Datameister

That's an extraordinary generalization. The reality is that Lucasfilm comprises people who live and breathe Star Wars, people with a casual appreciation for Star Wars, people who want to interrogate or deconstruct or reshape Star Wars, people who are in it to grow their existing wealth, people who are in it for fame and prestige, people who are just trying to put food on the table, etc., etc.—and people with multiple reasons for being there.
 
Similar things could be said for the other groups you mentioned. People are complicated. The likelihood of a group of 10 people having identical motivations is low. For groups of hundreds or thousands, the likelihood is effectively zero, particularly when different people within the group were chosen for different reasons in the first place.

That's an extraordinary generalization. The reality is that Lucasfilm comprises people who live and breathe Star Wars, people with a casual appreciation for Star Wars, people who want to interrogate or deconstruct or reshape Star Wars, people who are in it to grow their existing wealth, people who are in it for fame and prestige, people who are just trying to put food on the table, etc., etc.—and people with multiple reasons for being there.
 
Similar things could be said for the other groups you mentioned. People are complicated. The likelihood of a group of 10 people having identical motivations is low. For groups of hundreds or thousands, the likelihood is effectively zero, particularly when different people within the group were chosen for different reasons in the first place.

That's an extraordinary generalization. The reality is that Lucasfilm comprises people who live and breathe Star Wars, people with a casual appreciation for Star Wars, people who want to interrogate or deconstruct or reshape Star Wars, people who are in it to grow their existing wealth, people who are in it for fame and prestige, people who are just trying to put food on the table, etc., etc.—and people with multiple reasons for being there.
 
Similar things could be said for the other groups you mentioned. People are complicated. The likelihood of a group of 10 people having identical motivations is low. For groups of hundreds or thousands, the likelihood is effectively zero, particularly when different people within the group were chosen for different reasons in the first place.

That's an extraordinary generalization. The reality is that Lucasfilm comprises people who live and breathe Star Wars, people with a casual appreciation for Star Wars, people who want to interrogate or deconstruct or reshape Star Wars, people who are in it to grow their existing wealth, people who are in it for fame and prestige, people who are just trying to put food on the table, etc., etc.—and people with multiple reasons for being there.
 
Similar things could be said for the other groups you mentioned. People are complicated. The likelihood of a group of 10 people having identical motivations is low. For groups of hundreds or thousands, the likelihood is effectively zero, particularly when different people within the group were chosen for different reasons in the first place.

That's an extraordinary generalization. The reality is that Lucasfilm comprises people who live and breathe Star Wars, people with a casual appreciation for Star Wars, people who want to interrogate or deconstruct or reshape Star Wars, people who are in it to grow their existing wealth, people who are in it for fame and prestige, people who are just trying to put food on the table, etc., etc.—and people with multiple reasons for being there.
 
Similar things could be said for the other groups you mentioned. People are complicated. The likelihood of a group of 10 people having identical motivations is low. For groups of hundreds or thousands, the likelihood is effectively zero, particularly when different people within the group were chosen for different reasons in the first place.

Ok, well before I get into it, let me first say that you did a great job of including every major argument for why these scores need to be redone. So definite kudos for that!
 
 
Right off the bat, I'd drop "the people at" and just address it directly. I think this sounds more serious and professional.
 
 
I completely understand what you're going for here, but if you want normies to keep reading, you need to grab their attention immediately and keep it. You don't want them to skim and you don't them to click away. I'd have one sentence describing the importance of the Star Wars scores and then jump straight into a very quick description of the flaws in previous releases. Like 2 sentences quick.
 
 
Excellent points, but I'd save them for the end so they'll be the last thing readers think about.
 
 
A couple of things here. Your first mention of Mike in the petition immediately connects him to the 1997 Special Editions. If you want to build up Mike's resume, I would focus on more recent examples of his best work, especially on high profile non-Lucasfilm projects like Close Encounters, Harry Potter and The Sound of Music. I believe that if an executive were to actually read this paragraph as written, their very first thought would be "This guy has already done his best on this project, how much better would he really do today? And also why should I pay for Mike to work on these scores again when I can just reissue his previous work?"
 
