20th Century & John Williams

David Buckle

20th Century Music

1900-1999

The years spanning the end of the nineteenth century and the earliest part of the twentieth were a time of great expansion and development of, as well as a dramatic reaction to, the prevailing late Romanticism of previous years. In music, as in all the arts, expression became either overt, the huge symphonies of Gustav Mahler, or the operas of Giacomo Puccini, or was merely suggested as in the so-called "impressionist" music of Claude Debussy.

20th Century Cont.

Twentieth-century music has seen a great coming and going of various movements, among them post-romanticism, serialism and neo-classicism in the earlier years of the century, all of which were practiced at one time or another by Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. More recently, aleatory or "chance" music, neo-romanticism, and minimalism have been in vogue by a handful of American composers. With the commercial dissemination of music through the various media providing music as a constant background, the general populace has largely dismissed much of the music produced using bold, new, or experimental styles, preferring to turn to the forms and genres and often the composers with which it is most familiar.

John Williams

American composer and conductor John Williams has scored more than 100 films, including 'Jaws,' six 'Star Wars' movies, 'E.T.' and the first three 'Harry Potter' films.

John Williams was born in New York City on February 8, 1932. Williams—who studied at Juilliard—worked as a jazz pianist and studio musician before starting to compose for television and film.

ContinuedHis father was a musician, and Williams started taking piano lessons at a young age. With his family, Williams moved to Los Angeles, California, in 1948. He attended the University of California at Los Angeles for a short time before being drafted into the U.S. Air Force in 1951.

After three years of military service, Williams returned to New York City, where he worked as a jazz pianist. He also attended the Juilliard School, studying with famed teacher Rosina Lhevinne in pursuit of his dream of becoming a concert pianist. However, Williams confessed in a 2012 interview with NPR that at Juilliard he heard "players like John Browning and Van Cliburn around the place, who were also students of Rosina's, and I thought to myself, 'If that's the competition, I think I'd better be a composer!'"

Getting into the Job

Returning to Los Angeles, Williams became a movie studio musician. He was heard as a pianist on films such as Some Like It Hot (1959) and To Kill a Mockingbird (1962). Working with Henry Mancini, Williams also played piano on the theme for the television program Peter Gunn. Soon, Williams was composing his own music for TV. Shows that received Williams's musical touch include Wagon Train, Gilligan's Island and Lost in Space.

Williams also composed and arranged music for the big screen, starting with Daddy-O (1959). He received his first Academy Award nomination for Valley of the Dolls (1967). In 1972, Williams won an Academy Award for his work on Fiddler on the Roof. That same year, he gained attention for his score for The Poseidon Adventure.

Best Known for…

Williams may be best known for his work with Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. Almost all of Spielberg's films have Williams scores; their notable collaborations include Jaws (1975), E.T. (1982), Jurassic Park (1993), Schindler's List (1993) and Lincoln (2012). Williams also composed the music for George Lucas's six Star Wars movies. In 2013, it was announced that Williams would write the score for Episode VII of Stars Wars as well.

Additional Things

Though Williams is best known for his film scores, he has written other music, including concert pieces and the themes for several Olympic Games. Williams also regularly works as a conductor; in 1980, he became the conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra, a position he held until retiring in 1993. Williams still serves as a laureate conductor for the Pops, and has also conducted the London Symphony and popular concerts at the Hollywood Bowl.

Just some rewards…As of 2014, Williams had 48 Academy Award nominations, making him the living person with the most nominations. He has won five Academy Awards: In addition to Fiddler on the Roof, Williams received an Oscar for Jaws, Star Wars (1977), E.T. and Schindler's List. Williams has also received three Emmy Awards and more than 20 Grammy Awards. In 2004, he was a Kennedy Center honoree. Williams was given a National Medal of Arts in 2009.

Recordings

Star Wars

Far and Away

Jurassic Park

Jaws

Harry Potter

Refrences

http://www.ipl.org/div/mushist/twen/

http://www.biography.com/people/john-williams-9532526

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1388632/John-Williams