ANH 24: Happy Glockenspiel

A NEW HOPE
Written By Chrysanthe Tan

Justin Scheid and James Waterman join Xanthe (Band Batch reunion!) in a discussion about A NEW HOPE minutes 116-120, during which Luke Skywalker blows up the Death Star, the Rebels have an awkwardly formal medal ceremony, and Artoo recovers from being zapped.

Timestamps:

  • 00:00 - Hello there!

  • 07:19 - Listening to the start of these minutes.

  • 09:52 - Four drum timpani part.

  • 13:24 - Crash course in crash cymbals.

  • 24:00 - Minor Main Theme.

  • 29:45 - Analysis of the musical shift during the "Use the force, Luke" part.

  • 38:02 - What is this bassline?

  • 46:30 - Heroic descending tetrachords + us trying to figure out the beats.

  • 51:00 - Main Theme variations and the (Not) Death of Artoo.

  • 1:02:20 - Hard mallets vs. soft mallets on timpani.

  • 1:05:25 - The visual interface of the war room screen.

  • 1:10:25 - Main Theme where "all the harmonies are wrong"

  • 1:17:10 - Death Star go boom! End of the Disney ride. Happy glockenspiel.

  • 1:19:03 - Difference between glockenspiel, xylophone, vibraphone, marimba.

  • 1:29:27 - Feeling stressed about Artoo getting zapped in the Battle of Yavin.

  • 1:35:25 - The Throne Room AKA Star Wars Pomp and Circumstance.

  • 1:43:09 - Why is the medal ceremony so formal?

  • 1:51:15 - Is the music during the medal ceremony diegetic? A debate.

  • 2:00:09 - B section of the Main Theme that barely gets any love.

  • 2:05:40 - SWMM Questionnaire

Things Mentioned:

Themes:

  • 18) Descending Heroic Tetrachords

  • 17) Heroic Determination

  • 3) Martial Chords

  • 3. Force

  • 1b. Main Theme (B Section)

  • 9. Throne Room

  • Note: I use the theme names and numbers established in Frank Lehman's Complete Catalogue of the Musical Themes of Star Wars. You can download it free at his website: https://franklehman.com/starwars/.

Where are we in the soundtrack?

  • "The Battle Of Yavin (Launch From The Fourth Moon/X-Wings Draw Fire/Use The Force")

  • "The Throne Room/End Title"

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STAR WARS MUSIC MINUTE QUESTIONNAIRE:

1. In exactly 3 words, what does Star Wars sound like?

  • Justin: pew pew pew

  • James: The Band Batch

2. What's something related to Star Wars music or sound that you want to learn more about?

  • James: The idea that John Williams composes with pencil and paper. What is his writing process like? James wants to know all the little factoids.

  • Justin: How all the sound effects were made. Justin would love to be a fly on the wall while the sound designers and foley artists are doing their thing.

3. What's a score or soundtrack you're fond of besides anything Star Wars?

  • Justin: The village (composed by James Newton Howard)

  • James: Hereditary (composed by Colin Stetson)

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THE BAND BATCH = Xanthe, James, and Justin. Join us for music commentary livestreams on YouTube whenever new Star Wars shows come out!

James Waterman

Justin Scheid

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If you enjoyed this episode and want to show extra appreciation, feel free to buy me a coffee and shout out the guests! https://buymeacoffee.com/starwarsmusmin

If you want to support the show, consider becoming a patron!  https://patreon.com/chrysanthetan

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Where else to find SWMM:

Chrysanthe Tan

Composer / Violinist

www.chrysanthetan.com
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