Editing John Williams (section)

=== 1974–present: Collaborations with Steven Spielberg ===
Williams's scores for ''The Reivers'' and ''The Cowboys'' impressed a young [[Steven Spielberg]], who was getting ready to direct his feature debut, ''[[The Sugarland Express]]'' (1974) and requested the composer for ''The Reivers''. Williams recalled, "I met what looked to be this seventeen-year-old kid, this very sweet boy, who knew more about film music than I did—every [[Max Steiner]] and [[Dimitri Tiomkin]] score. We had a meeting in a fancy Beverly Hills restaurant, arranged by executives. It was very cute—you had the feeling Steven had never been in a restaurant like that before. It was like having lunch with a teen-age kid, but a brilliant one."{{Sfn|Ross|2020}} They reunited a year later for [[Jaws (film)|''Jaws'']]. Spielberg used Williams's theme for ''Images'' as a [[temp track]] while editing ''Jaws''. When Williams played his main theme for ''Jaws'', based on the alteration of two notes, Spielberg initially thought it was a joke. Williams explained that "the sophisticated approach you would like me to take isn't the approach you took with the film I just experienced." After hearing variations on the theme, Spielberg agreed: "sometimes the best ideas are the most simple ones."<ref>{{cite book| last=Audissino| first=Emilio| title=The Film Music of John Williams| year=2021}}</ref> The score earned Williams his second Academy Award, his first for [[Academy Award for Best Original Score|Best Original Score]].<ref name="oscars">{{cite web|url=http://www.johnwilliams.org/reference/awards.html|title=Academy Awards and Nominations|publisher=John Williams Web Pages|access-date=December 31, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090331123940/http://www.johnwilliams.org/reference/awards.html|archive-date=March 31, 2009}}</ref> Its ominous two-note [[ostinato]] has become a shorthand for approaching danger.<ref>{{cite news| last=MacKay| first=Robbie| title=45 years on, the 'Jaws' theme manipulates our emotions to inspire terror| date=April 27, 2020| work=The Conversation| url=https://theconversation.com/45-years-on-the-jaws-theme-manipulates-our-emotions-to-inspire-terror-136462| access-date=November 28, 2023| archive-date=June 24, 2021| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624203142/https://theconversation.com/45-years-on-the-jaws-theme-manipulates-our-emotions-to-inspire-terror-136462| url-status=live}}</ref> (Williams's score is more complex than the two-note theme; it contains echoes of [[Claude Debussy|Debussy]]'s {{lang|fr|[[La mer (Debussy)|La mer]]}} and [[Igor Stravinsky|Stravinsky]]'s ''[[The Rite of Spring]]''.<ref>{{cite magazine| last=Tylski| first= Alexandre| title=A Study of Jaws' Incisive Overture| magazine=Film Score Monthly| date=September 14, 1999| url=http://www.filmscoremonthly.com/articles/1999/14_Sep---A_Study_of_Jaws_Incisive_Overture.asp| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20061023150218/http://www.filmscoremonthly.com/articles/1999/14_Sep---A_Study_of_Jaws_Incisive_Overture.asp| archive-date= October 23, 2006}}</ref>)

Shortly thereafter, Spielberg and Williams began a two-year collaboration on ''[[Close Encounters of the Third Kind]]''. They crafted the distinctive five-note motif that functions both in the score and in the story as the [[recognition signal|communications signal]] of the film's [[extraterrestrial life|extraterrestrials]]. Darryn King writes that "One moment in that film captures some of Spielberg and Williams's alchemy: the musical dialogue between the humans and the otherworldly visitors, itself an artistic collaboration of sorts." Pauline Kael wrote of the scene: "the earthlings are ready with a console, and they greet the great craft with an oboe solo variation on the five-note theme; the craft answers in deep, tuba tones. The dialogue becomes blissfully garrulous&nbsp;... there is a conversational duet: the music of the spheres."<ref>{{cite magazine| last=Kael| first=Pauline| date=November 20, 1977| title=The Greening of the Solar System| url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1977/11/28/the-greening-of-the-solar-system| magazine=[[The New Yorker]]| access-date=November 17, 2023| archive-date=November 17, 2023| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231117231711/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1977/11/28/the-greening-of-the-solar-system| url-status=live}}</ref> Williams says the first three notes of the theme are resolved, making the next two surprising, adding "I realized that 20 years after the fact."<ref name="King2023" />

