PRESENTATION LICENSED BY DISNEY CONCERTS IN ASSOCIATION WITH 20TH CENTURY FOX, LUCASFILM, AND WARNER / CHAPPELL MUSIC.

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12 – 14 SEPTEMBER SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE

PRESENTATION LICENSED BY

THURSDAY 12 SEPTEMBER 2019, 8PM FRIDAY 13 SEPTEMBER 2019, 8PM SATURDAY 14 SEPTEMBER 2019, 2PM & 8PM

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE CONCERT HALL

Nicholas Buc conductor Sydney Symphony Orchestra Live on stage and screen with John Williams’ scorePerformed with one interval of 20 minutes, and concluding at approximately 10.40pm (4.40pm for matinee performance)

Star Wars Film Concert SeriesStar Wars The Force Awakens

A Lucasfilm Ltd. productionA Bad Robot production

Starring Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew and Max Von SydowMusic by John Williams Visual Effects and Animation by Industrial Light & MagicCostume Designer Michael KaplanEditors Mary Jo Markey, ACE Maryann Brandon, ACEProduction Designers Rick Carter and Darren GilfordDirector of Photography Dan Mindel, ASC, BSCExecutive Producers Tommy Harper Jason McGatlinProduced by Kathleen Kennedy, p.g.a. J.J. Abrams, p.g.a. Bryan Burk, p.g.a.Written by Lawrence Kasdan & J.J. Abrams and Michael ArndtDirected by J.J. Abrams

Presentation licensed by Disney Concerts in association with Lucasfilm Ltd., and Warner/Chappell Music. All rights reserved.

Star Wars Film Concert Series Production Credits

President, Disney Music Group Ken BuntSVP/GM, Disney Concerts Chip McLean Supervising Technical Director Alex Levy (Epilogue Media) Film Preparation Ramiro Belgardt Music Preparation Mark Graham, Matthew Voogt, Joann Kane Music ServiceDisney Music Library Operations, Disney Concerts Mae Crosby, Royd HastonBusiness Affairs, Disney Concerts Darryl Franklin, Meg Ross, Jesenia Gallegos Business Affairs, Lucasfilm Rhonda Hjort, Chris Holm Business Affairs, Warner-Chappell Scott McDowell

Star Wars: The Force Awakens IN CONCERT

The Lowy Chair of Chief Conductor and Artistic Director

SYDNEY SYMPHONY PRESENTS

Soundtrack available on Walt Disney Records © 2019 & ™ Lucasfilm Ltd. All rights reserved. IMAX is a registered trademark of IMAX Corporation

DECEMBER 18 Original Motion Picture Disneymusicemporium.com

This film is classified M.

In 3D, REAL D 3D and IMAX 3D

About the Music

While the original Star Wars score took us back to the history of European concert music, The Force Awakens — a sequel that arrived 22 years after Return of the Jedi — transported audiences to the past of its own musical universe. But just as director J.J. Abrams only kept one foot in the old, introducing a cast of new young characters, Williams kept his historical citations to a minimum (wagering that of the score’s 102 minutes, only seven contained old Star Wars themes). His own writing style continued to evolve in the years since Return of the Jedi, and there is a new fragility and minimalism in the way he sets Rey’s theme, as well as passages of aching string elegy that recall his more purely dramatic films such as Schindler’s List and Munich.

Kylo Ren, grandson and disciple of Darth Vader, darkly dominates the film as Vader once did, and Williams empowers him with a terrifying theme that pulses and intimidates with martial brass in the family style. Star Wars is all about darkness and light, however, and the antidote is a buoyant new theme for Rey. “It’s an interesting challenge with her,” Williams explained, “because her theme doesn’t suggest a love theme in any way. It suggests a female adventurer with great strength. She’s a fighter, infused with the Force, and it needed to be something that was strong but thoughtful.” Rey reminds us of both the fiery and beautiful young Leia and the heroic, questing young Luke, and Williams managed to pack all of these qualities into her theme: an exploring melody that is feminine and muscular, romantic and heroic, which he takes from the quietest moments on solo flute to the heat of battle, victoriously erupting from the entire orchestra. The composer threads several variations of her melody into the end credits suite, working up to the fateful moment where he braids it with the Force theme in counterpoint. Rey is the hero of this film, and her theme is the heart of the score.

The pilot Poe Dameron is given a grinning, heroic motif. The Resistance enters with a stately, spiraling march that reflects the new Rebels’ battle-ready seriousness. Echoes of the Emperor’s theme are present in a low, throaty motif for male chorus that haunts the shadowy Snoke. At the very climax of the film, Williams introduces a new theme — “The Jedi Steps” — a mystical and ancient melody alternating on cellos and solo flute over a rippling current of strings.