Further, the phrase "If given another chance" reinforces the implication that the Special Editions were highly flawed, but I believe it would also lead an executive to directly associate Mike's name with shoddy workmanship. What the petition needs to do here instead is quickly and succinctly instill complete confidence in Mike's abilities. I think you realized this and that's why you pivoted to "His involvement guarantees that this music will sound as good as it sounded on the day it was recorded." Good idea here. That said, the promise you make is arguably hyperbolic. The music probably can't sound as good as it did "on the day it was recorded" because the recordings themselves aren't especially great. This is just my opinion of course, but I'd back away from such strong language and instead just emphasize how far restoration techniques have advanced and that new albums from Mike would have the best sound that modern mastering technologies can provide.
 
Your final sentence in this paragraph does a fabulous job of stating why we need Mike. I'd trim some of the fat preceding it and let that last sentence do more of the heavy lifting.
 
 
 
I see the first part of this paragraph as basically redundant. Also, the final promise is weakened by the phrase "could also potentially" and while the idea to entice executives with the possibility of profit is sound, I think they're well aware that soundtracks don't sell millions of units anymore, even Star Wars. I'd drop all of this entirely.
 
 
Great wording! The only reason I would change anything here is because it mostly appeals to the soundtrack fans and the die-hards who are already convinced new releases should happen. If we really want to get signatures from a large number of people, I feel what we really need to push are the arguments that promote buy-in from the normies and the executives. For that reason, I would end on a broader argument along the lines of "Let's preserve these beloved classics so that they can continue to be enjoyed for generations to come."
 
For reference/comparison, here's the complete argument I made in my Reddit and FSM posts. It doesn’t flow perfectly, my sentences are probably a little too dense and I may have listed too many of Mike's recent accomplishments, but I still think it benefits greatly from being more concise. That said, there’s probably a happy medium to be found between the stripped down appeal I wrote and the lengthier one you did.
 
 
Anyway I don't know if you'll find them helpful, but those are my thoughts. You're more than welcome to use any of my wording in your efforts going forward or to just completely ignore my advice if you prefer your own wording. Either way, I think it's great that you made the effort to organize this petition and I hope it at least continues to get more signatures and spark more conversations.

Setting the Trap, followed very closely by Quidditch, Third Year.

I'd rather be a fly on the wall during the process than ask him about it. I suspect that if he could explain it any better, he would have by now. He's very eloquent but sometimes an artistic process defies description.
 
He has said that it takes a lot of work to get a theme just right. Adjusting the rhythm a bit here, shifting a note up there, etc. And like most film composers (I gather), he maps out the tempos and time signatures of a cue before he starts writing.
 
But how does he pick which note goes where? Mixture of raw talent, intense study, and decades of experience. If I had to guess.

I'd rather be a fly on the wall during the process than ask him about it. I suspect that if he could explain it any better, he would have by now. He's very eloquent but sometimes an artistic process defies description.
 
He has said that it takes a lot of work to get a theme just right. Adjusting the rhythm a bit here, shifting a note up there, etc. And like most film composers (I gather), he maps out the tempos and time signatures of a cue before he starts writing.
 
But how does he pick which note goes where? Mixture of raw talent, intense study, and decades of experience. If I had to guess.

Seriously. There are plenty of OST edits where I'm like, Okay, yeah, I prefer to have all the music, but I have to admit it flows better without. This is not one of those times. The entire missing section is superb, and it just gets superb-er with that Gothic passage with the chimes. Spine-tingling.

I was ordering the new Heidi/Jane Eyre and clicked on the John Williams link to see what else they had and added this to the order. Listened to it on the way home and I’m really glad I got it. Sure, it’s the same song, but the variety is easily good enough to stop me getting bored (and I can be dreadfully impatient listening to repetitive music). Gotta love JW’s ‘light’ jazz style.
 
Favourite bit so far? This comes close:

Track 18, 1:50
”Christ, I hate this song”
 
Mark

the Intrada AINEC

I thought Don Davis did a pretty great job of melding his style with JW's for JP III. It's a rare case where the direct quotes don't feel out of place to me, even if the work as a whole isn't indistinguishable from a genuine Williams score.
 
