Music of Star Wars

Music of Star Wars
John Williams, composer of the music of all nine Star

Wars saga films.
The music of the Star Wars franchise is

composed and produced in conjunction
with the development of the feature films,
television series, and other merchandise
within the epic space opera franchise
created by George Lucas. The music for
the primary feature films (which serves as
the basis for the rest of the related media)
was written by John Williams. Williams'
scores for the nine saga films (and a suite
for a spin-off film) count among the most
widely known and popular contributions to
modern film music, and utilize a symphony
orchestra and features an assortment of
about fifty recurring musical themes to
represent characters and other plot
elements: one of the largest caches of
themes in the history of film music.
Released between 1977 and 2017, the

music for the primary feature films was, in
the case of the first two trilogies,
performed by the London Symphony
Orchestra and, in select passages, by the
London Voices chorus. Williams also
scored the seventh and eighth episodes in
the franchise's sequel trilogy, and he is
currently slated to score the ninth (and
last) episode as well. The sequel trilogy
was largely conducted by Williams and
William Ross, and performed by the
Hollywood Freelance Studio Symphony
and (in a few passages) by the Los
Angeles Master Chorale.
Additional composers have since

contributed music to Star Wars. The music
for several animated television series spin-
offs has been written by Kevin Kiner and
Ryan Shore.[1] Music for the spin-off films,
other television programs, and video
games, as well as the trailers of the
various installments, were created by
various other composers, with this
material occasionally revisiting some of
Williams' principal themes, and – with the
latest spin-off film, with Williams actually
writing a new theme for the composer to
use. Michael Giacchino was the composer
of the first Anthology film, Rogue One,
while John Powell scored the second film,
Solo.
The scores are primarily performed by a
symphony orchestra of varying size joined,
in several sections, by a choir of varying
size.[2] They each make extensive use of
the leitmotif, or a series of musical themes
that represents the various characters,
objects and events in the films.
Throughout all of the franchise, which
consists of a total of over 18 hours of
music,[3] Williams has written
approximately fifty themes in one of the
largest, richest collection of themes in the
history of film music.
Overview
Films …
Year Title Composer Conductor Orc
Sag
Star John John

1977
Wars Williams Williams
The
Empire
1980
Strikes He
Back
Return
1983 of the
Jedi
1999 The Co
Phantom Joh
Menace
Co
Edd
Attack of
2002 the
Clones
2005 Revenge
of the
Sith
John
Williams
The
William
2015 Force
Ross
Awakens
Gustavo
Dudamel[5] Joh
Wil
John
The Last Williams
2017
Jedi William
Ross
Spin-
Kevin
Kiner
The Kevin Kev
John
2008 Clone Kiner Nic
Williams
Wars Nic Raine Tak
(Original
Themes)
Michael Wil
Giacchino Tim
Rogue John Tim Bra
2016
One Williams Simonec Jef
(Original Ch
Themes) He
2018 Solo John Gavin Bat

Powell Greenaway Ant
John Pau
Williams (ad
(Han Solo arr
Theme, Joh
Original (lea
Themes)
Ge
Tom
An
Ran
Ric
Gav
He
Television …
Kevin Kiner composed the score to the film
Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008), the
predecessor to the animated TV series of
the same name. Both properties loosely
use some of the original themes and
music by John Williams. Kiner's own
material for the film includes a theme for
Anakin Skywalker's Padawan learner,
Ahsoka Tano, as well as a theme for Jabba
the Hutt's uncle Ziro. Kiner went on to
score the TV series' entire six seasons,
which concluded in 2014. A soundtrack
album was released that same year by
Walt Disney Records.[8]
Kiner continued his work with the
franchise for the animated series Star
Wars Rebels (2014), which also
incorporates Williams' themes.[9]
Ryan Shore serves as the composer for

Star Wars: Forces of Destiny (2017–
present).
Addition
Year Title Composer
compose
Kevin Takeshi
Kiner Furukawa
David G.
Russell
2008– Star Wars:
Matthew
2014 The Clone
St. Laure
2020 Wars
Reuven
Herman
Russ
Howard I
2014– Star Wars David G.

2018 Rebels Russell
Matthew
St. Laure
Jared
Forman
Sean Kin
Dean Kin
Julian
Cisneros
Reuven
Herman
Star Wars:
2017– Ryan
Forces of
present Shore
Destiny
2018– Star Wars Michael

present Resistance Tavera
2019– The Ludwig

present Mandalorian Göransson
Video games …
Year Title Composer
Star Wars: Rogue Chris

1998
Squadron Huelsbeck
Star Wars Rogue

Chris
2001 Squadron II: Rogue
Huelsbeck
Leader
Star Wars Rogue

Chris
2003 Squadron III: Rebel
Huelsbeck
Strike
Mark
Star Wars: The Force Griskey
2008
Unleashed Jesse
Harlin
2010 Star Wars: The Force Mark

Unleashed II Griskey
Gordy
2015 Star Wars: Battlefront
Haab
Gordy
2017 Star Wars: Battlefront II
Haab
Stephen
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Barton
2019
Order Gordy
Haab
Multimedia …
Year Title Composer
1996 Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire Joel McNeely
2019 Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge John Williams
Style
Inspiration …
The scores utilize an eclectic variety of

musical styles, many culled from the Late
Romantic idiom of Richard Strauss and his
contemporaries that itself was
incorporated into the Golden Age
Hollywood scores of Erich Korngold and
Max Steiner. The reasons for this are
known to involve George Lucas's desire to
allude to the underlying fantasy element of
the narrative rather than the science-fiction
setting, as well as to ground the otherwise
strange and fantastic setting in well-
known, audience-accessible music.
Indeed, Lucas maintains that much of the
films' success relies not on advanced
visual effects, but on the simple, direct
emotional appeal of its plot, characters
and, importantly, music.[10]
Lucas originally wanted to use tracked

orchestral and film music in a similar
manner to 2001: A Space Odyssey, itself a
major inspiration for Star Wars. Williams,
however, advised to form a soundtrack
with recurring musical themes to augment
the story, while Lucas's choice of music
could be used as a temporary track for
Williams to base his musical choices on.
This resulted in several nods or homages
to the music of Gustav Holst, William
Walton, Sergei Prokofiev and Igor
Stravinsky in the score to Star Wars.[11]
Williams relied less and less on references
to existing music in the latter seven
scores, incorporating more strains of
modernist orchestral writing with each
progressive score, although occasional
nods continue to permeate the music. The
love theme from Empire Strikes Back is
closely related to Williams' composition
for Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the
Lost Ark.[12] The score to Revenge of the
Sith has clear resemblances to the
successful scores of other contemporary
composers of the time, namely Howard
Shore's Lord of the Rings, Hans Zimmer's
Gladiator and Tan Dun's Crouching Tiger,
Hidden Dragon, with which the movie was
most likely scored temporarily.[a]
Otherwise, however, his later scores were
mostly tracked with music of his own
composition,[14] mainly from previous Star
Wars films.[15] Yet, In Williams' score to
The Last Jedi he, for the first time in the
series, went so as far as to incorporate
direct quotes of other compositions,
namely "Aquarela Do Brasil" by Ary
Barroso (in a nod to the 1985 Terry Gilliam
film Brazil) and from his own theme for
The Long Goodbye (co-composed by
Johnny Mercer).[16] Nevertheless, Williams
also started to develop his style
throughout the various films, incorporating
other instruments, unusual orchestral set-
ups (as well as various choral ensembles)
and even electronic or electronically
attenuated music as the films progressed.
Williams often composed the music in a
heroic but tongue-in-cheek style, and has
described the scored film as a
"musical".[17]
Structure …
Star Wars was one of the film scores that

heralded the revival of grand symphonic
scores in the late 1970s. One technique
that particularly influenced these scores is
Williams' use of the leitmotif, which was
most famously associated with the operas
of Richard Wagner and, in early film
scores, with Steiner. A leitmotif is a phrase
or melodic cell that signifies a character,
place, plot element, mood, idea,
relationship or other specific part of the
film. It is commonly used in modern film
scoring as a device for mentally anchoring
certain parts of a film to the
soundtrack.[18] Of chief importance for a
leitmotif is that it must be strong enough
for a listener to latch onto while being
flexible enough to undergo variation and
development along the progression of the
story. The more varied and nuanced the
use of leitmotif is, the more memorable it
typically becomes. A good example of this
is the way in which Williams subtly
conceals the intervals of "The Imperial
March" within "Anakin's Theme" in The
Phantom Menace, implying his dark future
to come.
Also important is the density in which

leitmotifs are used: the more leitmotifs are
used in a piece of a given length, the more
thematically rich it is considered to be.
Film music, however, typically needs to
strike a balance between the number of
leitmotives used, so as to not become too
dense for the audience (being preoccupied
with the visuals) to follow. Williams' music
of Star Wars is unique in that it is relatively
dense for film scoring, with approximately
11 themes used in each two-hour film, of
which about 90% is scored.[19]
Performance …
Williams re-recorded some of his suites

from the first trilogy with the Skywalker
Symphony Orchestra as an album. Several
of his later themes were released as
singles and music videos, and were later
released a collection of suites from the six
films as a compilation that played to a
series of clips from the films, with sparse
dialogue and sound effects. These
became the basis for a series of hour-long
concerts which featured Star Wars music
to images from the films, Star Wars: In
Concert, which took place in 2009 and
2010. First performed in London, it went
on to tour across the United States and
Canada, last playing in London, Ontario,
Canada on July 25, 2010.
The scores of the first trilogy (in the form

of its Blu-Ray release) and The Force
Awakens are performed as Live to
Projection concerts, but with greatly
reduced forces. The performances follow
the music of the finished film, with some
of the music looped, tracked or omitted
entirely, and do not feature any of the
diegetic pieces and often omit the choral
parts.[20]
Orchestration
John Williams sketched the score for his
various orchestrations and wrote the
music for a full symphony orchestra
(ranging from 79 to 113 players overall[21])
and, in several passages, chorus (ranging
from 12 to 120 singers overall) and a few
non-orchestral instruments. The
orchestration is not consistent throughout
the different films,[22] but generally the
score makes use of a considerable brass
section over a comparatively smaller
string section, giving the series its heraldic,
brassy sound.
Several of the scores require larger forces,

including a large (over 100-piece)
romantic-period orchestra, a mixed choir
and even a boy choir, although none of the
scores call for particularly immense forces
compared to larger film or theater
works.[23] Nevertheless, due to added high
woodwinds and percussion parts, scores
such as Empire Strikes Back and Attack of
the Clones call for 106 and 110 players,
respectively. The former called for a third
harp and fourth bassoon, while the latter
(and all prequel scores) utilized a fuller
string section. Revenge of the Sith also
utilized a second set of timpani.
Comparatively, the original Star Wars
trilogy and the sequel trilogy films call for
much smaller forces of as little as 82
players, and small choral accompaniment
in select cues.[24] The first spin off film,
Rogue One, followed the prequel trilogy's
instrumentation, using a 110-piece
orchestra and 90-piece mixed choir.
In live performances, the forces are usually

greatly reduced: Official Star Wars
Concerts were held with as little as 60-
piece orchestras and 50-piece mixed
choral ensembles or with the choir omitted
altogether.[25] However, to recreate the
eight scores as they were originally
recorded, the following instrumentation is
required:
Woodwinds: 3 flutes (doubling on

