Matt S.

My guess would be it’s a new name for Tribute to the Film Composer.

I’m listening to this recording right now… it’s probably my favorite of the ones I’ve heard. I still need to check out the Detroit recording. Though to be honest, I prefer this concerto to be played by a bass trombone. Charles Vernon has recorded it with piano reduction, and former Boston Pops bass trombonist Douglas Yeo performed with John Williams himself back in the day.

I agree! I like Bugler’s Dream just fine in it’s own right, but I’ve never liked the sudden shift from that to the Olympic Fanfare. Very sudden and awkward to my ears. Between the sudden key change and the difference in style, it really doesn’t work very well. Give me the original version any day! The problem with this recording is it uses an abridged version of the opening, which I feel robs it of some of its power.

Yes, they are. Plus there is also Wide Receiver, the theme for NBC’s broadcasts of NFL games.

I think this piece is definitely a product of its time, as SteveMc said, it goes back to the early-80's, Reagan-era patriotism, at the height of the Cold War. The lyrics definitely reflect that. I also don't think it's very interesting musically; the snare drum ostinato is very pedestrian and doesn't really give it much drive, and the song is basically the same thing over and over. (America.....America.....America.... America... we get it already!) What exactly was the piece written for? Was it commissioned for an event? The Boston Pops July 4th concert maybe?

Actually, there are three recordings of the Trumpet Concerto... by trumpeters Arturo Sandoval, Juoko Harjanne, and Thomas Hooten.

I think The Reivers is probably his oldest work he still programs with any semi-regularity.

You’re wrong. Soon I’ll be dead, and you with me.

The Cowboys Overture (By Request...) Throne Room and Finale (Skywalker Symphony) Journey to the Island (Jurassic Park OST) Finale & End Credits (Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade OST) Adventure on Earth (E.T. OST)

Every selection has clean openings and endings (no audience applause obviously), so someone could extract the audio and make a nice playlist out of it, with or without the comments by Williams and Lockhart. (There is an exception during the Cantina Band encore, which includes a voice over about the sponsorship of Fidelity Investments, but it's fairly short.)

I don’t think the accordion is part of Spielberg vol. 3, but it is definitely featured on the recording on Lockhart’s “Lights, Camera, Music!”

Here’s a hint

Ordered! (a used copy from Amazon, that is!)

When I started exploring and collecting in the mid-90's, the Cincinnati Pops recordings were the only ones I trusted to buy (aside from the Boston Pops, of course!) The performances are top-notch (though not necessarily the arrangements they play) and aside from the silly sound effects tracks, I've enjoyed them all. I remember buying a CD by the Orlando Pops, or something like that (forget the exact name), expecting it to be like the Boston or Cincinnati Pops, and oh boy was I shocked... I think it was a CD of Star Trek themes, and it went straight in the trash! It was all synth, but not even good synth; it sounded like some kid's Casio keyboard.... ugh...

I would like to have purchased the Bernard Herrmann box set Varese put out several years ago. That was a fast sellout, as I recall, and I didn't make it in time. I bought several of the scores that were released later by Kritzerland, but still, that set would have been a very nice addition to my collection.

I said, "What does God need with a starship?"

Disappointed by the music? No. Disappointed with the idiotic dinorama packaging? Extremely!

Actually, I just discovered (or remembered) that the full version appears on this album: Actually, in addition to the soft coda after the big finish, somebody added two final bars with a sudden fortissimo ending (and sounds rather tacky; I can't imagine Williams wrote it). It's also a bit of a sloppy recording, so I wouldn't recommend it. I bought it off iTunes several years ago and I think I listened to it once (that's why I forgot about the extended Raiders March...)

What does God need with a starship?

Dear Basketball?

Wouldn't Dracula or The Fury count for that?

According to this article from Boston.com, the concerts this summer are all about 80 minutes long and will not have intermissions, and I doubt there will be any encores. I suspect JW will only conduct the concerto, but anything's possible! https://www.boston.com/travel/travel/2021/04/08/tanglewood-schedule-summer-2021

I don't mean to turn this thread into a wish-list of JW works, but I've always thought he should compose a true Concerto for Orchestra, perhaps for the Boston Symphony... with his mastery of orchestration, and his knowledge of both that particular orchestra and the acoustic qualities of Symphony Hall, such a work could be truly amazing.

I've never had a problem with Adventures on Earth as a concert piece. It's probably because I was so familiar with that version before ever really listening to the OST, that the differences didn't bother me (i.e., the build-up to nowhere, instead of the Flying theme where the bicycles take off over the Feds). It is a longer work, but it's not overlong...9-10 minutes seems about right for a concert overture (such as The Cowboys). Playing it through as written for the film would just make it longer.