John Williams, London Symphony Orchestra - Star Wars: A New Hope: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Special Edition)
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Free Music Notes for Star Wars: A New Hope: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Special Edition)
Free Music Review: The best release of the soundtrack, BUT...
Hit: 4 Stars
Ok. I'll admit it. I'm not a fan of the Star Wars series. I am, however, a fan of John Williams and of modern tonal orchestral music in general. And this is certianly a fine offering in that genre, with this 2 CD set being the difinitive version. I honestly can't remember the last time I saw the movie. But John William's themes to this movie are everywhere -- and fortunatly, they are quite good. This release is 2 CDs, and includes all the music from the 1997 "Special Edition" of the movie, as well as a couple cues that were changed or never in the movie. This is the original music from the original recording for the movie, preformed by the wonderful London Symphony Orchrestra, and conducted by the composer himself. It doesn't get any more authentic than this. There seems to be at least two, possibly 3, versions of this set, all at a different price, but with the exact same music. So be wanred, and don't pay too much for this.
This music from the film Star Wars, as I've said, is very good. The album starts off with the Fox fanfare, written by Alfred Newman, in its original 1954 glory. Then it goes right into the main theme, in the same key, which makes it flow almost perfectly. The theme *is* Star Wars, and of course makes motivic appearances throughout the score. Another great piece is Cantina Band, a hilarious and wonderful piece of music that is supposed to be an alien take on swing. Cantina Band #2 isn't quite as good, but it works. My other favorite is The Throne Room ~ End Title, which is a wonderful fanfare that is pure Williams.
The rest of the score isn't quite as memorable as the above tracks, but it's all very good incidental music. Binary Sunset is a beautiful peaceful picture, while The Battle of Yavin is a great fighting scene.
Perhaps the most unique track is the final one on disc 1. It starts off with the original cue witten as Binary Sunset, but was later changed. It's good, but I like the movie's version better. It then has 2:45 of silence, before going into all five original take of the main theme, complete with the voice saying "take 16" and so on. Take 16 is the first ever recording of the main theme, while 18-20 provide parts from which the final version was made. While I like the main theme alot, five extra times of it in a row is quite daunting, and the silence before it is annoying, especially being on the same track. This track in my opinion actually lowers the overall quality of the set. It was a good idea gone badly.
I really recommend this set, though, if you want a complete recording of the score. While not the best, it's a classic that fits nicely in most any score collection.
Free Music Review: Excellent score!
Hit: 5 Stars
One of the best movie scores ever made!Williams has composed a bunch of great themes,and has then arranged these into a score with some other themes that are more incidental and has by this created great filmmusic.The classic Main Title deserves mention,as does The Throne Room and Death Of Ben,but these are just a few cues in a collage of excellent music.This new rerelease includes some cues that were not on the original album(how nice to finally find the cantina cues where they belong),amongst them some previously unreleased material.Also plus for the great liner notes.If all soundtracks were released in this complete way,the world would be a much better place.
Free Music Review: This is one of my favorite soundtracks
Hit: 5 Stars
I am a great fan of all Star Wars music and especially to this one. It has a good combination of different music kinds. Disc one contains beautifull and interesting themes,while the disc two has more victorious action music. John Williams is also my favorite composer in film scores. He has so easy for making melodys and themes for different characters. This soundtrack has much lighter music than the sequels. For example,the Force theme,first heard in Imperial Attack,is the perfect introduction theme. The "Main Titles/Rebel Blockade Runner" is the perfect,massive main theme. If you want action music, "The Battle of Yavin" is a good,nine-minute track filled with different melodys. And the Ceremony Music heard at the end of disc 2 is the grand finale - a victorious version of the Force theme. The Burning Homestead is filled with a very sad version of the same theme. I hope this review is helpfull to you...Free Music Review: The Best Of The Star Wars Trilogy
Hit: 5 Stars
Out of all of the Star Wars movies, the New Hope ranks no. 1 on my favorites. I don't know why, maybe because of its varied styles and instrumentation, or maybe because its the first of the trilogy. The sound quality is very superb and the London Symphony's performance is, as always, flawless. The themes for Luke, Leia, Obi-Wan, the droids, Darth Vader, and even the Jawas are excellent and fit in well with the movie. If you are a Star Wars fan, start out with The New Hope. It is the best of the three.Free Music Review: excellent music
Hit: 5 Stars
this cd is an excellent example of how great a composer john williams is. i listen to this soundtrack every day and it gets better every time