piccolos and an alto flute), 2 oboes
(doubling on a cor anglais), 3 clarinets
(doubling on a bass clarinet and a E-flat
clarinet), 2 bassoons (doubling on a
contrabassoon).
Brass: 6 horns (doubling on Wagner
Tubas[26]), 4 trumpets, 3 trombones,
bass tuba.
Keyboards: Piano, celesta,
synthesizer.[27]
Timpani: 4–6 kettledrums.
Percussion: at least three percussionists
playing bass drums, tenor drums, snare
drums (including guillotine drums, side
drums, military drums), timbales, toms
(floor tom and hanging toms), triangle,
tambourine, cymbals (suspended, sizzle,
crash and finger cymbals), xylophones,
vibraphone, glockenspiel, tubular bells,
and anvil on all episodes. Also required
are temple blocks (I), claves (II, V, VI),
ratchet (V–VIII), marimba (I, IV, VII–VIII),
bongos (I, IV, VII–VIII), congas (I–III, VI–
VII), log drums (I, IV, VI–VII), low wood
block (IV), bell plates, clappers (IV), steel
drum (IV, VIII), boobams (I, IV, VII),
medium gong (VI–VII), kendhang, rattle,
sistrum, shekere, guiro, bamboo sticks,
cowbells, hyoshigi (VI), bell tree (III), one
medium Thai gong (VI), three medium
chu-daiko drums (II–III, one for VII–VIII),
washboard, goblet drum, caxixi
(VIII).[28][29]
Strings: 2 harps, 14 first violins, 12
second violins, 10 violas, 10
violoncellos, 6 double basses.
Additional instruments: 1 piccolo, 1
flute, 1–2 recorders, 2 oboes, 1 clarinet,
3 saxophones, 1–2 bassoons,[30] 2
horns, trumpet, bass trombone, tuba,[31]
set of timpani, five percussionists,[32] 89-
piece SATB choir, 10 basso profundo
singers, 30 boys, 1 Tibetan throat
singer,[33] narrator,[34] 4 violins divided, 2
violas, 2 contrabasses, 1 harp.[35]
Non-orchestral instruments: Cretan Lyra
and cümbüş (I), electric guitar (II), toy
piano (VI), kazzo, highland bagpipes,
didgeridoo (VIII).[36]
Musical themes in the scores

John Williams wrote a series of themes
and motifs for certain characters and
ideas in each of the Star Wars films. The
multiple installments allowed Williams to
compose some fifty themes (and
counting) and reprise some of them
extensively, continually developing them
over a long period of screen time.
Williams introduced a few themes in each

episode (six themes on average) and
focused on making each of his principal
themes long-lined and melodically distinct
from the others so as to increase their
memorability. Williams occasionally forges
small connections between some of these
themes, sometimes for a narrative
purpose and sometimes in the more
general favor of cohesion. This technique
allowed him (especially in his scores to the
first trilogy) to have each theme play out
for a large number of occasions (the Force
Theme plays over one hundred times in
the series) and over long periods of time.
Each score can be said to have a "main

theme", which is developed and repeated
frequently throughout the film, often to
unusual extents (such as the frequency in
which The Imperial March is revisited
during Empire Strikes Back).[37] Besides the
main theme and a handful of other
principal themes, Williams forged several
smaller motifs for each episode, which are
generally not as memorable and at times
interchangeable. A main theme for the
franchise exists as well (which is the
music of the main titles), but a main theme
does not exist to represent a particular
trilogy. Instead, each trilogy (and to a
lesser extent, each film) has its own style
or soundscape.[38]
Williams' Star Wars catalog remains one of

the largest collections of leitmotifs in the
history of cinema,[b] although – for
comparison – it still falls short of
Wagner's use of leitmotifs in the Ring
Cycle or even Howard Shore's work on the
Hobbit and Lord of the Rings films.[39] Both
works feature many more themes for a
similar or shorter running time; and use
the themes more clearly and with more
nuance, where Williams prefers to write
fewer themes (to allow him to focus on
them better) and use them in a more
straightforward manner and sometimes,
solely for their romantic effect. Shore and
Wagner's themes are also inter-related and
arranged into sets of subsets of related
themes through various melodic or
harmonic connections, whereas Williams
prefers greater distinction between his
themes.[40]
Romantic application of Leitmotifs

in the score
…
Williams' use of his themes in Star Wars is
at times romantic rather than strictly
thematic,[41] the themes sometimes being
used randomly because their mood fits a
certain scene, rather than for a narrative
purpose. For instance, the theme for Luke
Skywalker is also used as the main theme
for the entire franchise, as well as a
generic "heroic theme" in conjunction with
various characters without any connection
to its namesake. Princess Leia's Theme is
used for the death of Obi-Wan Kenobi in
the original Star Wars, which has little to
do with her character even though she is
present in the scene.[42] Yoda's Theme
appears several times during the Cloud
City sequences in The Empire Strikes
Back.[43] The concert piece Duel of the
Fates is used several times throughout the
prequel trilogy, appearing over the entire
final battle in The Phantom Menace (as
opposed to just the lightsaber duel for
which it was written); Anakin Skywalker's
search for his mother in Attack of the
Clones;[44] and the unrelated Yoda and
Darth Sidious's duel in Revenge of the Sith.
Williams' original composition for the
Geonosis Battle Arena in Attack of the
Clones, a variation on the Droid Army
March, was used for the Utapau assault in
Revenge of the Sith. Multiple uses of the
Force Theme are also non-thematic.[45]
The Rebel Fanfare is applied to the

Millennium Falcon throughout the original
Star Wars, The Force Awakens, and The
Last Jedi. It is also used for R2-D2's
heroics during the opening action scene in
Revenge of the Sith. Kylo Ren's secondary
theme, meant to evoke his more conflicted
side, but since he quickly makes his
allegiances clear, its generally used in
tandem with his fanfare to evoke his
menace, instead.[12] The Emperor's theme
is used in The Last Jedi when Supreme
Leader Snoke tortures Rey. Even the
melodic connections between some of the
themes sometimes do not represent a
straightforward dramatic purpose, such as
the connection of "Across the Stars" to
Count Dooku's motif and the Battle of
Geonosis in Attack of the Clones. In fact,
some of Williams' themes are written from
the outset purely to convey a certain mood
rather than evoke a character or setting,
such as the Throne Room music of the
original Star Wars or the Pursuit motif from
The Force Awakens.
Some of this music was re-tracked into

other parts of the film, or even another film
in the series, by the filmmakers. Attack of
the Clones, the first film to be shot digitally,
had major edits made after the scoring
process, leading to the inclusion of tracked
music over many of the digitally created
sequences such as the Droid Factory on
Geonosis or the Clone Army's arrival to the
battle. These scenes used music such as
Yoda's theme or incidental music from The
Phantom Menace with little dramatic
connection to what is occurring on screen.
In the original Star Wars, some of the
music for the Death Star's Trash
Compactor scene was used over an
extended shot of the arrival into Mos
Eisley inserted in the film's Special Edition.
Musical similarities exist between the final
scenes of The Phantom Menace with
Finn's confession to Rey in The Force
Awakens, probably a result of temp-track
choice.[46] In other cases, the material was
not tracked but rather lifted from the
original composition and re-recorded, such
as in the big action scenes of Return of the
Jedi, both of which lift material from the
Battle of Yavin and Ben's death.
Other composers for the franchise used

Williams' principal themes in their own
compositions, whether it be for the trailers
to the main films, spin-off films, television
series, or video games. More often than
not, these composers also use the
principal themes more for their emotional
effect for their respective projects.
Michael Giacchino, for instance, uses the
Force Theme in some of the scenes where
Rogue One's Starship takes off.
Thematic inconsistencies between

installments
…
Because Williams scores one episode at a

time[47] and attempts to base each score
on new material as much as possible, the
musical material does not have a
particularly cohesive structure as a whole:
the themes for each score are only
devised during each film's post-production,
so Williams will often come up with a new
theme that, in hindsight, would have been
preferably introduced, at least in
embryonic form, in a previous score: This
can be said for the love theme "Across the
Stars" (for Anakin Skywalker and Padmé
Amidala), introduced only in "Attack of the
Clones"[48] or even "The Imperial March",
introduced in The Empire Strikes Back. The
same can be said about some themes only
composed for the prequels (such as Duel
of the Fates), which would have been
perfectly applicable to the films in the first
trilogy, had they been produced in the
narrative order. In fact, since the prequels
featured both their own stock of leitmotifs
and recurring themes from the previous
films, they boasted a larger catalog of
themes, whereas the use of the leitmotifs
in a cycle of works typically involves
increasing density towards the later
installments in the narrative order. Also,
the themes in the prequels appear in
shorter, blockier statements and the
motives themselves are often short,
rhythmic ideas, as opposed to longer
melodies used in the first trilogy. Also, in
the prequels the motives are often
associated with places and events, rather
than with characters as they are in the rest
of the scores, creating a further
discrepancy in the musical narrative.
Even within each trilogy, Williams often
abandons a motif after a single score or
two (as he did with Anakin's theme), writes
(across several films) multiple motifs that
serve a similar function (e.g. the Rebel
fanfare, the Throne Room March and the
Triumph Fanfare in Return of the Jedi), or
writes a motif that he only uses in one
installment, such as the Droid motif. In
other cases, a motif is supplanted by a
new one, as the Imperial March replaced
the original, Imperial motif – a problem
only confounded when he returned to that
theme with the prequels, only for it to
disappear entirely for what is now
supposed to be the fourth episode;
sometimes, the existing motif simply
changes its thematic meaning: Ben
Kenobi's theme turned into a theme for the
Force by The Empire Strikes Back, and
Luke's theme – into the "Star Wars theme".
The Last Jedi, specifically, departs from

Williams' method of relying primarily on
new thematic material, and instead relies
heavily on pre-existing themes, in keeping
with Johnson's temp-track choices. As a
result, a number of themes and motifs
from the previous films are constantly
repeated, often in very familiar settings,
such as statements of Yoda's and Leia's
theme that are lifted from the concert
arrangements, a reprise of the Binary
Sunset rendition of the Force theme, and
recurring statements of Rey's and Kylo's
themes. There are some incidental
phrases similar to existing themes such as
Battle of the Heroes, The Immolation
scene, et cetera, and some deliberate,
tongue-in-cheek references, such as a
quote of the Death Star motif for a scene
with a clothes iron that is shot to look like
a landing Star Destroyer.
Listed below are as 51 recurring themes or

leitmotifs, of which about 49 leitmotifs are
clearly identified in Williams' scores;[c] as
well as two leitmotifs written by Williams
for John Powell's score to Solo (see
Themes in the Anthology films: Solo).
Williams is expected to expand upon this
catalog further in his upcoming
composition to Episode IX. Whether that
score will merit as many themes as his
most sparse efforts (The Last Jedi at three
themes), his most dense (The Force
Awakens with eight) or in-line with his
average (six themes), Williams will have
written between 54 and 60 themes for the
series.
Themes
This section may contain an excessive number of
citations. Learn more
Original trilogy …
Overture
The main Star Wars theme, first

