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Soundtrack
Editorial Review:
You needn't see the film of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone to appreciate the wonder, magic and fearful chills of JK Rowling's phenomenal bestseller in John Williams' outstanding score. Williams typically avoids the source material for the films he scores, but he reportedly derived great pleasure and inspiration from Rowling's first Harry Potter adventure, and created a perfect motif (fully expressed in "Hedwig's Theme") to dominate his score, first heard as a dreamy celeste waltz and embellished through myriad incarnations and moods, often with a sinister edge befitting the darker tones of Chris Columbus' direction. Fantastical allusions to Saint-Saëns and Tchaikovsky are evident (among others), while Williams' epic track is "Quidditch Match", a breathtaking frenzy to accompany the film's dazzling highlight. And while Williams occasionally flirts with self-plagiarism (with inevitable variants of his Hook and Star Wars themes), this is nevertheless a richly regal score that brilliantly evokes the mystery and magic of Harry Potter's world. --Jeff Shannon
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
Not bad, but why isn't it complete? If you like the music of John Williams, then you'll be quite happy with this disc. If, however, you buy it because you liked the music in the film, then prepare to be ever so slightly disappointed.
Don't get me wrong, what is on the disc is good, and well up to Williams's usual high standard, but it misses out what is, in my opinion, some of the best music in the film. For example, there's a track for Diagon Alley, but it's not the same music as I heard in the... more info
Enter into the magical world of Harry Potter... John Williams is again at his best with his Harry Potter compositions.
Stick the CD in the hi-fi and you're off - transported into Harry's magical world. These tracks are also wonderful to have as background music when you're reading the books.
Wonderful Williams magic!
Truly Magical This is a superb effort from John Williams and ranks among his best. It has it all; memorable themes, a brilliant suite in 'Hedwig's Theme', excellent action music in 'Quidditch Match' and 'Mr Longbottom Flies' and several other set pieces. The only problem with this release is the amount of music not included and some of the tracks missing some material that was present in the film. Other than that, it's a great buy along with the second album. When are we going to get an expanded release of this type... more info
Simply Magical All though I am coming up to 21 years of age I have read all Harry Potter books, seen both films and I have just previously ordered the Harry Potter and chamber of secrets film cell. It just goes to prove that Harry potter isn't Just for children.
Now on to the cd. I absolutly love it. You can't help picturing each scene with the soundtrack, my favourites on this album are: Harry's Wonderous World, Leaving Hogwarts ( my up most favourite, John Williams has magically captured the music with each scene. I... more info
Tracks:
Prologue
Harry's Wondrous World
The Arrival of Baby Harry
Visit to the Zoo / Letters from Hogwarts
Diagon Alley / The Gringotts Vault
Platform Nine-and-Three-Quarters / The Journey to Hogwarts
