Datameister

Oh, Star Wars, easily. And that's saying something, considering how much I enjoy SS and POA - and even COS, for what it is.

I disagree with your feelings on Desert Chase, but I 100% share your love for those other excellent pieces!

Desert Chase, easy. TOD is the runner-up for me - other than Hook, I haven't found its equal in Williams' work in terms of over-the-top, super-energetic climactic action sequences. But I still prefer the rather leaner, more focused Desert Chase, which still packs quite a wallop. The intensity is allowed to build in a way that TOD never manages. TLC is a little anemic by comparison. There's still great stuff in there but I would never put it in anywhere near the same league as Desert Chase. Jungle Chase features some of my favorite writing in KOTCS. That ostinato he brings in toward the end has a classic Williams vibe that I enjoy, and that's otherwise in pretty short supply in this score. But again, it's just not enough to rival Desert Chase, which never fails to dazzle me.

I would have expected a noticeable correlation, but looking at the current distribution of votes, I'm surprised at just how strong the correlation is. I think something about these scores makes our enjoyment of them particularly dependent on nostalgia.

Potter for me. Neither score is perfect. SS suffers from Hedwig's theme temp love in the first act; Hook is so saccharine that it can make my teeth hurt if I'm in the wrong mood. Both scores (Hook in particular) are a bit exhausting to get through, and both draw pretty heavily from past works within and without Williams' oeuvre. All that being said, I loooooove both scores. There's a TOD-like level of brash, allusive inventiveness in Hook. SS is a little more refined but no less thrilling, bursting at the seams with some of my favorite Williams melodies. If I want to hear JW in dazzling swashbuckler mode, Hook is the obvious choice. If I want to remember what it was like to be a scrawny, bespectacled 12-year-old with messy black hair, a big imagination, and a growing obsession with film music, SS is always there to take me back. That being the case, I'm well aware that nostalgia is playing a big role here, especially since I didn't really become familiar with Hook till I was older. But I have to give it to SS. No disrespect to Hook, which really is a fantastic score and a treasured part of my collection.

It's a very interesting lens through which to view this theme, but I definitely agree with those who'd say it's simply associated with the ark, providing a different emotional color than the creepy doom and gloom of the main ark theme. Imagine that theme playing for the reveal of the medallion, or for the moment before the trip to Cairo, or for the swirling ghosts. It wouldn't communicate the right emotions; this other theme does. I think we can analyze it till the cows come home and I wouldn't denigrate anyone for it, but in terms of original intent, I doubt it was much more complicated than that.

Film version for me. It's a somewhat rare case of "less is more" for me. That said, I do love the final chord of the album version. Very Halloween-y.

The opening in the commercially available version is the alternate opening; the original just goes straight from the opening crescendo to the sparkling strings. You can hear that original beginning in the very first video featuring the piece. The material in the Rise video is different - I think it's part of Bill Ross's adaptations for the ride, like the rest of the music in the video. Either that or it's from Savi's. I'd have to do some YouTube comparisons to figure it out.

ANH, ESB, and AOTC are all so stinking good, and I actually really like the TPM transition too. If I absolutely had to choose, though, I'd probably go with ANH.

Can I pick none of them? Haha. I like the idea best in ROTS. But the transition to the credits has always been so unsatisfying for me. With Star Wars, I want the beginning of the credits to provide some musical resolution, but with ROTS, it's just kind of a weird surprise, like, "Oh, okay, the movie's...over?" TFA I like a little better in terms of the transition, but it was also the film that turned the Force theme ending from a one-time deal to a very misguided tradition.

I was at the Hollywood Bowl and it was too! 😁

No luck with APM...if anyone else finds it anywhere, do let me know!

Two unrelated sources of musical samples from Galaxy's Edge: ...and... https://harlanhodges.com/#attractions The video was just posted today, and while there's some unfortunate weirdness with the music (it sounds like it's overdubbed on top of itself with a delay of a second or two), there's still interesting stuff to be found. Then the link to Harlan Hodges' website has some samples of source music he wrote for the land.

That's an interesting idea. I'll give it a shot!

Various parts of that sequence call for clock ticking sounds in the score, though they sometimes don't quite match what we hear. And you're not imagining things - there are reversed audio elements mixed in too. Brilliant writing.