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SCORE: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (John Williams) - A Complete Score Analysis


Incanus

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Amazing! This is a wonderful comprehensive analysis, worthy of Doug Adams! Thanks for taking the time to provide this detailed commentary on one of my all-time favourite scores. I've read the introduction and notes on the themes, and I'll look forward to sitting down later with the score and reading the track-by-track analysis as I listen. Thanks again!

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Doug Adams just called. He wants you to remove his analysis of the score. He told me didn't give his approval for it to be posted here.

:P

Well only thing Doug Adams has influenced in this analysis is the In the Making and OST Album VS the Film Cue sections which I thought to be a great idea to discuss the changes made to the music in the film and on the OST album.

Amazing! This is a wonderful comprehensive analysis, worthy of Doug Adams! Thanks for taking the time to provide this detailed commentary on one of my all-time favourite scores. I've read the introduction and notes on the themes, and I'll look forward to sitting down later with the score and reading the track-by-track analysis as I listen. Thanks again!

And thank you. :)
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It was interesting to read a clear analysis of the themes. I personally found the usage of the themes in HP1 to be a bit vague but the way you delineated them makes sense. Interesting the way the themes pair together in 2's, Hedwig's Theme and the Flying Theme to deal with magic in general, Harry's Theme and the Wondrous World theme to deal with Harry and his emotions, as so brilliantly brought together in "Family Portrait", and Voldemort's theme(s) and the Philosopher's Stone theme obviously linked. I always automatically thought of the three note PS motif as Voldemort's theme. I was also confused about mention from other sources of a Family theme and a Friendship theme, and my own thought when watching the film was that the Harry's Wondrous World theme was a theme for Gryffindor, as it plays first when Gryffindor win the Quidditch Match, and again when they win the House Cup. But as you said, these are important moments for Harry, and I'm sure the theme plays somewhere else in the film unrelated to Gryffindor.

It really is a wonderful score, and I think one of the best examples of Williams going to the effort of creating great concert material from the score, like he did with the Star Wars films. The Children's Suite is simply wonderful, drawing on themes but giving them the most inventive developments and extensions. And the Hedwig's Theme concert version is one of my favourites of it's kind Williams has done. I really wish he had time and inspiration to create similar quantities of concert pieces from many of his other scores.

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:worship: Amazing work as always!!

I haven't had a chance to read every word yet, but two things I did notice:

5m1X Troll In The Dungeon is not used in the film

5m2 Fighting The Troll - no mention that it features Voldemort's Theme?

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Thanks for the info and correction suggestions Jason! :)

5m2 Fighting The Troll - no mention that it features Voldemort's Theme?

I think I know the passage you mean and it just might be Voldemort's thematic material but I thought it more part of the action motif of the scene. I'll add a suggestion of this in the text. :)
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Yea it's right on the border between a subtle hint of his theme and being his actual theme..... I really like it though, it totally works. Another case of Williams using a theme that sounds good even though its not leitmotifically correct, like Leia's Theme when Ben dies

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It was interesting to read a clear analysis of the themes. I personally found the usage of the themes in HP1 to be a bit vague but the way you delineated them makes sense. Interesting the way the themes pair together in 2's, Hedwig's Theme and the Flying Theme to deal with magic in general, Harry's Theme and the Wondrous World theme to deal with Harry and his emotions, as so brilliantly brought together in "Family Portrait", and Voldemort's theme(s) and the Philosopher's Stone theme obviously linked. I always automatically thought of the three note PS motif as Voldemort's theme. I was also confused about mention from other sources of a Family theme and a Friendship theme, and my own thought when watching the film was that the Harry's Wondrous World theme was a theme for Gryffindor, as it plays first when Gryffindor win the Quidditch Match, and again when they win the House Cup. But as you said, these are important moments for Harry, and I'm sure the theme plays somewhere else in the film unrelated to Gryffindor.

As I looked through the film what I call Harry's Wondrous World Theme does indeed relate very strong to the most important moments in Harry's new life at Hogwarts and his gradual self discovery. It could be called a friendship theme but seems to relate very directly to the character of Harry Potter itself even though it might underscore moments where he is with his friends and fellow Gryffindors.
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Yea it's right on the border between a subtle hint of his theme and being his actual theme..... I really like it though, it totally works. Another case of Williams using a theme that sounds good even though its not leitmotifically correct, like Leia's Theme when Ben dies

I love it too, works perfectly. After repeated listens I did notice the hint of Voldemort, but perhaps in the film, for the first time, after hearing Voldemorts material earlier on in the exposition, and it's inherent "evil" association, I think this semi-quote in the troll scene provides a pre-attuned sense of menace in the ears of the viewer. Something Williams does very well of course.

