How Did John Williams Influence Pop Culture

As one of the greatest composers of all time, John Williams is best known for his film scores in countless iconic movies, including Star Wars, Jaws, Superman, Harry Potter, and Indiana Jones. At 82 years old, John Williams is considered legendary because of his role as a composer, conductor, and pianist. He has significantly impacted pop culture by creating the soundtracks to over 100 classic American movies (Truitt). John Williams has worked closely with Steven Spielberg, creating extraordinary compositions for Spielberg’s cinemas (Eldridge). John Williams’ stated, “So much of what we do is ephemeral and quickly forgotten, even by ourselves, so it's gratifying to have something you have done linger in people's memories” (Truitt). Without

His father was a jazz drummer in “the CBS radio orchestra and the Raymond Scott Quintet” (“Biography of John Williams”). Williams grew up in a musical home, which influenced his desire in learning to play the piano at a young age. After mastering the piano he took interest in learning to play the “trumpet, trombone, and clarinet” (Eldridge). As a teenager, Williams spent his time writing music. In 1948, at the age of 16, Williams and his family moved to Los Angeles, California. Williams attended the University of California, Los Angeles and the Los Angeles City College. He studied orchestration under musician Robert Van Eps while being tutored by composer Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco (“Biography of John Williams”). At the age of 19, Williams “premiered his first composition, a piano sonata” (“Biography of John Williams”). His education was short-lived, when in 1951 he was “drafted into the U.S. Air Force” (Eldridge). When Williams returned to the states, he attended Julliard School of Music “where renowned piano pedagogue Madame Rosina Lhevinne” assisted in perfecting his performance skills (“Biography of John Williams”). While attending Julliard he earned money by playing in jazz clubs. Madame Rosina Lhevinne encouraged Williams to concentrate on composing, so he moved back to Los Angeles to pursue a career in Hollywood (“Biography of John

Williams married Barbara Ruick, a Hollywood actress/singer, in 1956. After parenting three children together, Barbara died in 1974 (“Biography of John Williams”). In 1958, while in California, Williams made his first film composition for the movie Daddy-O. Throughout the 1960s Williams wrote music for several television programs. He won two Emmy awards for his compositions. In 1967 and 1969 he was nominated for an Academy Award for his composition in Valley of the Dolls and Goodbye, Mr. Chips. Williams won his first Academy Award in 1971 for the film Fiddler on the Roof. In 1973 he was nominated for a third Academy Award. The early 1970’s proved Williams capabilities as a composer when Steven Spielberg asked Williams to compose The Sugarland Express film. Following his first composition with Spielberg, Williams scored Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, E.T., Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, Schindler’s List, and Saving Private Ryan (“John