Bournemouth International Centre, November 29, 2018

George Lucas’ original Star Wars movie is played with full live orchestral accompaniment, bringing John Williams’ epic and timeless score to life.

How many times have you watched Star Wars Episode IV in your life? 30? 40? 50 maybe? But how many times have you actually listened to it? Not the CD soundtrack, but the music as is played in the movie? And while probably everyone in the BIC’s Windsor Hall (“You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy”) had experienced the 1977 original on countless occasions, this concert presents it in such a unique way that you really feel like you’re enjoying something new.

For a lot of people in the UK, 2018 represents the 40th Anniversary of when they first saw the movie (although released in the States on 25 May 1977, it was first only shown in some UK cities from 27 December and then countrywide from 9 Feb 1978) and what a great way to celebrate this ruby anniversary.

Classic movies with live orchestra are definitely a popular and growing medium – I’ve seen six this year, of which four are Williams (“They’re coming in too fast!”), but Star Wars was always going to be that bit more special. This is due in no small part to the sheer volume of music – 88 minutes out of 125.

Williams won the Oscar for his soundtrack, and the full orchestral score has never looked back. His use of the leitmotif to represent a person, place or idea is so much more apparent in this live performance, a style that he has carried across to the other episodes. Music duties are carried out by the Novello Orchestra under the baton of David Mahoney, and they are excellent. They’re touring seven UK arenas until December 9th, finishing at the SSE Hydro in Glasgow. The quality of the playing is exemplary, the greatest compliment being that it is so authentic that you are fully immersed in the big screen experience (and it is a big screen!). With no bum notes or flubs to report, it was a polished and exhilarating performance from this showbiz orchestra that often frequents the Wales Millennium Centre.

The concert is produced by Senbla Live Events in conjunction with Disney Concerts, which in itself promises a quality product that the Star Wars brand can align itself with. From the moment Alfred Newman’s 20th Century Fox anthem plays over the searchlight, you’re hooked, and at  the brass fanfare over ‘From a Long Time Ago…’ you are inevitably whisked away to that galaxy, far far away. Highlights are this opening crawl leading in to the Imperial Attack, Ben’s Death, TIE Fighter Attack, Binary Sunset, Leia’s Theme, The Last Battle… it goes on and on.

By the time you reach The Throne Room medal-giving ceremony you want to join in the applause, not for the brave Rebels, but for the orchestra who have knocked this out of the park. You’re not just hearing the music, you’re seeing it created in front of your eyes; crafted by the collective of players, you start to discern individual sounds and appreciate the energy used in creating the frenetic pieces or blasting out a solo note. Some of the 1997 Special Edition CGI additions have not aged well, but the music is timeless.

Verdict: A long time ago in a cinema no so far away from this very venue I was first spellbound by Star Wars… and 40 years later I’ve been re-enchanted. What a wonderful way to celebrate four decades of Star Wars; The Empire Strikes Back next please. 10/10

Nick Joy

 

10/10