Jost1 105 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 Who's the best John Williams imitator out there? We've heard several composers try to imitate his style but it's certainly not easy to pull off. Some may be able to imitate his orchestrations, but obviously fall short in other respects. So who in your opinion would you say has managed to make you go "hey, that's not a half bad imitation" or: "I can't believe it's not John Williams!" ? I think the first time someone genuinely had me thinking it was Williams, was Gordy Haab's music for the first EA Battlefront (2015) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holko 9,499 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 That was indeed good imitation, especially when he wrote extensions for the actual Williams recordings. Jost1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jost1 105 Posted December 19, 2019 Author Share Posted December 19, 2019 The score to The Force Unleashed has some very good imitations as well, but I can tell it's not QUITE the same: DarthDementous and Fabulin 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Edmilson 7,398 Posted December 19, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted December 19, 2019 When I think about Williams imitators, the first thing that comes to my mind is this: Brónach, Trope, Cameron007 and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor 7,478 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 There are plenty who have excelled at the 'general' JW template, like Joel McNeely or John Debney. But Mike Verta is the best one I've heard; he's able to 'mimic' Williams' style to a tee, so much so that you can't believe it's not him. Brónach and Jost1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,033 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 What has Mike Verta scored? Jost1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post aviazn 273 Posted December 19, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted December 19, 2019 My favorite JW imitation comes from Kyle Newmaster's contributions to the Kinect: Star Wars soundtrack. He's not only able to mimic the sound and the mannerisms, but also how JW would develop ideas throughout cues in the OT and PT eras in a far more convincing manner than some of the other imitators. https://soundcloud.com/gordyhaab/15-cleggs-swan-song?in=gordyhaab/sets/kinect-star-wars-soundtrack Jost1, DarthDementous and SingeMoisi 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jost1 105 Posted December 19, 2019 Author Share Posted December 19, 2019 1 hour ago, Thor said: There are plenty who have excelled at the 'general' JW template, like Joel McNeely or John Debney. But Mike Verta is the best one I've heard; he's able to 'mimic' Williams' style to a tee, so much so that you can't believe it's not him. Will have to check it out, thanks Thor! 7 minutes ago, aviazn said: My favorite JW imitation comes from Kyle Newmaster's contributions to the Kinect: Star Wars soundtrack. He's not only able to mimic the sound and the mannerisms, but also how JW would develop ideas throughout cues in the OT and PT eras in a far more convincing manner than some of the other imitators. https://soundcloud.com/gordyhaab/15-cleggs-swan-song?in=gordyhaab/sets/kinect-star-wars-soundtrack Yep, very impressive! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Thor 7,478 Posted December 19, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted December 19, 2019 46 minutes ago, Jurassic Shark said: What has Mike Verta scored? Not that many films. FORBIDDEN WARRIOR is one that I love; there are some Williamsesque moments in that too. But he's done a low of "show pieces" for various events, and that's where he gets to show off his skill. One that I particularly like is his music for a BATMAN amusement park ride, which sounds like Danny Elfman's score as if it had been 'reimagined' by Williams: Holko, DrTenma, crlbrg and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jost1 105 Posted December 19, 2019 Author Share Posted December 19, 2019 1 minute ago, Thor said: Not that many films. FORBIDDEN WARRIOR is one that I love; there are some Williamsesque moments in that too. But he's done a low of "show pieces" for various events, and that's where he gets to show off his skill. One that I particularly like is his music for a BATMAN amusement park ride, which sounds like Danny Elfman's score as if it had been 'reimagined' by Williams: Haha it's so weird hearing the unholy hybrid of Williams and Elfman. It really does sound like it's 50/50 aviazn 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor 7,478 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 Yeah, if imitation is an artform, Verta is a bonefide master. Here's another one, and he even has Williams' brother Don on timpani: Jost1 and artguy360 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 Kevin Kaska does some very Prequel like stuff for John Debney's Lair as an "additional composer". Jost1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,033 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 After a few beers and then some, Thor's a great John Williams imitator. But I'm not sure he remembers... Jost1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 Interesting.