John Williams & Berliner Philharmoniker 14th/15th/16th Oct 2021

[eitam 368]

4 hours ago, Luke Skywalker said:

One weird thing I noticed...is that with the performance of "Scherzo for Motorcycle and Orchestra", Williams unknowningly may have been the 1st composer to perform Nazi music in the open in germany since the end of WWII... (Nazi motif from Last Crusade)

 

I thought the same thing ! I wonder if that's why the theme was a little muted, though that's unlikely. 

[E-Wan 66]

3 hours ago, bollemanneke said:

Hey, I found a way for DG to milk this occasion: they can release all three concerts!

 

Fortunately, DG has nothing to do with these concerts. Almost all DVDs & Blu-Rays of BPO concerts have been released by EuroArts 

[Marian Schedenig 8,776]

7 hours ago, St0rMl0rD said:

Oh crap, there was an autograph hunter trying to get his autograph at the very concert? Yikes...You'd think people would have more respect and know better

 

Happened right before my nose. The security guy at that door had clearly been tired for at least the last few pieces of the evening. I don't know remember if he'd stepped outside for a moment when it happened or just didn't pay attention/react quickly enough, but it seemed like his colleague gave him a reprimand afterwards. He was still there on Saturday though.

 

4 hours ago, BB-8 said:

Yes, looked very much as if these concerts were also recorded - the automated cameras were moving and special mikes were placed in front of the cello for the elegy...

 

The cameras were moving on Thursday, but they were clearly replaced by others on Saturday (white "surveillance" cameras on Thursday, black film/video cameras on Saturday). Perhaps they were just rehearsing camera angles on Thursday? If so, I hope at least the sound was fully recorded.

 

[igger6 912]

1 hour ago, Damien F said:

I have that Far and Away suite on the "1969 - 1999" two disc compilation. Not sure if that recording appears on other compilation albums.

 

It can't be the same suite, because that recording features Perlman on solo violin.  (Speaking of which, I wonder if that's the only Williams piece to have been rearranged by the Maestro two separate times for the same solo instrument?  Maybe Geisha would be the other.)

 

Unrelated: if this does get released, will it be the fastest Jurassic Park Williams has ever recorded?

[Marian Schedenig 8,776]

2 hours ago, bollemanneke said:

I'm not too familiar with concerts conducted by JW, but is it me or was he extremely happy and relaxed etc.? Or was Vienna just an exception? I just loved his speeches!

 

He was very happy and relaxed in Vienna, too, just more exhausted during the second concert and a bit confused in his speeches. He was overall more energetic in Berlin on Thursday, and particularly talkative about his Berlin experience, but again he was clearly more exhausted on Saturday (and apparently even more on Friday, when I wasn't there), and cut some of his speeches short.

 

[Locrius 97]

1 hour ago, MaestroUE said:

PS: I coincidentally captured the moment with the autograph hunter 😁 Seemed like a young, clueless guy, who may have recklessly counted on JW’s good nature. 

IMG_6704.MOV

 

Does the video not work for anyone else? Man, it's frustrating; I keep seeing members posting .MOV video links, but none of them are working for me. 

[Pauling 17]

4 minutes ago, Locrius said:

 

¿El video no funciona para nadie más? Hombre, es frustrante; Sigo viendo miembros publicando enlaces de video .MOV, pero ninguno de ellos funciona para mí. 

No, it doesn't work... It may be because of the format or because the file is too heavy.

[Sunshine Reger 3,571]

31 minutes ago, eitam said:

 

I thought the same thing ! I wonder if that's why the theme was a little muted, though that's unlikely. 

muted? I just wanted to post that the BPO absolutely owned that moment! "Yeah, that's us, and we are badass!" 

 

The mechanical rhythm of the strings brought to the front gave it more of a  feel.

[GlastoEls 565]

1 hour ago, QuartalHarmony said:

Surely his relaxed and talkative demeanour was due to him wearing one of his beloved black turtlenecks? Being in a shirt and tie for Vienna clearly did him no favours. All hail the power of the black turtleneck.

 

Every JWFan attending Milan should, here and now, vow to attend wearing a black turtleneck. Just think how energised that will make him…

 

Mark

I wore my black turtleneck on Thursday and Saturday so no wonder he was chatty after he glanced over at A-Rechts row 11!

[Ali Rahmjoo 3]

17 minutes ago, Locrius said:

 

Does the video not work for anyone else? Man, it's frustrating; I keep seeing members posting .MOV video links, but none of them are working for me. 

