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John Williams & the Vienna Philharmonic: January 18/19 2020


Ricard

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4 minutes ago, Holko said:

 

Obligatory "Has he revisited them recently in the context of an expansion that made him want to play them again?" comment.

 

Probably not. Last year at the Hollywood Bowl they did 3 Potter pieces, he does Potter quite a lot I think.

 

1 minute ago, Pawel P. said:

Does Williams always conduct Close Encounters at concerts with the choir?

 

No.

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2 minutes ago, Stefancos said:

Williams alternates his programs all the time, so I wouldn't assume this is exactly what you'll hear 

 

I'm hearing the Vienna programme twice, so it would be nice if London is at least a bit different.

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Hey, I'd gladly hear the same programme by both orchestras. But variations would be even better.

 

Still wondering which concert/orchestra will be "better", or if they'll be equally excellent.

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I'd assume it'll be an LSO and England-centric concert at Royal Albert, so expect Harry Potter, Superman, War Horse, Star Wars and maybe even Hook. Just imagine if The Fury gets a run!

 

Would also love to hear some of his new-age Star Wars suites performed by the LSO, especially Rey's Theme, Adventures of Han and the updated Han Solo and the Princess suite.

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8 minutes ago, crumbs said:

Dracula would be incredible! When was the last time he touched upon that score in a concert though?

 

Last year actually, in Boston or Tanglewood (i forget which) and the Hollywood Bowl. Williams did Superman at the Bowl too.

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59 minutes ago, Pawel P. said:

Here is the official program:

https://www.wienerphilharmoniker.at/concerts/concert-detail/event-id/9889

 

Olympic Fanfare and Theme
Ausschnitte aus "Close Encounters of the Third Kind"
Suite aus "Memoirs of a Geisha"
Adventures on Earth aus "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial"

-- Pause --


The Flight to Neverland aus "Hook"
A Child’s Tale: Suite from "The BFG"
Hedwig’s Theme from "Harry Potter"
Nimbus 2000 aus "Harry Potter"
Harry's Wondrous World aus "Harry Potter"
The Rebellion Is Reborn aus "Star Wars - The Last Jedi"
Rey's Theme aus "Star Wars - The Force Awakens"
Main Title from "Star Wars"

 

On 8/22/2018 at 4:40 AM, Pawel P. said:

I asked Wiener Philharmoniker via Facebook if they plan to to release a  blu-ray.

 

So whether the concerts (originally advertised as TV concerts) will be recorded by cameras depends only on Williams. I hope that Maestro, known for his modesty, will not think that: "No one would want to see me on the podium at Musiverein ..." ;) By the way, I send a similar question to LSO, they replied that “no plans for this at the moment”. So the CD from the Viennese concert will be released for sure, that's good news. Let's keep our fingers crossed for the blu-ray!

 

VH.png

 

This is so awesome. First “An Evening With John Williams In Concert”:  the Maestro conducting the London Symphony Orchestea (like reuniting with old friends) on October 26, and now a CD of John Williams conducting the Vienna Philharmonic (the concert on November 3 and 4)!! I cannot wait to purchase that CD when it comes out.

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I wouldn't mind hearing some more popular scores in Vienna, like Jurassic Park or Indy. But I'm certainly not complaing.

A setlist like that will make the concert even more special. And I'm really looking forward to see John Williams conduct and bring out a stellar performance from the orchestra, especially on more demanding tracks like the Potter ones.

I know both the TFA und TLJ tracks will be the absolute highlights for me personally. I just can't wait!

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4 hours ago, hornist said:

BFG will be magical with this wonderful sounding orchestra in the Golden Hall. 

 

BFG will be nice enough, but there's a ton of other pieces I'd rather have in its stead.

 

CE3K and Harry's Wondrous World should fit the acoustics perfectly.

 

3 hours ago, Steve McQueen said:

The program could do with a little less HP and a little more Hook, but otherwise seems quite exciting!

 

Nimbus 2000 is a relative rarity. It should be a treat hearing the Philharmoniker play that. And Olympic Fanfare (although I'd be even happier if they did Summon the Heroes instead).

 

3 hours ago, Steve McQueen said:

Can we still expect the Elegy for Cello and Orchestra?

 

Doesn't look like it. Unless they do it as an encore before the intermission.

