John Williams: A Composer’s Life (Tim Greiving)
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We discussed the book a bit in the film music books thread, but it deserves its own, really.
Nils has just written a very thorough review of the book (Google-translated version here), and I thought that would be a good point-of-departure for discussion, for those who have acquired it.
I finished reading it a couple of weeks ago. I have some opinions, but need to gather my thoughts a bit.
Yes, it would be great to get some feedback from those of you who have read it (the book, that is) on where you think I’m way off the mark in my review. đ
I don’t have the book yet – surely not this year anymore as I am slow and only occasional book reader anyway -, so I love hearing about it.
Just to note: It would certainly help this site’s SEO ranking if the review would be in English already. I know, native language is best and such. Despite how usable the Google translation is already nowadays, Norwegian film score fans are a niche within a tiny niche đ
Another note: For the quotes there is an actual semantic html element named “blockquote” which is avaiable in WordPress of course.
Just to note: It would certainly help this siteâs SEO ranking if the review would be in English already. I know, native language is best and such. Despite how usable the Google translation is already nowadays, Norwegian film score fans are a niche within a tiny niche đ
Norwegian content has been marginalized more and more over the years, so I’ve actually been thinking about adding MORE rather than less. This was a good opportunity to have some, especially – as you say – with the vast improvements in Google translation in recent years.
Another note: For the quotes there is an actual semantic html element named âblockquoteâ which is avaiable in WordPress of course.
True. Fixed.
Another note: For the quotes there is an actual semantic html element named âblockquoteâ which is avaiable in WordPress of course.
Yes, I was struggling to get those quotes at the top and bottom to look nice, and I wasn’t aware of the blockquote feature in articles, so thanks for the heads-up. And thanks for fixing it, Thor. (I made another small change, moving the names to the line below).
I understand, the editor is not realy for detailed finetuned styling. The theme has this general style for quotes with the line in front of it as you see it now and also here on the forum. I could remove that line for the actual articles on the next occasion as that surey would look better in the article.
Thank you, Nils, for that fine summary. I just completed reading the book a couple days ago and have been engaging in a running commentary over in the FSM site from when the reading commenced. It’s mostly quoting passages that particularly captured my fancy. It was fun too reading about things that Thor, I and others had speculated and ruminated upon going back at least 25 years when we first discovered there were actually real live film music fans beyond ourselves. Over multiple continents!
One thing that I’ll add is that the death of JW’s first wife, Barbara, hovers over the book much as it has over John’s life since, both personally and musically. You have rightfully highlighted his humility and soft-spokenness that has endeared him to those closest to him. And now that goes for everyone else who reads Greiving’s portrait. One can’t help but be moved.
The music most certainly is the thing but it’s just plain nice when the composer behind the music is such a warm person. In his own distinctive manner.
Norwegian content has been marginalized more and more over the years, so Iâve actually been thinking about adding MORE rather than less. This was a good opportunity to have some, especially â as you say â with the vast improvements in Google translation in recent years.
I understand that idea. Just thinking about the actual target audience in our niche which overall will be more English than Norwegian speaking. Despite Google translation people may not even get such articles as a search result if they have set preferred languages they understand.
Thank you, Nils, for that fine summary.
And thank you for your feedback, Howard!
I’m glad the Google translation turned out mostly OK. Although JAWS becomes both “Shark Tale” and “Shark Summer”. đ That last one is at least somewhat understandable, as it’s the literal translation of its Norwegian title, HAISOMMER.
I have also enjoyed that FSM thread (although I haven’t contributed yet). And I’m still trying to get used to the new board format. đ
Yes, Barbara’s death is mentioned or alluded to numerous times in the book, and it clearly had a profound impact on Williams. And despite his reluctance to go into deeply personal matters, this is something he has talked about on occasion, both in the interviews with Greiving and elsewhere, including the Bouzereau documentary – where he does admit that it is “very difficult to talk about”.
Thor was the first Norwegian with this peculiar interest I got to know – also some 25 years ago! Although I did have contact with some other fans in other countries before that, mostly in the UK, and especially after going to the Williams concerts in London in 1996.
The ongoing zingers coming from his pal and contemporary Andre Previn were something else. Ugh, he sounded like all the other classical music snobs in their putdowns. Say it ain’t so, Andre! But they also came off as good-natured, i.e., he respected Williams so much and felt JW would not reach his full potential by sticking with film scores. And there had to be the professional jealousy factor, too. Can’t hide from that.
