The Music of Star Wars

Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope

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• The Star Wars films span over 25 years and are famous for their soundtracks.
• Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope was released in 1977 with a soundtrack by John Williams.
• The Star Wars films are set in a galaxy "far far away" and concern the epic struggle between the Galactic Empire and the organised resistance of the Rebel Alliance, who are fighting to restore democracy to the galaxy.

John Williams

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• John Williams is a famous film composer and conductor.
• Williams revitalised and re-popularised the use of grand late Romantic orchestral scores in movies from the 1970's onwards, when the whole genre was under threat from contemporary and pop-influenced styles.
• His most famous scores include: Jaws, Jurassic Park, Harry Potter, Schindler’s List, Indiana Jones, E.T. Extra-Terrestrial, and Star Wars.

Williams and Leitmotifs

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• A leitmotif is a short musical idea that a composer links to a particular person, place, object or emotion. John Williams is famous for using these in his scores.
• The best-known examples in Star Wars include:
• The Imperial March - represents Darth Vader
• "The Force" Leitmotif - represents Ben (Obi Wan) Kenobi
• The Main Theme - represents Luke Skywalker