Royal Albert Hall, October 21/22, 2017

Steven Spielberg’s classic horror tale of three men and a shark gets a UK premiere of being projected with live orchestra as part of the Royal Albert Hall’s Festival of Film. 

Der-dum, der-dum, der-dum – the simple two-note ostinato is arguably the most effective motif in cinema soundtracks, and yet there’s so much more to John Williams’ score. It’s easy to see why the soundtrack earned him an Academy Award… and BAFTA, Grammy and Golden Globe.

I’m sure that the BBC Concert Orchestra, under the baton of Dirk Brossé, will tell you that the apparent simplicity of that shark theme is part of the genius of Williams – it’s also about the furious strings, the brass pumping away at an increasing tempo and the harp glistening. We don’t have to wait long for the theme – it’s played out over the opening credits as the unseen predator attacks an unsuspecting skinnydipper. The orchestra then get time to rest, only needing to kick in when the shark is prowling again.

For a two-hour movie, there’s only 51 minutes of score, with most of the heavy lifting in the second half. The intermission naturally broke at the point Quint, Brody and Hooper take to the sea, and when the movie returns it’s a case of all hands on deck for the orchestra. As tension builds with the yellow barrels popping up to the surface to signify the return of the Great White, the theme returns, while competing with the exciting action music for the crew. The underscore for Quint’s tale of the Indianapolis is very effective.

To my untrained ear the orchestra didn’t drop a note, tucking in to Williams’ score with aplomb. Yes, the Jaws theme is a staple of most movie music concerts and the players will likely have played it many times before, but performing the entire score to the film is a different beast, and they acquitted themselves perfectly.

Verdict: Spielberg has credited 50% of the movie’s success to Williams’ score, and its hard to disagree. But to hear it performed by live orchestra (at volume) in one of the world’s prestigious venues… next time they’re gonna need a bigger concert hall. 10/10

Nick Joy