ESB 3: Snowy Spectralism
This episode is about minutes 11-15 of The Empire Strikes Back with my guest Jake Jahiel -- a musicologist, Baroque music specialist, and 2022 Fellow of the Rubin Institute for Music Criticism. Today, we're talking about the Spectralist-adjacent music of Hoth, the Force theme that sprang from the petri dish, Wagner's influence, and the music that John Williams originally wrote that got cut from this scene.
Video version of this episode is here: https://youtu.be/hRujf84GhXM
Timestamps:
00:00 - Hello there!
05:10 - Listening to the beginning of these minutes.
6:31 - How Ben Burtt made Threepio's sound here.
11:21 - Somber horn stinger.
15:15 - What is the meaning of this fragmented Force theme?
23:36 - Ligeti/Spectralist influences.
30:49 - "Ben! Dagobah!"
35:25 - The music that John Williams originally wrote for this scene that got cut.
40:56 - Quickie Topic: Tempo
55:21 - Why it's worth acknowledging Wagner's influence on Star Wars.
1:03:19 - SWMM Questionnaire
Things to Check Out:
Dominic Sewell's analysis of 1m3/2m1 "Luke's Escape" - https://youtu.be/xKysHgjNtmk
Dominic Sewell's analysis of 2m2 "Ben's Instructions" - https://youtu.be/Dh9W98GykGs
"Allegretto" from Beethoven's 7th Symphony (first chord) - https://youtu.be/vCHREyE5GzQ
György Ligeti - "Atmospheres" - https://youtu.be/RCNzwdLwA8g
The Empire Strikes Back sound design explained by Ben Burtt (INDEPTH Sound Design) - https://youtu.be/VUeWJKwQwsE
Spectral music: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spectral_music
Film-as-Concert-Music And the Formal Implications of 'Cinematic Listening' - https://franklehman.com/film-as-concert-music/
Complete Catalogue of the Musical Themes of Star Wars (by Frank Lehman): https://franklehman.com/starwars/.
Cues:
Very end of 1M3/2M1 "Luke's Escape"
2M2 "Ben's Instructions"
Musical Themes:
3. Force
Possible hint of 1a. Main Theme (A Section)
Where are we in the soundtrack(s)?:
"The Wampa's Lair/Vision of Obi-Wan/Snowspeeders Take Flight"
----------
STAR WARS MUSIC MINUTE QUESTIONNAIRE:
1. In exactly 3 words, what does Star Wars sound like?
Unproblematic intergalactic Wagner.
2. What's something related to Star Wars music or sound that you want to learn more about?
The foley work.
3. What's a score or soundtrack you're fond of besides anything Star Wars?
Lord of the Rings trilogy (composed by Howard Shore)
---------------
Guest: Jacob Jahiel
You can find Jake's writing on Early Music America (EMA): https://www.earlymusicamerica.org/?s=jacob+jahiel
------------------
If you want to support the show and join the Discord server, consider becoming a patron! https://patreon.com/chrysanthetan
Leave a voice message, and I might play it on the show... https://starwarsmusicminute.com/comlink
Where else to find SWMM:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/StarWarsMusMin
Instagram: https://instagram.com/starwarsmusicminute
Email: podcast@starwarsmusicminute.com
Buy Me A Coffee: https://buymeacoffee.com/starwarsmusmin
