to see people rejoicing over a crappy ringtone. It's what fandom is ALL about!

And by the way; I was certainly NOT one of those who reacted orgasmatically upon hearing that Grievous track and proclaiming it the "greatest thing of all time" or something. I said I LIKED it.

I was wondering; do you keep a notebook somewhere in which you write down every member's profession, musical preference and all or do you have an excessivly good memory? I think that's about the 25th time in all the years on this board that you remind me of the fact that I am a schoolteacher. Hmm...how about doing it the other way? YOU said that the ROTS soundtrack is ?Dramatically lacking any cohesive structure?. That sounds like Jar Jar Binks is performing Shakespeare to me. So please Master tell me WHY is it ?dramatically lacking any cohesive structure??

Easily the most pretentious crap ever written on this board. Sorry man, I like you, but you are so full of **** right now. And you base this on, what?, one and a half minutes of music???!!! "Dramatically lacking any cohesive structure..." LIKE YOU WOULD KNOW! Pls bring back the old Stefancos. This one *****!

And all of you: thanks for your information! I understand now that there is no UBER-Bond movie. There are supposed to be many good ones and opinions highly vary on which those exactly are. I think I just have to go with Neil's advice to start with Dr. No and work my way up. Thanks again!