Music and sci-fi magic blend in John Williams’ tribute

KARYLLE serenades the Man of Steel (left). Photo by Nastasha Verayo

Even before the crowd was ushered into the Meralco theater, a commotion had already begun to stir at the lobby. The reasons: a lightsaber here, an adventurer’s fedora there, and a lightning-shaped scar on a boy’s forehead. —The popular characters from the movies scored by John Williams had come to the show!

While it wasn’t the first time the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra staged “The Magic of John Williams,” both orchestra aficionados and sci-fi geeks were nevertheless thrilled.

Some audience members barely managed to repress delighted squeals at the beginning of “Superman’s” “Can You Read My Mind?” sung by Karylle—a number that included a surprise cameo from the Man of Steel himself! Later on, “Raiders March” (from “Raiders of the Lost Ark”) received the first standing ovation of the night, which the beaming musical director, Gerard Salonga, described as “very cool.”

Lasting as long as many screen epics nowadays, the two-and-a-half-hour nostalgic mix of art and science (fiction) included music from “Harry Potter,” “Schindler’s List,” “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” “E.T.,” “Jaws,” “Jurassic Park,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” and even “If We Were In Love.”

Opening theme

The recognizable “1984 Olympic Fanfare and Theme” and “NBC Nightly News” opening theme affirmed what Salonga earlier said, that “John Williams wasn’t just a great film composer—he was a great composer, period.”

Upon seeing that the program did not include music from “Star Wars,” a fan exclaimed, “Impossible!” True enough, after the last piece was played, Salonga faced the audience and, to much cheering, knowingly said, “Of course that couldn’t be the last!”

The orchestra then proceeded to perform “the most famous B-flat ever played,” the much-loved “Star Wars Theme”—and capped off the night with two more tunes from the sci-fi franchise!