Williams John Towner, *8 February 1932 New York, American composer, arranger, conductor and pianist. In 1951–54 he did his military service in the US Air Force (he orchestrated performed works and conducted military orchestras); he returned to New York in 1954, studied piano with R. Lhévinne at the Juilliard School of Music, and then began studies at the University of California in Los Angeles, and also studied composition privately with A.O. Andersen and M. Castelnuovo-Tedesco. In 1956, he became a studio pianist in Hollywood; initially, he composed music for television programmes, later he began creating soundtracks for feature films; in the 1960s, he was a pianist, arranger and conductor at Columbia Records. Williams’s collaborations dating from the 1970s with S. Spielberg and G. Lucas, and the creation of music for such famous films as Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Star Wars, brought him enormous success. He was the principal conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra from 1980 to 1993, and has also performed as a guest conductor with the London Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He has received numerous awards and distinctions for his film music, including 53 nominations and 5 Oscars (1971 Fiddler on the Roof, 1975 Jaws, 1977 Star Wars, 1982 E.T., 1993 Schindler’s List), 6 nominations and 3 Emmy Awards, 25 nominations and 4 Golden Globes, and 7 British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Awards; he has also received 25 Grammy Awards. He has received honorary doctorates from many American universities, including The Juilliard School (2004), Harvard University (2017), the University of Pennsylvania (2021), and in 2002 the American Film Institute. In 2016, he received the American Film Institute’s Lifetime Achievement Award, in 2020 the Prince of Asturias Award for the Arts, and the Gold Medal from the Royal Philharmonic Society. In 2009, he was awarded the National Medal of Arts, in 2016 the title of Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, and in 2022 the title of Honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire.
Williams is one of the most outstanding contemporary film music composers. His musical illustrations for films are characterised by excellent instrumentation, the composer often prefers brass instruments in them, creating themes with a marching, fanfare character and very diverse rhythms (Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark), on the other hand, his scores also feature melodious lyrical themes (Schindler’s List, Angela’s Ashes), and the main theme of the Harry Potter films is given a unique and mysterious character by chromatisation and original, varied instrumentation. The composer uses the leitmotif technique (Star Wars), and also themes that characterise the main characters of the film or are related to its title (the so-called Main Title). Williams’s musical illustrations suggestively reflect the narrative of the film; they are clearly inspired by the work of E. Elgar and outstanding composers of film music: E.W. Korngold, A. Newman and M. Rózsa. Williams’s music for the film is characterised by stylistic diversity; for example, in Images, he reached for avant-garde techniques, while in Catch Me If You Can, there are visible references to jazz music. In the 1980s, the composer introduced choral music to his film scores (Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Empire of the Sun). A new trend is to reflect the musical climate of the country or region associated with the action of the film or with the characters appearing in it (Japanese instruments: koto, shakuhachi, shamisen in Memoirs of a Geisha, the musical atmosphere of the Middle East created by the Persian instrument oud, and the dulcimer and clarinet associated with Jewish music in Munich). Another tendency in Williams’s new film music is the introduction of solo instrumental parts (cello and violin in Memoirs of a Geisha, cello in Angela’s Ashes, clarinet in Terminal).
Williams refers to the tradition of romantic music in his works (through the use of tonality and a large symphony orchestra); on the other hand, his works also show avant-garde features and inspirations from entertainment and popular music. He often creates compositions of an occasional nature (e.g. Call of the Champions, the monumental, vocal-orchestral fanfare theme of the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, the quartet Air and Simple Gifts written in 2009 for the inauguration of B. Obama’s presidency). Williams’s orchestral works, composed on a grand scale, are characterised by brilliant instrumentation; an important place among them is occupied by concertos, including the Bassoon Concerto “The Five Sacred Trees,” inspired by the work of R. Graves.
Literature: P. Moormann Spielberg-Variationen. Die Filmmusik von John Williams, Baden-Baden 2010; E. Audissino John Williams’s Film Music. „Jaws”, „Star Wars”, „Raiders of the Lost Ark”, and the Return of the Classical Hollywood Music Style, Madison (Wisconsin) 2014.