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Just now, Marian Schedenig said:

And Olympic Fanfare (although I'd be even happier if they did Summon the Heroes instead).

Olympic Fanfare will be quite sufficient, but only if Williams plays the original introduction, not Bugler's Dream

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My guess is that the Geisha suite will be a selection of three or four pieces, not the full six movements (like he did in Baltimore a few months ago). It's likely they will play the Elegy as encore before Adventures on Earth.

 

It looks like a very nice program. I guess the London one will be similar, perhaps swapping the Geisha suite with the Theme from Schindler's List and the Jaws fugue. I also expect a couple more Star Wars selections in the second half instead of three selections from Harry Potter (perhaps he will perform only Hedwig's Theme or Harry's Wondrous World)

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I have a feeling the London set list will be more oriented towards pop culture - as when JW plays the Bowl in LA.

 

I don’t mind the more ‘adult’ approach to the Vienna set list (except for the excessive Harry Potter inclusion - what the hell is going on there), but since there will be a CD released, wouldn’t it have been great to have something new on there...

 

It doesn’t have to be new-new, just those arrangements that never got a proper spot in the sun.

 

Like the new Han Solo & The Princess arrangement, and The Book Thief Oscar arrangement.

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There will be Jaws, Superman, Schindler's List and more Star Wars for sure in the London concert. We can hope JW will perhaps put in the "odd selection" with something like Dracula, acknowledging his LSO collaboration. It seems he's very fond of the BFG suite, he's conducting it almost regularly at every concert since a couple of years (probably also because it's a nice spotlight for some of the soloists).

 

I know people here are picky when it comes to these things and would like to hear less popular stuff like Monsignor or The Fury, but there's no way JW is doing his first London concert in 20 years without conducting the "greatest hits". Just let's be happy this is happening!

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Which is fine - but if given the opportunity to choose, does the world really need new recordings of his “greatest hits” (á la the LSO recordings on A Life In Music releases earlier this year)? As you point out, I guess that, in a way, at least half of the tracks chosen for the Vienna concert could be considered “B-sides”, which is cool.

 

But the selection of “A-sides” and “B-sides” is a bit curious to me. 

 

The set list “Olympic Fanfare”, "Close Encounters of the Third Kind", "Memoirs of a Geisha", "E.T.", "Hook”, "The BFG", "Harry Potter", "Star Wars - The Last Jedi, The Force Awakens and A New Hope” doesn’t get my blood pumping.

 

I honestly don’t mind the stuff that could be considered too familiar (CE3K, ET, Star Wars). It’s part of “give an audience what they want” mindset which is fine, but I think that the “B-sides” stuff is a curios bunch. Most of them is what I think is JW at his most boring (Geisha, The BFG).


I have no soft spot for the HP music or the music from The Last Jedi. The inclusion of such cues such as Nimbus 2000 and The Rebellion Is Reborn, is cool, I guess, but is this the best of “B-sides” that JW has to offer?

 

It’s not a complaint. I’m over the moon I get to see him (both in London and Vienna none the less).

 

I also realize that preference for certain pieces in a set list is highly subjective. It’s just that these selections for Vienna - especially considering there’ll be a CD recorded and release - would be different if I’d been able to give input.

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10 hours ago, rough cut said:

I don’t mind the more ‘adult’ approach to the Vienna set list (except for the excessive Harry Potter inclusion - what the hell is going on there)

 

 

E.T., BFG, Hook, Potter, SW7/8... "adult"?

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10 hours ago, rough cut said:

I don’t mind the more ‘adult’ approach to the Vienna set list (except for the excessive Harry Potter inclusion - what the hell is going on there), but since there will be a CD released, wouldn’t it have been great to have something new on there...

 

Hm, yes I realize my rallying can be a bit hard to read.

 

I meant that: I don’t think we’ll hear Olympic Fanfare, Geisha or BFG (which I consider a bit more sophisticated or less accessible or whatever) in London, which makes the Vienna set list overall more “adult”.

 

I tacked on that I think the HP selection is - in my opinion - too excessive. One cue would’ve been enough.

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I am sure some people are super happy about it - which is fine. But I could probably name 20 other scores that I would have liked to hear three cues from, rather than HP.

 

Or even better: Pick three cues from three different movies.