Shearmur's Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow is also reminiscent.
 
I often get more JW vibes from works that inspired him than works inspired by him. I hear hints of him in Stravinsky, Holst, Vaughan Williams, Elgar, Steiner, Korngold, Tchaikovsky, Bartok, Prokofiev, and others.

I thought Don Davis did a pretty great job of melding his style with JW's for JP III. It's a rare case where the direct quotes don't feel out of place to me, even if the work as a whole isn't indistinguishable from a genuine Williams score.
 
Shearmur's Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow is also reminiscent.
 
I often get more JW vibes from works that inspired him than works inspired by him. I hear hints of him in Stravinsky, Holst, Vaughan Williams, Elgar, Steiner, Korngold, Tchaikovsky, Bartok, Prokofiev, and others.

Interesting! I feel better about having swapped them for my own playlist, haha! (That being said, I'm of course still very glad to have both.)

"Training Montage", anyone?

It can be broken down, yes. I've done it. But the changes are almost always fluid and organic. Always early seeds, there are, that blossom later.

Re: Azkaban, I always felt like after so much of the HP1 score was repeated in HP2, he probably felt obligated to give us something completely new. Of course Cuaron's input must have been a factor too, and I also think the film itself felt fresh and different and JW got inspired.
 
As for the eras of his work, it can be divided into BL (Before Ludlow) and AL (After Ludlow).   That was the pivotal moment, and things would never be the same!

It is. They're just faking this whole not being filmed yet thing so they can take some time to measure the pulse of when the fanbase is going to be open to more Star Wars films again. 

Hold the phone, how can this be Episode X when it's already completely filmed and ready to drop at the right moment? 

In all fairness, I have close to zero familiarity with Jane Eyre, so it's possible I might agree with you once properly educated. 😊

My gut reaction is Jaws / TFA. But of course, it's all a continuum. On a more generous day I might say The Cowboys / TFA; on a less generous day I might say Star Wars / ROTS.
 
If we're talking about how much a score gets into the public consciousness, on the other hand, I'm with @QuartalHarmony.

Hmm...  I'm gonna go with Jane Eyre and TFA. Several folks offered TFA as his last great score and I agree. To be clear, every score JW has written since TFA has been great, but in terms of resonating with the public, TFA was indeed the latest (and probably last) one.
 
While on the topic of TFA, let us take a moment to re-appreciate what this miracle of a man was able to accomplish. First, he gives one of the most iconic movies in history perhaps the most iconic score in the history of filmmaking in 1977. That's lightning-in-a-bottle shit (and we won't even get into TESB). Then, he comes back 22 years later, the Star Wars hype machine dialed up to 11, and gives us Duel of the Fates, the Flag Parade, and Anakin's Theme (and makes it onto MTV's Total Request Live (the first and only film composer to achieve that feat) with DotF)). That's dent no. 2 in the cultural universe, and creating it is something like a World Series-winning home run with the count at 3-2. Then... jump ahead 16 years. It's time to renew Star Wars for the 21st century. Filmmaking has gone completely different by now. Blockbuster film scoring has Zimmer-fied. New director, new crop of young actors, no George Lucas... does JW have what it takes to kickstart yet another trilogy in the same culture-permeating way he did twice before? Well, doubters, Rey's Theme and March of the Resistance would like a word with you.
 
This was, and remains, a breathtakingly astounding sequence of achievements. We are fortunate to have been witness to it.

My gut reaction is Jaws / TFA. But of course, it's all a continuum. On a more generous day I might say The Cowboys / TFA; on a less generous day I might say Star Wars / ROTS.
 
If we're talking about how much a score gets into the public consciousness, on the other hand, I'm with @QuartalHarmony.

My gut reaction is Jaws / TFA. But of course, it's all a continuum. On a more generous day I might say The Cowboys / TFA; on a less generous day I might say Star Wars / ROTS.
 
If we're talking about how much a score gets into the public consciousness, on the other hand, I'm with @QuartalHarmony.