Disney’s new documentaryMusic by John Williamsgives an intriguing insight into the different highs and lows of the legendary composer’s iconic career. Throughout the movie industry,John Williams has composed celebrated musical scoresfor iconic movies such asJaws,Home Alone, andStar Warsand has been cited as an inspiration for other movie composers, including Alan Silvestri and Itzshak Perlman. He holds the record as the person with the second-most nominations at the Academy Awards, with 56 nominations and four wins.
Across his career,John Williams has worked closely with film director Steven Spielberg; since their first collaboration in 1974, Williams has composed music for all but five of Spielberg’s movies. Three of Williams' Academy Awards were for his workon what many consider to be some of Steven Spielberg’s best movies. Williams has composed remarkable scores for Spielberg’s works, but he has admitted to having issues with composing music for one particular movie.
John Williams Suffered Burnout While Composing For Close Encounters Of The Third Kind
Williams Worked On The Movie After Composing The Score For Star Wars
In 1975,Steven Spielberg and John Williams collaborated for a third time on the science fiction filmClose Encounters of the Third Kind,which depicts ordinary peoples' encounters with UFOs. John Williams had previously worked with Spielberg onJaws,where he won an Oscar for Best Original Score. While Williams was happy to collaborate with Spielberg forClose Encounters, he revealed that he faced issues with composing the score.
Williams explained inMusic by John Williamsthat he was unsure of his ability to write music forClose Encounters of the Third Kind. At the time,he had just completed his iconicStar Warsscore, and he felt that he “didn’t have a note in him”. During a phone conversation with his father, Johnny, Williams asked for advice andhis father told him “just keep working on it, and you’ll be fine”; this light-hearted, but well-meaning advice from his father gave Williams the confidence he needed to complete the score forClose Encounters.
The Score For Close Encounters Won 2 Grammy Awards
Despite his initial uncertainties, Williams was able to complete the score forClose Encounters of the Third Kind. The score is described by music historian Alex Ross in the documentary as"very avant-garde" and “very dissonant” with “very extreme sounds”.Williams also displayed his music book, where he composed different trial pieces; he and Spielberg tested several before finally choosing the five-note motif used in the movie for communicating with the aliens.
The score forClose Encounterswas received with critical acclaim, winning two Grammy Awards and receiving an Oscar nomination for Best Original Score, Williams' 13th Oscar nomination in his musical career.
The score forClose Encounterswas received with critical acclaim,winning two Grammy Awards and receiving an Oscar nomination for Best Original Score,Williams' 13th Oscar nomination in his musical career. His work on the score helped solidifyClose Encountersasone of Steven Spielberg’s best alien films. As shown inMusic with John Williams, the famed composer did face challenges when it came to composing music, but he was able to overcome them and create enthralling scores for many celebrated movies.
Music by John Williams
John Williams' career spans jazz, film scores, and concert music, earning him 54 Oscar nominations, five wins, and a significant cultural impact. This documentary explores the life of this prolific musical icon.
