• Harp (glissandi)

The harp often plays loud ascending and descending glissandi to add even more excitement to the music. An example is bar 29 (1'06).

• Violins

The strings are led by the violins. From bar 1 they play a loud tremolo note of a B flat (the tonic) at the top of the texture and from bar 12 (0'25) most of the string section plays the melody of the B section.

The strings also provide very quick energetic passages. The link section from bar 31 (1'13) is probably the best example of this where a sextuplet ascending passage is heard.

• Piccolo/flute

The piccolo plays the melody at bar 36 (1'23). Its extremely high pitch helps to represent the stars in the sky and sounds almost isolated and mystical. Accompanying it is a flute playing a trill though this is very quiet in the texture.

Other than this, the rest of the woodwind section don't noticeably feature in this piece although they are definitely there! John Williams tends to orchestrate solo woodwind parts for key moments in his films, normally during quieter passages of music.

• Trumpets

Trumpets have an incredibly important role to play in this piece. Their tone quality is bright and piercing. They play the tune from the very beginning of the piece: in the fanfare and for the Luke Skywalker leitmotif. This helps to make the music bold at the beginning.

• French horns

French horns play in the fanfares but also play the main theme when it comes in for the repeat at bar 21 (0'38). French horns are lower than trumpets and have a broader and warmer tone quality.

• Trombones

Trombones play the fanfares too. As the lower brass instruments they play some of the important phrases, such as the linking phrase in bar 20 (0'45) that leads back into the A section melody at bar 21 (0'38).

• Timpani

The timpani play a lot during this piece. The deep and resounding tone quality of the pitched drums adds a lot to the texture. They first play at the anacrusis to bar 4 (0'06), emphasising the bass line to make it more epic. From bar 25 (0'58) the timpani also add weight to the bass, with a daring triplet rhythm in bar 27 (1'03) making the music sound even more courageous. The timpani are also required to play a roll in bar 32 (1'34), creating a strong sense of anticipation for the following section.

• Triangle

To support the violins, a triangle also plays a tremolo at the beginning of the piece to help conjure up an even more vibrant sound.

• Cymbals

At certain points, a cymbal crash marks the start of an important melody. This includes the downbeat of bar 1, bar 21 (0'48) and bar 43 (1'38).

• Gong (Tam tam)

A large gong or tam tam plays at the downbeat to bar 42 (1'35). This is as epic as a cymbal crash but sounds a little more ominous in this context.

• Vibraphone and celeste

These percussion instruments both play during the passage from bar 36 (1'23) for 3 bars. This helps to support a feeling of mystery and curiosity to support the eery image of the stars in outer space.