John Williams
“Flying Theme” from E.T. The Extraterrestrial (1982)
In classic Hollywood cinema, the musical score is a primary tool for highlighting critical narrative shifts and shaping a movie’s emotional arc. The apex of every arc is the climax, and E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial features one of the most recognizable climaxes in film history: the iconic flying scene. This sequence captures a sense of wonder and the innocence of childhood through a musical build-up that composer John Williams developed throughout the entire story. Williams builds the score around five primary themes: a light melody for the alien, a delicate motif for his bond with Elliott, ominous music for the government agents, a rhythmic “traveling” theme, and the triumphant “flying” theme.
Williams recalled the challenge of writing a melody that could convincingly accompany children soaring across the moon, noting, “I was concerned about getting just the right, soaring melody, which for me as a musician was a serious challenge.” During the chase, the music’s central leitmotif finally evolves into its full form, carrying the film toward its final fanfare. This musical expansion reflects the film’s broader theme of space as a realm of boundless possibility. As the bikes take flight, the score mirrors a feeling of escaping the mundane for something new and extraordinary.
The collaboration between Williams and director Steven Spielberg was unique, as Spielberg famously adjusted the film’s editing to match the pacing of the music. This rare decision allowed the orchestra to lead the narrative, ensuring the score remained the driving force behind the chase and E.T.’s eventual departure back to his home.
Source: filmmusicsociety.org and Manuel Garcia-Orozco
“Imperial March” from Star Wars: Suite for Orchestra (1980)
Williams’ “Imperial March” draws heavily on the aggressive, militaristic style of Gustav Holst’s “Mars, the Bringer of War.” While Williams uses a steady march beat, he mirrors Holst’s use of driving triplets and heavy brass to create a sense of mechanical power. These rigid rhythms and dissonant chords capture the relentless quality found in Holst’s work, acting as a modern update to that classic martial sound. This connection establishes the theme as musical shorthand for an unstoppable force and remains a definitive example of classical influence in cinema.
Source: LaMirada Symphony
About John Williams
In a career that spans five decades, John Williams has become one of America’s most accomplished and successful composers for film and for the concert stage. He has served as music director and laureate conductor of one of the country’s treasured musical institutions, the Boston Pops Orchestra, and he maintains thriving artistic relationships with many of the world’s great orchestras, including the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Mr. Williams has received a variety of prestigious awards, including the National Medal of Arts, the Kennedy Center Honor, the Olympic Order, and numerous Academy Awards, Grammy Awards, Emmy Awards and Golden Globe Awards. He remains one of our nation’s most distinguished and contributive musical voices.
Source: Gorfaine/Schwartz Agency
Missy Mazzoli
Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres)
Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres) is music in the shape of a solar system, a collection of rococo loops that twist around each other within a larger orbit. The word “sinfonia” refers most commonly to baroque works for chamber orchestra; but it also is an old Italian term for a hurdy-gurdy, a medieval stringed instrument with constant, wheezing drones that are cranked out under melodies played on an attached keyboard. Mazzoli’s piece churns and roils, at times inching close to the listener only to leap away at breakneck speed — in the process transforming the ensemble into a makeshift hurdy-gurdy, flung recklessly into space. Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres) was commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic and later expanded for a concert with the Boulder Philharmonic.
About Missy Mazzoli
Deemed “Brooklyn’s post-millenial Mozart” (Time Out New York) and “among the most inventive and surprising composers working today” (The New York Times), Grammy-nominated composer Missy Mazzoli has established herself as “the 21st-century’s gatecrasher of new classical music” (NPR). Widely celebrated for expanding the sound and scope of contemporary classical music, she has been commissioned by the New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, The Philadelphia Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Sydney Symphony, LA Opera, Cincinnati Opera, Opera Comique, Scottish Opera, and Opera Philadelphia, among many others, and artists who have championed her work include the Kronos Quartet, Emmanuel Ax, Jennifer Koh, and more. Mazzoli’s work, which spans opera, orchestral and chamber music, ballet, film, and television, establishes her as a defining composer of her generation.
