I don’t know if I have mentioned this before, but I am a huge film music fan. At one time I could probably listen to a film tune and tell you who wrote it, even if I hadn’t seen the film. I love the early film composers such as Erich Korngold( Errol Flynn movies), Miklos Rosza(Ben-Hur, El Cid, King of Kings), Alex North (Spartacus. He also wrote a score for 2001: A Space Odyssey, but they decided to go with the music we are so familiar with), Elmer Bernstein(The Ten Commandments, and also, oddly, the main theme for a British children’s TV series, Arthur Of The Britons).
Since then, I have discovered some newer composers, though not all of them new. In the end, I just love the music of epics.
And tonight I went to a concert of music by Hans Zimmer and John Williams. It was not cheap, but worth every cent. You will certainly know the music of John Williams, and may well know some of the music of Hans Zimmer. The Zimmer music I know best is from Gladiator, but he has done a lot more than that. Chances are, if you have seen anything swashbuckling from the 1990s on, you will have heard his music. Pirates Of The Caribbean? Man Of Steel? The Lion King?
Hearing a live orchestra play the music reminded me of how amazing it is, like a symphony, not just the modern song-themed films which use existing music, but this was not just a concert. The conductor entertained us. He talked about each piece they played and you could see he loved them, but he also used costumes. For Harry Potter he put on a Gryffindor scarf. For the theme from Pirates Of The Caribbean he went off stage and emerged with a Jack Sparrow hat and a frilly shirt. Star Wars? He rushed off and returned with an Obi Wan Kenobi robe and a light saber. He also did a very good Yoda voice. At one point he made the audience hum the five note theme from Close Encounters. He also got us to turn around and shake hands with the person behind.
We applauded loudly at each piece, and he made the musicians stand up for a bow.
The concert finished with JohnWilliams’ Superman theme - and the conductor stripped off his suit and conducted it in a Superman costume!
It had been a long time since I had so much fun at a performance. A great way to end the weekend!
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