Cerebral Cortex

What a great thread, some terrific examples in here.
 
I would add these:
 
 
This melody right at the beginning:
 
 
 
This terrific dissonant fanfare:
 
 
This great little "march":
 
 

Very cool!

How are we only hearing this now??

In what is sure to be most welcome news to all members here, I can confirm, in what is no doubt a JWFan exclusive, that John Williams will indeed be returning to score Episode VIII. For obvious reasons, my sources wish to remain anonymous, but I can vouch for their credibility personally. 

In what is sure to be most welcome news to all members here, I can confirm, in what is no doubt a JWFan exclusive, that John Williams will indeed be returning to score Episode VIII. For obvious reasons, my sources wish to remain anonymous, but I can vouch for their credibility personally. 

I love how you can see Spielberg recording the whole thing from the back. He has spent so much time attending countless recording sessions with John over the years, but he still doesn't seem to take for granted Williams or the privilege it is to see him perform, and he continues to treat his relationship with him as something special that deserves being recorded. Bromance at it's best. 

I got a super secret inside scoop of something that happened as Spielberg was in post production on Schindler's List, an inside source told me, and after all these years I feel I can finally share it publicly.  Apparently when John Williams first saw the film, he told Steven he'd need a better composer than him to score it, and Spielberg responded "I know, but they're all dead!"

My friend's uncle's sister-in-law's husband who works as freelance triangle player in LA has informed me that John Williams is alive as of Thursday 12:00 PST and even composes from time to time. Just thought some of you might be interested in knowing.  

I think Rey holding the lightsaber is a red-herring.
 
Poe will be the Force-sensitive character.

Can't get over how healthy he looks and how freely he's conducting 

Very very cool to see the footage from the recording session for "Marion's Theme" as well.

Follow this link to hear "Marion's Theme" from the new release:
 
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/john-williams-steven-spielbergs-work-together-is-getting-an-ultimate-collection-976802

I accidentally downloaded this pic and posted it on my Facebook. It was Peter Hackman aka DMD who alerted to me this cant be the real deal! LOL . (Yeah, I fixed it)

For a moment it looked like Spielberg was holding John's hand

found that on amazon...

In what is sure to be most welcome news to all members here, I can confirm, in what is no doubt a JWFan exclusive, that John Williams will indeed be returning to score Episode VIII. For obvious reasons, my sources wish to remain anonymous, but I can vouch for their credibility personally. 

1. Heartbeeps
2. Not With My Wife, You Don't!
3. Stanley & Iris
4. Black Sunday
5. Sabrina
6. Monsignor
7. The River
8. Cinderella Liberty
9. Sleepers
10. The Eiger Sanction
 

We should do a separate thread on John Williams' best music for sex scenes!
 
 

A number of pieces throughout the SW films have some textural similarity to "It Can't Be," but I don't think the main motif is heard verbatim anywhere else.
And God damn is it magnificent.

I was about to post this in the "favorite short moments" thread but decided maybe it deserved a thread of its own. I feel like we have had one of these before, actually, but couldn't find anything recent and couldn't really narrow it down to a thread with the right search phrases...
 
Anyway, you all know what I'm talking about. Those addictive little bastards that come completely out of nowhere, steal the show for a fleeting moment, and then you never hear from them again. I was reminded of this recently as I was listening to the KOTCS sessions for the first time and that random 15-second Ruskie miniature came up in the first half of the Jungle Chase.
 
 
It's one of my favorite things about Williams and no other film composer does it with this kind of frequency and panache, really. It's such a great technique for energizing a section of a cue or giving a film moment a little identity of its own, and even in a way resets my attention span during listening. Especially when these show up in the middle of a frantic action cue or some atmospheric bit of underscore, I guess it's his way of re-establishing a more conventional tonal language to easily catch the ear without always having to fall back on a theme or motif. It's just this simple trick that never fails to grab me, make me smile, or tap along.
 
Hook's red carpet descent is another favorite that pops to mind.
 
 
I'm not necessarily talking about notable setpiece-specific themes like "The Barrel Chase," "The Basket Chase," or even the "Asteroid Field" fanfare, though I guess that's borderline. I'd argue even that feels a little bit more like a centerpiece than what I'm thinking of, same with a few others like "Jedi Steps". Rule of thumb might be the easier it is to give a name to, the less it qualifies!
 
But it's those blink-and-you-miss-it cameos, the minor minor leaguers, supporting the supporting players. Almost feels like it comes from the spirit of vaudeville or musical revues, at least with the blockbuster scores. They're like these rookie performers who come out in between the bigger acts, tell a quick joke, do a little tap dance or maybe a magic trick, and then they're whisked off stage. Love it!
 
Or on the opposite end of the spectrum, it can also be a completely isolated, non-thematic moment of melodic beauty. The opening flute solo for Rey's first close-up in "The Scavenger," for example, or this:
 
 
Any thoughts on this aspect of Williams's approach to scoring? What are your favorites? Does anybody else really compare to Williams as far as this goes? Examples from those folks are welcome too. Go!

Your name is Alvar, and you don Tauriel as your avatar! Now don't you start with me you Swedish scum!
 
 
Here, start with one of my favourites:
 

My copy has shipped! Estimated delivery date: next Monday. Woohoo!
 
In other news: samples are up!