Through my son's piano tutor I had the opportunity to go with him to The Hollywood Bowl yesterday morning and watch a master at work. I don't use that term lightly - I don't believe I've ever in my life seen someone at the undisputed top of their game working their craft with my own eyesm but Friday morning I did. I mean John Williams conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic. It was pretty informal as it was the rehearsal for the playing crowd later that night, but the candidness of the event really added to it for me. We sat about a 100ft from the stage and watched the sun creep slowly across the seats to our left. "Man, it's gonna be murder when that gets to us," I thought. "I know why they hold these concerts at night."

Anyway, people are talking lightly or reading the paper and I'm watching the violinists when a guy all in black comes out onto the stage with a sheaf of music under his arm, and I recognize him right away as the guy embossed on the bonus CD of my SW Trilogy Soundtrack Set. I give a little start and nudge my son in the elbow. "Huh!" I say. "That's him - John Williams."

He steps up to the conductor's podium and greets the orchestra, who smile and say hello, then he opens up his folder, rifles through a couple papers, and announces "Olympic Theme." (I think that's what I hear - as I said, it's informal, so he's not on a mic or anything. He's got a small sounding voice). So he starts waving the baton and the horn section erupts with that tirumphant opening theme you hear on the Olympic broadcasts. So I think "Well, that's cool...I guess in honor of the Olympics." I'm downplaying it with that statement. It was pretty amazing seeing such a large amount of musicians in perfect harmony. I'm not musically inclined in the least, so I'm amazed when I see these people coordinate. From there he does some stuff from The Crystal Skull I recognize, and then it's the big medley of Star Wars, Indy, and E.T. I'll admit I get a little teared up to see the music being played live. It sounds just like a recording, but these are real people in front of me, and for a minute I think how amazing humanity is to be able to go from beating a couple of stones together to making such incredible harmony from inanimate objects. It's a transecendent experience, no lie.

Comes the intermission and I pick up one of the facsimiled programmes, to find out John Williams WROTE the Olympic theme. I had no idea - never even thought about how it wasn't really around until 1984 when they held the Olympics in LA. Reading more about the man helps me to understand the genius I'm seeing at work in front of me. 45 Academy Award nominations, two of them simultaneous, and 5 wins. A slew of Grammies, and list of film work that looks like it might've been picked off the AFI's top 100. I never really thought about how indelible a presence this man's work has been in my life, from the time I was three years old. Superman, Star Wars, E.T., Harry Potter, this man has practically written the soundtrack to my life.

After the intermission, an unexpected treat (which helps as now the sun is bearing down on me like a hammer and tongs) - Stanley Donen, director of my two favorite musicals, Singing In The Rain and It's Always Fair Weather, comes out to oversee Williams' conducting some of the songs from his repertoire. The orchestra doesn't do quite as well with some of these, and I pat myself on the back a little when I can pick out a musician who's off kilter, as John Williams stops the piece, corrects it, and starts it again. He consistently plays clips of Gene Kelly or Fred Astaire singing the original recordings, so the musicians can get the pacing. What's amazing here is he cuts the song out half way through and the transition from recording to live music is absolutely seamless. I kept waiting for a second verse from Gene Kelly of "I Like Myself" before I realized the orchestra had taken over.

All in all, a very rewarding experience, which renewed my faith in humanity for a day. Kudos to John Williams.

PS - Fanboy that I am, I brought my New Hope poster in a tube and sat with it the whole day hoping for an opportunity to get it signed. Didn't happen. Oh well.