Mazzoli is the recipient of Musical America’s 2022 Composer of the Year honor, three Grammy nominations, the inaugural Music Critics Association of America Award for Best Opera, the Goddard Lieberson Fellowship from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and numerous ASCAP Young Composer Awards. A Fulbright fellow and alumna of the Yale School of Music, the Royal Conservatory of The Hague, and Boston University, she is published exclusively by G. Schirmer.
Source: missymazzoli.com
Gustav Holst
The Planets (1914-16)
The genesis of this major work in the orchestral literature is attributed to several key events in Holst’s life, both musical and non-musical. From a musical perspective, Holst was influenced by Late Romantic composers such as Wagner and R. Strauss, and was intrigued by their use of extended tonality and rich chromaticism. He was known to have attended a performance of Schoenberg’s Five Pieces for Orchestra; it was Schoenberg’s intricate application of the orchestral palette that inspired Holst to apply a similar approach to his own compositional process.
During a trip to Spain in 1913 with fellow English composer Arnold Bax and his brother, the poet Clifford Bax, Clifford and Holst talked at length about astrology. However, there is no definitive evidence to suggest these discussions formed a direct correlation to Holst writing The Planets or the astrological epithets applied to each movement.
Each movement captures a different “personality,” and some suggest that each represents a character trait of Holst himself. Once the work premiered, it was an immediate hit. A remarkable feature of this suite is the detailed use of orchestration. Although we can point to the composers and conductors who influenced Holst, a major factor in his unique application of the orchestral palette was his first-hand experience performing as a freelance orchestral musician.
Mercury, the Winged Messenger
In the movement entitled “Mercury,” Holst plays a mischievous game with the musicians as rollicking melodic and rhythmic motivic lines interweave through the different sections of the orchestra. A musical hemiola (three beats against two) is regularly applied, creating metrical uncertainty for the listener. As the British conductor James Judd observes, “There is a virtuosity to Holst’s writing and in the case of Mercury—the weaving of parts and the incredible whispering of sound and mostly all very soft—how intricate and challenging that must have been to play for the first time.”
Venus, the Messenger of Peace
“Venus” then graces the listener with an elegant contrast. Announced by four ascending notes in the solo horn, most of the movement finds the orchestra gliding through the middle and upper registers, fitting the goddess’s heavenly nature and her focus on love and beauty. Holst uses enharmonic equivalents and shifting keys to create a “mysterious” tone color, while the celesta and glockenspiel add a crystalline quality to the overall sound.
Mars, The Bringer of War
As the first movement composed for The Planets, “Mars” is likely Holst’s most recognizable work. Its enduring influence on cinematic scores—including the works by Giacchino, Zimmer, and Williams on our program today—stems from a sense of controlled agression relentlessly driven by the rhythmic impetus of its iconic 5/4 meter. Beyond this mechanical power, the piece is equally defined by abrupt shifts in harmonic direction. These sudden transitions suggest Holst was exploring the “otherness” of alien worlds through the application of remote, “far-away” keys.
Uranus, the Magician
“Uranus,” the final movement composed for the The Planets, resurrects a little of the mischief previously heard in “Mercury” but with a middle section that heralds a majestic theme that is played throughout the orchestra. One is almost reminded of the famous work by Dukas, The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, as the rhythmic elements are similar, with the return of a hemiola and its pulse of 2 beats against a subdivision of 3 beats.
Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity
“Jupiter,” considered one of the more popular movements of the suite, spins out melodies that epitomize the power and joy of orchestral playing. These melodies also suggest a spiritual connection between the vastness of the cosmos and our own human experience, capturing the feeling of being small and insignificant within an incomprehensible expanse, balanced against a profound, noble connection to something greater. Judd notes that Jupiter “provides hope in the middle of this universe that we don’t understand,” the cosmic hug we all need in a vast, confusing universe.
The Planets was premiered on 29th September 1918, during the last few weeks of World War I in the Queen’s Hall, London. The performance, by the Queen’s Hall Orchestra with conductor Adrian Boult, was for a small audience of friends and professional musicians, at Holst’s request.
