JOHN WILLIAMS

You supported the notion here, unless i didn't understand well.

Well? What did you expected? A fully orchestral rendition of Hedwig's Theme? The movies now became much more darker than before, the same thing with the music. And Desplat is not someone who makes "drones" like the MV guys. He made good low-key music for the darkest scenes of Deathly Hallows, like in Bathilda Bagshot and Captured And Tortured.

Why do people associate a fully orchestral rendering of any theme with something that is happy and joyous. Yes, a fully orchestral rendition of the theme in a minor key would be just wonderful.

The Star Wars prequels got much darker as the progressed yet that classic main theme played over top of the opening scroll.

-Erik-

Speaking of which, does anyone have any theory as to why Hedwig's Theme really is the only theme that runs through all movies? How come the theme for the friggin' OWL (which doesn't even have that much space in the narrative) gets to be the leitmotif for the entire Potter universe?

Any theories?

I hadn't thought of that, very good point.

Anyone care to make an excuse?

It has been a while since I'm seen Philosopher's Stone but is Hedwig's Theme ACTUALLY Hedwig's Theme? Honesty, I think Williams screwed up when naming that track. I'm with Ralph. Hedwig's Theme is more a theme the represents the franchise as a whole and not so much one particular character.

-Erik-

I agree.

Where I disagree though is with everyone who thinks the different composers should try to sound like John Williams. Fair enough, you could get someone like John Debney to come in and do that, but there's no point hiring someone of the calibre of Desplat if you just want him to write a Williams soundalike. I'm actually quite surprised by how Williams-sounding some of the action music is in Deathly Hallows - he gets far closer to the sound than either Doyle or Hooper. And for me it's the perfect approach - enough of a hint of Williams that it's recognisably from the same franchise (bearing in mind the film is vastly different from the ones Williams scored, so Williams's own Deathly Hallows score would likely not be a great deal like his others were) but not so much that you end up removing the qualities from his music which make him what he is.

The very worst situation for me is something like Brian Tyler's Rambo where you have these completely jarring shifts from Tyler-style music to Goldsmith music, which is utterly different. I'm glad Harry Potter didn't go down that road.

I guess I just don't see the need for the different themes to continue from one theme to the next. If taken as "The Harry Potter Theme" then Hedwig's Theme certainly has a place, but I'm not sure about the others really. I'm just not sure they're well-known enough to warrant doing it. While obviously Williams's scores were thematically-driven, they weren't in the same was as (say) the Star Wars scores were.

Some good points about the owl theme, although it doesn't really get to the bottom of the matter.

I too think it became the saga's calling card because it was the most prominent and memorable theme in the first movie (which laid the groundwork for all to follow). However, it doesn't really make any sense from a narrative point-of-view.

In the latest film, the theme DOES pop up whenever Hedwig is on ([spoiler]in a dark arrangement as Hedwig plummets to the ground after being shot[/spoiler]), so there seems to be this very weird paradox running through the saga in which it's BOTH a theme for the owl - a character that isn't really important or doesn't really have much of a role in the story - AND the whole universe as a whole.

On the other hand, I DO have a theory - which may be stretching things a bit.

My theory is that the owl is the audience's watchful eye within the universe, that we're basically seeing the whole story unfold through the vessel of the owl (even though it isn't always present in the scene). The owl is the audience. So the theme expands beyond the character to become the theme for the mystery and magic of the whole universe.

Anyway, I'm raving on, but even though the franchise as a whole doesn't interest me that much, that particular aspect does. It's kinda traditional leitmotif on one hand, but then again, not really.

So, er, what happens to the audience when [spoiler]the owl dies[/spoiler]?

I think the other themes would have gained more attention automatically if they had lasted longer. Plus, the massive use of Hedwig´s Theme in the first movie forced the attention to it.

I find it interesting to hear that it is used during that pivotal moment in DH, but I think Desplat just wanted to use it here because it magnifies the impact and symbolizes [spoiler]the beginning of the end. A lot of things are going to change, lots of people will die. Harry´s world is changing.[/spoiler]

Desplat said that Hedwig's theme was used in the scenes when Harry is leaving his childhood and innocence behind. And after I watched the film, I think he used pretty well (the theme rendition in The Will is not on the film) By the way, Hedwig's theme rendition in the beginning of the film, before Obliviate is everything except drone. It's played in the celesta, like in Polyjuice Potion.

Well, the film leaves the scene ambigously and open (whereas the book may not).

Hello, maintitles, WAKE UP!

Varese recently announced FAMILY PLOT as their latest release:

http://www.varesesarabande.com/servlet/ … lot/Detail

Cool!

I had a feeling this one was right around the corner when those crystal-clear recordings leaked out on bootleg a couple of years ago. Now I'm only happy to throw that away and replace it with the real deal.

It's not really a score I find that interesting (beyond the brilliant main and end titles, there's a lot of sneaking-around music), and I would obviously have preferred to see an album arrangement out of it, but that aside - it's an important score in Williams' history and it's great to FINALLY have it released.

Makes you think that SUGARLAND EXPRESS may not be an impossibility either.