In 2016 the American Film Institute awarded John Williams their lifetime achievement award for his work as a composer that stretched over 60 years and earned him over 50 Oscar nominations. At the same ceremony Williams’ long time friend and collaborator Steven Spielberg said the following, “Without John Williams, bikes don’t really fly, nor do brooms in Quidditch matches, nor do men in red capes. There is no Force, dinosaurs do not walk the Earth, we do not wonder, we do not weep, we do not believe.” Given his contributions to film over the years, it’s hard to disagree with that sentiment.
To Celebrate his 90th birthday the Ulster Orchestra came together on Saturday 29 January to honour the music of the great maestro by playing some of his most famous pieces as part of their concert, “The Brilliance of Williams!” conducted by Robert Zieglar and presented by Tim Burden.
The evening opened with a dedication to the late Richard Donner with a rousing rendition of the iconic theme from his 1978 film Superman. It was the perfect way to start the evening with the audience hooked, from the opening fanfare to the build-up and then bursting into life with the trumpets blasting out the main theme they knew that they were in for something special.
After the piece, presenter Tim Burden took to the stage to officially welcome the crowd and throughout the evening he proved to be a wonderful host whose love and passion for Williams’ work was evident as he provided many great anecdotes about the man and his music. His encouragement of audience participation through social media at the interval also added to the great communal spirit of the night.
Next up was the jaunty Devils Dance from The Witches of Eastwick that carried a theatrical quality to it in the form of the thunder sheets which were used to dramatic effect. This was quickly followed by a collection of Williams’ work on the score of the 1971 version of Fiddler on the Roof. It is a piece that played to the strength of the string section of the Orchestra but lead violinist Tamás Kocsis’ solo was nothing short of extraordinary.
You could tell by the mood of the audience (particularly the younger members) that a highlight of their evening came when Zieglar with the orchestra in tow took them on a journey from Platform 9 ¾ to Hogwarts with renditions of both Hedwig’s Theme and Harry’s Wondrous World from the Harry Potter series. Two instantly recognisable pieces that automatically play in your head the second anyone mentions the name of the boy wizard. From the smiles on the faces of the audience, it goes without saying that they were spellbound.
One unexpected delight in the evening came from Williams’ piece The Tale Of Viktor Navorski from The Terminal. The clarinet driven piece performed with an expert effortlessness from Francesco Paolo Scola was an absolute joy. This was followed by the piece The Flight to Neverland from Hook which was dedicated to William’s friend and collaborator Leslie Bricusse. Hook is a film that Spielberg dislikes and whilst 10 year old me would disagree with him I think if we were to ever meet that we could both agree that Williams’ score is the best thing about it as shown by the Ulster Orchestra’s magical rendition.
Hymn to the Fallen was another impressive piece as its solemnity captures the horror and tragedy of war after the brutal opening battle scene on Omaha Beach from Saving Private Ryan. Tim Burden summed it up quite well by describing it as a warm blanket after the storm of war with the brass section during the chorus being quite moving.
Of course, no night celebrating John Williams would be complete without a piece of music from the adventures of Henry Jones Jr. and the audience of the Waterfront were not disappointed as they were treated to the Raiders Theme just before the interval. It allowed the orchestra to stretch the muscles of the brass section further with their energetic performance of the music that cemented Raiders of the Lost Ark as being one of the greatest Action/Adventure films ever made. A fitting way to close the first half of the evening.
During the second half of the evening, Tim Burden read out a letter from Mr Williams himself where he thanked the Ulster Orchestra and conductor, Robert Zieglar for their performance as well as sending his fondest regards to all in attendance. They returned the favour by wishing the master composer a very happy birthday in a video message in a wonderful moment that I’m sure the great man would enjoy.
The music in the second half opened with my personal highlight of the evening with Adventures on Earth from E.T. Admittingly it is not my favourite piece of music from Williams immense back catalogue but by the end of the Ulster Orchestra’s rendition of it, my opinion might have changed. They really captured the otherworldly grandeur of the story of a close friendship between two beings from across the stars with every member of the orchestra being in fine form but particularly Paul Klein on the French horn towards the finale.
Whilst the night was mainly a celebration of Williams’ work with film there was enough room for celebrating his contributions outside it in the form of his take on Carlos Gardel’s Por una Cabeza. A zesty and enjoyable piece playing the strength of the string section with Kocsis’ talent shining through yet again.
There was a double monster bill next which turned out to be a real crowd-pleaser with music from both Jaws and Jurassic Park. You really get a sense of the simplistic genius behind the two-note theme from Jaws when you hear it live with some of the more subtle aspects of the piece helping to bring the aquatic terror of Amity Island to life.
The theme from Jurassic Park began with a simple and gentle fanfare that built and built with the awe-inducing wind section before the iconic theme kicked in with the strings going at full pelt. It’s a moment that puts the audience in Sam Neil’s shoes when he points at the towering Brachiosaurus in disbelief saying, “It’s a dinosaur” proving how seeing isn’t always believing when it comes to the relationship between music and film.
It was quite fitting too that days after Holocaust Memorial Day the theme from Schindler’s List was played. As with his playing throughout the evening, Tamás Kocsis eloquent musicianship brought home the great sorrow of the Holocaust as portrayed in Spielberg’s picture with a tear-inducing performance. This was followed by an underrated gem that is the main theme from Catch Me If You Can. The playful jazz-infused piece isn’t exactly what you think of when you think of a piece of John Williams music but it was a great addition to the evening that would have you clicking your fingers in unison with the orchestra
The moment the majority of the audience were waiting for came with the grand finale which featured music from the Star Wars series. With murmurs of anticipation the orchestra dove straight in with Princess Leia’s Theme, a romantic piece often overlooked in the saga.
This was followed by the main theme to the joy of everyone in the crowd as the orchestra relished the bombast that comes with it. Of course, the evening couldn’t end just there as the audience was treated to an encore with the menacing Imperial March from the Empire Strikes Back. This ended proceedings with a deserved standing ovation for Robert Zieglar and the Ulster Orchestra who are an absolute credit to the country.
By the end it had felt like no time had passed at all and that the orchestra had just managed to touch upon the great wealth of Williams’ back catalogue of work. Personally, I could have easily sat longer to bask in the brilliance of the Ulster Orchestra bringing his work to life in a live setting. If you haven’t experienced the Ulster Orchestra live before I strongly suggest you rectify this at the earliest opportunity as it is an experience like no other especially when the music of John Williams is on show.