"'hard'" theme[50]
Overture
Second "'soft'" motive[50]
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Star Wars (A New Hope) …

"Luke's Theme (Star Wars
Theme)"[51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58][59][60][61]
"Luke's (Star Wars) Secondary
Theme"[12][55]
"The Rebel Fanfare"[12][51][52][55]
"Ben Kenobi's Theme (The Force
Theme)"[12][51][52][55][57][53][d]
"Princess Leia's Theme"[12][51][52][53][62][e]
"Imperial Motif"[12][51][52][55]
"Death Star Motif"[12][51][52][55]
"Stormtroopers Motif"
"Planet Fanfare"
"Jawa's Theme"
"Sandpeople Motif"
"Spaceship Battle Motif"
"The Trash Compactor Motif"
"The Battle of Yavin Motif"
"The Throne Room Theme (Victory
March)"
Rebel Fanfare
originally heard in "Star Wars"
Ben Kenobi's theme (The Force

Theme)
[63]
Princess Leia's Theme
originally heard in "Star Wars"[63]
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The Empire Strikes Back …

Returning: Throne Room Victory March
(First re-statement[64]); Luke's Theme;
Luke's Secondary Theme; The Rebel
Fanfare; The Force Theme (Ben Kenobi's
theme); Leia's Theme
First re-statement: "Throne Room

Victory March"[f]
"The Imperial March" (Darth Vader's
Theme)[12][65][66][55][67]
"Han Solo and the
Princess" (help·info)[12][67][g]
"Yoda's
Theme" (help·info):[12][66][65][55][53][68][h]
"Droids Motif"[12][65][55][66][69][70][i]
"Cloud City March (Lando's
Theme)"[12][65][66][55]
"Boba Fett Motif"[12][65][55][53][71]
"The Battle of Hoth Motif"
"The Asteroid Field Motif"
"Mynock Cave Motif"
"Millenium Falcon Escaping Motif"
Return of the Jedi …
Returning: Spaceship Battle Motif; Luke's

Theme; Luke's Secondary Theme; The
Rebel Fanfare; The Force Theme; Leia's
Theme; The Imperial March; Han Solo and
the Princess; Yoda's Theme
First re-statement: "Spaceship Battle
motif"[72][12][55][53]
"Parade of the
Ewoks" (help·info)[12][73][74][55][j]
"Jabba The Hutt Theme"[12][74][55][53][75][k]
"The Emperor's Theme"[12][55][74][53][76]
"Brother and Sister Motif"[12][74][55][77]
"Triumph Fanfare"[12][53][77]
"Luke and Leia Theme"[12][73][55][74]
"Speeder Bike Chase Motif"
"Forest Battle Motif"
"The Battle of Endor A Motif"
"The Battle of Endor B Motif"
"The Battle of Endor C Motif"
Prequel trilogy …
The Phantom Menace …
Returning: Luke's Theme, Luke's Secondary

Theme, The Rebel Fanfare, The Force
Theme, The Imperial March, Yoda's Theme,
Jabba's Theme, The Emperor's Theme
"Duel of the Fates"[73][78][55][79][80][81]

"Anakin's Theme"[73][55][48]
"Trade Federation Droid March"[73][55][82]
"Qui-Gon's Motif"[73][55][48]
"Darth Maul Motif"[73][55][83][l]
"Jar Jar's Theme"[73][55][78]
"The Queen's Protectors Theme
(Panaka's Theme"
"The Escape from Naboo Motif"
"Shmi's Motif"
"The Flag Parade Theme"
"Corusant Fanfare"
"Funeral Theme"
Attack of the Clones …
Returning: Shmi's Theme; Luke's Theme,

Luke's Secondary Theme, The Rebel
Fanfare, The Force Theme, The Imperial
March, The Emperor's Theme, Anakin's
Theme, Trade Federation March, Duel of the
Fates
First re-statement: "Shmi's
Theme"[55][78][84]
"Across the Stars"[85][55][86][87][88][89][90][91]
"Across the Stars secondary
theme"[m]
"Separatist Motif"[78][85][n][o]
"Kamino Motif"[85][78][88][93][94]
"Corusant Chase Motif"
"Jedi Business Motif"
"Courting on Naboo Motif"[85][55][78][92]
"Shmi's Death Motif"
"The Republic March"
Revenge of the Sith …
Returning: Jedi Funeral Theme, Coruscant
Fanfare; Luke's Theme, Luke's Secondary
Theme, Leia's theme, The Rebel Fanfare,
The Force Theme, The Imperial March, The
Emperor's Theme, Anakin's Theme, Trade
Federation March, Duel of the Fates, Across
the Stars, Across the Stars Secondary
Theme.
First re-statement: "Funeral

Theme"[55][95][14][91]
First re-statement: "Corusant
Fanfare"[96][55][97][91][98]
"Battle of the
Heroes"[55][87][78][99][100][101][97]
"General Grievous' Motif"[55][78][102][101]
"Landing Motif"
"Lament for Anakin Theme"[78][55]
Sequel trilogy …
The Force Awakens …

Theme, The Rebel Fanfare (Millennium
Falcon Motif[103]), The Force theme, Leia's
Theme, The Imperial March, Han Solo and
the Princess
"Rey's
Theme"[104][105][55][106][107][108][109][60]
"Kylo Ren's
Fanfare"[55][105][104][106][108][109][60]
"Kylo Ren's Conflicted
Motif"[110][105][55][106][109][111][60]
Map's Motif"
"March of the Resistance"[105][55][106][108]
"Pursuit Ostinato"[105][55][112][106][113][109]
"Poe Dameron's Motif"[105][55]
"Snoke's Theme"[55][105][114][106][p]
"First Order's Motif"
"Starkiller's Motif"
"Jedi Steps"[55][105][114][106][115]
The Last Jedi …

Falcon motif), The Force Theme, Leia's
Theme, Yoda's Theme, Luke and Leia, Han
Solo and the Princess, The Imperial March,
Spaceship Battle Motif, Death Star motif,
The Emperor's Theme, Poe's Theme, Rey's
Theme, Kylo Ren's themes, Snoke's Theme,
Battle of the Heroes, Jedi Steps[116]
"Rose Tico's Theme"[117][55][118][119]

"Luke's Island Motif"[117][55][118][120][60]
"Rebel Desperation Motif"[55][118]
The Battle of Crait Motif"
The Rise of Skywalker …

Falcon motif), The Force Theme, Leia's
Theme, Han Solo and the Princess, The
Imperial March, The Emperor's Theme,
Poe's Theme, Rey's Theme, Kylo Ren's
themes, March of the Resistance, Luke and
Leia
First restatement: "Seduction Motif"

”The Trio Theme”
”The Rise of Skywalker (Farewell)
Theme”
”Anthem of Evil”
Incidental motifs
Since neither Williams nor his office ever
provided a full list of the leitmotifs used in
every Star Wars film, there is some
controversy around the exact number of
themes, with some taking an inclusive
approach that identifies various leitmotifs,
even where the composer probably never
intended for,[121] and others taking an
exclusive approach.[122]
Thematic components and variants …
One of the key differences between the

two approaches in the way in which
Williams' main, long themes are
approached: some view them as
composed of several leitmotives that can
appear (for the very least once) in isolation
(i.e. in a separate cue) from the
unabridged theme, and may even
represent a different facet of the plot
element or character that the theme
stands for,[123] while others see them as a
single theme with multiple components,
which can appear in fragmented form by
use of only one of the said components to
suggest the entire theme.
The featured list of themes follows what

could be deduced to be Williams own
approach: certain pieces are described as
two separate themes when they were
described as such by Williams and/or
appear at least twice in isolation from
each other (and usually emerge and
develop separately to some extent) and
serve a different dramatic purpose
altogether. Other pieces such as the
ostinato accompaniment and B-section of
the Imperial March, the introduction figure
to Kylo's secondary theme, to Rey's, or the
various components of Duel of the Fates
did not merit this treatment, because of
lack of evidence to authorial intent on the
part of Williams (especially given how
seldom, in his body of work, he referred to
individual sections of his themes as
individual leitmotifs[124]) and/or because
they only appear in isolation once and/or
lack a defined dramatic purpose distinct
from the other parts of the unabridged
theme. Its also, largely, the approach taken
by Matessino, Adams and Lehman.[125]
A particularly noteworthy but ultimately

incidental instance is the ostinato
accompaniment to the Rebel Fanfare: its
only used isolated from the fanfare in
lifted material that appears in Return of
the Jedi. Otherwise, it always precedes
and accompanies the Rebel Fanfare, but
often again it extends to underpin large
sections of on-screen action and the
respective material in the original Star
Wars. However, since it's not really entirely
detachable (on more than one instance,
that is) from the Rebel Fanfare and never
plays at the front of the orchestra, Adams
comments that "It’s not a theme per se"
and Lehman makes no note of it, even as
an incidental motif.
Certain analysts will also list a single

melody multiple times under various
guises. For instance, the emperor's theme
can also be labeled separately (in the
same glossary) as the "dark side" theme,
Darth Sidious' theme, etc...[12][126]
Setpiece material …
The inclusive approach also tends to

identify leitmotives even where they don't
meet the criteria of recurrence.[127] This is
the result of Williams' propensity (in these
scores and otherwise) to write material
that is either melodic, rhythmic, harmonic
or timbral specifically to an individual
setpiece or none-recurring plot-element in
the film, such as The Battle of Hoth, the
Chase through Coruscant, or The Battle of
Crait. These individual pieces of music –
whether they consist of a full melody,
ostinati, diegetic pieces or a certain timbre
– have sometimes been described as
having thematic significance,[128]
occasionally (in fleeting comments) even
by Williams himself,[129] but since they do
not recur in a different part of the narrative,
nor are transformed from or into another
motif, they do not comply with the
definition of a leitmotif, even if they form
the highlights of their respective scores or
even featured prominently in the "making
of" material (e.g. Chase through
Coruscant).[q] A case of particular note is
the piece Williams designated as the
"Jawa theme."[12][51][52][55] While it is a fully
realized melody, clearly evoking the "little
scrap and robot collectors", as Williams
called them, it does not recur across two
discrete cues, rather being interrupted
briefly by Imperial music (the interruption
slightly extended in the film by silence[130])
and then resuming.[53]
Incidental material …
Even when some of these figures do recur,

it is often unclear whether they are
substantial enough to be assigned with
thematic significance, as these instances
often includes material that is incidental in
nature, such as several figures used in the
finale of The Empire Strikes Back;[131]
material with overly broad (and therefore
vague) association to the story such as
tragic music written for the Starkiller
sequence in The Force Awakens returning
for Han Solo's death[132] or "Tension"
music from Episodes 7 and 8;[55] material
that is purely rhythmic or timbral like
various "bouncing" horn figures for Luke's
landspeeder search in the original Star
Wars,[129] the use of the synthesizer to
represent Vader's menace in The Empire
Strikes Back,[133] a women's chorus for the
underwater scenes of The Phantom
Menace; material that is of a generic
nature, such as his use of "mournful
homophonic" choir in The Last Jedi for
climactic moments; or material that is part
of Williams' stylistic choices as a
composer, more than a thematic
statement unique to the series. For
instance, his use of tritones often denotes
mystery, a device he uses for the droids
landing on Tatooine and again in the
concert arrangement of "The Throne
Room." He uses a related device to reflect
the mystery of Luke's whereabouts in The
Force Awakens. However, similar devices
are also used in Indiana Jones to represent
the mysteries of the Ark[134] and the
Crystal Skull. Hence, it is more of a way for
Williams to evoke mystery, than a motif
conceived specifically for any one of these
scores.
Similarly, other gestures taken from pre-

