Jump to content

Is John Williams your favorite composer?


Jay

Is John Williams your favorite composer?  

76 members have voted

  1. 1. Is John Williams your favorite composer?

    • Yes, I definitely consider John Williams to be my favorite composer, no question.
    • I consider him to be tied with 1 or 2 others as my absolute favorite - I can't pick just one!
    • I can say without question that John Williams is NOT my favorite composer.


Recommended Posts

I'm talking about in comparison to other film composers, not comparing him against long-dead classical music composers.

For me, he is and has always been my favorite composer, no question.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 92
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

I chose option two, it's a tie for me.

Williams, Rózsa, Bernstein, North, and Goldsmith are the film composers I hold in my top spot, tied.

Composers like Poledouris, Horner, And Kaper are tied around 2nd place.

Everyone else falls in somewhere below there.

Last option.

Jerry is #1.

Elmer is #2.

Horner is #3.

Williams would probably fall someplace after 10.

I feel like a lot of younger people (people in my age group) don't really appreciate Elmer's genius and the impact he had on film scoring, both in films and behind the scenes in regards to composer's rights.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Or that of Steiner, Rozsa, Herrman, etc. I know how you feel; every time I see a post by a member known to be young, or jsut types like a youngen, I see stuff like ... well, I'll just give a couple examples so I don't derail things.

Top 5 scores? Okay, people like you and I might have a mixture of older composers and great scores, Alex north to Jerry Goldsmith (on the earlier to mid range works particularly), but the younger people ... they're lists look like:

"omg hard to chose. these scores have gotta be some of the best scores ever!

The Girl With the Dragon Tatoo

Kingdom of Heaven

Days of Thunder

The Rock

Hanna

CRINGE.

Or: I don't buy anything pre-1980.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ha, yeah the 1980 and later crowd! They're missing out on what is honestly the majority of the greatest music written for film. Their loss, I suppose. Anyone who finds El Cid to be less exciting to listen to than a Pirates of the Caribbean score has my deepest sympathy!

I forgot to add Herrmann to my tops list, an incomparable film composer.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Other composers may have more talent or may have composed superior works out there that I have yet to discover. One thing I know for certain is that none has had as big an influence on me as John Williams. His body of exceptional work is voluminous and the particular projects he worked on are emotionally connected to my childhood; his position on my list would be hard to beat.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My favorite 25 film composers:

1) John Williams

2) Erich Wolfgang Korngold

3) Jerry Goldsmith

4) Elmer Bernstein

5) Maurice Jarre

6) Dmitri Tiomkin

7) Victor Young

8) David Raksin

9) Max Steiner

10) Jerome Moross

11) Anton Profes

12) Wojciech Kilar

13) Ennio Morricone

14) John Barry

15) Sergei Yevtushenko

16) David Arnold

17) Marc Shaiman

18) Michael Convertino

19) Edward Shearmur

20) Ilan Eshkeri

21) Miklos Rosza

22) Bernard Herrmann

23) Brian Tyler

24) Andrew Lockington

25) James Horner

My favorite 25 all time composers:

1) John Williams

2) Antonín Dvorák

3) Sergei Prokofiev

4) Erich Wolfgang Korngold

5) Gustav Mahler

6) William Walton

7) Leonard Bernstein

8) Gustav Holst

9) Dmitri Shostakovitch

10) Sergei Rachmaninoff

11) Richard Strauss

12) Pjotr Ilyich Tschaikovsky

13) Giacomo Puccini

14) Arnold Schoenberg

15) Bela Bartok

16) Camille Saint Saëns

17) Edward Elgar

18) Maurice Ravel

19) Igor Stravinsky

20) Darius Milhaud

21) George Gershwin

22) Aram Khatchaturian

23) Einojuhani Rautavaara

24) Ottorino Respighi

25) Emanuel Chabrier

So the answer is: yes :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I voted "yes" in the sense specified in the first post by Jason: "compared with other film composers". I've never had any doubt about that. I prefer him also to the great film composers of the past, such as Rozsa, Korngold and Herrmann (who have my whole respect and appreciation). Things would change if I had to include classical composers.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Of course John Williams is my favourite. The best film composer out there.

And people always tell me it's not good to compare him with others (when e.g i say that he is better than A or B for this and this), because every composer has his own charm.

But the fact is, that you can't deny some facts that Williams music is more sophisticated and ecclectic than others.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes, he's my favourite, and he's in a league of his own.

I'm also a completist of Elfman and Goldenthal (and Zimmer is my current "major love"), but I keep returning to Williams far more often.

There's Williams, and then there's everyone else.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Oooooh. I dunno if I can go that far. And by that, I don't mean I know for sure he's not... I mean I don't know. Comparing John Williams to The Beatles, Pink Floyd, and Led Zeppelin is...... very difficult to do.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Oooooh. I dunno if I can go that far. And by that, I don't mean I know for sure he's not... I mean I don't know. Comparing John Williams to The Beatles, Pink Floyd, and Led Zeppelin is...... very difficult to do.