About Gustav Holst
Gustav Holst (1874–1934) began as a pianist, but neuritis forced him to switch to the trombone, which also helped his asthma. He studied at the Royal College of Music under Stanford and Parry, forming a lifelong friendship with Ralph Vaughan Williams. While he toured professionally as a trombonist with the Carl Rosa Opera and Scottish National Orchestra, he transitioned to teaching in 1903.
By 1905, he secured a long-term post at St. Paul’s Girls’ School, which provided him a dedicated space to compose. His interests were broad, ranging from astrology to Hindu philosophy and Sanskrit. In 1924, a fall while conducting led to declining health, forcing him to scale back to only his St. Paul’s duties. He died of heart failure at 59, leaving a legacy preserved by his daughter, Imogen, a noted musician and conductor.
His compositional style was shaped by these diverse fascinations, leading to his most famous work, the orchestral suite The Planets. While this masterpiece brought him international fame, he also explored his spiritual interests through his “Sanskrit period,” producing works like the chamber opera Sāvitri and several sets of Choral Hymns from the Rig Veda. His commitment to his students at St. Paul’s also resulted in enduring favorites like the St. Paul’s Suite, written specifically for the school’s string orchestra.
Source: Dr. Joanna Drimatis, Sydney Symphony Orchestra
John Adams
“Meister Eckhardt and Quackie” from Harmonielehre (1982)
Harmonielehre is roughly translated as “the book of harmony” or “treatise on harmony.” It is the title of a huge study of tonal harmony, part textbook, part philosophical rumination, that Arnold Schoenberg published in 1911 just as he was embarking on a voyage into unknown waters, one in which he would more or less permanently renounce the laws of tonality.
Adams’ work of the same name is a large, three-movement work for orchestra that marries the developmental techniques of Minimalism with the harmonic and expressive world of fin-de-siècle late Romanticism. As Adams notes, “It was a conceit that could only be attempted once. The shades of Mahler, Sibelius, Debussy, and the young Schoenberg are everywhere in this strange piece. This is a work that looks at the past in what I suspect is ‘postmodernist’ spirit, but, unlike Grand Pianola Music or Nixon in China, it does so entirely without irony.”
Today, we perform the the third part of Harmonielehre, entitled “Meister Eckhardt and Quackie.” Adams explains that this part “begins with a simple berceuse (cradlesong) over a minimalistic texture; a melody that is as airy, serene and blissful as ‘The Anfortas Wound’ is earthbound, shadowy and bleak. The Zappaesque title refers to a dream I’d had shortly after the birth of our daughter, Emily, who was briefly dubbed ‘Quackie’ during her infancy. In the dream, she rides perched on the shoulder of the Medieval mystic, Meister Eckhardt, as they hover among the heavenly bodies like figures painted on the high ceilings of old cathedrals. The tender berceuse gradually picks up speed and mass (not unlike “The Negative Love” movement of Harmonium) and culminates in a tidal wave of brass and percussion over a pedal point on E-flat major.”
About John Adams
Composer, conductor, and creative thinker, John Adams (b. 1947), occupies a unique position in the world of music. His works stand out among contemporary classical compositions for their depth of expression, brilliance of sound, and the profoundly humanist nature of their themes. Works spanning more than three decades are among the most performed of all contemporary classical music.
His stage works, many in collaboration with director Peter Sellars, have transformed the genre of contemporary music theater. Of Adams’ best-known opera, the New Yorker magazine wrote “Not since Porgy and Bess has an American opera won such universal acclaim as Nixon in China.” A 2023 New York Times Arts & Leisure cover story called Adams “arguably our greatest living composer.”
Adams has received numerous Grammy awards, many of them for his over thirty releases on Nonesuch Records. To celebrate his 75th birthday Nonesuch Records released its “John Adams Collected Works,” a 40-CD box covering his entire output since 1973.
The 2021 recipient of Holland’s Erasmus Prize “for contributions to European culture,” and the BBVA “Frontiers of Knowledge Award,” Adams has received honorary doctorates from Yale, Harvard, Northwestern, Cambridge and The Juilliard School. A provocative writer, he is author of the highly acclaimed autobiography ‘Hallelujah Junction’ and is a frequent contributor to the New York Times Book Review.