existing music (such as Williams' use of
the Dies Irae melody to denote impending
doom) have been falsely identified as
leitmotifs, even though Williams clearly
described sections of music that rely on
this gesture, such as his original take of
the binary sunset, as non-thematic.[135]
In fact, sometimes the supposedly

recurring material is similar, but not in fact
identical. A good example would be the
variety of gestures relating to the dark
side, following a piece of music used in
the opera-house scene. Lehamn however
clarifies that those alleged following
statements are "similar but inexact" to the
earlier gesture.[55] In other cases,
variations on the same thematic ideas are
erroneously labeled as two or more
separate themes, such as a secondary
droid motif or a motif for Anakin's
immolation,[126][99] which is in fact a
variation on his lament theme. Similarly,
the proposed motifs for Mustafar[78] or
Anakin's Dark Deeds[99] are in fact
variations on Grievous' material, redirected
to the evil Anakin.[136][99][137]
Sometimes, the recurring material is

question is not part of the original
composition but is rather tracked after-the-
fact, or at least lifted, from existing
material into a different section of the film,
or from material that is recapitulated in a
concert piece or end-credits suite. This
includes the Podracing fanfare and the
ostinato accompaniment of the Rebel
Fanfare,[12][138] which otherwise does not
appear isolated from the unabridged
theme more than once; the mournful
writing for French horn at Shmi's funeral,
the Arena March from Attack of the
Clones[85][55] etc. Occasionally, track titles
are mistaken for themes.[126]
Williams has created themes out of non-

recurring material by quoting them again
in a following score: e.g. the funeral music
for Qui-Gon being reused (and repurposed)
as a general funeral theme in Revenge of
the Sith. This, however, does not extend to
such gestures being quoted in spin-off
scores (e.g. the Asteroid Field in Solo, the
material for Imperial Walkers in Rogue
One) nor for more fleeting, non-narrative
references which Williams provides in his
scores.[116]
Themes in the Anthology

films
Michael Giacchino, the composer of Rogue One

The first Star Wars Anthology score for
Rogue One, written by Michael Giacchino,
utilizes several themes (and recurring
interstitial material) from John Williams,
mostly for their Romantic sweep (such as
The Force Theme and hints of the Main
Theme). It has its own catalog of themes,
independent from Williams' material,
including a new, third theme for the
Empire, although Giacchino also quotes
both the original Imperial Motif and The
Imperial March.
Rogue One …
Returning: Luke's Theme; Rebel Fanfare;
The Force Theme; Leia's Theme; Imperial
Motif; Death Star Motif; The Imperial March
Jyn's Theme
Hope Theme
Guardians of the Whills Theme
Imperial Theme (Krennic's Theme)
[139][140]
Solo …
For Solo, John Williams wrote and

recorded a concert arrangement for a new
theme for Han Solo. In the process of
composing the theme, Williams ended up
using two separate ideas, each conveying
a different aspect of the character, and
went as far as to spot the film for places to
use each motif; all other leitmotifs and
other material were written and adapted by
John Powell, the main composer for the
film.[141]
Returning: Spaceship Battle motif; Luke's

(Star Wars) Theme; Rebel Fanfare; Duel of
the Fates; The Imperial March; The Imperial
motif; Death Star Motif; The Asteroid Field;
Imperial Cruiser Pursuit; Droids Motif
By John Williams:
Han Solo's Theme[141]
"Han Solo's Searching theme"[142]
By John Powell:
Chewbacca's Theme
Han and Qi'Ra's Love Theme
L3'S Theme
Crew theme
Enfys Nest Theme
Crime Syndicate Motif (Vos's Theme)
Concert suites
Instead of offering a full recording release
of a particular film, Williams typically
releases a condensed score on album,[143]
in which the music is arranged out of the
film order and more within the veins of a
concert program. These album releases
typically include several concert suites,
written purely for the end credits or the
album itself, where a specific theme is
developed continuously throughout the
piece. Williams also re-edited some of his
existing cues after the fact in order to
"concertize" theme on the behest of
conductors such as Charles Gerhardt. Five
of the eight films also have unique credit
suites that features alternate concert
arrangements of themes and/or a medley
of the main themes of a particular film.
From the main episodes …
From Star Wars
"Princess Leia's Theme"

[56][62][54]
From The Empire Strikes Back
"The Imperial March"

"Yoda's Theme"
"Han Solo and the Princess"[144]
[71][70][67]
From Return of the Jedi
"Parade of the Ewoks"

"Luke and Leia"
[75][76]
From The Phantom Menace
"Duel of the Fates"

"Anakin's Theme"
"The Flag Parade"
[48][83][82]
From Attack of the Clones
"Across the Stars"[145]

[88][89][90]
From Revenge of the Sith

"Battle of the Heroes"
[99][100][102]
From The Force Awakens[107]
"Rey's Theme"
"March of the Resistance"
"Adagio"[146]
"Scherzo for X-Wings"[147]
"The Jedi Steps"
[107][106][112]
From The Last Jedi
"The Rebellion is Reborn"[148]
From the spin-offs …

From Rogue One
"Jyn Erso and Hope Suite"

"The Imperial Suite"
"The Guardians of the Whills Suite"
[149][139][140]
From Solo
"The Adventures of Han"[150]
Diegetic music
Diegetic music is music "that occurs as
part of the action (rather than as
background), and can be heard by the
film's characters".[151] In addition to the
orchestral scope that was brought on by
John Williams' musical score, the Star
Wars franchise also features many
distinguishing diegetic songs that enrich
the detail of the audio mise-en-scène.
Some of this diegetic music was written by
John Williams; some by his son, Joseph;
and some by various other people.[152]
From Star Wars
"Cantina Band" and "Cantina Band #2".

Written by John Williams, it is played in
the Mos Eisley Cantina on Tatooine. It is
written for solo trumpet, three
saxophones, clarinet, Fender Rhodes
piano, steel drum, synthesizer and
various percussion, including boobams
and toms. According to the Star Wars
Customizable Card Game, the diegetic
title for the first Cantina band piece is
"Mad About Me". The liner notes for the
1997 Special Edition release of the Star
Wars soundtrack describe the concept
behind these works as "several
creatures in a future century finding
some 1930's Benny Goodman swing
band music ... and how they might
attempt to interpret it". This piece also
appears on an all the outtake easter
eggs on the Episode I and Episode II and
on the bonus disc of the 2004 original
trilogy DVD set.
From Return of the Jedi
"Jabba's Baroque Recital". Mozart-esque

John Williams composition (featuring a
synthesized harpsichord) played while
3PO and R2 first arrive and play Jabba
the message from Luke Skywalker.
"Lapti Nek". Written by Joseph Williams
(John Williams' son) and translated into
Huttese, this is played by the Max Rebo
Band in Jabba the Hutt's palace (in the
original cut of the movie).[r]
"Jedi Rocks" (composed by Jerry Hey).
This was composed to replace "Lapti
Nek" for the 1997 Special Edition of the
film.
"Max Rebo Band Jams". Heard twice in
the film, once after Jabba sends the
Wookiee Chewbacca to jail, and again
on Jabba's sail barge Khetanna (hence
its title). A recording of the first can be
found on the official Star Wars
Soundboards.
"Ewok Feast" and "Part of the Tribe". By
John Williams. Heard when Luke and
company were captured by the Ewoks
and brought to their treehouses.
"Ewok Celebration". The Victory Song,
whose lyrics were written by Joseph
Williams, can be heard at the end of the
original release of Return of the Jedi.
"Victory Celebration". By John Williams.
The Victory Song at the end of the
Return of the Jedi 1997 re-edition.
From The Phantom Menace
"Tatooine Street Music". Joseph

Williams wrote four separate pieces of
unusual, vaguely Eastern sounding
source music for the streets of Mos
Espa, featuring a player on Cretan Lyra
and Cumbus, and a solo, wailing female
vocal.
"Augie's Municipal Band". By John
Williams. Music played during the peace
parade at the end of the film, it is a sped-
up, attenuated trumpet and boy choir
composition. It is closely related to the
Emperor's Theme, but is not an outright
quote of it.
From Attack of the Clones
"Dex's Diner"
"Unknown Episode II Source Cue". A
second source cue is credited to Joseph
Williams' name for Episode II, but is not
heard in the film.
"Arena Percussion". Originally meant to
accompany the Droid Factory sequence,
Ben Burtt's attempt at composition is
instead shifted to the arena, replacing
the predominantly unused John
Williams cue "Entrance of the Monsters."
From The Force Awakens
"Jabba Flow" and "Dobra Doompa".

Written by Lin-Manuel Miranda and J.J.
Abrams, these songs were played at
Maz Kanata's castle.[154]
From The Last Jedi
"Canto Bight". Written by John Williams,

it appears when Finn and Rose first
arrive to the casino planet of Canto
Bight. It is written in the style of big-
band jazz and is stylistically akin to the
"Cantina Band" music from Star Wars.
The track features solo alto saxophone,
two bass saxophones, solo clarinet,
trombones, kazoo, muted trumpets,[155]
Fender Rhodes piano, bass,
synthesizers, steel drums, and various
percussion, including washboards and
goblet drums. The track briefly quotes
"Aquarela do Brasil" (which also features
hi-hat and ride cymbals) by Ary Barroso
as a reference to the 1985 Terry Gilliam
film Brazil, and includes a brief piano
statement of Williams' and Johnny
Mercer's theme from The Long Goodbye.
"Caretaker party music": source cue of
an unknown composition (possibly by
Williams), which features highland
bagpipes and a didgeridoo, and
accompanies a deleted scene from the
film.
Reception
Awards …
The score for the original Star Wars film of

1977 won John Williams the most awards
of his career:
an Oscar at the 50th Academy Awards
for Original Score[156]
a Golden Globe Award for Best Original
Score at the 35th Golden Globe
Awards[157]
a BAFTA Award for Best Film Music at
the 32nd British Academy Film Awards
in 1978[158]
Three awards at the 1978 Grammy
Awards for Best Instrumental
Composition, Best Original Score
Written for a Motion Picture or a
Television Special and Best Pop
Instrumental Performance[159]
He also received the 1977 Saturn Award
for Best Music for both the Star Wars
score and his score for Close Encounters
of the Third Kind.[160]
Williams's score for the 1980 sequel, The

Empire Strikes Back, also earned him a
number of awards:
BAFTA Award for Best Film Music at the