I’m not “into” classical music, per se, while most certainly not a foreigner to it. Still, I must confess abject total listening ignorance to—and worse—knowledge of the classical symphonic works, concertos, etc. in the Williams portfolio. Such is the case of the inveterate film music aficionado. The sections detailing them were hardest to read through. Still, what a kick I got out of reading how he would hear a terrific solo performance and then contact the musician with the proposition that he compose a work just for that violinist or cellist or pianist or trumpeter or whatever else. Their reactions to being contacted by John Williams!
But to this end, I love how you highlight his early TV work as I was a youngster who “discovered” him thanks to The Time Tunnel much as I had Bernard Herrmann (and Jerry Goldsmith) even as a younger youngster owing to Twilight Zone. Never missed an episode of either show. So when SW arrived and then his collaboration with Spielberg took off, in particular, I was already aware of the name Johnny/John Williams.
It is neat, in retrospect, to have grown up at the same time his career was growing up.
The ongoing zingers coming from his pal and contemporary Andre Previn were something else.
Yes, those “Start writing concert music instead!” comments from Previn are another recurring theme in the book. Someone more easily insulted than Williams would probably have found this very annoying, but he seemed to take it in stride. Although Previn did seem to be less than half joking, I guess it helped that, as you say, it was done in a non-confrontational way. And the fact that they were very close friends must also have made it easier to swallow than if it were some grumpy critic that kept harping on it.
As I touch upon in the review, his concert music can be a little tougher to get into than his film scores, but I still find much of it to be quite rewarding listening. In his concerts for specific instruments, it’s often the solo parts that are most challenging for the ear, while the orchestral accompaniment is usually more consonant and somewhat closer to his film work. Still, not a lot of it sounds like E.T.! If you want to check out some of it, I think something like his trumpet concerto or bassoon concerto (“The Five Sacred Trees”) can be good starting points. Some sharp edges in those too, though!
The way he gets inspired to write something specifically for musicians he admires says a lot about his personality, I think.
For my part, it’s actually the Irwin Allen and other TV stuff from the 60s, which was your Williams “starting point”, that I really haven’t deep-dived into yet. I do have most of what’s been released of it, so that’s something I should explore more thoroughly!
Haven’t read the book yet, but I agree JW should have written more concert music, and in more varied styles (a concerto based on film themes, for example).
Concertos based on film themes;
– Elegy for cello and orchestra
– Stargazers for harp and orchestra
– Memoirs of a Geisha suite for cello and orchestraSorry in advance for the long post here.
Great and super thorough review by Nils â impressive in itself â and he gets to showcase his own JW fandom.
As for the book itself, this is a supremely impressive affair. All the research that went into it over a period of several years, the constant negotiation for access â it has all resulted in a tome that will probably never be equalled as far as John Williams biographies are concerned.
As some of you know, I had plans for a Williams book myself, which never happened for various reasons. After eating up a bit of jealousy and frustration when I first heard of it, I eventually decided to embrace Timâs project 100% (as a culture journalist based in LA, he would always have more access than I ever could anyway) and even aided him a little bit in the research process.
* My favourite part is unquestionably the first 200 pages. I disagree with Nils in that there are too many names and details in the pre-Williams years; as a geneaology buff, I absorbed all of it. And as a longtime Williams researcher myself, this is also where I find most of the information I wasnât already aware of.
* I salute Tim for contributing his own opinions on films and scores, even if I quite often disagreed with the assessments (I think several of them are better than what he suggests). Itâs something that gives a text life and even provokes, even if itâs somewhat unusual in a biography.
* Structurally, itâs an interesting approach to divide each chapters into segments that touch on different things. One could argue for an approach that was more chronological, i.e. year by year. But with a composer like Williams, itâs difficult to organize the different aspects â the personal life, the concert works, the film work etc. etc.
* When it comes to the analyses of the scores themselves, they work okay â and he comes a long way with adjectives when music-technical knowledge is lacking. It seems to have much in common with how itâs done in track-by-track analyses in liner notes. I would perhaps have opted for a slightly different approach, i.e. first identifying the overall style or theme or approach of the film, then how the score responds to that more generally, and then a curated selection of scenes that display this.
* I donât know if itâs an American thing, but Iâve always wondered about the inclusion of so many quotes from outside reviews. Once in a while, they are useful to illustrate the reception of a given film, but it was a little too much here, at the end of every single film analysis. I think Tim could have been more confident in his own opinions â one doesnât always have to say what people âout thereâ thought of it.
* The photos are fantastic. Cool idea to have those middle pages filled with photos, but also some throughout the text. Many of these, I had never seen before.
* Itâs tricky to balance oneâs fandom with objective analysis, and there were perhaps moments where I felt the salutations were somewhat over-the-top (again, maybe thatâs an American thing…we’re more “sober” over here).