Any you call yourself a JWFan... ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'll one up you all: John Williams is my favorite artist.

If by artist you mean musical artist, I agree wholeheartedly. I'd have a hard time comparing him to artists in other fields, though he may have had more influence on me than any other single artist.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Morricone, then Williams, on most days. Some days it'll be the other way around.

Film scores and lyrical music are two completely different entities in my opinion, that it's hard for me to mix and match. I probably get a better "feel good" vibe from the likes of Zeppelin and Floyd than any film composer.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Or that of Steiner, Rozsa, Herrman, etc. I know how you feel; every time I see a post by a member known to be young, or jsut types like a youngen, I see stuff like ... well, I'll just give a couple examples so I don't derail things.

Top 5 scores? Okay, people like you and I might have a mixture of older composers and great scores, Alex north to Jerry Goldsmith (on the earlier to mid range works particularly), but the younger people ... they're lists look like:

"omg hard to chose. these scores have gotta be some of the best scores ever!

The Girl With the Dragon Tatoo

Kingdom of Heaven

Days of Thunder

The Rock

Hanna

CRINGE.

Or: I don't buy anything pre-1980.

Why is Kingdom of Heaven grouped up with Hanna and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo? Kingdom of Heaven may not be the best score ever, but I'd give it a 5 star ranking. Its a great score, and its definitely above the standards of the other scores on that list. Its most definitely not cringe worthy!

As for pre-1980s scores, yup people really should explore the amazing scores by the legends of the Golden Age! Long live Rozsa!

While I love all the legends of the past (Rozsa, Hermann and Korngold are all awesome!) but John Williams has always and probably will always be on top! The man is currently the best at what he does.

- KK

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Option 1. And I do dare to compare him with any other composer, living or dead, and still remain being my favorite. Having said that, I won't say he's a better composer than Beethoven, but while I do love everything I've heard from Beethoven, I still prefer Williams' music, even knowing he isn't as good.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I find it interesting that some develop such strong bonds which i cannot conceive.There's not a single composer i listen to so regularly that i'm inclined to heap him/her on a higher pedestal.

There are tons of musical expressions Williams isn't capable of and if i'm high on some 60's Lee Hazlewood-number, the last thing i think about is 'how does this compare to my favorite?'.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Option 1. And I do dare to compare him with any other composer, living or dead, and still remain being my favorite. Having said that, I won't say he's a better composer than Beethoven, but while I do love everything I've heard from Beethoven, I still prefer Williams' music, even knowing he isn't as good.

:up:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Option 1. And I do dare to compare him with any other composer, living or dead, and still remain being my favorite. Having said that, I won't say he's a better composer than Beethoven, but while I do love everything I've heard from Beethoven, I still prefer Williams' music, even knowing he isn't as good.

Same here.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You'd think so, yet currently 1/5th of all voters do NOT consider him to be their absolute favorite composer, so it's not so cut and dry as you think!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My favorite 25 film composers:

1) John Williams

2) Erich Wolfgang Korngold

3) Jerry Goldsmith

4) Elmer Bernstein

5) Maurice Jarre

6) Dmitri Tiomkin

7) Victor Young

8) David Raksin

9) Max Steiner

10) Jerome Moross

11) Anton Profes

12) Wojciech Kilar

13) Ennio Morricone

14) John Barry

15) Sergei Yevtushenko

16) David Arnold

17) Marc Shaiman

18) Michael Convertino

19) Edward Shearmur

20) Ilan Eshkeri

21) Miklos Rosza

22) Bernard Herrmann

23) Brian Tyler

24) Andrew Lockington

25) James Horner

Glad to see Michael Giacchino is not on that list ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My favorite 25 film composers:

1) John Williams

2) Erich Wolfgang Korngold

3) Jerry Goldsmith

4) Elmer Bernstein

5) Maurice Jarre

6) Dmitri Tiomkin

7) Victor Young

8) David Raksin

9) Max Steiner

10) Jerome Moross

11) Anton Profes

12) Wojciech Kilar

13) Ennio Morricone

14) John Barry

15) Sergei Yevtushenko

16) David Arnold

17) Marc Shaiman

18) Michael Convertino

19) Edward Shearmur

20) Ilan Eshkeri

21) Miklos Rosza

22) Bernard Herrmann

23) Brian Tyler

24) Andrew Lockington

25) James Horner

Glad to see Michael Giacchino is not on that list ;)

Of course he isn't.

Glad to see Michael Giacchino is not on that list ;)

But Brian Tyler, so that evens it out.

Brian Tyler is a very gifted film composer, with a proper sense of drama, sadly he chooses to write more in a modern techno style over the past few years.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Tied with Goldsmith. Option 2.

For film composers, that is - somehow I thought this thread was exclusively about them. Overall, they're still high up in my ranking, tied with Strauss & Co just a tiny step behind my favourite Bruckner.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Guidelines.