34th British Academy Film Awards in
1980[161]
two awards at the 1981 Grammy
Awards for Best Instrumental
Composition and Best Album Of Original
Score Written For A Motion Picture Or A
Television Special[162]
The Empire Strikes Back was also

nominated in 1981 for Best Original Score
the 53rd Academy Awards (the award was
won by Michael Gore for Fame).[163]
Williams's subsequent Star Wars film

music was nominated for a number of
awards; in 1984 his score for Return of the
Jedi was nominated for Best Original
Score at the 56th Academy Awards.[164]
His compositions for the prequel trilogy
also received nominations: the score for
The Phantom Menace was nominated for
Best Instrumental Composition at the
2000 Grammy Awards[165] and Revenge of
the Sith was nominated at the 2006
Grammy Awards for Best Soundtrack
Album.[166]
In 2005 the 1977 soundtrack for Star Wars

was voted as the "most memorable film
score of all time" by the American Film
Institute in the list AFI's 100 Years of Film
Scores, based on the assessment of a jury
of over 500 artists, composers, musicians,
critics and historians from the film
industry.[167]
In 2016, John Williams was nominated for

an Oscar for Best Original Score, his 50th
overall nomination, for his score to Star
Wars: The Force Awakens. He would later
go on to win the Grammy Award for Best
Score Soundtrack for Visual Media for the
film, his 23rd Grammy win overall. In 2018,
Williams would go on to be nominated for
Best Original Score at the 90th Academy
Awards, for his score to Star Wars: The
Last Jedi.
Certifications …
The soundtracks to both Star Wars and

Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
have been certified Platinum by the
Recording Industry Association of
America, for shipments of at least 1
million units, with the albums for The
Empire Strikes Back and Star Wars Episode
II: Attack of the Clones being certified Gold
(500,000 units).[168] The British
Phonographic Industry certified Star Wars
and Episode I as Gold for shipments of
over 100,000 units in the UK.[169]
Notes
a. These inspirations are evident in some
of the orchestration choices, including
the wide use of a SATB choir and boy
choir and even a soloist (including a
moaning woman in "Padme's
Ruminations", similar to Lisa Gerard's
vocal work in Gladiator). The
orchestra was augmented with a
second set of timpani as was the case
with Shore's Lord of the Rings scores,
and with taiko drums, which have
been used extensively by Shore and
Zimmer. In particular, Anakin's Dark
Deeds with the humming boy choir
opening leading into a Gothic piece for
an adult choir, is evocative of "The
Treason of Isengard". Several tracks,
including the music to the opening of
the film, evoke the rhythmic music of
the Orcs. [13]
b. Williams themes for Star Wars have
been classified based on Williams
own comments on the LP release,
Mike Matessino's Special Edition Liner
notes, and further analyses provided
by Doug Adams, John Takis et al. On
FilmScoreMonthly. Ancillary sources
include Frank Lehman's "Complete
Catalogue of the Musical Themes of
Star Wars", which includes a lot of
"incidental motifs" including stylistic
gestures and tracked material.
c. Relative to the number of installments
and length of the scores, this figure is
consistent with Williams output to
such series as Indiana Jones and
Harry Potter. It is also consistent with
the figures arrived at by Lehman (who
puts the number of leitmotifs in the
series at 57) and Adams (which puts
the number of the first four films at as
many as 33). Williams himself, as he
was making Attack of the Clones,
assessed the size of his glossary at
"20 themes".[49]
d. This theme was composed for the
character of Ben Kenobi but also used
in a broader association with the
concept of "The Force." With
subsequent installments, the
character connection was reduced
and the theme became more of a
theme for "The Force."
e. Williams commented to having
originally written this theme as a love
theme for Leia and Luke.
f. This music appeared in the finale of
the original Star Wars, and was
recapitulated over the end-credits. It
first re-appears (and becomes a
recurring theme) in the end-credits to
Empire Strikes Back. Nevertheless,
According to Adams this is "certainly
not a theme in the leitmotivic sense",
hence its classification remains in
doubt.
g. This theme is also sometimes called
"Han Solo's theme" although musically
it belongs more to the princess.
h. Williams also composed what he
described as a "playful version of
Yoda's theme". Matessino refers to it
as a "playful wind rendition of Yoda's
theme" which Adams further
describes as a "simpler spry tune in
the second half of the unabridged
theme."
i. Definite statements of the motif
appear only in this film, but a "playful
wind motif" that appears in Return of
the Jedi "suggest the tune" of the
theme, and has been erroneously
described as a new motif for the
Droids.
j. The bridge of the Ewok material,
which recalls their diegetic horn calls,
is referred to by Adams and Lehman
as a separate, secondary Ewok theme.
While it is different to the main Ewok
material, it really only appears twice in
the underscore, and only in one of
these instances does it appear by
itself: all other appearances are in the
concert arrangement, and the concert
version of the cue in which they
originally appear.
k. This motif was also re-tracked into the
Special Edition of A New Hope from
Return of the Jedi.
l. Other than the introduction fanfare,
this theme is the first "none-pitched
theme", based on whispering voices
and percussion figures. The latter
have been confused for a separate,
secondary motif, specifically for Darth
Maul or even for his probe droids, but
Adams refers to them as mere "drum
patterns" that are simply part of the
theme.
m. This secondary phrase of Across the
Stars also includes an end-cap figure
of "brooding rhythms" (as Jeff Bonds
calls them)[92] based on the Dies Irae
figure, looped into an ostinato. The
whole section of the theme, which
emerges separately to the main
phrase, denotes the "angst-ridden
side" (to quote John Takis) of the
relationship between Anakin and
Padme. This theme, and especially the
ending figure, transform into the
lament theme in Revenge of the Sith.
While Williams never spoke of this
section as a theme, another telling
sign of this theme's dramatic
designation in his mind is the video
which accompanies it on "Star Wars: A
Musical Journey", where the B-phrase
and its ending figure both score
images that convey the gloomy aspect
of the relationship.
n. This motif, otherwise known as the
"Conspiracy" or "conflict" motif,
represents all the antagonists of the
film: namely, Dooku, but also the rest
of the separatists, and the bounty
hunters Zam Wesell and Jango Fett. It
is probably the motif that Williams
reportedly was intending to write for
Jango when he was composing the
piece. When Jango fights Obi Wan,
Williams' derives an ostinato from it
which underscores the fight scene.
This motif, like the ostinato for "Chase
through Curoscant" has been
described as a leitmotif, but Takis
describes those figures just as
ostinati and "rhythmic patterns" and
not as outright themes. Doug Adams
later commented Archived October
22, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
that the various action ostinati of the
scores are "shorter, clunkier motives
seldom longer than a measure or two,
and often more rhythmic than
melodic" and calls those passages
"episodic." Jeff Bonds adds that this
writing is "ultimately fleeting."
o. Williams never commented on this
motif, but he tellingly used the very
same gesture for Voldemort, the
villain in his contemporary score to
"Chamber of Secrets", reinforcing the
idea that this was his intended "villain"
motif.
p. This theme is written for voices in the
Basso Profundo range, and has drawn
tenuous comparisons to Palpatine's
Teachings, although the latter is
based rather on overtone singing.
q. One unusual case involves the revised
music of the victory celebrations of
Return of the Jedi, with Adams
classifying it as thematic out of an
expectation (ultimately to be proven
false) of Williams to weave it into the
prequel scores.
r. Later used in the Star Wars Galaxy of
Adventures episode "Jabba the Hutt -
Galactic Gangster".[153]
References
1. "5 Highlights from Star Wars Forces of
Destiny: "The Padawan Path" |
StarWars.com" . StarWars.com. July
6, 2017. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
2. Williams generally uses the choir for
texture, as humming or wordless
voices. Several sections rely on
repeated syllables in Sanskrit, as is
the case of Duel of the Fates or
Snoke's theme. While the syllables are
drawn from (loosely) translated texts
such as Cad Goddeu or the writing of
Kipling, Williams typically arranges
them by ear and without heed to their
meaning, so the choral text remains
repetitive and meaningless. In other
instances, the choir repeats a short
albeit coherent sentence, such as with
the Funeral theme or Anakin's Dark
Deeds.
3. Including all the alternate takes of the
recording, Williams has recorded
about 21 hours of music for the
series, although much of it remains
unreleased.
4. Women were used for the special
edition rescoring.
5. "Dudamel Conducts Some Music for
New 'Star Wars' Film" . The New York
Times. December 15, 2015.
6. This orchestra consists of a group of
individually contracted freelanced
musicians, rather than being an
organised orchestra that plays
regularly as a group.
7. according to the closing credit roll
8. " 'Star Wars: The Clone Wars' TV
Series Soundtrack Announced" . Film
Music Reporter. November 4, 2014.
Archived from the original on
December 23, 2015. Retrieved
December 23, 2015.
9. "Kevin Kiner to Score 'Star Wars
Rebels' " . Film Music Reporter. April
21, 2014. Archived from the original
on December 23, 2015. Retrieved
December 23, 2015.
10. Burlingame, Jon (February 8, 2012).
"Spielberg and Lucas on Williams:
Directors reminisce about
collaborating with Hollywood's
greatest composer" . The Film Music
Society. Archived from the original on
December 23, 2015.
11. That particular score was first
intended to be tracked with existing
music from the classical repertoire or
from older film scores, as was the
case of 2001: A Space Odyssey, which
inspired George Lucas to write the
film. After Williams convinced Lucas
to have an original score (which would
excel a tracked score in that it will
have set themes for characters,
Williams argued), those musical
pieces were used as a temp track and
Williams followed them closely,
turning portions of the score into an
homage to earlier film score and to
romantic music in general.
12. Doug Adams, Sounds of the Empire:
Analysing the themes of the Star Wars
Trilogy , in: Film Score Monthly
(Volume 4, number 5), pp. 22–47.
13. http://www.filmscoremonthly.com/arti
cles/2005/11_Apr---
FSM_Forum_Star_Wars_Episode_III.a
sp
14. http://www.musicweb-
international.com/film/jwilliamsintervi
ew.html
15. "Episode 69: Rian Johnson On The
Music Of Star Wars & Other Movies" .
audioBoom. Retrieved January 1,
2018.
16. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt252733
6/soundtrack?ref_=tt_trv_snd
17. Star Wars, liner notes .
18. Using a leitmotifs merely as a "stand-
in" for a character would be a devolved
form of using leitmotifs, compared to
the operatic practice. A theme can be
used symbolically, such as hinting at
Darth Vader's theme when the
decision to train Anakin is made in
Episode I.
19. Williams full score often slightly
overtakes the length of the film due to
the recording of concert suites and
several alternate takes. However, the
amount of music written for the film
proper varies from 80 percent, to
scoring effectively the entire film. The
finished film is always subjected to
tracking, looping and muting
(especially Attack of the Clones), so
about 85% of each finished film is
scored.
20. http://www.playbill.com/article/five-
time-oscar-winner-john-williams-talks-
bringing-star-wars-scores-to-the-new-
york-philharmonic
21. Episode III required 109 players (not
including the conductor) due to
expanded string and percussion
sections. http://www.jw-
collection.de/scores/epi3_stuff.htm
http://soundtrackfest.com/wp-
content/uploads/2016/11/John-
Williams-London-Symphony-
Orchestra-Star-Wars.jpg The Empire
Strikes Back required 104 players, not
including the conductor or synthesizer
(rhttp://www.jw-
collection.de/scores/tesblp.htmecall
s ) due to the inclusion of a fourth
flute, and sections that required a third
harp, five oboes overall, an added
piccolo and eight percussionists
overall. If the Empire Strikes Back is to
augmented with the string section
size of Revenge of the Sith or the
Skwalker Symphony Recording, it
would require about 112 players and a
small women choir. A Star Wars in
Concert production that would follow
the orchestration of the recording,
would have to feature some of the
expansions of the various episodes,
requiring about 110 players, as well as
the mixed choir and possibly the bass
choir.
22. Star Wars and the sequel trilogy film
use an 84-piece arrangement, with the
latter also incorporating a 24-piece
men choir. Empire Strikes Back uses
106 pieces and about ten women
vocalists, Return of the Jedi uses a
100-piece orchestra, about ten men,
and a few women for the Special
Edition; The Phantom Menace uses a
100-piece orchestra, 88-piece SATB
choir and 30 boys; Attack of the
Clones and Revenge of the Sith use a
112-piece orchestra, 89-piece SATB
choir and a synthesized boy choir.
23. Star Wars Concerts were held with as
few as 130 performers, and some Live
to Projection Concerts can therefore
by played by as few as sixty players.
By comparison, each of Howard
Shore's Middle Earth scores require a
minimum of 230 musicians to stage
(ranging to as many as 500), and
several stage works such as Gurre
Lieder or Mahler's Eighth Symphony
can range from 300 to over a
thousand musicians. Nevertheless,
amateur performances (like the NJYS
Playathon) of Williams score, among
other film scores (including the
aforementioned Howard Shore ones)
have utilized orchestral forces of 450-
piece or more.
24. The Last Jedi used 101 instrumental
players (including the diegetic band),
probably a result of added percussion
and high woodwind players, a 65-
piece SATB choir, and a few additional
pieces for the all-male choir.
25. Keyes, Allison (July 24, 2010). "'Star
Wars In Concert' Puts The Force In
The Music" . NPR. Archived from the
original on December 30, 2015.
Retrieved December 30, 2015. The
Live to Projection presentations also
feature various reductions, namely in
the brass section, in line with Williams'
reduced orchestration for his "Star
Wars Suite", and generally omit the
unusual orchestrations of Empire
Strikes Back and synthesize or remove
the choral parts The roster is between
50 and 90 pieces.
https://nyphil.org/~/media/pdfs/progr
am-
notes/1718/WilliamsStarWarsANewH
ope.pdf
26. Empire Strikes Back only.
27. Star Wars featured one player on a
piano and a second player on celesta.
The second player also doubles on
Electric Piano. For select sections of
Empire Strikes Back, both played on
pianos. The scores also used
synthesizers for electronic sounds
and to mimic the Celesta (a real
Celesta was not used since Return of
the Jedi) and the Harpsichord (for
Return of the Jedi and Attack of the
Clones). In the Skywalker Symphony
recording, one player doubles on all
keyboards. From Attack of the Clones
going forward, the synth is performed
by the electric keyboard player.
28. Most of the episodes feature six
percussionists, although sections of
the prequels and Empire Strikes Back
require as many as eight, including
two Xylophone parts, etc. Star Wars,
however, only requires only three and
the sequel trilogy scores require only
four.
29. https://nyphil.org/~/media/pdfs/progr
am-notes/1718/John-Williams-Star-
Wars-The-Empire-Strikes-Back.pdf ;
Wars-Return-of-the-Jedi.pdf ;
Wars-The-Force-Awakens.pdf
30. Star Wars uses the original
arrangement, but its two sequels call
for an additional of one of each
woodwind. The prequel trilogy scores
use three flutes, oboes and bassons,
as well as four clarinets, and the
sequel trilogy scores omit the fourth
clarinet part. Sections of Empire
Strikes Back, Attack of the Clones,
Revenge of the Sith and The Last Jedi
call for expanded higher woodwind:
four flutes and an added piccolo part
and five oboes. The former score also
calls for a fourth bassoon for Boba
Fett's motif. Return of the Jedi and
The Phantom Menace also feature
recorders. Star Wars and The Last
Jedi use three saxophones, as well.
31. Up to the sequel trilogy, Star Wars
scores had utilized eight horns and
two tubas, although the Skywalker
Symphony recording omits those
parts and adds a fifth trumpet. The
Phantom Menace and Attack of the
Clones also omit the second tuba.
32. In Empire Strikes Back, Attack of the
Clones and Revenge of the Sith. A
second set of timpani is used in the
former, and in The Last Jedi.
33. The full SATB choir is used for the
prequels: The Last Jedi only requires a
64-piece Tibetan Throat chanting is
used in Revenge of the Sith. The boy
choir is used in The Phantom Menace
but synthesized in the later two
scores. Empire Strikes Back uses a
small women choir and Return of the
Jedi uses a small male choir. The
Force Awakens uses a 24-piece basso
profundo orchestra, which is about ten
more pieces than would be in a 90-
piece SATB choir.
34. For Star Wars: In Concert.
35. Empire Strikes Back and Return of the
Jedi call for two added contrabass
parts, and the former also calls for a
third harp. The Skywalker Symphony
uses a fuller string section, but omits
the second harp. The prequels also
use the fuller string section.
36. Williams is not usually keen to stray
far from the orchestral
instrumentation. The Cretan Lyra and
Cumbus are used briefly for diegetic
Tatooine music for Phantom Menace
and Attack of the Clones, composed
by his son, Joseph, and were originally
played by one instrumentalist.
Williams also recalls "reed flutes"
(most likely referring to the ney flute)
used in the score, probably for those
cues. The prequel scores aren't
performed live, but seeing as diegetic
pieces are not played even in the
scores that are performed live, these
would probably be omitted unde such
circumstances, as well. The Electric
Guitar is used in small inserts during
the chase through Curoscant in Attack
of the Clones (albeit muted in the film
on the request of George Lucas).
Williams also used three saxophones
for the Cantina Band, although those
could be doubled by the clarinet
players. He also once claimed to have
used Kazoos in that sequence,
although the liner notes make no
mention of it. Didgeridoos are used in
the diegetic Caretaker party music,
which scores a deleted scene. They
are also featured in The Phantom
Menace ultimate edition release,
where they were originally used as
diegetic sound effects, and layered
over the soundtrack.
37. the theme recurs thirty times or more
in a two-hour film.
38. The scores to the original three films
are melodic and romantic, as is –
largely – the score to The Phantom
Menace. However, Episodes II and
even III feature much more rhythmic
music, and Revenge of the Sith in
particular is more operatic in its use of
choir and even solo vocals. The
sequel scores feature another
evolution of Williams' musical style,
which is less obtrusive, with more
lilting musical themes like Rey's
theme, reminiscent of some of
Williams' work on Harry Potter.
39. Williams wrote some fifty themes for
over 19 hours of cinema, with an
average of six new themes per film
and an average 12 themes used in
each film overall. By comparison,
Howard Shore wrote over 160
leitmotifs for 21 hours of cinema in
the Middle Earth films, of which he
uses 40 or more in each film. Richard
Wagner wrote 176 leitmotifs for the
15-hour Ring cycle.
40. In thematic works such as those of
Wagner or Shore, all the leitmotifs
which are thematically connected (e.g.
all of Alberich's themes or all of the
Hobbits' themes) are connected in
melody, harmony, key and
orchestration, so as to create a sets
and subsets of inter-connected
thematic "families." This allows the
composer to introduce new themes
later in the work while having the new
theme evoke associations which the
audience already felt towards existing
related themes. Williams' various
themes do share certain connections,
but they are basic enough as to nullify
any attempts to categorize them
except in the broadest of strokes,
such as themes for the protagonists
and themes for the antagonists.
41. Using leitmotifs as a suggestion of
mood or emotion rather than as
themes, is a common practice for all
composers in symphonies, operas and
especially in film. Nevertheless,
classical and romantic composers
(and even some film composers like
Howard Shore in his Lord of the Rings
and Hobbit cycle) are generally much
more strict with the application of
leitmotif than Williams.
42. Since the princess is present at Ben's
death, her theme is said to "represents
Luke's and the Princess' reaction to
leaving Ben behind" (Star Wars, Liner
Notes ) although the romantic
explanation has been favored by
Adams and Michael Matessimo, the
author of the special edition liner
notes .
43. Yoda's theme in Cloud City is said to
denote Luke gaining courage as he
"remembers Yoda's teachings and
tries to apply them in this", but the
theme is later used in relation to Leia's
attempt at retrieving Han and even
Lando's order to evacuate Cloud City,
giving more weight to the outright
dramatic explanation.
44. Duel of the Fates as used in Tatooine,
was often interpreted as signifying the
internal struggle of Anakin, although
no other occurrence of the theme is
consistent with that line of thought. In
fact, the internal struggle only
presents itself in the next scene,
where the theme is not used.
45. In Star Wars, the theme was
conceived and used more as a theme
for the character of Ben Kenobi rather
than as a theme for The Force itself.
Therefore, Williams originally did not
have it play during the Binary Sunset
sequence (which has nothing to do
with Ben), and only did so on the
request of George Lucas. He did use
it, however, for the Throne Room
sequence, although it has little to do
with Ben. Since the theme became
more associated with The Force in
following installments, it was used
more often, but sometimes against
images that do not evoke the idea of
The Force such as numerous wide
shots in Attack of the Clones, e.g.
Anakin and Padmé departing for
Naboo, Dooku arriving at Coruscant. It
is also used during wide shots of the
Battle of Hoth for no discernable
reason.
46. It should be said, however, that some
of the music in the later films was
always intended to be acquired
through tracking of pre-existing
material, and that some of the
tracking choices are very deliberate.
47. Hence, claims that Williams conceives
his themes with foresight and
subsequent attempts to draw tenuous
connections between such pieces of
music as Snoke's theme and the drone
in Palpatine's Teachings are dubious.
In fact, Williams himself always notes
that he only scores the film by
watching the finished film, rather than
reading a story outline or script. He,
for instance, claimed to have had no
idea that his score to the original Star
Wars would result in sequels and
further scores, and even shared the
fact that he had, at the time, written a
love theme for Luke and Leia, only to
discover by Return of the Jedi that the
two had now been written to be
brother and sister.
48. http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/phan
tom_menace.html
49. https://usatoday30.usatoday.com/life
/movies/2001-11-13-john-williams-
star-wars.htm
50. Larsen, Peter, and Irons, John (2007).
Film Music, p. 168.
ISBN 9781861893413.
51. Star Wars LP liner notes
52. Michael Matessino, Star Wars: A New
Hope Special Edition Liner notes .
53. Karol Krok, themes of the original
trilogy , films on wax.
54. http://www.movie-
wave.net/titles/star_wars.html
55. Frank Lehman, The Complete
Catalogue of Musical Themes of Star
Wars .
56. http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/star_
wars.html
57. In The Force Awakens, Williams wrote
a concert arrangement using this
theme in a fast, playful variation.
58. http://projectorandorchestra.com/mar
k-hamill-on-john-williams-importance-
to-star-wars/
59. https://www.classicalmpr.org/story/2
015/11/18/star-wars-music-motifs
60. https://www.theclicktrack.net/single-
post/2017/12/21/Star-Wars-The-Last-
Jedi
61. http://www.malonedigital.com/starwa
rs.pdf
62. https://web.archive.org/web/2008102
0230931/http://www.moviemusicuk.u
s/starwacd.htm
63. Larsen & Irons (2007), p. 170.
64. This theme appeared once in the
previous film, and only acquired
leitmotivic status by its restatement in
this film.
65. Michael Matessino, Empire Strikes
Back: Special Edition liner notes .
66. Empire Strikes Back LP liner notes
wave.net/titles/empire_strikes_back.
html
68. This theme was also used briefly in
Williams' score of E.T. when the figure
of Yoda (here a boy in a costume)
appeared on screen.
69. http://starwarsmusic.pashamusic.co
m/leitmotif.html
s/empirecd.htm
71. http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/empi
re.html
72. This rhythmic motif was used in the
TIE Fighter Attack setpiece cue. The
material was lifted for the revised Sail
Barge Assault cue, and – more
importantly the Superstructure Chase
sequence, tying it to spaceship battles
involving the Millennium Falcon. The
material returns for a similar instance
in the Falcon's involvement in the
Battle of Crait.
73. Doug Adams, A Return or a New
Hope? In: Film Score Monthly,
Volume 4, number 7, pp. 32–34.
74. Michael Matessino, Return of the Jedi:
Special Edition liner notes
75. http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/jedi.
html
s/jedicd.htm
77. http://starwarsmusic.pashamusic.co
m/classification-of-leitmotifs.html
78. Karol Krok, The themes of the Prequel
Trilogy , Films-on-wax.
79. The components of this theme, such
as the ostinato, choral verses,
introduction fanfare, the theme itself,
etc. – are often treated as separate
leitmotifs (see Lehman's catalog)
although Williams never referred to
them as such, nor assigned them with
an identifiable dramatic purpose in the
score. In fact, none of the
components of the theme are used
apart from the main theme more than
once. Adams does mention that the
ostinato is treated "thematically" but
doesn't classify it as a separate
theme, per se.
80. In interviews , Williams mentions
"Duel of the Fates", Anakin's theme,
"Jar Jar's music", as well as Qui-Gon's
theme and the Trade Fedeeration
Droid Army March, from an interview
in the making of the film.
3020724/http://starwars.talkcity.com/
starwars/trans/5-6-99.htmpl
82. http://www.movie-wave.net/star-wars-
the-phantom-menace/
s/phantmcd.htm
84. This gesture appeared only once in
The Phantom Menace, and became a
leitmotif after-the-fact when Williams
revisited it twice here. Nevertheless,
John Takis called it "tender music"
which is "recalling Shmi."
85. John Takis, Star Wars Episode Tunes:
Attack on the Score , Film Score
Monthly, pp. 18–23.
86. Mark Richards, Across the Stars:
Analysis .
87. Mark Richards, Battle of the Heroes:
Analysis .
88. http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/atta
ck_clones.html
s/aotccd.htm
wave.net/titles/attack_clones.html
91. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from
the original (PDF) on October 22,
2016. Retrieved September 11, 2017.
92. http://www.filmscoremonthly.com/dail
y/article.cfm?articleID=3866
93. Jon and Al Kaplan mention Archived
October 22, 2016, at the Wayback
Machine "minor-mode arpeggiations"
as dominating this score, presumably
referring to this motif. Adams also
says that the leitmotives in that score
were "rhythmic" in nature. While
Williams himself has said little of the
leitmotives of this score (outside of
Across the Stars), Lucas is quoted on
the album saying that Williams
"heightens the mystery and suspense
that drives the first half of the film",
most likely referring to this motif,
which is indeed confined to the first
half of the film.
94. This theme is also apparent from the
album presentation: Williams having
edited the first track specifically to
showcase its appearances. After the
initial Kamino scenes, Williams
continues to showcase the motif in a
skeletal form - an arpeggiation often
considered to be a separate "mystery"
motif (although Lehman classifies it
an "incidental" figure). This figure is
also heavily present in the album.
95. This is a piece of music written
originally for Qui-Gon's funeral in The
Phantom Menace. It was reprised and
repurposed here as a general "funeral"
theme, being woven into the lament
material in "Anakin's Betrayal" and
used for Padme's death and her later
funeral.
96. This fanfare from "He is the Chosen
One", recurs Archived October 22,
2016, at the Wayback Machine in
"Palpatine's Teachings" for a transition
to the view of Curoscant from
Padme's abode. It was used in the
finished film rather for a shot of Obi-
Wan entering Bail Organa's ship.
97. http://www.jw-
collection.de/scores/epi3_themes.ht
m
98. the themes and motifs of Episode III,
JohnWilliamsFans.
99. http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/reve
nge_sith.html
s/revengesithcd.htm
101. Williams recalls to have written "three
or four pieces of new material" for this
installment, including "a couple
of[...]lamentations[...]of Anakin's turn
from the light to the dark", a "piece
with a lot of percussion for Grievous"
and "Battle of the Heroes[...]a motif
based on four pitches." Ian Freer who
was present at the recording, noted
the lament and "variations to Qui-
Gon’s funeral." Also based on the
recording, John Crichton speaks of
"the new theme" (Battle of the Heroes)
which has "nine notes", the lament,
Across the Stars, and "a reprise of a
choral track from a previous score.
This is probably the reprise of Qui-
Gon’s funeral music."
wave.net/titles/revenge_sith.html
103. The Rebel Fanfare is often (but not
always) used in the sequel trilogy
scores with the Millennium Falcon. In
his score to Solo, John Powell
continued this trend, having said that
in talking to Williams the former
claimed that it was the motif's
intended association all along.
104. http://www.latimes.com/entertainmen
t/arts/culture/la-et-cm-star-wars-
force-awakens-music-score-john-
williams-20151217-story.html
105. Mark Richards, The Force Awakens
themes .
106. https://moviemusicuk.us/2015/12/21
/star-wars-the-force-awakens-john-
williams/
107. As with other long-lined themes on
this list, components of Rey's theme
have been described as independent
leitmotives, namely the wind and
chime introduction figures of the
unabridged theme. In his
commentary on the score, Doug
refers to the piece as a single theme.
He also refers to the variation heard in
the end-credits as "Rey's theme in
counterpoint[...]with The Force theme."
108. https://variety.com/2015/music/awar
ds/oscar-icons-williams-morricone-
and-horner-loom-large-in-score-race-
1201657637/
109. According to an interview with
Williams, he composed themes for
Rey, Kylo, Rey, the Ressistance, Poe
and Snoke. His end-credits suite,
traditionally used to recapitulate the
entire thematic glossary of the film,
features the themes for Rey, Kylo
(both themes), Poe, the Resistance
and the Pursuit ostinato. Snoke's
theme is not visited, although it has a
dedicated track on the album.
110. John Williams refers to a "more
ruminative part" besides Kylo Ren's
main theme, which he thought of as a
"relative of Darth Vader." (the
unabridged interview appears here:
http://projectorandorchestra.com/joh
n-williams-on-the-force-awakens-and-
the-legacy-of-star-wars/ ) The
arpeggiated material that often
introduces this motif often appears as
a shorthand for the entire theme, and
Lehman classifies it as a separate
motif and Maurizio Caschetto follows
in his lead.
111. The arpeggiated introduction figure to
this theme (Lehman's C theme for Kylo
Ren) is the basis for the material
surrounding The First Order itself, the
so-called "First Order motif".
112. http://www.movie-wave.net/star-wars-
the-force-awakens/
113. This theme is often used in
conjunction with the character of Finn,
and was therefore often mistaken to
be his theme, as well as for the
Millennium Falcon . Rather, it is a
motif for the more comedic action
sequences in the film, in which Finn's
propensity to flee is used for comedic
effect.
114. http://www.syfy.com/syfywire/please-
your-platter-4-new-limited-edition-star-
wars-force-awakens-vinyl-sets
115. While this theme, which appears in the
very end of The Force Awakens,
technically only re-appears once in
The Last Jedi (in a scene recreating
the one from The Force Awakens), it is
primarily the product of thematic
transformation, being based on the
inversion of Luke's (Star Wars) theme
and as such, its single appearance
can be seen as a culmination of that
theme's development.
116. The score seems to feature a
multitude of lesser, more tongue-in-
cheek call-backs to the music of the
Battle in the Snow, snowspeeders,
space slug, etc...
https://moviemusicuk.us/2017/12/19
/star-wars-the-last-jedi-john-williams/
117. http://www.jwfan.com/?p=10287
118. Mark Richards, The Last Jedi themes .
119. http://www.waltdisneystudiosawards.
com/media/pdf/SW_PRODUCTION_N
OTES.pdf . Williams mentions a
theme for Finn, but is most likely
misremembering.
120. https://variety.com/2018/music/awar
ds/john-williams-could-set-oscar-
record-1202658996/
121. Such an approach is taken by the
programs to the live-to-projection
priemerie, which is seemingly not
based on new insight from Williams
himself. Such an approach was taken
by the programs to the live-to-
projection premiere of the Star Wars
films, where numerous motifs were
identified (seemingly with no new
insight from Williams himself),
including a rancor motif, a motif for
the droids in the original Star Wars,
etc... Others to have taken to such an
approach are Alfred Surenyan and
Aaron Krerowicz . Even Ed Chang
does this with several minor motifs he
attributes to the various Star Wars
scores, including a "Imperial rhythmic
motif", a " rhythmic Imperial skirmish
motif", "exotic Bespin motif", "'one with
the Force' motif", "trap theme", a
"taking off motif", a secondary Droid
march, an Utapau "motoric" motif, and
a "Millennium Falcon rhythmic motif."
Also see previous versions of this
page.
122. Doug Adams analysis of the first four
scores only includes just about 35
"themes" (with Adams himself casting
doubt over some of them), and Frank
Lehman's analysis of the entire series
contains only 55 leitmotives, in spite
of including "retroactively inserted or
tracked themes", material that is
revisited in Giacchino's Rogue One,
and "B-themes[...and]detachable
polyphonic subcomponents" but "only
when they are heard as detached in
the underscore."
123. Such an approach is taken by Frank
Lehman. Even Adams does this with
the ostinato accompaniment to The
Rebe Fanfare (albeit admitting that its
"not a theme, per se") and with the B-
phrase of Luke's theme, the former
due to tracking, and the latter most
likely due to certain, fleeting
comments made by Williams in a
preceding interview. Adams also
mentions that components of various
themes, such as the ostinato
accompaniment of Duel of the Fates
or Yoda's playful side, are "used
thematically" but doesn't describe
them as separate themes, per se, as
he does Luke's B-theme, for instance.
Aaron Krerowicz also does this with
Luke's theme and the Jawa theme,
which he describes as no less than
three thematic identities. Ed Chung
does this with the rhythmic
accompaniments to multiple themes,
which he describes as "Imperial
rhythm motif", "Imperial skirmish
motif ", a "Droid Army Attack motif ",
etc...
124. Outside of Star Wars, the only known
instance is the introduction figure to
the Superman fanfare. Indiana Jones'
theme, the Raiders March, originated
as two choices for the theme to
Raiders of the Lost Ark, the latter of
the two becoming the bridge to the
former (when Spielberg asked to use
both), and both serve the same
narrarive function. Williams has also
made a fleeting comment about
Luke's theme B-phrase, and similar
comments about the B-theme of "The
Adventures of Han" were relayed by
John Powell.
125. Adams does also identify (after the
fact) a secondary Ewok theme,
although the material in question
(which mimics the Ewoks diegetic
horn calls) only appears twice in the
score, and only once in isolation from
the main Ewok theme. All other
appearances are not isolated and are
part of either the concert arrangement
of the Ewok material or a concert
version of the film cue in which the
piece originally appears. Adams also
notes a "Playful Yoda theme" and that
the ostinato accompaniment of "Duel
of the Fates" is used "thematically" but
does not list either of them as
separate themes, per se. Lehman
identifies both the secondary Ewok
theme, the various components of
Duel of the Fates and the introduction
figures to Rey and Kylo's themes as
separate leitmotives.
126. See
http://starwarsmusic.pashamusic.co
m/index.html and Lewister's article
on the score.
127. For instance, a multitude of motifs
identified in these reviews:
http://scoresheet.tripod.com/alpha.h
tml
128. Alfred Surenyan describes themes for
the Flag Parade, the Arrival on
Tatooine, Jango's Escape, Taun We
(which is mentioned in Takis analysis,
but as a setpiece-specific piece),
Anakin's Dark Deeds, The Dune Sea,
The Emperor's Throne Room, Starkiller
Base, etc. Ed Chung describes an
"escape theme" from the opening
space battle of Revenge of the Sith ,
an Utapau motoric figure appearing in
the fight with Grievous, an "exotic
Bespin motif " for the finale of Empire
Strikes Back, a "taking off " motif from
"The Phantom Menace", etc...
129. Williams refers to the use of
"bouncing" horns in Star Wars as a
"motif" for Luke's Landspeeder,
although it is based on no fixed
recurring melodic or rhythmic idea. He
also once referred to the material for
the Battle of Hoth as "thematic", but
Matessino's notes ultimately
conclude that "thematic material is
deffered" in the piece. Lehman makes
no mention of either motif, even as
"incidental" motifs, and in fact
stressed that "Themes for self-
contained, non-repeating set-pieces
are not included." Adams also does
not list any setpiece-specific material
in his thematic analyses, but did
mention Archived October 22, 2016,
at the Wayback Machine that "the
walker attack on Hoth[...]was
assigned a memorable and fully
realized standalone melody" but,
unlike the melody of "The TIE fighters
chasing the Millennium Falcon away
from the Death Star", which went on to
recur in a later installment, this motif
(like the Asteroid Field music) is used
"with less thought toward a score-
length arc of material than toward a
series of self-contained vignettes." In
the prequels, ostinati-based pieces
such as Chase through Coruscant or
Jango Fett's escape are described by
Adams not as melodies but as
"shorter, chunkier motives seldom
longer than a measure or two, and
often more rhythmic than melodic"
and as "terse" and "episodic." Jeff
Bonds also mentions that the former
sequence features "no theme hitting
them [the audience] over the head."
130. https://www.aaronkrerowicz.com/star
-wars-blog/a-new-hope-timeline-of-
musical-themes-and-motifs
131. The finale features two interwoven
pieces of music: rhythmic phrases in
the strings for the shootout, and an
"ascending horn phrase" for three
individual and unrelated moments:
Luke spotting Boba Fett, him
confronting Darth Vader, and lastly,
Boba taking off with Han's effigy
onboard. The latter has been
described as a possible "ambush"
motif, or as a secondary theme for
Boba, but both seem to be too
setpiece-specific to possess any
leitmotivic significance, and are not
described by neither Adams,
Matessino or Lehman as leitmotifs of
any kind, nor mentioned by Williams
himself.
132. https://www.google.co.il/search?
q=filmtracks+force+awakens&oq=film
tracks+force+awakens&aqs=chrome..
69i57j0.6104j0j7&sourceid=chrome&i
e=UTF-8
133. http://academic.depauw.edu/aevans_
web/honr101-
02/webpages/spring2006/rooney(jess
ica)/starwarsleitmotifdarkside.htm
134. Adams, who also identifies this idea's
appearance in Raiders of the Lost Ark,
identified these as "mystery chords",
stating that they "may or may not"
have been conceived as a leitmotif,
but concludes that they "probably
didn't mean anything." Lehman
identifies the gesture from the original
Star Wars as one to do with
descending unto a planet, and the one
from The Force Awakens as a motif
for the map leading to Luke.
135. Lehman classifies all these types of
recurring material as "incidental
motifs" rather than proper leitmotifs.
These include the aforementioned
"chromatic choral writing" from The
Phantom Menace underwater scenes,
suspenseful string writing in The
Force Awakens, "Mournful
homophonic choral progressions" in
The Last Jedi and a multitude of other
material such as "heroic descending
tetrachords", "cascading trumpet
lines", etc...
136. Mikko Ojala, About the themes of
Revenge of the Sith
137. Adams comments Archived October
22, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
that the Grievous material appears in
"in several developmental guises",
probably referring to these
applications later in the score.
138. The "podrace motif" recurs in tracked
music and in a dedicated concert
rendition of the flag parade. The
action ostinato is an incidental
accompaniment used for the Rebel
Fanfare in the Battle of Yavin, which
would end up tracked into Sail Barge
Assault in Return of the Jedi, along
with the third appearance of the X-
Wing attack motif which Adams
identifies therein.
139. http://www.movie-wave.net/rogue-
one-a-star-wars-story/
140. https://moviemusicuk.us/2016/12/20
/rogue-one-michael-giacchino/
141. https://variety.com/2017/film/news/jo
hn-williams-star-wars-composer-han-
solo-movie-theme-1202650282/amp/
142. According to John Powell, "The
Adventures of Han" contains two
themes which Williams develops
separately (to the point of spotting
them for a couple of actual cues), one
more heroic, the other - more
reflective.
143. The first three scores received an
expanded Anthology release and
finally an effectively complete release
in 1996. The Phantom Menace was
also released in an "Ultimate Edition",
featuring a lot of added cues but also
multiple instances of tracked music,
hence lacking a lot of original music
that wasn't used as intended by the
composer in the finished film. The
Last Jedi received an isolated score
release, albeit again not including
unused material and maintaining
tracked sequences.
144. While the original track is a film cue,
Williams created a new suite based on
it in 2018.
145. There's an alternate presentation over
the end-credits, featuring a hint of
Anakin's theme as an ending coda.
146. Features a variation of "The Starkiller",
premired in 2019.
147. Features a variation of Luke's theme.
148. This suite uniquely features not one
but two of the three thematic ideas
that make up the entire score: Rose's
theme, and Luke's Island motif,
notably stressing the former.
149. http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/rogu
e_one.html
150. This is a suite of Han's themes which
was written by John Williams, and the
suite was arranged and conducted by
Williams, as well.
151. The dictionary definition of 'Diegetic'
at Wiktionary.
152. Hutchinson, Sean (November 11,
2015). "Alien Musicians in 'Star Wars,'
Ranked" . Inverse. Archived from the
original on December 30, 2015.
Retrieved December 30, 2015.
(Archived page contains a JavaScript that
replaces article with page not found
message. To prevent this stop page
loading as soon as article text is visible.)
153. "Jabba the Hutt - Galactic Gangster |