It may be a browser problem. I can see them in Safari, but they don't work in Chrome or Edge.

[Damien F 1,763]

Maybe he was very relaxed and talkative because he smoked a huge amount of weed before the concerts!!

[Marian Schedenig 8,776]

13 minutes ago, GlastoEls said:

I wore my black turtleneck on Thursday and Saturday so no wonder he was chatty after he glanced over at A-Rechts row 11!

 

I was wearing a turtleneck on Saturday, but he was more chatty on Thursday…

[GlastoEls 565]

Just now, Marian Schedenig said:

 

I was wearing a turtleneck on Saturday, but he was more chatty on Thursday…

Dammit, that’s a gaping flub in the turtleneck/chattiness matrix!

[pete 942]

36 minutes ago, igger6 said:

 

It can't be the same suite, because that recording features Perlman on solo violin.  (Speaking of which, I wonder if that's the only Williams piece to have been rearranged by the Maestro two separate times for the same solo instrument?  Maybe Geisha would be the other.)

 

Unrelated: if this does get released, will it be the fastest Jurassic Park Williams has ever recorded?

 

Witches of Eastwick got an arrangement for violin and piano for Gil Shahan, and then the new one for Anne-Sophie, and yeah the Far and Away suite performed at the concerts hasn't been recorded by Williams yet. He performed it in London in 1998 too - it's a little of Country Galways seguing into the End Credits minus The Chieftains. I've always hoped for a recording since then by Williams even though it's not significantly different from the soundtrack. The Japan Philharmonic Orchestra recorded it, but there's just something extra special about a recording by Williams himself. 

[Jay 38,747]

7 minutes ago, pete said:

The Japan Philharmonic Orchestra recorded it

 

Is that the 9 minutes track on this CD?

 

 

King Records KICC 1372/3

Released 2017

Recorded 2001-2008

Japan Philharmonic Orchestra

Ryusuke Numajiri & Taizo Takemoto, conductors

 

DISC 1

01. Main Title - Superman (4:25)

02. Disaster Movie Suite Main Title - Earthquake (2:24)

03. Disaster Movie Suite Main Title - The Towering Inferno (2:58)

04. Disaster Movie Suite Main Theme - Jaws (3:08)

05. Main Title - JFK (5:12)

06. Theme - Schindler's List (3:41)

07. March - Midway (4:13)

08. Prayer For Peace - Munich (4:29)

09. Main Title - 1941 (4:27)

10. The Tale Of Viktor Navorski - The Terminal (4:18)

11. End Credit - Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom (6:45)

12. Theme - Angela's Ashes (6:32)

13. End Credit - Far And Away (9:02)

 

DISC 2

01. Main Title - Star Wars Episode 4 New Hope (5:36)

02. Main Theme - Jurassic Park (5:42)

03. Main Theme - Lost WorldJurassic Park (3:33)

04. Somewhere In My Memory - Home Alone (1:37)

05. Holiday Flight - Home Alone (1:17)

06. Prologue & Ultimate War - Hook (4:11)

07. Opening & Ending - Close Encounters Of The Third Kind (5:04)

08. Frying Theme - E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (3:57)

09. Theme - Memoirs Of A Geisha (5:27)

10. Theme - The Patriot (7:20)

11. Hedwig's Theme - Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone (5:12)

12. Window To The Past - Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban (4:44)

13. Harry's Wondrous World - Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets (4:57)

 

https://www.filmmusicsite.com/en/soundtracks.cgi?id=60356

[pete 942]

Yes, listening now. It's a little slower than the piece as conduced by Williams, and the Film Symphony Orchestra also performed it at a faster tempo. Particulalry noticable when the end credits part starts. They're racing through it like they have a plane to catch!
 

 

[Locrius 97]

 

 

[michael_grig 472]

Oh no. He really seems to be one of the wrong mask wearers...

[Locrius 97]

 

2 minutes ago, Michael G. said:

Oh no. He really seems to be one of the wrong mask wearers...

 

But he's vaccinated (and I'm assuming the other guy is too), and to be fair, that kind of mask doesn't really help much anyways... Not sure the big deal?

[Taikomochi 1,184]

John Williams’ terrible mask etiquette gives me anxiety.

[Tom 4,945]

11 minutes ago, Taikomochi said:

John Williams’ terrible mask etiquette gives me anxiety.

