TLJ 3: Falling Jedi Steps (Minutes 11-15 with James Waterman)

There's a lot happening in minutes 11-15 of Star Wars Episode 8: The Last Jedi! Luckily, percussionist James Waterman is here to help me tackle it. In this portion of the film, we witness Paige's sacrifice, Leia's Force sigh, Snoke's gravely voice, Finn's leaky bacta suit, and Rey handing the venerable Jedi master his old lightsaber. 

Episode highlights:

• Narrated violin "performances" of Paige's final act and Luke's first act.
• The Last Jedi's novel approach to individual perspective-based sound design.
• VIP leitmotif occurrences include the Force theme and Battle of the Heroes.
• How musical anchors can keep viewers engaged.
• Examples of leading tones, interval leaps, ascending and descending lines.
• How the meandering melody on Ahch-To telegraphs Luke's mood.
• The role of the timpani in film scores.

James is @jameswatermanmusic on Instagram and jameswatermanmusic.com

Star Wars Music Minute is on Instagram @starwarsmusicminute, and Chrysanthe is on Twitter @chrysanthetan and Instagram at @chrysanthetan.

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