J_N

Thanks for the welcome. And I definitely agree with you that JW doesn't have just one style because like you said, I don't think there would've been any way to randomly guess upon listening that Memoirs of a Geisha, for example, was scored by him. I guess I was making a generalization, but, I think that for his music that has become best-known, such as Star Wars, Indiana Jones, E.T., Jurassic Park, or Harry Potter, the orchestration is just as important as the theme itself, and there are similarities between each movie. All the things you brought up are great though--not just the orchestrational methods, but also compositional techniques in general. I'm always interested in the analysis of great music (which can be hard without a score when you think you know what you're hearing but can't be completely sure:/). Thanks again!

So basically, no one can deny that John Williams' music has a very distinct "sound" to it--it's what makes it possible for you to hear his scores and know that it's him. I think a lot of that has to do with his orchestration, or choice of instrumentation. For example, he treats brass instruments (specifically the horn) in ways that other composers don't, often times by giving them, rather than strings, the most important part or melody. He likes to double certain instruments, especially in the woodwinds. For example, he'll often add flute to an important melody in horns or trumpet to give them a slightly different color. All of these details really contribute to the style and sound we have come to love and I'm wondering if anybody else has observations about his orchestration to share. What have you noticed, from studying his scores and/or listening to recordings, about the way he orchestrates and how this has made his music unique and distinct?