Pawel P.

Just before his passing Ennio Morricone wrote a touching goodbye... “I, Ennio Morricone, am dead. So I announce it to all the friends who have always been close to me and also to those who are a little far away, whom I greet with great affection. Impossible to name them all. But a special memory is for Peppuccio and Roberta, fraternal friends very present in the last years of our life. There is only one reason that prompts me to greet everyone like this and to have a funeral in private form: I don't want to disturb you. I warmly greet Ines, Laura, Sara, Enzo and Norbert for sharing a large part of my life with me and my family. I want to remember with love my sisters Adriana, Maria and Franca and their loved ones and to let them know how much I loved them. A full intense and profound greeting to my children, Marco, Alessandra, Andrea and Giovanni, my daughter-in-law Monica, and to my grandchildren Francesca, Valentina, Francesco and Luca. I hope they understand how much I loved them. Last but not least (Maria). I renew to you the extraordinary love that has held us together and that I am sorry to abandon. To you the most painful farewell. " Translation from Italian using Google Translate https://tg24.sky.it/spettacolo/musica/2020/07/06/necrologio-morricone

“Dear Maestro unfortunately we never had the chance to meet and to have a conversation. Today I am going to tell you what I had in my heart but I never had the opportunity to express it to you. I always wanted to tell you when I heard from the very first time your music that I immediately understood your immense talent, your sense of melody and your innate capacity to touch directly with your music the soul of the people. And I have to thank you for that. I am sure that by now you travel to the place where harmony and music were born. And I hope that this makes you very content. Farewell,” - Vangelis http://elsew.com/data/latest.htm

Very sad news. End of an era, really. Like Thor, I'm not a fan of everything he created, but he created so much beautiful music that he will never be forgotten. I had the pleasure of seeing him three times at the concert and interviewing him one time. Below is a memoir article about Maestro Morricone I wrote in Polish. https://kultura.onet.pl/muzyka/wywiady-i-artykuly/ennio-morricone-nie-zyje-maestro-kina-kim-byl-kompozytor-biografia/m46lsks

Because the description says it's ... sold out. Weird. Maybe limited really means limited in this case. Hope not. https://store.deutschegrammophon.com/p51-i0028948390458/john-williams-wiener-philharmoniker-anne-sophie-mutter/john-williams-live-in-vienna-ltd-deluxe-edition-cd-bluray-/index.html You can still order it from Amazon Germany. I ordered my copy two months ago. https://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B087SCCYF1/ref=ox_sc_act_title_4?smid=A3JWKAKR8XB7XF&psc=1

This isn't John's mother or there is a mistake on the site. She has actually lived for almost a hundred years - 97, to be exact. Read it: https://www.espn.com/blog/music/post/_/id/98/composer-john-williams-talks-fenway-red-sox How is it you’re a Red Sox fan, considering you were born in New York and raised in California? My mother was born in Boston and loved Fenway Park all of her life. She lived to be 97 and insisted that she lived that long because she wanted to see the Red Sox win the World Series again. Once they did it in 2004, she felt she could pass on very happily. For me, there is a strong family connection to Boston and anything connected to Boston, which includes Fenway. On Wikipedia there is an interesting quote about his lineage. The source: Thomas, David (October 25, 1997). "The King of Popcorn". The Sydney Morning Herald: 10s. "My father was a Maine man—we were very close. ... My father's parents ran a department store in Bangor, Maine, and my mother's father was a cabinetmaker. [...] People with those roots , are not inclined to be lazy."

The standard edition of ATS is in the jewel case, at least in Europe.

We probably all know and value wonderful Olympic hymns composed by John Williams to the Olympic Games in Los Angeles, Seoul, Atlanta and Salt Like City. In 2028, the Summer Games will be held again in Los Angeles. And of course I know that Williams will be 96 then, a lot can happen until then, but ... he said several times that he would never withdraw from music or retire (from composing). Do you believe that it's possible that he will compose another hymn? Or maybe IOC will order it from him a few years earlier? History would have wonderfully come full circle (Los Angeles 1984 - Los Angeles 2028). EDIT: I wasn't aware that there was already such a topic, that's why I started a new one. Thanks for the correction.

I also bought it. I think it sells out quickly.

Gratitude from Williams. As always with class and grace.

I absolutely disagree. There is nothing selfish about buying tickets for both concerts of your favorite artist who hasn't performed on your continent for over two decades. Buying more tickets and selling them out at astronomical prices is selfish.

Yes, but the breaks between compositions, applause and speeches are part of a "pure concert". We'll see when BluRay comes out, but I stay with my belief that Williams was on the conducting podium for 150 minutes.

Let's be precise. On January 18, I recorded 30 seconds of ovation after the last encore, it was 6:15 pm (I just checked it), and the concert started punctually at 3:30 PM. As for the breaks at both concerts, it seems to me that they lasted 15 minutes, because I checked it, but even if it lasted 20 or even 25 minutes, it still gives 145 or 140 minutes of the concert length.

Both concerts lasted 165 minutes, including a 15-minute break. This gives about 2.5 hours of the concert itself and I suppose BluRay will have this length.

This BluRay is on sale, 13 Euro, shipping costs are very low, also to US. I've never seen it, Williams conducts only a few parts and not his own music, but I suppose it's worth having. I was happy to buy it https://www.jpc.de/jpcng/classic/detail/-/art/Tanglewood-75th-Anniversary-Celebration/hnum/2441943

Well, I'm not a musicologist, I'm probably not able to point out the special differences between von Karajan, Rattle and Ozawa, so I can only talk about my feelings. I just think current Williams performances are just as good as those from years ago. Of course, I noticed that during the first concert in Vienna, on Saturday, in the culmination of E.T. there was some disruption, but on Sunday it was excellent. And of course, when you are 88 years old, it's difficult to have such energy as you had years ago. In Vienna, however, Williams did his best as he does during recording sessions. And when I hear his music conducted by other conductors, It usually has no start for his performances - one of the exceptions is always excellent Gustavo Dudamel. Dirk Brosse was also great in London. I'm happy that I was also at that concert (they should release it on CD!). But, for example, the performances in last year's Slovak compilation "Music from the Star Wars Saga" were mostly average.