Since 2009 Adams has been Creative Chair of the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
Source: John Adams, official website
Michael Giacchino
Theme from “Star Trek” (2009)
Michael Giacchino’s score for the 2009 Star Trek movie reboot hinges on the stirring sound of its iconic opening theme, “Enterprising Young Men.” After rejecting over twenty iterations during his compositional process, the Academy and Grammy Award-winning composer finally struck gold with this melody, allowing the rest of his score—which earned a Grammy nomination and won the BMI Film Music Award—to fall into place.
For Giacchino, this composition is a direct reflection of his passion for the Star Trek franchise’s core ideals. As he explains, “I love what it’s about… interpersonal relationships… humanity… what’s good for the planet.” By focusing on these “big picture” themes, Giacchino uses the vastness of space to highlight what matters most in our own world.
Source: moviemusicuk.us and Hollywood Bowl/LA Phil
About Michael Giacchino
Academy Award–winning composer and director Michael Giacchino (b. 1967) has crafted the sonic landscape for some of the most acclaimed and beloved projects in contemporary cinema. His illustrious film-scoring portfolio includes The Incredibles, Coco, Jojo Rabbit, Ratatouille, Star Trek, Jurassic World, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Spider-Man: No Way Home, War for the Planet of the Apes, and The Batman. In 2009, his evocative score for Pixar’s Up earned him an unprecedented sweep of major awards: an Oscar, Golden Globe, BAFTA, Broadcast Film Critics’ Choice Award, and two Grammy Awards.
After nearly two decades establishing himself as one of Hollywood’s premier composers, Giacchino made his directorial debut with Marvel’s first special presentation, Werewolf by Night (2022). Beyond his creative pursuits, Giacchino demonstrates his commitment to nurturing future talent through his position on the advisory board of Education Through Music Los Angeles.
Source: michaelgiacchino.com
Hans Zimmer
Music from “Gladiator” (2000) arr. John Wesson
Composed by Hans Zimmer and Lisa Gerrard for Ridley Scott’s 2000 film Gladiator, the movie’s soundtrack is a significant work in contemporary film scoring. It departs from the brassy, “sword-and-sandal” tropes of old Hollywood, instead blending traditional orchestral arrangements with heavy percussion and haunting vocal performances. This modern approach emphasizes the film’s core themes of honor, loss, and redemption.
The score is notably influenced by classical literature, particularly the “Mars” movement from Gustav Holst’s The Planets. Listeners may recognize the driving 5/4 rhythmic pulse and aggressive brass clusters that mirror Holst’s “Bringer of War” during the film’s intense battle sequences.
The music follows the narrative arc of Maximus Decimus Meridius, tracking his journey from a fallen general to his final “victory” in the afterlife. In doing so, the music reinforces the film’s central philosophy: “What we do in life echoes in eternity.”
This suite, arranged by John Wasson, condenses these various thematic elements—including “Barbarian Horde,” “Earth,” and “The Battle”—into a single cohesive piece. By combining the film’s key musical moments, the arrangement brings the narrative intensity of the Roman Colosseum into the concert hall.
About Hans Zimmer
Hans Florian Zimmer (b. 1957) is a German film score composer and record producer. Zimmer’s works are notable for integrating electronic music sounds with traditional orchestral arrangements. Since the 1980s, he has composed music for over 150 films. His works include The Lion King, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Original Score in 1995, the Pirates of the Caribbean series, Interstellar, Gladiator, Crimson Tide, Inception, Dunkirk, The Dark Knight Trilogy, and more.
He has received four Grammy Awards, three Classical BRIT Awards, two Golden Globes, and an Academy Award. He was also named on the list of Top 100 Living Geniuses, published by The Daily Telegraph. Zimmer spent the early part of his career in the United Kingdom before moving to the United States. He is the head of the film music division at DreamWorks studios and works with other composers through the company that he founded, Remote Control Productions, formerly known as Media Ventures.
Source: Hans Zimmer, official website