John Williams “never liked listening to film music”

The surprising confidences of the composer with the 5 Oscars, on a genre that he does not really consider.

We owe him some of the most iconic themes of the seventh art: The teeth of the sea,, Star Wars,, Schindler’s listbut also his unforgettable partitions to Jurassic Park,, Indiana Jones,, Superman,, Harry Potter,, Mom I missed the plane,, You have to save soldier Ryan,, Third -type dating… In addition to 60 years of career, John Williams has become the absolute master of movie music, with 5 Oscars to his credit. His latest original score for the big screen dates back to 2023 with Indiana Jones and the Destiny Dial.

And yet, the 93 -year -old maestro reveals his indifference and his criticism of film music as a genre. In a biography devoted to him Tim Grieving, he confides:

“I never really liked listening to film music.”

Inevitably, the declaration is a bit surprising. Then in an interview with Guardian On the sidelines of the upcoming release of the book, John Williams nuance and explains:

“Film music, as good as it can be-and most of the time it is not, except maybe eight minutes here and there-I just think there is not much music in this genre.”

For him, the attachment of the public is mainly due to an emotional memory. If people love their compositions, it is because they remind them of good memories of the films:

“People remember music in a nostalgic way.” But he refutes the idea that this repertoire has its place in the same pantheon as the great classic works

“The idea that film music has the same place in a concert hall that the best concertos or classic symphonies is, I believe, a wrong notion.”

He goes further, judging most of the cinema compositions like “ephemeral”,, “Fragments”And “Impossible to consider as concert pieces as long as they are not reconstructed.” Words that may make a lot of talk.