He's vaccinated.  The chance of him dying from Covid (if that is what you are implying) is literally like .002, which is about the same chance as he dies from accidentally impaling himself with his baton.  So, worry less (or, I suppose, worry more, if you wish to go that route).  

[Taikomochi 1,184]

I mean, yes, the risk is low, but the it is nonetheless relatively higher for a nearly 90-year-old man. No need for him to fuck around with a disease that can have long lingering effects even in mild cases. We all want him to keep doing what he’s doing.

[crumbs 14,584]

I mean, it's likely everyone who came into contact with him had negative tests beforehand.

 

But I take your point, we should all be extra cautious even if vaccinated.

[Locrius 97]

2 hours ago, Taikomochi said:

I mean, yes, the risk is low, but the it is nonetheless relatively higher for a nearly 90-year-old man. No need for him to fuck around with a disease that can have long lingering effects even in mild cases. We all want him to keep doing what he’s doing.

 

But those masks are meant to prevent you from spreading it to others, not to prevent you from catching it...

[Luke Skywalker 1,925]

Germany is a high risk area now, at least from spain POW.

and he wasnt even wearing a compulsory fpp2 mask!

[pete 942]

He's playing air piano in one of the pics! Cool! What was he playing??

2 hours ago, Locrius said:

 

 

 

[Locrius 97]

For those who don't recall, Simone Pedroni is the guy who released a piano album of Williams transcriptions a few years back!

 

 

[Biodome 714]

13 hours ago, Jurassic Shark said:

Welcome, fellow Norwegian. We're slowly, but surely, taking over this place.

At this rate, after La Scala, John Williams will surely do a concert with the Oslo Philharmonic

[BB-8 3,796]

9 hours ago, igger6 said:

 

It can't be the same suite, because that recording features Perlman on solo violin.  (Speaking of which, I wonder if that's the only Williams piece to have been rearranged by the Maestro two separate times for the same solo instrument?  Maybe Geisha would be the other.)

 

Unrelated: if this does get released, will it be the fastest Jurassic Park Williams has ever recorded?

JP was rather fast in general but it seemed slower on Saturday than on Thursday and Friday.

39 minutes ago, Biodome said:

At this rate, after La Scala, John Williams will surely do a concert with the Oslo Philharmonic

Or preferably Bergen Philharmonic with Chandos' sound engineers?

[Jurassic Shark 12,777]

No, make it Trondheim Symphony Orchestra with 2L!

[Biodome 714]

15 minutes ago, Jurassic Shark said:

No, make it Trondheim Symphony Orchestra with 2L!

An open-air concert with the Longyearbyen symfoniorkester. The polar bears would serve as a nice deterrent against non-serious fans and autograph hunters.

[bollemanneke 3,529]

4 hours ago, Tom said:

He's vaccinated.  The chance of him dying from Covid (if that is what you are implying) is literally like .002, which is about the same chance as he dies from accidentally impaling himself with his baton.  So, worry less (or, I suppose, worry more, if you wish to go that route).  

Tell that to my country, we have a 90% vaccination rate here and infections and hospitalisations are rising like crazy. Best not to put too much thought into it, I suppose?

[Jurassic Shark 12,777]

Someone should confiscate JW's baton!

 

15 minutes ago, Biodome said:

An open-air concert with the Longyearbyen symfoniorkester. The polar bears would serve as a nice deterrent against non-serious fans and autograph hunters.

 

I honestly didn't know such a thing exists.

[Biodome 714]

13 minutes ago, Jurassic Shark said:

I honestly didn't know such a thing exists.

I think most people don't. That orchestra is like 1 or 2 years old, with most of the players being children and amateurs.

[TownerFan 4,998]

1 hour ago, Locrius said:

For those who don't recall, Simone Pedroni is the guy who released a piano album of Williams transcriptions a few years back!

 

Yes, Simone knows JW and was invited in the Green Room after Thursday concert. Guitarist Pablo Villegas was there the same day (I think he posted pics on Instagram).

 

I just want to add a few personal considerations about these fantastic Berlin concerts. For me, this has been really the ultimate consacration of JW's greatness, not just because of the prestige of the venue and the orchestra, but because it truly felt like a joyous celebration of his musical life in the city that has always been at the crossroad of history. I don't think I ever attended a concert where the electricity and the happiness was so palpable. The Saturday performance will be remembered as an historic event for decades to come and I felt so honoured to be part of it together with thousands of other people.