“I’m just lucky to be able to do a series of films where the preponderance of music is new, but there’s some relationship to the older ones, so that there’s an accumulation of melodic and other kinds of materials that are added on, added on,” Williams reflected after completing The Force Awakens in 2015. “It must be about 15 hours of music or more, having been created by, in this case, one composer, and one overall project. That’s, as far as I know, a unique opportunity, and one that I’ve always enjoyed. It would be like writing an opera, and then writing six more based on the same kind of material and the same story... over the course of 40 years.

“I think what one finds about that is, there are certain inescapable things — it’s like bike-riding. You get back onto the Star Wars cycle and it takes 30 seconds to get back into it. I’ve never felt separated or estranged from it in any way. We have a toolbox, and we have a thumbprint, and we try to improve these things and expand it, certainly. But this has been a unique challenge, and a uniquely rewarding experience.”

Tim Greiving is a film music journalist in Los Angeles who reports for NPR and the Los Angeles Times. Find him at timgreiving.com.

John Williams composerIn a career spanning more than five decades, John Williams has become one of America’s most accomplished and successful composers for film and for the concert stage, and he remains one of the world’s most distinguished and contributive musical voices. He has composed the music and served as music director for more than one hundred films, including all eight Star Wars films, the first three Harry

Potter films, Superman, JFK, Born on the Fourth of July, Memoirs of a Geisha, Far and Away, The Accidental Tourist, Home Alone and The Book Thief. His 45-year artistic partnership with director Steven Spielberg has resulted in many of Hollywood’s most acclaimed and successful films, including Schindler’s List, E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, Jaws, Jurassic Park, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, the Indiana Jones films, Munich, Saving Private Ryan, The Adventures of Tintin, War Horse, Lincoln, The BFG and The Post. His contributions to television music include scores for more than 200 television films for the groundbreaking, early anthology series Alcoa Theatre, Kraft Television Theatre, Chrysler Theatre and Playhouse 90, as well as themes for NBC Nightly News (“The Mission”), NBC’s Meet the Press, and the PBS arts showcase Great Performances. He also composed themes for the 1984, 1988, and 1996 Summer Olympic Games, as well as the 2002 Winter Olympic Games. He has received five Academy Awards® and fifty-one Oscar® nominations, making him the Academy’s most-nominated living person and the second-most nominated person in the history of the Oscars. He has received seven British Academy Awards (BAFTA), twenty-four Grammys®, four Golden Globes®, five Emmys®, and numerous gold and platinum records. In 2003, he received the Olympic Order (the IOC’s highest honor) for his contributions to the Olympic movement. He received the prestigious Kennedy Center Honors in December of 2004. In 2009, Mr. Williams was inducted into the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, and he received the National Medal of Arts, the highest award given to artists by the U.S. Government. In 2016, he received the 44th Life Achievement Award from the American Film Institute – the first time in their history that this honour was bestowed upon a composer.

In January 1980, Mr. Williams was named nineteenth music director of the Boston Pops Orchestra, succeeding the legendary Arthur Fiedler. He currently holds the title of Boston Pops Laureate Conductor which he assumed following his retirement in December, 1993, after fourteen highly successful seasons. He also holds the title of Artist-in-Residence at Tanglewood. Mr. Williams has composed numerous works for the concert stage, among them two symphonies, and concertos commissioned by several of the world’s leading orchestras, including a cello concerto for the Boston Symphony Orchestra, a bassoon concerto for the New York Philharmonic, a trumpet concerto for The Cleveland Orchestra, and a horn concerto for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. In 2009, Mr. Williams composed and arranged “Air and Simple Gifts” especially for the first inaugural ceremony of President Barack Obama, and in September 2009, the Boston Symphony premiered a new concerto for harp and orchestra entitled “On Willows and Birches”.

The Force Awakens

Sydney Symphony Orchestra

THE MUSICIANSFIRST VIOLINS Harry BennettsAssociate Concertmaster

Lerida Delbridge Assistant Concertmaster

Fiona Ziegler Assistant ConcertmasterJenny Booth Brielle Clapson Nicola Lewis Emily Long Alexandra Mitchell Alexander Norton Anna Skálová Tobias Aan†

Madeleine Boud*

Sercan Danis*

Caroline Hopson*

Emily Qin*

SECOND VIOLINSKirsty HiltonPrincipal

Marianne EdwardsAssociate PrincipalAlice Bartsch Victoria Bihun Emma Hayes Wendy Kong Benjamin LiNicole MastersMaja VerunicaDoretta Balkizas* Jessica Oddie†

Riikka Sintonen*

VIOLASSandro CostantinoRosemary Curtin Jane Hazelwood Graham HenningsStuart JohnsonFelicity Tsai Leonid VolovelskyBeth Condon†

Jacqueline Cronin*

Stephen Wright°

CELLOSLeah Lynn Acting Associate Principal Kristy Conrau Christopher Pidcock Adrian Wallis David WickhamEleanor Betts*