* Tim displays fine, colourful language throughout, and I donât think he should worry too much about Willliamsâ critical remarks.
The book is on my shelf now, but Iâll no doubt re-read it in a not too distant future. I really want to savour and cement some of the details that Tim managed to unearth.
Thanks for your feedback and interesting viewpoints, Thor! Some of it I actually planned to touch upon in my review at one point, but itâs already more than long enough as it is. đ
Cool that you supplied some aid to Greiving! Are there facts/tidbits in the book that Greiving got from you, or was it mostly putting him on the right track in some of his research? Nice to see you mentioned in the acknowledgements, anyway!
Structurally, itâs an interesting approach to divide each chapters into segments that touch on different things. One could argue for an approach that was more chronological, i.e. year by year. But with a composer like Williams, itâs difficult to organize the different aspects â the personal life, the concert works, the film work etc. etc.
Hmm, my impression was that itâs pretty much chronological. But yes, he does jump a bit back and forth here and there, when itâs thematically relevant.
Concertos based on film themes;
â Elegy for cello and orchestra
â Stargazers for harp and orchestra
â Memoirs of a Geisha suite for cello and orchestraOh yes, I forgot about those! They are of course great choices if you’re mostly familiar with his film scores but want to start exploring his concert works.
Cool that you supplied some aid to Greiving! Are there facts/tidbits in the book that Greiving got from you, or was it mostly putting him on the right track in some of his research? Nice to see you mentioned in the acknowledgements, anyway!
Yes, that was nice of him. I can no longer remember what we talked about, but there were many e-mails back and forth about Williams’ early days. I probably have them stored somewhere.
Hmm, my impression was that itâs pretty much chronological. But yes, he does jump a bit back and forth here and there, when itâs thematically relevant.
Yes, it is chronological, but there are “jumps” signalled by the “***” throughout the chapters. An alternative would have been to go through each year, talking about things that happened or things he worked on as they occured in “real time”. But that would perhaps have been even more scatterbrained. I’m not really sure how I would have organized it otherwise. I’d have to think about that.
Concertos based on film themes;
â Elegy for cello and orchestra
â Stargazers for harp and orchestra
â Memoirs of a Geisha suite for cello and orchestraLet’s not forget “Escapades”.
Yes, he didn’t get off the chronological beaten path so much as weave in and out while always managing to get back to the time period at hand. Good, creative transitioning on his part what with so much material to cover.
I think Tim could have been more confident in his own opinions â one doesnât always have to say what people âout thereâ thought of it.
Good point. As you also noted, his personal thoughts on scores added a true flavor for what I would think would be the primary targeted audience—us. That includes other composers. It is something we’ve done in our own little hobbyist way. And as to photos: tell me you didn’t get a kick out of 12-year-old Johnny’s face on diploma day. Cute kid. But then the photo of I believe John’s oldest son is astonishing. They are dead ringers! It’s like in movies when the same actor plays his father or grandfather.
* Itâs tricky to balance oneâs fandom with objective analysis, and there were perhaps moments where I felt the salutations were somewhat over-the-top (again, maybe thatâs an American thingâŠweâre more âsoberâ over here).
Word has reached me that some among our hobbyists are taking him to task for what one characterized his editorializing. I understand that as a legitimate literary criticism. But I simply can’t cast that critical an eye here. Especially because I tended to agree with him 99% of the time! Consider it a loss of objectivity on my part, I celebrate this stuff too easily. đ
I’m first in line to admit a Williams fandom out of the ordinary. I think he’s the best composer who ever lived. But I’d probably tone that down just a little bit in a book. Definitely something that needs to be said in an introduction, at least to a moderate extent, as he IS a major figure of 20th and 21st century orchestral music, but then I’d probably leave it be after that. Hyperbole always makes me squirm in my seat, no matter how big a fan I am of somebody. Might have something to do with the European, or especially Scandinavian sentiment (what we call “Janteloven” over here, which is ingrained in our very being). Here’s an interview with actor Alexander SkarsgĂ„rd that really explains a lot about the culture difference between the US and Scandinavians on this issue:
Yes, I’m sure the “Jante law” will seem like a very strange concept to Americans, and probably many other non-Scandinavians as well. But come to think of it, doesn’t John Williams himself actually represent it, to a certain extent, with his humble and unassuming personality, and annoyance with too much attention? As I mentioned in the review, it looks like this is not an act, but actually how he feels. But of course, in his case, it’s probably just that – a part of his personality, and not caused by any cultural conditioning, as would often be the case in Scandinavia.
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