 

Each one of us has a deep personal relationship with John's music that, imho, goes beyond the nature of its commitment. For most of us, it truly makes us feel like kids again and brings us back to that magical moment in our lives when we first experienced it. This is one of the reason why I think it's above most of film music. Of course this can happen with other film composers, but JW is the only one who now belongs to three different generations of listeners and filmgoers. And it's not only Star Wars nerds, thanks goodness, but people with very different backgrounds, histories and personal bond with his music. The feeling I had during the Berlin weekend was that everyone was there only because of the man and his music, and what it means deep down for each one of us.

 

I am sorry I didn't catch with any of the other fans besides the wonderful Miguel and briefly with Thor and Marian. I attended with some other friends, plus I had a couple meetings I had to attend and of course I planned some tourist time with my wife. I hope to have more time in Milan, as for me it won't be a tourist place

[Thor 8,078]

Yes, sorry nothing happened in terms of Sunday lunch, Maurizio, but in retrospect, it was just as well. I was terribly, terribly hung over on Sunday and basically just roamed the streets around the hotel untill it was time to leave in the afternoon. Next time, we'll synchronize better. Same for Miguel, who I completely missed this time (again!).

 

2 hours ago, Biodome said:

At this rate, after La Scala, John Williams will surely do a concert with the Oslo Philharmonic

 

Wouldn't that be something? I remember reading years ago that the Oslo Phil was considered one of the best orchestras in the world, in some ranking in a magazine (can't remember where). Not sure how they're ranked today. But obviously, it doesn't have the same air about it as Wien, Berlin and Milano. So despite his recent willingness to do more European venues, I doubt Oslo is on his "bucket list".

[Jurassic Shark 12,777]

58 minutes ago, Biodome said:

I think most people don't. That orchestra is like 1 or 2 years old, with most of the players being children and amateurs.

 

Like the VPO then!

[Runar 11]

1 hour ago, Biodome said:

An open-air concert with the Longyearbyen symfoniorkester. The polar bears would serve as a nice deterrent against non-serious fans and autograph hunters.

That would be Too Far and Away! I'd prefer Stavanger Symfoniorkester!

[Jurassic Shark 12,777]

Better there than Munich!

[bollemanneke 3,529]

15 minutes ago, Jurassic Shark said:

 

Like the VPO then!

How dare you! They're amazing musicians! They just can't sight-read or prepare for a postponed concert! Or perform music with joy! Or play in the same rhythm! And they just forgot what the beginning of Star Wars sounded like!

[Jurassic Shark 12,777]

2 minutes ago, bollemanneke said:

How dare you! They're amazing musicians! They just can't sight-read or prepare for a postponed concert! Or perform music with joy! Or play in the same rhythm! And they just forgot what the beginning of Star Wars sounded like!

 

I think we'll have to join the witness protection program after these posts...

[bollemanneke 3,529]

Have you listened to Berlin yet?

[Jurassic Shark 12,777]

3 minutes ago, bollemanneke said:

Have you listened to Berlin yet?

 

I didn't have time when the streams were scheduled, so I'll probably listen next weekend if it's available in their archives then. But I want to set up my stereo first (still unpacking after moving).

[bollemanneke 3,529]

Okay, post back with your thoughts on this orchestra though.

[Jurassic Shark 12,777]

3 minutes ago, bollemanneke said:

Okay, post back with your thoughts on this orchestra though.

 

I'm currently prepping by forcing myself to listen to the VPO album (or one of them...)!

 

Starting with the lacklustre horn in the opening of Flight to Neverland...

[Luke Skywalker 1,925]

Rewatching saturday's final ovation (I can't believe I appear in the recording!) I really think that Williams should have entered the stage one last time (no encore, of course), specially after the clapping beat tempo changed (i got goosebumps rewatching it). And because he had not left the building yet, and as it seems it was an abnormally long ovation...

[bollemanneke 3,529]

I'm about to pop in disc 2.

[Jurassic Shark 12,777]

Oh, you prefer the live edition?

[Biodome 714]

17 minutes ago, Luke Skywalker said:

Rewatching saturday's final ovation (I can't believe I appear in the recording!) I really think that Williams should have entered the stage one last time (no encore, of course), specially after the clapping beat tempo changed (i got goosebumps rewatching it). And because he had not left the building yet, and as it seems it was an abnormally long ovation...

Wait, someone actually filmed that ovation? Where can I watch it?

[bollemanneke 3,529]

18 minutes ago, Jurassic Shark said:

Oh, you prefer the live edition?

It was the only one worth buying as far as I'm concerned.