Composer John Williams returns to the question of retirement: "If an interesting film came along..."
Composer John Williams has spoken out again about his retirement. The legendary Oscar-winning musician and composer - behind unforgettable soundtracks such as Jaws, Star Wars, ET, Jurassic Park, and Harry Potter - announced his retirement from the world of cinema last year, once he reached the age of 91. Indiana Jones and the Quadrant of Destiny was supposed to be his last film project, but now Williams seems to have had second thoughts.
“I'm not very interested in big pronouncements, definitive statements surrounded by closed doors. If I've ever made one without contextualizing it, I'll take it back." Williams, now 91, told The Times newspaper: “If a film came along that interested me, with a program that I could tackle, then I wouldn't want to rule anything out. Everything is possible. Everything is in front of us. Only our limitations hold us back. Or, to put it more simply: I like to keep an open mind."
His agenda, however, for 2024 is already full. In January he will conduct his second violin concerto with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and then he will also be in Vienna. And he already has a booking as a conductor in Berlin for 2025.
Of his extraordinary career, John Williams reflects on the bridge he has seen built between the commercial and classical music worlds. “Thirty or forty years ago, when I brought a film music program to one of our great orchestras, there might have been condescension. I understand the value of things made in the commercial world and their place in art. But now things are different. I would like to come back in 50 years and see the contributions of cinema to the development of new music because I think young composers will want to work on both fronts."
Williams is often asked if there is a theme that unites his music. He explained this to the Times: “Cinema requires you to adapt your style to each project that comes your way: Home Alone may not be in the same language as Saving Private Ryan or Jurassic Park, but perhaps we all have something in common with the characters. Somewhere in all my film soundtracks, there must be some sort of part of me. But I'll let others find it."
Source: Deadline