Star Wars Galaxy of Adventures" .
YouTube. May 3, 2019. Retrieved
May 9, 2019.
154. Raftery, Brian (December 21, 2015).
"The 9 Best Songs Ever Played in a
Star Wars Movie" . Wired. Condé Nast.
December 22, 2015.
155. The Kazoos were inserted into the
mutes to produce a nasal sound.
156. "The 50th Academy Awards (1978)
Nominees and Winners" . The
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
157. "The 35th Annual Golden Globe
Awards (1978)" . Golden Globe
Awards. Archived from the original on
April 15, 2013. Retrieved January 19,
2013.
158. "Soundtrack 1978" . BAFTA Awards
Database. British Acacdemy of Film &
Television Awards. Retrieved
January 19, 2013.
159. "1977 20th Annual Grammy Awards" .
Past Winners database. Grammy
Awards. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
160. "Past Saturn Awards" . Saturn Awards.
February 9, 2010. Retrieved
January 19, 2013.
161. "Soundtrack 1980" . BAFTA Awards
Database. British Acacdemy of Film &
Television Awards. Retrieved
January 19, 2013.
162. "1980 – 23rd Annual Grammy
Awards" . Grammy Awards. Retrieved
January 19, 2013.
163. "The 53rd Academy Awards (1981)
Academy Awards of Motion Picture
Arts & Sciences. Retrieved January 19,
2013.
164. "The 56th Academy Awards (1984)
Academy of Motion Picture Arts &
Sciences. Retrieved January 19, 2013.
165. "Final Nominations for the 42nd
Annual Grammy Awards" . Billboard:
73. January 15, 2000.
166. "Grammy Award Nominees" .
Billboard: 60. December 17, 2005.
Retrieved January 19, 2013.
167. "Star Wars Tops AFI's List of 25
Greatest Film Scores of All Time" .
AFI's 100 Years of Film Scores.
American Film Institute. Retrieved
January 19, 2013.
168. "Star Wars – Gold & Platinum" .
Recording Industry Association of
America. Archived from the original
on January 8, 2016. Retrieved
January 8, 2016.
169. Certified Awards Search – BPI
External links
The Official Star Wars Music Site
(Archived)
Complete Catalogue of the Musical
Themes of Star Wars
Retrieved from
"https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?
title=Music_of_Star_Wars&oldid=931411992"
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Who composed the music for the Star Wars films?