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Yea it's right on the border between a subtle hint of his theme and being his actual theme..... I really like it though, it totally works. Another case of Williams using a theme that sounds good even though its not leitmotifically correct, like Leia's Theme when Ben dies

Yea it's right on the border between a subtle hint of his theme and being his actual theme..... I really like it though, it totally works. Another case of Williams using a theme that sounds good even though its not leitmotifically correct, like Leia's Theme when Ben dies

I love it too, works perfectly. After repeated listens I did notice the hint of Voldemort, but perhaps in the film, for the first time, after hearing Voldemorts material earlier on in the exposition, and it's inherent "evil" association, I think this semi-quote in the troll scene provides a pre-attuned sense of menace in the ears of the viewer. Something Williams does very well of course.

This thematic suggestion sounds indeed very valid at that moment, either coincidence or design on Williams' part, as it indeed suggests the actual source of the evil in the scene.

I started this analysis as much out of love and interest of the music as to clarify the musical narrative to myself. Especially Harry's musical identity had seemed rather nebulous to me in the past so I enjoyed very much finding out the structure of the thematic usage in the film and how it actually makes so much sense as per usual for Williams scores.

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Hey I didn't think of it before but Voldemort's Theme does actually fit there.... since him/Quirrel put the troll there. Williams is awesome :lol:

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Hey I didn't think of it before but Voldemort's Theme does actually fit there.... since him/Quirrel put the troll there. Williams is awesome :lol:

That he is my friend. That he is. :lol:

A great big thank you for pointing out this Voldemort theme appearance to me. Sometimes you need more pairs of ear than one to figure it all out. Actually most of the time more pairs of ears than one is better. :)

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I am speechless! Although I'm not quite done yet (almost), this is absolutely brilliant! I knew you were working on something big, but of this magnitude?! I had no idea.

But as BloodBoal suggested, I seriously think you should publish this as a book ;) Every film score fan deserves this analysis!

Thanks a million for this Incanus. You've outdone yourself!

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:lol: A good one BloodBoal. Excellent work and not a bad idea. Perhaps some day. :)

I really like the sparse cover design, a page taken out of (oh yes pretty directly) from Doug Adams' book.

And thank you guys for your kind words. It was a real pleasure to write this.

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I did not miss the plural in there BloodBoal, you crafty devil. And hey, I will write those analyses as soon as you produce me the COS recording sessions! ;)

And yeah I could write "this was repurposed from the first score" a lot in the COS analysis. :P

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And hey, I will write those analyses as soon as you produce me the COS recording sessions! ;)

I just sent an email to Williams. He told me he doesn't remember where he put his copy of the recording sessions, but that he will send it to me as soon as he finds it.

Ah cool.
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Is that in Westorosi time or Earth time? If its the former, I have all the more respect for you Incanus ;)

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Wow. Amazing! :blink:

How long did it take for you to write this, Incanus?

Thank you Josh. :) Well it took "only" about 10 months or so. I started in June or July 2011 but there were quite long periods when I did not have time or energy to work on it. Plus my old computer froze and left me with an older and shorter back-up copy of the text on my portable hard drive so I had to rewrite a large chunk of the track-by-track analysis in the middle during it all which set me back a little. I did not spend a decade preparing this like Doug Adams did with his The Music of the LotR Films book. :lol:
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Wow. Amazing! :blink:

How long did it take for you to write this, Incanus?

Thank you Josh. :) Well it took "only" about 10 months or so. I started in June or July 2011 but there were quite long periods when I did not have time or energy to work on it. Plus my old computer froze and left me with an older and shorter back-up copy of the text on my portable hard drive so I had to rewrite a large chunk of the track-by-track analysis in the middle during it all which set me back a little. I did not spend a decade preparing this like Doug Adams did with his The Music of the LotR Films book. :lol:

Ten months! Wow. Hats off to you.

Does that mean in another 10 months we get the Complete Score Analysis of CoS? :P

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Look, there goes Incanus! He is typing as if the very whips of his master were behind him!

Nah! I am only joking. BloodBoal is not my master. :P

I do not know if the two JW Harry Potter scores are next. I was thinking of something along the lines of one of the Prequels, Indy IV or Tintin. Or perhaps something as exotic as Nixon or The Witches of Eastwick.

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What is it? I hear it again. Smee, is that crocodile back from the dead? Tick tock, tick tock!

So pressure is it BloodBoal? Clever. You figured out my only weak spot is my unfathomable good form and punctuality. Damn!

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He sure has. And he has been sweeping the awards as well. Several gold stars in a row and Incanus' Golden Biscotti of Comedy. Who knows what he'll end up with by the end of the year. When I first saw one of his jokes I thought to myself: This kid will do great things, great but terrible.

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Hehe. This is BloodBoal's year folks! Howard Shore for the Oscar? John Williams? Bah! Forgot that! I'm rooting for BloodBoal ;)

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  • 4 months later...

Alas I have been busy with other writing this whole time. The Chamber of Secrets will have to wait a bit. Sorry folks!

But considering that BloodBoal put the timer in this thread without any consultation from me, I think it is perfectly within my rights not have written anything up to this point. Especially since he is not the boss of me as he isn't paying anything. ;)

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