Spielberg chose Williams to score [[1941 (film)|''1941'']] (1979) and ''[[Raiders of the Lost Ark]]'' (1981). For the latter, Williams wrote the rousing "The Raiders March" for the film's hero, [[Indiana Jones (character)|Indiana Jones]], as well as separate themes to represent the eponymous [[Ark of the Covenant]], Jones's love interest [[Marion Ravenwood]] and the Nazi villains. Additional themes were written and featured in his scores for ''[[Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom]]'' (1984), ''[[Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade]]'' (1989), ''[[Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull]]'' (2008) and ''[[Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny]]'' (2023). Spielberg emphasized the importance of Williams's score to the Indiana Jones pictures: "Jones did not perish, but listened carefully to the ''Raiders'' score. Its sharp rhythms told him when to run. Its slicing strings told him when to duck. Its several integrated themes told adventurer Jones when to kiss the heroine or smash the enemy. All things considered, Jones listened&nbsp;... and lived."{{Sfn|Tylski|1999}} Williams's soaring score for Spielberg's ''[[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial]]'' (1982) won him a fourth Oscar.<ref name="oscars" /> Spielberg liked Williams's music for the climactic chase so much that he edited the film to match it.<ref>{{cite video | people=John Williams| title=A Conversation with John Williams | medium=DVD | publisher=Universal |year=2002}}</ref>

[[File:John Williams scoring Raiders.jpg|thumb|left|John Williams conducting the score to ''Raiders of the Lost Ark'' in the Avery Fisher Hall in 2007]]

The Spielberg-Williams collaboration resumed in 1987 with [[Empire of the Sun (film)|''Empire of the Sun'']] and continued with [[Always (1989 film)|''Always'']] (1989), [[Hook (film)|''Hook'']] (1991), [[Jurassic Park (film)|''Jurassic Park'']] (1993) and its sequel ''[[The Lost World: Jurassic Park]]'' (1997), [[Amistad (film)|''Amistad'']] (1997) and ''[[Saving Private Ryan]]'' (1998). Williams also contributed the theme music for, and scored several episodes of, Spielberg's anthology television series [[Amazing Stories (1985 TV series)|''Amazing Stories'']] (1985). ''[[Schindler's List]]'' (1993) proved to be a challenge for Williams; after viewing the rough cut with Spielberg, he was so overcome with emotion that he was hesitant to score the film. He told Spielberg, "I really think you need a better composer than I am for this film." Spielberg replied, "I know, but they're all dead."<ref>{{cite web |last1=Daniloff |first1=Caleb |title=Williams surprises Spielberg |url=https://www.bu.edu/articles/2009/williams-surprises-spielberg/ |website=BU Today |date=May 18, 2009 |publisher=Boston University |access-date=July 15, 2021 |archive-date=July 15, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210715175325/https://www.bu.edu/articles/2009/williams-surprises-spielberg/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Williams asked classical violinist [[Itzhak Perlman]] to play the main theme for the film. Williams garnered his fourth Oscar for Best Original Score, his fifth overall.

Williams scored Spielberg's ''[[A.I. Artificial Intelligence]]'', based on an unfinished project [[Stanley Kubrick]] asked Spielberg to direct. [[A. O. Scott]] argued that the movie represented new directions for director and composer, writing that Spielberg created "a mood as layered, dissonant and strange as John Williams's unusually restrained, modernist score".<ref>{{cite news |last=Scott |first=A. O. |title=Do Androids Long For Mom? |work=The New York Times |date=June 29, 2001 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/29/movies/film-review-do-androids-long-for-mom.html |access-date=November 27, 2023 |archive-date=October 23, 2021| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211023130713/https://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/29/movies/film-review-do-androids-long-for-mom.html |url-status=live}}</ref> Williams wrote scores inspired by jazz for Spielberg's ''[[Catch Me If You Can]]'' (2002), which allowed him to tip his hat to [[Henry Mancini]], as well as ''[[The Terminal]]'' (2004).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://preview.reelviews.net/movies/c/catch_me.html |last=Berardinelli |first=James |publisher=ReelViews.net |title=Catch Me If You Can |access-date=July 3, 2008 |archive-date=December 3, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191203183542/http://preview.reelviews.net/movies/c/catch_me.html |url-status=live}}</ref> His 2005 score for Spielberg's [[War of the Worlds (2005 film)|''War of the Worlds'']] allowed him to tip his hat to the scores for classic monster movies. That same year, he scored Spielberg's [[Epic film|epic]] [[historical drama]] film [[Munich (2005 film)|''Munich'']].