 

Skip HP all together and choose any time of the two above, either would have been better, but that’s just me. If you love HP music, that’s fine.

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2 hours ago, Marian Schedenig said:

The Musikverein website has updated their entry to reflect their new programme, and they still list the Elegy.

There is hope then!

 

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  • 3 weeks later...

If anyone living local to Vienna wants to go to the concert on the 4th I have 2 standing tickets that I will gladly donate for FREE to anyone desperate to see Williams and hasn’t managed to get tickets.

 

2 friends are unable to make it, so these will be going spare.

 

I also have 2 good seats for the concert on the 3rd which I’ll gladly sell , otherwise I shall return these to the box office for resale.

 

 

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Just got the Wiener Philharmoniker "Musikfreunde" magazine in the mail. There is an article on JW, written in German. If some of our German-speaking friends here want to translate for us... :)

 

 

JW_Wiener_01.jpg

JW_Wiener_02.jpg

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First it’s a bit of an intro (“Without him, could ET have made that heartbreaking call?” Without him, would the white shark’s bite be as sharp?”).

 

It goes on to say that with his notes, he enhances cinematic masterpieces and is quite simply “Mr Hollywood”.

 

Then there’s a bit where they go through all of his awards (under the title “Man of records).

 

They recount a lot of movies he’s scored and say that “John Willliams can do anything”. They call him “Man of continuity” and connects it to his longstanding relationship with Steven Spielberg.

 

Under the headline “Man of games” the article mentions some of his non-cinematic works, such as works for the Olympics and the presidential inauguration.

 

The last paragraph, “Man of the stars”, is probably the most interesting. It focuses on that JW will conduct the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and that he has chosen some of his most famous selections from his film scores. It ends by saying that the orchestra will start a new journey, down an untrodden path, together with Williams. A path from a universe of images, and where the images “can’t have reach their full effect without music.”

 

Or something to that effect.

 

It’s a fluff piece, but it’s nice. 😊

 

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London, and then Vienna twice, life can be beautiful :) Question to those who were at at Musikverein in the past: Is the printed "koncert programme" that you can buy during the evening only in German or maybe also in English? I'ill buy it anyway, even if it's in Chinese ;)

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I am going to London and Vienna as well! I will see Williams in the flesh for the third and fourth time. It would be nice to meet up with some members before or after the concerts. Or in between :) 

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I note that some people who are interested in purchasing tickets for the concert in Vienna are concerned about the cost of staying in the city. If you want somewhere that is relatively cheap to fly into and to stay do check out Bratislava. The city is about 60 minutes from Vienna by rail. Trains leave every hour for around 14 hours per day and are cheap and direct. There's a direct tram from the train station in Vienna to the concert hall. I'm staying in a hotel in Bratislava that's directly opposite the train station. 

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Yeah, it’s close, just be aware that you are missing out on Vienna - a city that is frequently on the top of the list when it comes to “cities that is most worth to pay a visit in Europe”, and also one of the most influential cities when it comes to European history.

 

That’s worth something.

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33 minutes ago, rough cut said:

Yeah, it’s close, just be aware that you are missing out on Vienna - a city that is frequently on the top of the list when it comes to “cities that is most worth to pay a visit in Europe”, and also one of the most influential cities when it comes to European history.

 

That’s worth something.

Well I’ve been to Vienna twice, so skipping it for Bratislava is ok with me, but I get what you are saying.

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Like here?

 

 

 

Bratislava also has great parts, by the way, but yeah, if anyone goes to the Vienna concert, do yourself a favour and spend 2 days there visiting places or just walking around if you've never been!

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4 hours ago, King Mark said:

Isn't the Vienna Philharmonic the most classical elitist orchestra in the world? Must be quite an honor for JW

 

They are considered to be one of the finest orchestra in the world, yes.

 

I read somewhere that this is the first time they’re having a full program dedicated to movie music. Don’t know if that’s true or not, though.

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2 hours ago, Stefancos said:

I'm surprised they booked him, perhaps they need the money.

 

Concerts will probably be awful. The players will resent having to do "movie" music and halfarse it.

 

At least they didn't resent it so much they felt the need to program some Holst, Korngold, Wagner and Stravinsky in between their Star Wars acts, like the Concertgebouworkest did last year.

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