Who composed the music for the Star Wars films?

How many recurring musical themes are used in the Star Wars films?

How many recurring musical themes are used in the Star Wars films?

Music of Star Wars

John Williams, composer of the music of all nine Star

The music of the Star Wars franchise is

Released between 1977 and 2017, the

Additional composers have since

Star John John

2018 Solo John Gavin Bat

Ryan Shore serves as the composer for

2014– Star Wars David G.

2018– Star Wars Michael

2019– The Ludwig

Star Wars: Rogue Chris

Star Wars Rogue

Star Wars Rogue

2010 Star Wars: The Force Mark

Year Title Composer

1996 Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire Joel McNeely

2019 Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge John Williams

The scores utilize an eclectic variety of

Lucas originally wanted to use tracked

Star Wars was one of the ﬁlm scores that

Also important is the density in which

Williams re-recorded some of his suites

The scores of the ﬁrst trilogy (in the form

Several of the scores require larger forces,

In live performances, the forces are usually

Woodwinds: 3 flutes (doubling on

Musical themes in the scores

Williams introduced a few themes in each

Each score can be said to have a "main

Williams' Star Wars catalog remains one of

Romantic application of Leitmotifs

The Rebel Fanfare is applied to the

Some of this music was re-tracked into

Other composers for the franchise used

Thematic inconsistencies between

Because Williams scores one episode at a

The Last Jedi, speciﬁcally, departs from

Listed below are as 51 recurring themes or

The main Star Wars theme, ﬁrst

Second "'soft'" motive[50]

Problems playing these ﬁles? See

Star Wars (A New Hope) …

originally heard in "Star Wars"

Ben Kenobi's theme (The Force

Princess Leia's Theme

originally heard in "Star Wars"[63]

Problems playing these ﬁles? See

The Empire Strikes Back …

First re-statement: "Throne Room

Returning: Spaceship Battle Motif; Luke's

The Phantom Menace …

Returning: Luke's Theme, Luke's Secondary

"Duel of the Fates"[73][78][55][79][80][81]

Returning: Shmi's Theme; Luke's Theme,