He has created some of the most memorable film scores of all time, including Jaws, Star Wars and ET. Is it time he was regarded as a great composer?
There is a story that John Williams was working on Schindler’s List when he suggested to Steven Spielberg that he needed a better composer for his overwhelming Holocaust drama. “I know, but they’re all dead,” replied the director.
The anecdote is redolent not only of Williams’s humble view of his handiwork but also speaks to the traditional gulf in perception between the populist Williams – he has the most entries of any living composer in Classic FM’s hall of fame – and the vaunted masters of classical music. Celebrating his 90th birthday on 8 February, Williams’s film work encompasses blockbusters (nine Star Wars movies, four Indiana Jones, three Harry Potters, two Jurassic Parks and the first Superman film) and serious historical fare (JFK, Schindler’s List, Saving Private Ryan, Lincoln).
