Take a chronological journey through the 60-year career of film composer John Williams!
Episodes
Wednesday Jan 01, 2020
Wednesday Jan 01, 2020
Year Two of "The Baton" is here! And there is no better way to kick off the second half of this journey through John Williams' film career than with a discussion of "E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial." Host Jeff Commings counts this score as his second-favorite, and believes the final 15 minutes of music is the most perfect composition ever created. David Kay joins this episode to break down the multiple themes composed for the film, and the melodic interval they all have in common. And, did you know that John Williams was sued for copyright infringement over the flying theme? We'll tell you all about it on this episode.
Comments (2)
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I've listened to every second of every episode and as thankful I am for the Johnny Legend history lesson Im psyched to finally be getting to the hits. Keep up the great work!
Wednesday Jan 01, 2020
Wonderful episode on E.T., Jeff. David also brought special insight into the music. You talk about crying during the final 15 minutes. I have the same affliction, but I also sometimes cry during the scene where Elliot talks to the "dead" body of ET in the case. But the moment that always gets me is the moment just after the playground scene where those rapid high string notes match the rapid bike pedaling. It touches a nerve, and I remember that feeling of being in a group of friends biking down the street in a flight of freedom. I always get the diaphragm pumping away in emotional reaction, like the very notes themselves combined with the visuals of the legs madly pumping "cuts right to my soul." I've seen it live, with Williams conducting the New York Philharmonic, and it was as thrilling and emotional many years after 1982. A lot of film reviewers might call this manipulative, I call it a fine art. Years later we almost never experience this kind of brilliance in film.
Wednesday Jan 01, 2020
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