In 2011, after a three-year hiatus from film scoring, Williams composed the scores for Spielberg's [[The Adventures of Tintin (film)|''The Adventures of Tintin'']] and [[War Horse (film)|''War Horse'']]. The former was his first score for an animated film, and he employed various styles, including "1920s, 1930s European jazz" for the opening credits and "pirate music" for the maritime battles. Both scores received overwhelmingly positive reviews<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/tintin.html|title=The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn (John Williams)|website=Filmtracks|access-date=April 30, 2012|archive-date=February 28, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130228041742/http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/tintin.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/war_horse.html|title=War Horse (John Williams)|website=Filmtracks|date=November 21, 2011|access-date=April 30, 2012|archive-date=March 2, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130302182722/http://filmtracks.com/titles/war_horse.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.moviecues.com/tintin|title=The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn (John Williams)|website=Moviecues|date=November 1, 2011|access-date=April 30, 2012|archive-date=April 26, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120426052032/http://www.moviecues.com/tintin/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.moviecues.com/war-horse|title=War Horse (John Williams)|website=Moviecues|date=December 4, 2011|access-date=April 30, 2012|archive-date=April 26, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120426052148/http://www.moviecues.com/war-horse/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://moviemusicuk.us/2011/10/23/the-adventures-of-tintin-the-secret-of-the-unicorn-john-williams|title=The Adventures Of Tintin: The Secret Of The Unicorn&nbsp;– John Williams|website=Moviemusicuk.us|date=October 23, 2011|access-date=April 30, 2012|archive-date=June 6, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120606230459/http://moviemusicuk.us/2011/10/23/the-adventures-of-tintin-the-secret-of-the-unicorn-john-williams/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.movie-wave.net/?p=1883|title=The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn soundtrack review|date=December 4, 2011|website=Movie-wave.net|access-date=April 30, 2012|archive-date=April 6, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130406132559/http://www.movie-wave.net/?p=1883|url-status=live}}</ref> and earned Academy Award nominations,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/84/nominees.html|title=Winners for the 84th Academy Awards|website=Oscars.org|access-date=April 30, 2012|archive-date=August 25, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130825202636/http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/84/nominees.html|url-status=live}}</ref> the latter also being nominated for a Golden Globe.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.goldenglobes.org/blog/2011/12/the-69th-annual-golden-globe-awards-nominations|title=The 69th Annual Golden Globe Awards Nominations |website=Official Website of the HFPA and the Golden Globe Awards|date=December 15, 2011|access-date=April 30, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120507232315/http://www.goldenglobes.org/blog/2011/12/the-69th-annual-golden-globe-awards-nominations/|archive-date=May 7, 2012}}</ref> The Oscar nominations were Williams's 46th and 47th, making him the most nominated musician in Academy Award history (having previously been tied with [[Alfred Newman (composer)|Alfred Newman]]'s 45 nominations) and the second most nominated overall, behind [[Walt Disney]]. Williams won an [[Annie Awards|Annie Award]] for his score for ''Tintin''. In 2012, he scored Spielberg's [[Lincoln (film)|''Lincoln'']], for which he received his 48th Academy Award nomination.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.johnwilliams.org/reference/awards|title=John Williams {{!}} Awards|website=Johnwilliams.org|access-date=December 12, 2019|archive-date=January 17, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200117075634/http://www.johnwilliams.org/reference/awards|url-status=live}}</ref> He was also set to write the score for [[Bridge of Spies (film)|''Bridge of Spies'']] that year, which would have been his 27th collaboration with Spielberg,<ref>{{cite news|last1=Fischer|first1=Russ|title=New Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks Film Titled 'Bridge of Spies,' John Williams Confirmed to Score|url=https://www.slashfilm.com/536572/bridge-of-spies/|access-date=May 13, 2022|website=/Film|date=March 3, 2015|archive-date=May 13, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220513050535/https://www.slashfilm.com/536572/bridge-of-spies/|url-status=live}}</ref> but in March 2015, it was announced that [[Thomas Newman]] would score it instead, as Williams's schedule was interrupted by a minor health issue.