Media and Society: Research Dossier

Apr 1

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Research Screencast

Annotated Bibliography 

      Often one does not find brilliance when looking at the big picture, but rather, when one examines the small details of a work. This is also true for the film industry and especially when looking at John Williams’ work. Alexander’s article tells the story of how five notes in a movie could be the difference between success and failure. John Williams knew this fact as well, he was to compose a five note motif, but did not have much to go on. After writing over 350 different five note patterns, he finally found the perfect one. It is incredible how hard and dedicated some people work to achieve greatness, the way Williams writes and cares about his music is unique.

  • Barnett, Kyle S. “Film Music.” Film Quarterly 57.4 (2004): n. pag. Proquest Research Library. Web. 1 Apr. 2013. (Peter Quigley)

This scholarly article examines Jim Buhler’s “Analytical and Interpretive Approaches to Film Music: Analyzing Interactions of Music and Film” and his considerations of music as a component part of the overall sonic composition of the film. The article then goes on to analyze Michael Allen’s, “How Electrical Reproducers Facilitated the Transition of Sound” and how film sound’s technological history has been largely due to its examination of time lapses in the adoption of “talkie technology. This source is important because it emphasizes the importance of music in film even though it has held a marginal role in the study of film compared to narration and image. 

  • Bowes, Danny. “John Williams Scores His 48th Oscar Nomination with ‘Lincoln'” Yahoo! Movies. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Apr. 2013. (Dominique Ellis)

   This is also another article based on John Williams spectacular career. In this article however it is focused on John Williams and his most recent work. John Williams film scored in the new hit movie ‘Lincoln’. With this film score the composer got nominated for his 48th Grammy award. With this nomination John Williams is second on the all time nomination list for Grammys right behind Walt Disney. Then the article talks about how John Williams career got started. He attended the Julliard and Eastman School of music. Then he started working with Steven Spielberg which accounted for much of John Williams fame. John Williams composed other iconic film though such as Harry Potter, Superman, and Star Wars.

  • Burlingame, Jon. “Music; A Career of Epic Proportions; John Williams Has Taken Knocks for His Movie Scores, but as the Composer Turns 70, He Isn’t Defensive. He Enjoys Film Work.” Los Angeles Times [Los Angeles, Calif.] 3 Feb. 2002: n. pag. National Newspapers Premier. Web. (Shantel Carrasco)

The following source details more about John Williams music career even after becoming so famous and how he is never really content with his work and always striving to keep being the best in his career. He also has not let his fame affect his music that got him to the top. Till know William still plays the star wars music them in orchestra and he still enjoys playing the home alone theme song, even though one critic states that it so beneath him. I though this source would be of use because it shows how John Williams is as a person, even after years of fame. The article highlights not only his greatest work but also who he is as a person and not letting all the fame get to his head. Even at 70 years old John Williams still continues to play and create more master pieces. I think it important to have a source like this that is able to tell readers the overall development that John Williams has gone through.

   This trade journal examines the history and life of John Williams as his works and career progressed through film. William’s attitude towards music and film is extremely humble and his relationships with directors are extraordinary. Through this trade journal we are introduced to John Williams as an “old school” composer and conductor who still uses a pen and paper. The importance of this article is that it gives a sense of John William’s career and how he has become to be well known throughout the music industry. This source also introduces William’s most famous works and their importance to the development of sound in filmography.

  •  Childs, Barney. “Time and Music: A Composer’s View.” Perspectives of New Music No. 2 Vol. 15 (1977): 194-219. Www.jstor.org. Web. 21 Mar. 2013. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/832819>. (Shantel Carrasco)

The following source get into the mentally of a composer and how composition is viewed through the perspective of a composer. The source describes how composing for movies have its own strategic planning and each pieces are developed through a structure and style, almost like a poem. The source takes reader in deeper analysis of what composition is because it describes how composers grow as a person along with their work. To some composers, composing takes a deeper form of mental thinking for some of these composers. Source also describes some of styles composer uses like western European intellect that help certain composers find certain tones and audio to work with. This source is helpful because readers can experience the work put into composing through the perspective of a composer as well. In this project I can relate to some to some of the composing done my John Williams and compare it to the styles described in the article.

