John Williams (b. 1932) is an American composer and conductor, the most famous and most decorated author of film music in history. It was he who revived the tradition of the great symphonic film score, returning a powerful orchestral sound to the cinema.
His themes have become cultural symbols: the heroic march of “Star Wars,” the ominous two notes of “Jaws,” the magical world of “Harry Potter,” the adventures of “Indiana Jones,” the moving violin theme from “Schindler's List.” Williams masterfully uses leitmotifs, tying musical themes to a film's characters and ideas. A multiple Oscar and Grammy laureate, he proved that film music can be a full-fledged symphonic art that lives in the concert hall too, beyond the screen.