Sonata for piano, 1951
Essay for string orchestra, 1965
Prelude and Fugue for wind ensemble and percussion, 1965
Symphony, 1966, revised 1972
Sinfonietta for wind ensemble, 1968
Concerto for flute and orchestra, 1969
A Nostalgie Jazz Odyssey for wind orchestra, 1971
Concerto for violin and orchestra, 1976, revised 1998
America… the Dream Goes On for voice solo, choir and orchestra, words by A. and M. Bergman, 1981
Olympic Fanfare and Theme for orchestra, 1984
Concerto for tube and orchestra, 1985
Liberty Fanfare for orchestra, 1986
A Hymn to New England for orchestra, 1987
Olympic Spirit for orchestra, 1988
Winter Games Fanfare for orchestra, 1989
Concerto for clarinet and orchestra, 1991
Concerto for cello and orchestra, 1994
The Five Sacred Trees for bassoon and orchestra, 1995
Concerto for trumpet and orchestra, 1996
Summon the Heroes for orchestra, 1996
Seven for Luck, cycle of songs for soprano and orchestra, words by R. Dove, 1998
For Seiji! for orchestra, 1999
Treesong for violin and orchestra, 2000
Call of the Champions for choir and orchestra, words by P. de Coubertin and the composer, 2001
Concerto for horn and orchestra, 2003
Soundings for orchestra, 2003
Duo Concertante for violin and viola, 2007
Air and Simple Gifts for clarinet, violin, cello and piano, 2009
Concerto for viola and orchestra, 2009
On Willows and Birches for harp and orchestra, 2009
Oboe Concerto, 2011
La Jolla Quartet for violin, cello, clarinet and harp, 2011
Rounds for guitar solo, 2012
Conversations for piano, 2013
Scherzo for piano and orchestra, 2014
Music for Brass for brass ensemble and percussion, 2014
Markings for violin solo, string orchestra and harp, 2017
Highwood’s Ghost for cello, harp and orchestra, 2018
Violin Concerto No. 2, 2021
orchestral suites from film music
music for films, including:
Fiddler on the Roof, directed by N. Jewison, adaptation of J. Bock’s score, 1971
Images, directed by R. Altman, 1972
The Long Goodbye, directed by R. Altman, 1973
Earthquake, directed by M. Robson, 1974
The Towering Inferno, directed by J. Guillermin and I. Allen, 1974
The Sugarland Express, directed by S. Spielberg, 1974
Jaws, directed by S. Spielberg, 1975
Close Encounters of the Third Kind, directed by S. Spielberg, 1977
Star Wars: A New Hope, directed by G. Lucas, 1977
Jaws II, directed by J. Szwarc, 1978
Superman, directed by R. Donner, 1978
1941, directed by S. Spielberg, 1979
Dracula, directed by J. Badham, 1979
Star Wars: Episode V. The Empire Strikes Back, directed by I. Kershner, 1980
Indiana Jones. Raiders of the Lost Ark, directed by S. Spielberg, 1981
E.T. The Extra Terrestrial, directed by S. Spielberg, 1982
Star Wars: Episode VI. Return of the Jedi, directed by R. Marquand, 1983
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, directed by S. Spielberg, 1984
Empire of the Sun, directed by S. Spielberg, 1987
Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, directed by S.J. Furie, 1987
The Witches of Eastwick, directed by G. Miller, 1987
Always, directed by S. Spielberg, 1989
Born on the Fourth of July, directed by O. Stone, 1989
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, directed by S. Spielberg, 1989
Home Alone, directed by C. Columbus, 1990
Hook, directed by S. Spielberg, 1991
JFK, directed by O. Stone, 1991
Jurassic Park, directed by S. Spielberg, 1993
Schindler’s List, directed by S. Spielberg, 1993
Nixon, directed by O. Stone, 1995
Amistad, directed by S. Spielberg, 1997
Seven Years in Tibet, directed by J.-J. Annaud, 1997
The Lost World: Jurassic Park II, directed by S. Spielberg, 1997
Saving Private Ryan, directed by S. Spielberg, 1998
Stepmom, directed by C. Columbus, 1998
Angela’s Ashes, directed by A. Parker, 1999
Star Wars: Episode I. The Phantom Menace, directed by G. Lucas, 1999
Unfinished Journey, directed by S. Spielberg, 1999
The Patriot, directed by R. Emmerich, 2000
Artificial Intelligence, directed by S. Spielberg, 2001
Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone, directed by C. Columbus, 2001
Jurassic Park III, directed by J. Johnston, 2001
Catch Me If You Can, directed by S. Spielberg, 2002
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, directed by C. Columbus, 2002
Minority Report, directed by S. Spielberg, 2002
Star Wars: Episode II. Attack of the Clones, directed by G. Lucas, 2002
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, directed by A. Cuarón, 2004
Terminal, directed by S. Spielberg, 2004
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, directed by M. Newell, 2005
Memoirs of a Geisha, directed by R. Marshall, 2005
Star Wars: Episode III. Revenge of the Sith, directed by G. Lucas, 2005
War of the Worlds, directed by S. Spielberg, 2005
Munich, directed by S. Spielberg, 2005
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, directed by S. Spielberg, 2008
A Timeless Call, directed by S. Spielberg, 2008
The Adventures of Tintin, directed by S. Spielberg, 2011
War Horse, directed by S. Spielberg, 2011
Lincoln, directed by S. Spielberg, 2012
The Book Thief, directed by B. Percival, 2013
Star Wars: The Force Awakens, directed by J.J. Abrams, 2015
The BFG, directed by S. Spielberg, 2016
Rogue One. A Star Wars Story, directed by G. Edwards, 2016
Dear Basketball, directed by G. Keane, 2017
The Post, directed by S. Spielberg, 2017
Star Wars: The Last Jedi, directed by R. Johnson, 2017
Solo: A Star Wars Story, directed by R. Howard, 2018
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, directed by J.J. Abrams, 2019
The Fabelmans, directed by S. Spielberg, 2022
TV films:
Heidi, directed by D. Mann, 1968
Jane Eyre, directed by D. Mann, 1971
music and themes for TV series, sound signals for NBC
