Star Wars Music Minute

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. If you have questions or suggestions, email podcast@starwarsmusicminute.com or fill out this quick form.

TLJ 2: Resistance Leitmotifs (Minutes 6-10)

In this episode, we cover four prominent musical themes in minutes 6-10 of Star Wars Episode 8: The Last Jedi, including one that didn't make it to the commercial soundtrack. Otherwise, the music in this scene basically follows with the "Main Title and Escape" track on the album. All of these themes will show up again later in The Last Jedi, and most of them are present in all of the sequels as well. Topics: What is a leitmotif? Leitmotifs vs. themes. Piano walkthrough of four leitmotifs. Analysis ideas. Sound design of the resistance bombers, and how that relates to the frequency spectrum. Resource mentioned: Frank Lehman's Complete Catalogue of the Musical Themes of Star Wars, with specific reference to the Thematic Census on pp. 64-5. It's awesome! Email podcast@starwarsmusicminute.com if you have questions or suggestions!

TLJ 1: From a Cellist’s POV (Minutes 1-5 with Erika Duke-Kirkpatrick)

Erika Duke-Kirkpatrick (cellist on The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise of Skywalker) joins Chrysanthe in covering minutes 1-5 of Star Wars Episode 8: The Last Jedi. Film action: Lucasfilm logo, opening crawl, Hux being tooled with, and Poe starting to attack the Dreadnought. Discussion topics: Erika busts some John Williams myths. John Williams' conducting style. What recording sessions were like (secrecy, VIPs, funny moments, how they differed from other scoring sessions). Why the opening crawl Main Titles sound different across eras (from tuning to mixing and more). Cello demonstration of the Main Title and a breakdown of the rhythm. The resonance of certain keys for string instruments. How the motion picture lines up with the soundtrack.