ST John Williams scored TFA - incl. Soundtrack discussion

There's also a hair raising rendition of the Force theme in what I'm assuming is an alternate for "Torn Apart"

 

Very disappointing NO Deluxe edition of the soundtrack coming out!

 

Hopefully someday. I'd love to have the Cantina pieces, at the very least.

 

Really? And an alt Kylo march?

 

It's not really an "alternate march for Kylo Ren" but it is a march-like rendition of the 4-note first order motif (one of the more obscure but prevalent ideas in the score). The Force Theme statement is from what I assume is a far more dramatic cut of Han's death (as opposed to the more understated music in the final film). It's one of the best statements of the Force theme in the score.

I'd share an audio rip but I think it's against the rules unfortunately.

 

Thanks for the info. Ugh, I can't believe I have to wait another 2 weeks for the blu-ray, I'm so excited to hear/see that.

With regards to the deluxe soundtrack - 99% certain there will be one eventually. The soundtrack sold very well and there is a definite market for a re-release.

 

The JW fan forums might be worth checking out.

 

I just wanted to say that TFA soundtrack is not that good. Maybe about 1/3 of it has some good music (Rey's theme is nice), but it is definitely lacking in overall appeal that OT, TPM and AOTC had (ROTS also kinda lacked, for whatever reason). I was also kinda annoyed that they couldn't come up with a new "Imperial march" or "Dual of the Fates". Well, I sup[pose it is very difficult to be consistently creative over a long period of time. Maybe Williams just ran out of juice?

One interesting thing I noticed on the TFA soundtrack: the main Star Wars theme has a small orchestra sound to it, like ANH. The prequels had a larger, more balanced soundstage, which I much preferred. But nevertheless, I did think the TFA main title was a nice nod to ANH. Listen to any prequel version of the main title, then listen to the TFA version. Noticeably different in the instrument balance.

 

TFA's score is great!

MODified: Considering the litany of (ignored) warnings you have received, I removed the unnecessary content.

 

USMC's The President's Own played some of the soundtrack recently.

 

WOW they're GOOD!!!!

 

I posted in another thread that I find it funny when people say it's got nothing good in it or it's not as good as the other films. You are giving this soundtrack no chance. The others have had between 39-11 years to seep in to our minds through hundreds of viewings of the films and repeated listens to the soundtracks on vinyl and cd over the years. So to judge and compare TFA in such a relatively short period of time and then write it off is laughable. Snap judgements seem to be the norm these days.

 

I agree that one can feel differently when given a substantial amount of time, but if you scrutinise a score, I think it's quite easy to asses it's fundamental merits quite quickly. Familiarity is never the best approach for critical analysis...

For me, the TFA score is about on par with AOTC. It has some very nice moments, Rey's theme and the Resistance theme are the highlights... but as an OST (relative to the others) I think it's a little less distinct and cohesive. I still think it's a very good score though... John Williams seldom puts a foot wrong.

 

I like the soundtrack overall, but don't love it. I would suggest the biggest hurdle that J.W. had to overcome was the style of filmmaking; which is ironic given that Disney wanted to make TFA more like the originals in that regard.

A good example is the attack on Starkiller base. It's entertaining, but at the same time so frantic and dizzying that there doesn't seem to be any chance of the soundtrack following the same rhythm, as in ANH/RotJ. As a result, the 'Scherzo for X-Wings' piece is a little underwhelming because it doesn't respond to the action on screen.

 

tfa's cantina song was written by hamilton's Lin-Manuel Miranda

 

While the TFA soundtrack is far from JW`s best on its` own, I think it works well with the movie.

 

Just an observation... whilst I don't think the TFA scores works quite as well within the film as the others, I believe Abrams actually has the music louder in the overal mix... which I'm all in favour of.

 

Agreed. Upon first seeing the movie,the score really did nothing for me. I didn't really notice it. But once I actually bought the CD, and sat down and listened to it, I grew to really enjoy it. Particularly Kylo's theme. It has a kind of... It gives me the impression of something trying to be powerful,almost regal, yet is twisted in it's heart. Kinda like Kylo really is! I feel it is a worth successor to the Imperial March.

I fully expected the soundtrack to sound almost like a OT retread, but was pleasantly surprised to find some cue's had almost a PT vibe to them,with instruments chosen and particular notes. I can say, if you gave me this CD, with no knowledge of TFA or it coming out, I'd have a hard time telling you if the story being told in music was during the PT or OT.

 

It's pretty well mixed (especially for a modern sound-effects heavy blockbuster) but it's still a bit too quiet for my tastes. It doesn't quite have the oomph it has on album.

 

Some of my favourite cues:

March of the Resistance
Rey's Theme
The Starkiller
Torn Apart
Snoke
The Jedi Steps and Finale

Great soundtrack and it only gets better with time.

 

I'm pretty sure this hasn't been posted yet. A fan made this MIDI mock-up of the full concert version of "The Jedi Steps" theme from the official sheet music. It's a synthesized orchestra so it doesn't sound great but it's the only way to listen to it (for now at least).

 

Saw a copy of the soundtrack on picture disc LP today, looks great.

 

Where? Did it have a cover, or just the discs in a plastic sleeve?