  • Dyer, Richard. “John Williams: Making Movie-music History `Schindler’ Composer Is up for Fifth Oscar.” Boston Globe [Boston] 20 Mar. 1994, Arts & Film sec.: n. pag. National Newspapers Premier. Web. 23 Mar. 2013. <https://ezproxy.hws.edu/login?           url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/294902485?accountid=27680>. (Oddmund Nesbakk)

One of Williams most famous and appreciated work is the music he wrote for the movie “Schindler’s List.” The director of the movie, Steven Spielberg, chose Williams to write the main theme of the film because of his incredible understanding of his movies. John Williams did not feel that he was up for the job, writing for such a serious and important picture. The way Williams prepares for how to write the film is very interesting and important to establish whether an artist, composer, or director can be viewed as someone that fits in the auteur category. Williams’ is very strict on himself and writes his music for the movie, very carefully planned. It is very relevant for the project we are doing.

  • Faulkner, Robert R. Music on Demand: Composers and Careers in the Hollywood Film Industry. New Brunswick: Transaction, 1983. Print. (Shantel Carrasco)

The Following book goes into a much more boarder view of Hollywood’s social organization in the music industry compared to my previous resources. This book doesn’t just talk about the composer techniques and style while they compose, it also has personal interviews with the composers themselves. This is helpful because I actually read what the composer themselves say about their own music instead of someone else’s review on it. The book addresses the careers of the music composers and how they got involved in the music film industry.  This source is useful because it doesn’t just discuss composer but gives readers a general overview on the industry social structure in Hollywood music. This book not only help me understand the music film industry better but also helps in understanding John Williams career on a much broader overview of how is music affect not just the movies but the industries as well.

  • Jergensen, John. “The Last Movie Maestro.” The Wall Street Journal [New York City] 16 Dec. 2011: n. pag. Print.(Dominique Ellis)

       This article is about John Williams and mainly his music. It talks about how John Williams is an old fashioned kind of guy when it comes to creating his music. It says that he doesn’t even use a computer or any type of screen to create his music. He uses a pencil and lined paper to create everything. Then it talks about how Steven Spielberg hears all the music that is going to be put in the movie from Mr. Williams himself on his piano first. As the article continues it talks about how the critics of John Williams usually have nothing but praise for him.

  • “John Williams – Composer Extraordinaire.” John Williams. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013(Dominique Ellis)

     This article is based on John Williams life and his road to becoming the most famous composer of all time. It talks about how John Williams was born in New York and started Piano lessons at the age of seven. John Williams father Johnny Williams was a percussist. John Williams and his family eventually moved to the west coast and his father found a job playing soundtracks for movies. It was a natural move for John Williams to be drawn to that field of work. While John Williams was starting to establish his career in Hollywood, his career took a turning point. Steven Spielberg was coming into the movie business and approached John Williams about working with him on his films.

  • Lace, Ian. “The Film Music of John Williams by Ian Lace.” The Film Music of John Williams by Ian Lace. Music Web, 1998. Web. 01 Apr. 2013. (Peter Quigley) 

This website article examines the style of John William’s music in the film industry. Unlike many scored that are impoverished of invention after the statement of a solitary main theme; John Williams music has real integrity. His music style is described as crafted with richness of invention of themes, melody, harmony, dynamics, texture and orchestration. This article analyses the imagination with which he has written for instruments whether it is a mystical space theme or a suspenseful movie about sharks. The importance of this article is that it describes the style of John William’s music and how it has impacted the design of films and their success. 

  •  Mckinley, James C., Jr. “John Williams Lets His Muses Carry Him along.” The New York Times [New York City] 19 Aug. 2011: n. pag. Print.(Dominique Ellis)

This is an article about John Williams and some of his career and also some of an interview. The article begins by talking about John Williams and his accomplishments as a composer. John Williams is a very decorated composer, he has 21 Grammys, five Academy Awards, four Golden globes, and five Emmys. Before the article started talking about all of the awards John Williams has won, it talks about the amount of pieces he has worked on. Throughout his career John Williams has taken part in 121 film scores, and a dozen concertos. 

The following source is an essay about the composition done by composers John Williams and Richard Wagner in the movie Stars Wars. The essay focuses both of these composers theme and ideas they had for the Stars Wars sequence. Even though both composers had their own view on what the composition was going to be based about, both composer were able to work together harmoniously to create one of the best theme songs for the star wars trilogy. Unlike Richard Wagner who wanted to create music based on drama, Williams simply wanted to create a composition that would define the films substances. I picked this source because it does a great demonstration of John Williams’s visions and why he considered one of the best composers. In details it describes how John Williams’s vision was to create music that invoked emotion and was remembered. More importantly it described the comparison between john Williams and another man’s work.

