Harry Potter and the John Williams Score

There are few franchises in current literature or cinema which have commanded the kind of commercial power and consistency as has Harry Potter. The J.K. Rowling book series about a boy wizard and his epic struggle against the evil Lord Voldemort would be adapted into eight serial films, each of them a major box office blockbuster. It is fully appropriate, therefore, that when directing the initial installment in the series, 2001's Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Christopher Columbus would collaborate with the score composer famous for overseeing the musical direction of such powerhouse film franchises as Star Wars, Indiana Jones and Superman. In the context of Williams' work alone is a blueprint for scoring classic popcorn cinema.

The reasons for his effectiveness in this capacity are on ready display in the Philosopher Stone. From the whimsical and swirling strings that sweep us...
[ View Full Essay]