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Woods 555 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 I'll leave this right here. Jost1 and crocodile 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Loert 2,510 Posted December 19, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted December 19, 2019 My favourite imitation was done by Clint Bajakian for the video game Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb. Not only did he convincingly imitate JW's various stylisms but he also managed to capture the playfulness of Indiana Jones music in particular. Some examples: This imitates JW's "Nazi" style to a tee (brass in octaves, snare drum etc.) (SHAMELESS PLUG ALERT) I have tried to imitate JW in the past, mostly unsuccessfully, but I think my most successful attempt was with this Prequel-style action track: Sharkissimo, Fabulin, Holko and 10 others 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Woods 555 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 And here's another one! Jost1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Holko 9,499 Posted December 19, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted December 19, 2019 I love Emperor's Tomb and its score! Docteur Qui, Loert, Sharkissimo and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Woods 555 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 And one more. Loert 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jost1 105 Posted December 19, 2019 Author Share Posted December 19, 2019 Lots of great stuff here! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheUlyssesian 2,473 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 Harry Potter 2 by William Ross. redishere and Jurassic Shark 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gkgyver 1,645 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 6 hours ago, Jost1 said: The score to The Force Unleashed has some very good imitations as well, but I can tell it's not QUITE the same: That's way too patterned to be a John Williams piece. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jost1 105 Posted December 19, 2019 Author Share Posted December 19, 2019 4 minutes ago, TheUlyssesian said: Harry Potter 2 by William Ross. I know this is an in-joke in this forum but come on lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holko 9,499 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 6 hours ago, Edmilson said: When I think about Williams imitators, the first thing that comes to my mind is this: For the opening, those drums, the racing strings and the high brass scream Doyle's Goblet of Fire at me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jost1 105 Posted December 19, 2019 Author Share Posted December 19, 2019 16 minutes ago, gkgyver said: That's way too patterned to be a John Williams piece. The trumpet parts are quite Williams-esque but again, it's not quite right Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,033 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 21 minutes ago, Erik Woods said: And one more. Shouldn't it be named French Dreams? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gkgyver 1,645 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 @Loert Of all the posted videos, your composition is the closest to my ears. Amazing. Loert 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jost1 105 Posted December 19, 2019 Author Share Posted December 19, 2019 40 minutes ago, Erik Woods said: And one more. Frederic Talgorn is absolutely incredible in his own right, Robotjox and Heavy Metal 2000 are both masterpieces Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Ludwig 1,120 Posted December 19, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted December 19, 2019 2 hours ago, Loert said: (SHAMELESS PLUG ALERT) I have tried to imitate JW in the past, mostly unsuccessfully, but I think my most successful attempt was with this Prequel-style action track: That is one impressive imitation! Bravo, @Loert! Obi-Wan has taught you well. Jost1, Loert and karelm 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joni Wiljami 1,206 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 Nothing here sounds like Williams, if you try too much to it, more far it goes from the original. That Talgorn dude is good, sounds like the Reivers meets the Fury in Hogwards with a very flat horn in 1:48. And of course Loert but that IS Williams. Man those timpani hits, the others go too much in the direction of zimmer drum noise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fabulin 3,510 Posted December 19, 2019 Share Posted December 19, 2019 One of the greatest threads of the year, right here. What a harvest! What I find most interesting, is that the most frequently imitated style presented here is that of the prequels. Jost1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jost1 105 Posted December 19, 2019 Author Share Posted December 19, 2019 50 minutes ago, First TROS March Accolyte said: One of the greatest threads of the year, right here. What a harvest! What I find most interesting, is that the most frequently imitated style presented here is that of the prequels. Thanks dude! Yeah the prequel style is very influential, I agree. It's funny how popular it has become. But well deserved obviously. Williams adapted to the times, and he tapped into the zeitgeist once again. It's incredible how many times he's done it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p0llux 392 Posted December 20, 2019 Share Posted December 20, 2019 Some great finds in this thread. Well done. For me, I enjoy listening to this guy's orchestrations. The very busy JW-esque orchestrations. I just enjoy any composer that respects all sections of the orchestra and gives them their due time to shine. Jost1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Woods 555 Posted December 20, 2019 Share Posted December 20, 2019 2 hours ago, hornist said: the others go too much in the direction of zimmer drum noise. Which of the examples have Zimmer drum noise? -Erik- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricardo Mortimer 43 Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 DarthDementous 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oomoog the Ecstatic 314 Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 A lot of the forms in this OST remind me of like Star Wars and Superman. Especially 1:20 - 1:33 But the biggest difference is, this is probably better than most Williams scores. