The music of the Star Wars franchise is composed and produced in conjunction with the development of the feature films, television series, and other merchandise within the epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas. The music for the primary feature films was written by John Williams. Williams' work on the series included the scores of nine feature films, a suite and several cues of thematic material for Solo and the theme music for the Galaxy's Edge Theme Park. These count among the most widely known and popular contributions to modern film music, and utilize a symphony orchestra and features an assortment of about fifty recurring musical themes to represent characters and other plot elements: one of the largest caches of themes in the history of film music.
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the film score to the 2005 film of the same name released by Sony Classical on May 3, 2005, more than two weeks before the film's release. The music was composed and conducted by John Williams, and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra and London Voices in February 2005, with orchestrations provided by Conrad Pope and Eddie Karam. The score was Williams' sixth score in the saga. Shawn Murphy recorded the score. Ramiro Belgardt and Kenneth Wannberg served as music editors; Wannberg served as music editor for the previous Star Wars scores. A remastered version of the soundtrack was released by Walt Disney Records on May 4, 2018.
Star Wars (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album to the 1977 film Star Wars, composed and conducted by John Williams and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra. Williams' score for Star Wars was recorded over eight sessions at Anvil Studios in Denham, England on March 5, 8–12, 15 and 16, 1977. The score was orchestrated by Williams, Herbert W. Spencer, Alexander Courage, Angela Morley, Arthur Morton and Albert Woodbury. Spencer orchestrated the scores for The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. The score was recorded by engineer Eric Tomlinson and edited by Kenneth Wannberg, and the scoring sessions were produced by Star Wars director George Lucas and supervised by Lionel Newman, head of 20th Century Fox's music department.
The score from The Empire Strikes Back composed by John Williams. Between Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back, Williams had also worked with the London Symphony Orchestra for the scores to the films The Fury, Superman and Dracula. The score earned another Academy Award nomination for Williams. Again, the score was orchestrated by Herbert W. Spencer and Angela Morley, recorded by engineer Eric Tomlinson and edited by Kenneth Wannberg with supervision by Lionel Newman. John Williams himself took over duties as record producer from Star Wars creator George Lucas.
Star Wars: Return of the Jedi is the film score to the 1983 film Return of the Jedi, composed and conducted by John Williams and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra. The score was recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London between January and February 1983. Again, John Williams served as producer. Herbert W. Spencer, Thomas Newman and Gordon Langford served as orchestrators. Engineer Eric Tomlinson, music editor Kenneth Wannberg, and record supervisor Lionel Newman again reprised their respective duties. The score earned another Academy Award nomination for Williams. Return of the Jedi, which is the original trilogy's shortest score, was only released on a single-LP instead of a double-set like the Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back soundtracks before it.
Raiders of the Lost Ark: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the film score to the 1981 Steven Spielberg film, Raiders of the Lost Ark. The music was composed and conducted by John Williams and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra. Orchestrations were done by Herbert W. Spencer with additional orchestrations done by Al Woodbury. The score was released by Columbia Records in June 1981. The soundtrack received an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Score but lost out to Vangelis' score for Chariots of Fire.
The Jaws soundtrack is the music composed and conducted by John Williams for Steven Spielberg's 1975 film Jaws. The soundtrack is particularly notable for the 2-note ostinato which represents the shark, a theme so simple that Spielberg initially thought it was a joke by the composer.
Jurassic Park: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the film score to the 1993 Steven Spielberg film of the same name, composed and conducted by John Williams. Alexander Courage and John Neufeld served as orchestrators.
Aladdin: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack for the 1992 Disney animated feature film, Aladdin. The album was released by Walt Disney Records on CD and cassette tape on October 27, 1992. The soundtrack was intertwined with demos, work tapes and unreleased masters, as well as original scores in 1994 in a four-disc box set entitled The Music Behind the Magic: The Musical Artistry of Alan Menken, Howard Ashman & Tim Rice. A remastered reissue with altered lyrics and new artwork was released on March 27, 2001. A special edition reissue featuring two previously released demos and new artwork was released on September 28, 2004. The Legacy Collection: Aladdin was released on September 9, 2022, to coincide with the 30th anniversary of Aladdin.
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade is the soundtrack to Steven Spielberg's 1989 film of the same name. It was released by Warner Records in 1989. The music was composed and conducted by John Williams and performed by the Hollywood Studio Symphony Orchestra.
Empire of the Sun is the soundtrack, on Warner Bros. Records, of the 1987 film Empire of the Sun, directed by Steven Spielberg. The original score was composed by John Williams and recorded in September–October 1987.
A.I. Artificial Intelligence - Music from the Motion Picture is the film score of the 2001 film of the same name, composed and conducted by John Williams. The original score was composed by Williams and featured singers Lara Fabian on two songs and Josh Groban on one. Soprano Barbara Bonney provided the vocal solos in several tracks.
Saving Private Ryan: Music from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack album for the 1998 film Saving Private Ryan, directed by Steven Spielberg. The album was produced by composer John Williams and distributed by DreamWorks Records. Recorded in Symphony Hall, Boston, Massachusetts, the scores were performed by the Boston Symphony Orchestra, with two of the ten compositions featuring vocals from the Tanglewood Festival Chorus. The soundtrack runs for just over an hour, while the film itself lasts over two hours.
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack album to the movie of the same name, starring Mel Gibson and Tina Turner. The album was originally released in 1985 on the Capitol Records label and reissued numerous times on different labels.
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is an audiobook and soundtrack companion album for the 1982 film directed by Steven Spielberg. Composed by John Williams, the album was narrated by recording artist Michael Jackson, produced by composer Quincy Jones and distributed by MCA Records. The audiobook was produced by John Williams and Michael Jackson working with Rod Temperton, Freddy DeMann, and Bruce Swedien.
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the film score to the 1984 Steven Spielberg film, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. The music was composed and conducted by John Williams, and first released on CD, LP, and cassette in 1984 and reissued on CD in 2008.
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the film score to the 1977 film of the same name, composed and conducted by John Williams. The soundtrack album was released on vinyl album (with a gatefold sleeve), 8-track tape and audio cassette by Arista Records in 1977, with a total running time of 41 minutes (it was later released on compact disc in 1990). The soundtrack album was a commercial success, peaking at #17 on the US Billboard album chart in February 1978 and was certified Gold by the RIAA for 500,000 copies shipped. It also peaked at #40 in the UK album charts.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the film score to the 2017 film of the same name composed and conducted by John Williams. The album was released by Walt Disney Records on December 15, 2017, in digipak CD, Jewel case CD, digital formats, and streaming services.
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown: Original Soundtrack Recording is a soundtrack album by American jazz pianist Vince Guaraldi released on October 12, 2018 in the U.S. by Craft Recordings/Concord. A reissue containing original recordings and alternate takes sourced from the master reels was released on August 26, 2022.
The music of the Back to the Future series is composed in conjunction with the development of several feature films and a stage musical, within the Back to the Future franchise created by Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale. All music in the franchise was composed by American composer Alan Silvestri, with The Musical being co-written with Glen Ballard.
