This weekend marks the 8oth birthday of my friend and colleague Maestro John Williams. I don’t know anyone who has not been touched by John’s music. His prolific work output has resulted in his earning 47 Academy Award nominations, second only to Walt Disney.
What most people don’t know about John is that his father was an accomplished drummer and his two brothers are both top tier studio percussionists (maybe that’s why his percussion writing is so challenging). In addition, in his early years John was a renowned West Coast jazz pianist.
John is a real gentleman, in fact, during a Boston Pops rehearsal instead saying that the orchestra was not together he phrased it this way, ” I am sensing some vertical inexactitude”.
Everyone knows John’s blockbuster hits created during his collaboration with Steven Spielberg. But check out some of John’s earlier work in films like “The Cowboys” and “The Reivers”. It makes me wonder how one person can be so prolific, yet create distinctly different sonic landscapes for each movie. Amazing!
Let’s all raise a drumstick into the air and toast, “Thanks John for bringing such richness to the musical fabric of our lives!”
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