Paul Ghica*

Eliza Sdraulig†

Paul Stender*

DOUBLE BASSESSteven Larson Richard Lynn Jaan Pallandi David Barlow†

Josef Bisits*

Adrian Whitehall*

FLUTESEmma Sholl Associate PrincipalCarolyn HarrisJames Fortune*

OBOESShefali Pryor Associate PrincipalEve Osborn†

Alexandre Oguey Principal Cor Anglais

CLARINETSFrancesco CelataActing PrincipalChristopher TingayJames Julian†

Alexander MorrisPrincipal Bass Clarinet

BASSOONSMatthew Wilkie Principal EmeritusFiona McNamaraJordy Meulenbroeks†

HORNSBen JacksPrincipal

Geoffrey O’Reilly Principal 3rdEuan Harvey Marnie Sebire Aidan Gabriels†

Katy Grisdale*

Nick Mooney*

TRUMPETSPaul GoodchildAssociate PrincipalAnthony HeinrichsMark Bremner*

Daniel Henderson*

TROMBONESRonald Prussing Principal

Scott Kinmont Associate Principal Nick Byrne Christopher Harris Principal Bass Trombone

TUBASteve Rossé Principal

TIMPANIAdam Jeffrey*

PERCUSSIONTimothy Constable Tim Brigden*

Brian Nixon*

Philip South*

HARP Julie Kim*

PIANOCatherine Davis*

SYNTHESISERYing Ho*

° = Contract Musician* = Guest Musician † = Sydney Symphony

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Suite A Level 1, Building 16, Fox Studios Australia, Park Road North, Moore Park NSW 2021 Telephone: +61 2 9921 5353

David Robertson The Lowy Chair of Chief Conductor and Artistic Director

BOARD OF DIRECTORSTerrey Arcus AM ChairmanGeoff Ainsworth AM Kees BoersmaAndrew BaxterEwen Crouch AM

Emma Dunch CEOCatherine HewgillThe Hon. Justice AJ MeagherKaren MosesDr John Vallance

Founded in 1932 by the ABC, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra has evolved into one of the world’s finest orchestra as Sydney has become one of the world’s great cities. Resident at the Sydney Opera House, the SSO also performs regularly at City Recital Hall, tours NSW and internationally, and it is well on its way to becoming the premier orchestra of the Asia Pacific region.

The Sydney Symphony Orchestra’s concerts encompass masterpieces from the classical repertoire, music by some of the finest living composers, and collaborations with guest artists from all genres. These collaborations reflect the orchestra’s versatility and diverse appeal, and have included concerts with Human Nature, Ben Folds,

The Whitlams, Burt Bacharach, Dianne Reeves, George Benson, John Farnham, Sting, Tim Minchin, Kenny Rogers, Natalie Cole, Olivia Newton-John, Idina Menzel, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa and Tina Arena. More recent highlights include concerts with Josh Groban, Diana Krall, Lea Salonga, Conchita Wurst and Paloma Faith, and tribute concerts for David Bowie and George Michael.

The Sydney Symphony Orchestra also celebrates the role of the symphony orchestra in movies, television and video games with concerts such as Final Fantasy, Star Trek, The Music of John Williams, The Wizard of Oz, Bugs Bunny, Gladiator, The Godfather, the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Babe, the Harry Potter film franchise, Amadeus, Star Wars and Casino Royale.

sydneysymphony.com

David Robertson The Lowy Chair of Chief Conductor and Artistic Director

Nicholas Buc conductor

Third Kind, Alan Menken’s Beauty and the Beast and Nicholas Hooper’s Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince™. Other live film concerts he has conducted include Pixar In Concert, Star Trek, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Back to the Future, Casino Royale, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Jurassic Park, Psycho, Star Wars: Episodes IV, V, VI and VII and the first three Harry Potter films. He has conducted all of the major Australian symphony orchestras as well as the Minnesota Orchestra, Houston, Milwaukee, Indianapolis, Austin, Grand Rapids and Madison symphony orchestras in the US. He also makes regular appearances in Asia, conducting the Tokyo, Hong Kong, Malaysian, Osaka and Taipei Philharmonic orchestras.

He is currently finishing up writing a major theatrical work, TROT. He also recently completed a new ballet score, Kazka, for Lehenda Ukrainian Dance Company, which toured throughout Australia, Canada and the US.

Nicholas Buc is a composer, conductor, arranger, violinist and pianist. He studied Composition at the University of Melbourne, where he received the inaugural Fellowship of Australian Composers Award. As the recipient of the Brian May Scholarship for Australian film composers, he completed a master’s degree in Scoring for Film and Multimedia at New York University, receiving the Elmer Bernstein Award for Film Scoring. He has composed music for film and television, with some of his work being screened at festivals and theatres around Australia, Asia and the US. In 2007 he was nominated for “Best Original Song Composed for the Screen” in the APRA-AGSC Screen Music Awards, and in 2015 was winner of the NYU Film Scoring Competition.

Continuing his passion for music and film, he conducted the live-in-concert world premieres of John Williams’ Close Encounters of the