  • Prendergast, Roy M. Film Music: A Neglected Art : A Critical Study of Music in Films. New York: W.W. Norton, 1992. Print. (Peter Quigley)

This book looks to examine a comprehensive look at the history, aesthetics, and techniques of film music. The use of music to the company of film is a relatively new phenomenon and this book focuses on the instructive prototypes or masterpieces intended to bring to light the study as a whole. Music in film is analyzed through an artistic perspective of style and them, which show the importance of its purpose in film. This book is of importance because it gives background information on the evolution of music. The book gives a good foundation of how to interpret music in films and the styles composers build on through history.

       Steven Spielberg and John Williams have made many movies together. When these men come together to create a motion picture, the expectations are sky high, and they always deliver the goods. There is something truly special about their relationship, they understand each other. Williams’ ability to create magic for the ears and mind is reflected harmoniously and perfectly with Spielberg’s ability to create magic on the screen. One of the reasons why these two men work so great together, is because they have a love for each others works. Williams’ states that Spielberg might be a bigger music lover than himself, and it is easy to understand that he himself enjoys Spielberg’s motion pictures. They trust each others judgement when it comes to making movies, according to Spielberg, that is one of the reasons why they work so well together.

  • Scheurer, Timothy E. “Popular Music and Society.” John Williams and Film Music since 1971 21.1 (1997): 59-72. ProQuest Research Library. Web. 23 Mar. 2013. <https://ezproxy.hws.edu/login?            url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/208071271?accountid=27680>.

     (Oddmund Nesbakk)

John Williams has emerged to become one of the most prominent film composers over the years he has worked in the film business. Scheurer’s highlights in his work on Williams how he has changed the film business with his work. John Williams has developed a reputation as one of the few composers and conductors that is able to capture the directors vision of a film after seeing only bits and pieces of their work. Williams strives for greatness in his work, which is one of the reasons why he is viewed as one of the most gifted and hard working stars of the movie industry.

This scholarly journal explores the importance of John Williams in the music industry and how he has emerged to become a dominant film music composer of the last 25 years. It explains how he has remained true to the conventions of form while being able to adapt to the new generation of music in film. This journal goes on to examine the style of music in films such as “The Poseidon Adventure” and “Schinler’s List”. The importance of this article is that it describes John William’s compositions as its own style of music, which supports the auteur theory. It is interesting to see how John William’s has evolved his music to fit today’s standards.

  • “The Composers: John Williams.” Popdose RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013.(Dominique Ellis)

       This is an article also devoted to Jon Williams and his long and successful career. This article begins by naming many names of movies that John Williams has composed for and goes on to state that when you think of these movies, the first thing that pops into your mind is the music. The music is what John Williams created. It then goes on to talk about how famous his music is that he composed for some very famous movies. They say that John Williams is the only composer that could conduct an entire concert of his own music and have every piece of his music recognized by the audience.

  • Truitt, Brian. “Hail John Williams, a Maestro of Movies: He’s up for 2 Oscars, Which Gives Him 47 Career Nominations.” USA Today [McLean VA] 20 Feb. 2012, Life sec.: n. pag. National Newspapers Premier. Web. 23 Mar. 2013. <https://ezproxy.hws.edu/login?     url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/922271097?accountid=27680>.(Oddmund Nesbakk)

      When watching a movie that John Williams has composed to music to, it is nearly impossible not to be totally captured by the movie. The intriguing music in Jaws made people scared of the water, and the mystique and breathtaking music from Harry Potter made people believe just a little bit that magic actually could exist. John Williams has been nominated 47 times for his work as a composer. He must be doing something right when being nominated for this many awards. A persons awards and nominees is not evidence for someone’s greatness, but it sure is an indicator. Williams has achieved a lot in his carrier as a composer, but the only way of truly knowing this is by listening to his music and watch the movies he has written the music for. The awards he has and the nominations he has received is merely supplements.

  • Wessel, David. “THE FORCE IS WITH HIM.” Boston Globe Newspaper [Boston, Mass.] 1983 July 1983: 1. National Newspapers Premier. Web. 22 Mar. 2013. <http://search.proquest.com.&gt; (Shantel Carrasco)

The following source looks closely more into John Williams and his accomplishments and why his considered one of the most famous composers in the music film industry. This newspaper article goes on to describe his best works like the movies Jaws and Stars Wars. It also stated that he was known as the “million dollar Composer.” His Stars Wars track alone sold over five million copies, and the majority of box offices hit have his composition in it. This source is of use because it not only important to know how John Williams composes his music but also the success his gotten from being such a famous composers. It helps generate a picture of how important John Williams currently is to the music industry. There also a small personal interview in the newspaper where Williams actually talks about his fame and the money his currently making from his musical career.