<ref>{{cite news|title=Thomas Newman Replaces Williams on 'Bridge of Spies'|url=http://www.jwfan.com/?p=7446|access-date=March 18, 2015|website=John Williams Fan Network|date=March 18, 2015|archive-date=March 20, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150320152957/http://www.jwfan.com/?p=7446|url-status=live}}</ref> This was the first Spielberg film since [[The Color Purple (1985 film)|''The Color Purple'']] (1985) not scored by Williams.<ref name="The Verge">{{cite web|title=John Williams won't score a Steven Spielberg film for the first time in 30 years|url=https://www.theverge.com/2015/3/18/8243915/john-williams-not-scoring-spielberg-film|access-date=June 8, 2015|website=The Verge|date=March 18, 2015|archive-date=June 7, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150607111901/http://www.theverge.com/2015/3/18/8243915/john-williams-not-scoring-spielberg-film|url-status=live}}</ref> Williams composed the scores for Spielberg's fantasy [[The BFG (2016 film)|''The BFG'']] and his drama [[The Post (film)|''The Post'']] (2017).<ref name="Silvestri">{{cite news|last1=Burlingame|first1=Jon|title=John Williams and Alan Silvestri to Score Steven Spielberg's Next Films (EXCLUSIVE)|url=https://variety.com/2017/film/news/john-williams-alan-silvestri-steven-spielberg-ready-player-one-the-papers-1202490105/|access-date=July 8, 2017|work=Variety|date=July 7, 2017|archive-date=July 9, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170709055735/https://variety.com/2017/film/news/john-williams-alan-silvestri-steven-spielberg-ready-player-one-the-papers-1202490105/|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2019, Williams served as music consultant for Spielberg's [[West Side Story (2021 film)|''West Side Story'']] (2021)<ref>{{cite news|last=Burlingame|first=Jon|date=December 10, 2021|title=How 'West Side Story's' First-Class Music Team Preserved the Authenticity of Leonard Bernstein's Score|work=Variety|url=https://variety.com/2021/artisans/news/west-side-story-john-wiliams-leonard-bernstein-1235131071/|access-date=December 14, 2021|archive-date=December 14, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211214191116/https://variety.com/2021/artisans/news/west-side-story-john-wiliams-leonard-bernstein-1235131071/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Bouzereau|first1=Laurent|url=https://www.abramsbooks.com/product/west-side-story_9781419750632|title=''West Side Story'' the Making of the Steven Spielberg Film|year=2021|publisher=Abrams, Incorporated|isbn=978-1-4197-5063-2|access-date=November 5, 2021|archive-date=October 9, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211009165148/https://www.abramsbooks.com/product/west-side-story_9781419750632/|url-status=live}}</ref> and scored his semi-autobiographical ''[[The Fabelmans]]'' (2022).<ref>{{Cite web|last=Burlingame|first=Jon|date=February 7, 2022|title=As John Williams Turns 90, No Signs of Slowing Down, With ''Fabelmans'', ''Indiana Jones'' and Birthday Gala in the Offing|url=https://variety.com/2022/artisans/news/john-williams-turns-90-celebrating-1235172996/|website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|access-date=February 7, 2022|archive-date=September 28, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928124850/https://variety.com/2022/artisans/news/john-williams-turns-90-celebrating-1235172996/|url-status=live}}</ref> In June 2022, Williams announced that ''[[Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny]]'', scheduled for a 2023 release, would likely be his last film score as he planned to retire from film and focus on solely composing concert music.<ref>[http://sverigesradio.se/artikel/kompositoren-john-williams-gar-i-pension "Kompositören John Williams går i pension"]. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220624141042/https://sverigesradio.se/artikel/kompositoren-john-williams-gar-i-pension |date=June 24, 2022}} ''Sveriges Radio'', June 24, 2022. {{in lang|sv}}</ref><ref name="nyt90">{{Cite news |last=Hernández |first=Javier C. |date=February 8, 2022 |title=John Williams, Hollywood's Maestro, Looks Beyond the Movies |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/08/arts/music/john-williams-hollywood-film.html |access-date=June 22, 2022 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220622153203/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/08/arts/music/john-williams-hollywood-film.html |url-status=live}} This article explicitly confirms that Williams was born on February 8, 1932; "Williams, who turned 90 on Tuesday".</ref> However, he reversed this decision by January 2023, stating that he had at least "10 more years to go. I'll stick around for a while!". He compared the decision to Spielberg's father [[Arnold Spielberg|Arnold]], who had worked in his field until he was 100.<ref name="comicbook.com">{{cite web |url=https://comicbook.com/movies/news/john-williams-walks-back-retirement-claims/?mibextid=Zxz2cZ |title=John Williams Walks Back Retirement Claims |date=January 13, 2023 |access-date=August 17, 2023 |archive-date=January 14, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114194920/https://comicbook.com/movies/news/john-williams-walks-back-retirement-claims/?mibextid=Zxz2cZ |url-status=live}}</ref>