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The Non-Episode Star Wars Music Poll


Tom

The "Other" SW Music  

62 members have voted

  1. 1. Which piece ranks supreme and why?

    • Galaxy's Edge
      11
    • Adventures of Han
      36
    • Obi-Wan Kenobi Theme
      15


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I think I had a poll on Galaxy's Edge versus Han at some point. However, now that we have a new piece, the JWFan Forum Rules stipulate that there must be a new poll.  So, here it is.  

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Honestly imo it's a tie between Adventures of Han and Obi-Wan Kenobi in the top spot. Galaxy's Edge didn't really leave much of an impact on me.

 

I'll vote for Obi-Wan just to give it a fighting chance. :lol:

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38 minutes ago, Datameister said:

Galaxy's Edge for me, with Adventures of Han in second, followed by Obi-Wan. That's what my gut says, though I like all three.

 

I can't help wondering if Adventures of Han might have taken first if the suite had been recorded in at Abbey Road with the score proper. I've become increasingly preoccupied with figuring out why I don't like the sound of Williams's recent LA recordings, especially the trumpets. The musicians are obviously world-class; it must have something to do with the acoustics of the Sony Scoring Stage, the mics, the mixing, maybe even the use of C trumpets instead of Bb. Comparing Adventures of Han to the rest of the score or to Galaxy's Edge makes the difference really stark.

 

I think for the most part it comes down to the mixing; the sequel scores (and other LA-recorded SW scores lately) are of course mixed incredibly dry, with the trumpets in particularly being very shrill compared to other scores recorded on the same stages, to try to match the sound of ANH's score (didn't Shawn Murphy even mention that at some point?)

 

Personally I have somewhat sensitive ears, so the trumpets tend to be a bit too loud and shrill for my liking, especially TFA. The mics are way too close, and make the music sound almost a bit unnatural in some cases.

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The earliest Williams score I really notice this on is KOTCS. There's something about the trumpets' tonal quality that is somehow both underwhelming and grating for me. Can't figure out why. I think I'm going to start a separate thread on it; I've been meaning to do so.

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Me too. I did a re-listen of the Disney trilogy recently, and a technique he likes to use a lot is where the trumpets play a quarter note and then the second note is the same note with plus the note a half step higher as a chord. It got grating after awhile, and I was wondering the whole time if it was something with the mix in California and how it would sound if these scores were recorded like the prequels. 

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Galaxy's Edge is the most refined for me. It has a regal quality to it while also sounding expensive and robust. The mix is very good. The Adventures of Han sounds a little small, like it was performed by a smaller orchestra. Obi-Wan is just too slight in thematic depth and development. It sounds like a first draft of something that could become a much richer theme. Galaxy's Edge is lush and wonderful.

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Galaxy's Edge remains for me the perfect blend of 70s-10s Williams.  It is not action packed or romatic, but it has the "it" factor for me.  Adventures of Han is very good.  I agree that the official recording seems a bit thin, but the FSO recording, while not perfect, brings an energy to the piece that really elevated it for me.  Plus, I love how the ostinato is put in the first big statement and then appears, not consistently throughout, but sort of all over the place--a unique touch.  Kenobi is good and solid.  I really like the first two minutes, but the second half is too "on the nose dramatic" for me. 

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Galaxy's Edge sounds a bit too much like a news theme for me, at least the ostinato part and the first fanfare during the intro. And then it's a bit more Indiana Jones than Star Wars at times.

 

Adventures Of Han is good, I do like that bits in there remind me of The Asteroid Field. It is melodic and full of adventure, not to mention a lot of little Williamsisms. But as a full on theme it doesn't carry all the way for me, but as a fanfare or shorter statment it's great.

 

In general, what makes me not entirely fall in love with these two is that they, to my ears, are remeniscent of the sound and arrangements in the prequels (Adventures Of Han less so). Nothing wrong with that, the prequels are full of great music, but - apart from a few select cues - neither full OST is on a top 10 Williams for me.

 

So Obi-Wan it is. It has that sweeping grandeur that reminds me of the OT. It is a cousin of Binary Sunset. There is a lineage to Leia's Theme. It is soulful without being bombastic, but yet is full of powerful statements.

 

I have no problem with people loving other pieces over the one I chose to vote for, I think this is all subjective and no one is wrong in their opinion. Love what you love.

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Adventures of Han.

 

Well, it's more like an action score and really grips me.

 

It's probably the arrangement, the orchestral virtuosity and the driving rhythmicity that makes me hear it over and over again.

 

It also got the BPO trreatment which was a kind of revival in 2021/2022.

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Adventures of Han gets the ed-- er, advantage because it has a great score to go with it. I don't enjoy the concert arrangement nearly as much as Powell's uses of it in the film.

 

Obi-Wan made zero impression on me. You could play it for me right now along side some other Williams-y thing and I couldn't pick between the two.

 

I like Galaxy's Edge a lot. Although I don't recall hearing the music when I was there.

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1 hour ago, Tallguy said:

I like Galaxy's Edge a lot. Although I don't recall hearing the music when I was there.

 

There's a very slow electronic arrangement that plays in the land's entry tunnels. Orchestral arrangements are heard during takeoff in both rides (plus the landing for Falcon), as well as in the lightsaber-building experience. Those are the only uses I know of.

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2 hours ago, Tom said:

Even worse, they play Rogue One.  

 

While I will concede that Rogue One is "worse" than Jerry Goldsmith's Star Trek I will in no way consider Rogue One to be bad.

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Like the majority, I went for The Adventures of Han which to me is the most memorable and interesting of the three although the arrangement feels a touch disjointed when it randomly changes direction (but not in a satisfying, dramatic way, it just kinda stops and goes off with another idea).

 

Galaxy's Edge has a fun fanfare, but I genuinely can't remember much of the rest of it despite having listened to it (checks iTunes) 8 times. It kinda has the vibe of someone doing a JW pastiche (albeit a very good one). I'm still surprised it doesn't quote or otherwise reference any of the original Star Wars themes so it gives the impression of someone having to write something that sounds a bit like Star Wars but isn't. Which is weird given that it's presumably all owned by the same mega corp.

 

I like the Obi-Wan melody itself and the first instance in the concert arrangement has some gorgeous harmonies but the middle section feels a bit aimless with a number of repeating figures that don't really go anywhere (Galaxy's Edge suffers from this, but not to quite the same extent).

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 17/09/2022 at 5:48 PM, Tom said:

Galaxy's Edge remains for me the perfect blend of 70s-10s Williams.  It is not action packed or romatic, but it has the "it" factor for me.  Adventures of Han is very good.  I agree that the official recording seems a bit thin, but the FSO recording, while not perfect, brings an energy to the piece that really elevated it for me.  Plus, I love how the ostinato is put in the first big statement and then appears, not consistently throughout, but sort of all over the place--a unique touch.  Kenobi is good and solid.  I really like the first two minutes, but the second half is too "on the nose dramatic" for me. 

Do you have a link to the FSO version? I couldn't find it on YouTube.

 

While I find the Kenobi theme too slight and one-note, it is a very fitting theme for Obi Wan in the show. The music expresses so much about the lonely, small life he's living in hiding. And it has the air of danger and building drama which creates a heavy atmosphere when used in the show. The theme has a real weight to it. I just wish it were a little less simple in orchestration. It doesn't have a full orchestral sound.

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