Date: August 2, 2022
Venue: Symphony Hall, Birmingham, UK
Conductor: Stephen Bell
Performers: CBSO (City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra); Violin I: Eugene Tzikindelean, Jonathan Martindale, Lowri Porter, Colin Twigg, Jane Wright, Mark Robinson, Julia Åberg, Elizabeth Golding, Ruth Lawrence, Kirsty Lovie, Stefano Mengoli, Claudia Fuller, Wendy Quirk, Robert Bilson; Violin II: Peter Campbell-Kelly, Emily Davis, Moritz Pfister, Catherine Arlidge, Amy Jones, Emma Lisney, Heather Bradshaw, Gabriel Dyker, Bryony Morrison, Timothy Birchall, Amy Littlewood, Richard Thomas; Viola: Adam Römer, Michael Jenkinson, David BaMaung, Jessica Tickle, Helen Roberts, Sarah Malcolm, Laura Galletta, Liz Fryer, Henrietta Ridgeon, Isobel Adam, Matthew Williams, Jonathan Holland, Jonathan Quirk, Richard Blake, Stuart Essenhigh, Jonathan Sheppard; Cello: Joy Lisney, Arthur Boutillier, David Powell, Kate Setterfield, Miguel Fernandes, Jacqueline Tyler, Helen Edgar, Catherine, Ardagh-Walter; Double Bass: Anthony Alcock, Damián Rubido, González, Mark Goodchild, Jeremy Watt, Julian Walters, Richard Lewis, Tom Neil; Flute: Marie-Christine Zupancic, Veronika Klírová; Piccolo: Helen Benson; Oboe: Emmet Byrne, Mary Gilbert; Cor Anglais: Rachael Pankhurst; Clarinet: Oliver Janes, Joanna Patton; Bass Clarinet/ Saxophone: Mark O’Brien; Bass Clarinet: Harry Cameron-Penny; Bassoon: Gareth Humphreys, Archie Auger; Contrabassoon: Margaret Cookhorn; Horn: Elspeth Dutch, Jake Parker, Zoe Tweed, Jeremy Bushell, Martin Wright; Trumpet: Matthew Williams, Jonathan Holland, Jonathan Quirk, Richard Blake, Stuart Essenhigh, Jonathan Sheppard; Trombone: Richard Watkin, Anthony Howe, Dafydd Thomas; Bass Trombone: David Vines; Tuba: Andrew McDade; Timpani: Matthew Hardy; Percussion: Adrian Spillett, Andrew Herbert, Toby Kearney, Tibor Hettich, Oliver Pooley, Iris van den Bos; Harp: Katherine Thomas; Piano/Celeste: Julian Wilkins
Presenter: Tommy Pearson
Set list;
Raiders of the Lost Ark: Raiders March
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: Motorcycle Scherzo
Jurassic Park: Theme
Schindler’s List: Theme
Memoirs of a Geisha: Sayuri’s Theme
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone: Nimbus 2000
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone: Hedwig’s Theme
Catch Me If You Can: Theme
Star Wars: The Phantom Menace: Duel of the Fates-INTERVAL-
Olympic Fanfare and Theme
E.T.: Flying Theme
Jaws: Shark Theme
Excerpts from Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Saving Private Ryan: Hymn to the Fallen
Excerpts from Star Wars:
I. Main Theme
II. Princess Leia’s Theme
III. Yoda’s Theme
IV. The Imperial March-ENCORE-
Superman: Superman March
The review;
I have been to Symphony Hall in Birmingham, UK, many times over the years to see bands and artists from all genres, but I had never been to see a full orchestra perform there. For those who haven’t experienced Birmingham’s Symphony Hall, it is a purpose-built venue with these types of concerts at its very core. Great performers from across the globe have graced its stage since it opened in back in 1991. Many of those performers have acclaimed it to be the best hall for acoustics that they have ever performed at. So, when the opportunity came up to attend the Happy Birthday John Williams concert to be performed by the CBSO (City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra), I decided it was something not to be missed. So, a swift ticket purchase later, I was going to be accompanied by my dad and we had our boys night out planned.
Conducting the CBSO for the evening was Stephen Bell. Bell is no stranger to Williams, having performed with the LSO (London Symphony Orchestra) on the soundtracks for Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. He played the French Horn on both soundtracks and this intimate knowledge and passion for Williams’s music was also clear to see during his personal performance whilst conducting the orchestra. He has also been known to dress as Darth Vader to conduct other concerts, but alas this was not to be this time around. I was fortunate enough to be invited backstage to interview Stephen earlier that day in his dressing room before final rehearsals. This interview will be going out on the next episode of our next Radio 1138 podcast very soon.
Tommy Pearson was the concerts presenter. Pearson is well known in the UK and has worked for BBC Radio and Classic FM over the years and like Bell, he is well known to John Williams. He first interviewed Williams over 25 years ago and has done so on many more occasions since and now calls him a friend. His facts, anecdotes, and Twitter shout outs to audience members between the music were informative and humorous add helped stitch the show together seamlessly.
With a near capacity attendance of over 1600 people, this was the CBSO’s largest audience since the start of the pandemic and the orchestra were on fine form. Truly talented as individuals, but as an ensemble, they were magnificent.
As you will read from the set list, the concert was jam packed with Williams’s finest work. From the first notes of the Raiders March from Raiders of the Lost Ark, the audience were taken on a journey through fifty years of cinematic music. Hearing so many pieces from such diverse movies gave me a huge appreciation of the talents of Williams as a composer. From his jazz based Catch Me If You Can to the oriental sounding Memoirs of a Geisha to the almost military Olympic Fanfare and Theme all with styles so different to each other.
This a true testament to Williams’s work is that you don’t need a visual representation of the movie the music is written for to accompany it. The music alone can carry you to that scene and evoke those memories of the pictures.
Hearing Duel of the Fates without its usual choral accompaniment was unusual but made me more aware of some of the intricate play from the orchestra that I have missed previously. The Star Wars finale to the show was what I was waiting for. Four amazing but very different pieces of music to savour. The end of every piece played throughout the evening was greeted by much-deserved thunderous applause from the audience.
But in true concert style and as this was the last show of the season, there had to be an encore. The one piece that was missing from the set list was then to be played; Superman: Main Theme. This brought the house down with the energy that the orchestra played and was the perfect way to bring a close to a truly magnificent concert. The standing ovation at the end well warranted for Bell, Pearson, and the orchestra.
One take away from the evening is to wonder at how Williams can create music for so many different franchises and then ensure that they are so distinctive and clear as to be their own, but they all contain a familiarity, and you can recognise he has created them.
And one thing I can still not comprehend is how do you know when a harpist needs to just play four or five chords in one piece of music. Possibly barely heard at times, but still a required layer to bring the whole score together. This is a complete testament to Williams’s genius, and I learned to appreciate it so much more while watching the incredibly talented musicians on stage.
I was lucky, no that’s not the right word… privileged when I got chance to see John Williams perform at Star Wars Celebration Anaheim earlier this year. A true bucket list moment that I will cherish for the rest of my life. This was the perfect way to celebrate the 90th birthday of the great man and celebrate his outstanding career. Williams for me, is the greatest composer of all time.
This concert was a truly wonderful performance and exceeded my expectations in so many ways. My dad and I will definitely be going back to more CBSO performances in the near future.
On behalf of the team at Jedi News, I would also like to extend our thanks to Stephen Bell, Maddie Castell, Gareth Beedie and everyone involved with the CBSO and Symphony Hall for their assistance.