Rejected Sources

  • “Film Appreciation – A Brief History of Music in Films.” Film Appreciation – A Brief History of Music in Films. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013.(Peter Quigley)

This article was chosen to not be used in my bibliography because it has no author shown, which questions the quality of material presented. The website it is located on seems to be somewhat of a blog website meaning that information given could be from unreliable opinions and attitudes. The information is very quickly given in small paragraphs that contradict what other notable sources have stated. The website article examines the history of film in music, but does so in a childish manner. In conclusion, this article does not seem reliable to use because of its context and unreliability of the website it is located on.

     Melinda’s journal tells the story of how John Williams’ was honored at the 1999 BMI Film/TV Awards dinner for his work in the film industry. It is important to incorporate the different awards and nominations one director, actor, or composer has received, but the nominations and awards does not define that persons’ greatness or whether he or she can be considered as an auteur artist. The article is somewhat relevant to the research we are doing, but it is not relevant enough, and because I already found an article that discusses the various awards and recognitions John Williams has received, this source is not very helpful or useful.

The following source I classified as a rejected source because while I read it I didn’t get any real insight about the music industry or much about John Williams. While reading the source I didn’t gain any new knowledge that the other sources provided me with me. To me it seemed more like a bunch of commentaries thrown together by music composers and John Williams happened to be in the conversation. Although the article is far from bad, while reading it I didn’t feel like there was anything useful for the project. At times I felt the article was a little confusing getting of topic. The majority of the article spoke mostly about the events taken place Sunday night at the Skirball Cultural Center. Although the article did state it was in honor for John Williams the article didn’t provide useful information about John Williams’s career or his music. It seemed more like it bunch of commentaries strewn together by other people that attended the event.

  • Waldron, D’Lynn. “John Williams, Composer, Biography.” John Williams, Composer, Biography. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Apr. 2013(Dominique Ellis)

       This is website dedicated to tell about the biography of John Williams and his career as a composer and his music. It is set up in a timeline format and takes you through John Williams life year by year. It gives an over view of his life and career. I chose to reject this source because it didn’t seem very official and I didn’t think it could be considered very credible. I feel that the other sources I chose are way more credible and understand the life and career of John Williams more.

Project Timeline

Research Dossier:

Find 5 sources with one throw away source (one book, one scholarly journal, one trade journal)

Due date: March 24, 2013

Responsibility: Everyone

Plan out screen cast on storyboard

Due date: March 26, 2013

Responsibility: Everyone

Make wordpress website

Due date: March 30, 2013

Responsibility: Shantel

Meet in library and record screen cast

Due Date: March 31, 2013

Responsibility: Everyone

Write project timeline

Due Date: March 31, 2013

Responsibility: Everyone

Write annotated bibliography and upload to wordpress website

Due date: April 1, 2013

Responsibility: Everyone

Essay:

Look up close reading of key stills or scenes from John William’s filmography

Due date: April 4, 2013

Responsibility: Peter

Look up close reading on various critical sources from bibliography

Due date: April 8, 3013

Responsibility: Shantel

Look up readings on professional reviews of John Williams and his movies

Due date: April 13, 2013

Responsibility: Dom

Write intro and first body paragraph (1 ½ page)

Due Date: April 16, 2013

Responsibility: Oddmund

Write 2nd and 3rd body paragraph (1 ½ page)

Due Date : April 19, 2013

Responsibility: Peter

Write 4th and 5th body paragraph (1 ½ page)

Due date: April 22, 2013

Responsibility: Shantel

Write 5th body paragraph and conclusion (1 ½ page)

Due date: April 24, 2013

Responsibility: Dom

Upload to wordpress

Due date: April 24, 2013

Responsibility: Everyone

Video:

Brainstorm specific movies and music for imovie

Due date: April 17, 2013

Responsibility: Everyone

Storyboard the imovie:

Due date: April 20, 2013

Responsibility: Everyone

Meet as group to put together imovie

Due date: April 25-29, 2013

Responsibility: Everyone

Produce production credits

Due date: April 25-29, 2013

Responsibility: Everyone

Individual Assessment:

Submit individual assessment of final project

Due date: April 30, 2013

Responsibility: Everyone

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