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Mark 3,626 Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 I'm not sure if they all sound like Williams but these are all great tracks Joel MC Neeley had a few like Indiana Jones and the Phantom Train of Doom and one that sounded like Jaws in Skipper Ricard 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Know 326 Posted January 4, 2020 Share Posted January 4, 2020 Highly recommended -- Wael Binali's concert pieces "Niramaya," "Earth, Plunder, Wound, Renewal, Hope," and Shaffalah Suite. He's brilliant! Also, Benny Oschmann's "The Dwarves" video game score and Hendrik Schwarzer's orchestral music for Europa-Park... ocelot 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrTenma 116 Posted January 4, 2020 Share Posted January 4, 2020 On 12/19/2019 at 6:28 PM, Thor said: Not that many films. FORBIDDEN WARRIOR is one that I love; there are some Williamsesque moments in that too. But he's done a low of "show pieces" for various events, and that's where he gets to show off his skill. One that I particularly like is his music for a BATMAN amusement park ride, which sounds like Danny Elfman's score as if it had been 'reimagined' by Williams: This really impressed me! Is a very weird combination but definitely with some Williams-esque style there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cuartosur 12 Posted January 4, 2020 Share Posted January 4, 2020 Here´s another Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aviazn 273 Posted January 5, 2020 Share Posted January 5, 2020 On 12/30/2019 at 1:04 AM, Borodin said: A lot of the forms in this OST remind me of like Star Wars and Superman. Especially 1:20 - 1:33 But the biggest difference is, this is probably better than most Williams scores. Love the Homeward Bound main theme. It's all very 90s Disney, but very well constructed. The chords in that descending figure (like 2:36) kinda feels like something JW would do, (e.g. Somewhere in My Memory). I've always been curious to hear what Bruce Broughton would have done for Home Alone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh500 1,615 Posted January 5, 2020 Share Posted January 5, 2020 While growing up, and especially right after Jurassic Park, I was convinced Alan Silvestri was a pseudonym of John Williams! Because of this piece: Evanus 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pro-arte 22 Posted January 5, 2020 Share Posted January 5, 2020 James Hannigan is also very good Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
igger6 894 Posted January 6, 2020 Share Posted January 6, 2020 I wasn't sold on Haab (even after two competent Battlefronts, where he generally had to write anonymous Williams-esque action music that could be looped and cross-faded ad infinitum), until I heard his work on the Fallen Order video game. Very filmic, great musical storytelling, a few well-placed theme references, and just generally very satisfying. I always thought the folks who said they should give him a movie were vastly overrating his talent, but now I'm on board. There are some weird YouTube playlists out there that interpolate prequel music into so-called soundtrack playlists (which may be accurate; I've barely started the game), but this one looks like it's all original: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stravinsky 203 Posted January 7, 2020 Share Posted January 7, 2020 On 12/19/2019 at 8:01 PM, Loert said: My favourite imitation was done by Clint Bajakian for the video game Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb. Not only did he convincingly imitate JW's various stylisms but he also managed to capture the playfulness of Indiana Jones music in particular. Some examples: This imitates JW's "Nazi" style to a tee (brass in octaves, snare drum etc.) (SHAMELESS PLUG ALERT) I have tried to imitate JW in the past, mostly unsuccessfully, but I think my most successful attempt was with this Prequel-style action track: I don't know long that must have taken you to programme it all in but this is fantastic music for a Chase Scene. Great pastiche of Williams. Well done mate. Impressed. Loert 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Mark 3,626 Posted January 22, 2020 Share Posted January 22, 2020 I always thought the Airport 77 Main theme sounds very Disaster 70's JW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Gurkensalat 339 Posted July 14, 2020 Popular Post Share Posted July 14, 2020 On 1/4/2020 at 4:16 AM, Dr. Know said: ... Hendrik Schwarzer's orchestral music for Europa-Park... Just found this looking for mentions of Schwarzer in this forum. I discovered Europa-Park a few years ago and have now also collected some of the music composed for the park by Hendrik Schwarzer, a young German composer from the Black Forest, obviously a big John Williams fan as one can hear in his music. I bought this album (https://shop.europapark.de/en/Europa-Park+Classic+2016+-+Download.htm) and like the music quite a bit since it reminds me of a lot of JW from Star Wars til Jurassic Park. Here is a nice suite somebody put together out of bits and pieces from this album, also showing off the fantastic theme park it was written for, as a short introduction to Hendrik Schwarzer (he also composed 2 short musicals for the park and soundtracks for animated movies the park produced): Dr. Know, ChrisAfonso and Fabulin 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Pando 141 Posted July 14, 2020 Popular Post Share Posted July 14, 2020 I think Thomas Bergersen comes pretty close. His music is always an inspiration. This track might have come straight from the latest star wars and no one would have noticed that it's not JW. This is a MIDI mockup he did more than 10 years ago to showcase his private library. Fabulin, DarthDementous, artguy360 and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fabulin 3,510 Posted July 14, 2020 Share Posted July 14, 2020 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Edmilson 7,398 Posted July 14, 2020 Popular Post Share Posted July 14, 2020 This cue is also pretty Sequel-esque, with a bit of Indiana Jones thrown in: aj_vader, Cerebral Cortex and Faleel 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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