Composer John Williams

Composer John Williams

By Andrew Digesare

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If you were anything like me, you’re probably unfamiliar with John Williams and what he is known for. Well, you’ll be surprised to find out that you've definitely experienced some of his work. I discovered John Williams when I was sitting in my Film Study class, and we watched a video about the composer of Steven Spielberg's Jaws. I was amazed to learn the legacy and impact Williams has had on beloved movies. I think it's important that people know who was behind the sound of your childhood.

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Start of Career

Williams studied piano at the Juilliard School of Music and worked as a jazz pianist in New York City. He later returned to California, where he worked as a studio pianist for Hollywood films, including Some Like It Hot (1959), West Side Story (1961), and To Kill a Mockingbird (1962). Williams composed William Wyler's How to Steal a Million (1966) and called it "the first film he ever did for a major, super-talent director."

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Jaws

When trying to come up with a theme for Jaws, Williams had to find a way to characterize something that’s underwater with music rather than with sound effects.  Williams said, “I thought that altering the speed and volume of the theme, from very slow to very fast, from very soft to very loud, would indicate the mindless attacks of the shark.” If you’ve seen Jaws, you know that whenever the shark is in a scene, the iconic theme plays. “Dun un…..dun dun,” which is why in the scene where kids put on a fake fin to scare people, there isn’t any music. The audience experiences a sense of absence because Williams conditioned them to expect the shark when they hear its theme.

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Star Wars

Star Wars has a universally known soundtrack. Whether it’s Darth Vader's evil theme song or the music that plays when we read “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…” every person is familiar with the franchise's most popular songs. After John Williams’s work in Jaws, Spielberg recommended him to producer/director George Lucas, where Williams ended up composing all 9 primary Star Wars films. Just like how Williams created a theme for the shark in Jaws, he also created themes for each character in this franchise. Star Wars was another collection of films that solidified Williams as one of the greats.

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Harry Potter

When John Williams was asked to create a piece of music that would be a trailer for Harry Potter, he came back from dinner one night and came up with the iconic piano notes that make up “Hedwig's Theme.” Audiences were lucky enough to hear Williams' magical score for three of the eight Harry Potter films. Williams composed the first three movies, but unfortunately left to work on other projects such as Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith.

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Overview

Although John Williams is known for these big blockbuster films, his work does not stop at galactic adventures or the world of Wizards. Williams also composed movies and franchises such as Jurassic Park, Indiana Jones, Home Alone, and Superman.

The ULTIMATE John Williams Movie MASHUP / MEDLEY || PIANO COVER