I have decided to delve deep into the ingenious work of John Williams on this saga. This will be a deep analysis of his musical genius. Since I love his work so much, I thought I'd take an analytic approach to listening to his music. On each movie I will start off with his usual introduction on Star Wars, the main theme, and work my way up from there. I will start with the Original Trilogy, then go into the Prequels. Comments on the thought process behind this are encouraged.

Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope, original motion picture soundtrack, music composed and conducted by John Williams.

Track 1: 20th Century Fox Fanfare
This needs no introduction.

Track 2: Main Title/Rebel Blockade Runner
The titles are introduced with an accompaniment of percussion and horns. The main melody flourishes around the beginning with high notes on the part of the trumpets. The base line that underlies it fills in gaps in the trumpets' melody. The line repeats but the base melody marches down a set of musical stairs. The orchestra then goes off into a sub-melody featuring the strings. It then returns to the main theme, but more subdued in the way of the French horns, with loud timpani banging out its own line. A galloping melody then runs off with the percussion in the lead until it goes off into the distance with the main titles. A single note from the orchestra thins out into a small melody on a single flute then rises again to the occasion with chaotic and dissonant ringing chords. Another melody then hammers itself out and turns into a military march as the Star Destroyer draws ever closer to the tiny blockade runner. The track ends with a low note and thumping timpani. The note seems to dissipate along with the closing gap of the two ships. The last note on the track is covered up along with the blockade runner.

Track 3: Imperial Attack
This track starts off with militarily low strings and horns, then the melody repeats on higher strings. It soon becomes quiet and subdued. The melody gradually crescendos into a higher key with a flourish on horns, then seemingly backs off into a corner. Then the melody changes into a chaotic voice as fighting breaks out in the corridor of the Tantive IV. Strings introduce themselves with the sub-melody from the main titles and then Vader enters the scene as horns announce his arrival. Binary sunset music plays softly then Princess Leia makes her melodic entrance as she rushes to enter data into Artoo. The bouncing of bows against strings finds the rebel troopers captive and then the melody hushes itself. Leia's melody comes in again as she shoots a stormtrooper. Then a rush of strings runs off as she is stunned. The flutes take up an Arabic-sounding melody. The strings lower and then become heavenly in chord as the escape pod is jettisoned along with the droids. Slow military march continues as ominous muted trumpets queedle out a thin melody. Flutes take over this melody then it returns back to the strings and horns. The track ends with the gentle twinkling of a harp's notes.

Track 4: The Dune Sea of Tatooine/Jawa Sandcrawler
A waving melody represents the aridness of the Dune Sea as the droids find themselves lost after emerging from the escape pod. Flourishes erupt from the woodwinds as strings take up the wavy air. A steady plucking from the lower strings is interrupted by bursts from the woodwinds. An oboe introduces the short stockiness of the Jawas with horns and plucking strings still in the background as Artoo is carried to the sandcrawler. French horn introduces the Jawas' odd collecting and trading habit while woodwinds and light percussion fall like sand as Artoo is sucked into the sandcrawler. Muted trumpets signal the sandcrawler starting up. A falling melody is heard as Artoo is lowered into the large vehicle. The squatty sound of the low brass symbolizes the lumbering of the hefty sandcrawler. An odd melody grows out from the strings as Artoo looks around at the strange droids. One can almost hear the Gonk droid talking! A flute and French horn take up a small ditty as Threepio sights the transport. A threatening melody comes from the muted brass section. The track ends with a faltering melody on the French horn.

Track 5: The Moisture Farm
Flutes introduce themselves as the Jawa music enters again; this is as they near the Lars homestead. A falling effect of muted horns plays out as strings are plucked. The bouncing of bows against the strings introduces the gathering of the droids. The main theme from the titles comes back on French horn as Luke Skywalker is introduced to the scene; his Aunt Beru calling his name just as the theme starts. A single note then prolongs itself on French horn. Flutes come back as they buy the droids with plucked low strings in the background. Three syncopated notes on the flutes fade into a single pluck from the low strings which ends the track.

Track 6: The Hologram/Binary Sunset
The low strings barge in to sound ominous as the hologram is discovered. Snowy flutes introduce the hologram. Leia's theme comes in on oboe then to the flute then turns into French horn. The low strings come back and the melody turns back to Leia's theme on oboe. The flutes fall into a mournful string air as Luke's theme comes back on flute and clarinet. The flutes and the harp introduce the sunset and Luke's sadness with French horn. The strings gather up the mournful dirge and crescendo. The flutes take up the sub-melody from the main titles. The clarinet signals back to Luke. Flutes and light percussion bells and strings come back into the binary sunset theme and fade out with a cliff-hanging chord, leaving much up to the imagination of the listener.


That is all for now, but I will have six more tracks up next time from The Music of Star Wars: A Journey into the Soundtrack. I hope you all found that enlightening. I had to listen to each track (but the first) several times over to be able to know what I was talking about as each little detail presented itself. As I am very fond of music and soundtracks, and even classical pieces, I thought I'd have a go at this. I play a multitude of instruments including clarinet, concertina, and the tin whistle. I like a lot of Celtic and Arabic music, and I've analyzed a lot of pieces in my life so far and I just thought this would be a good idea.
Let me know if you found these analyses interesting...

May the Force be with us all,
Orillia Darkstar