A Certain Point of View: Writing, Film and Stuff

Photo Credits: © Kristian Schuller (Anne-Sophie Mutter). © Kristin Pulito (John Williams). Album Cover Art © 2019 Deutsche Grammophon On August 30, 2019, Deutsche Grammophon (a Germany-based subsidiary of the U.S. conglomerate Universal Music Group) released Across the Stars: Anne-Sophie Mutter - John Williams , a 12-track album which presents some of Academy Award and Grammy-winning composer/conductor John Williams' breathtaking movie themes. Rearranged for solo violin and orchestra by Maestro Williams, this collection of film themes is performed by the world-renowned German violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter and the Recording Arts Orchestra of Los Angeles, under the baton of Maestro Williams himself. As I wrote in my review of the August 2019 CD: "Across the Stars: Anne-Sophie Mutter - John Williams is a wonderful showcase for two masterful musicians. Once again, the legendary composer and conductor weaves his magic as an orchestrator by taking compositions that were ...

Cover Photo Credit: © Kristian Schuller (Mutter), Kristin Pulito (Williams) ℗ 2019 Deutsche Grammophon (a division of Universal Music Group)  On Friday, August 30, Deutsche Grammophon, a Berlin-based division of Universal Music Group, released Across the Stars: Anne-Sophie Mutter - John Williams, a collection of a dozen film themes composed by John Williams and performed by German violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter with the Recording Arts Orchestra of Los Angeles.  Although at first glance this offering from the famed classical music label Deutsche Grammophon is simply another collection of "John Williams covers," it marks the first professional collaboration between the dean of contemporary film music and Germany's violin superstar, even though they've been friends for years. (Mutter was once married to the late composer and conductor Andre Previn, a colleague and friend of Maestro Williams from the days when Previn worked in Hollywood as a composer of fi...

Today is Saturday, August 31, 2019, and this is what's on my mind today: First, I'm keeping an eye on the progress of Hurricane Dorian, the fourth named storm of the 2019 Atlantic hurricane season and the first truly major threat to the East Coast of the U.S. As of this afternoon, Dorian is a Category Four hurricane and on its way to becoming a Category Five storm. Per the National Hurricane Center in Miami: ZCZC MIATCPAT5 ALL TTAA00 KNHC DDHHMM Hurricane Dorian Intermediate Advisory Number 29A BULLETIN NWS National Hurricane Center Miami FL       AL052019 200 PM EDT Sat Aug 31 2019 ...SEVERE HURRICANE DORIAN CONTINUES HEADING FOR THE NORTHWESTERN BAHAMAS WITH LIFE-THREATENING STORM SURGE AND DEVASTATING WINDS... LOCATION...26.1N 73.9W SUMMARY OF 200 PM EDT...1800 UTC...INFORMATION ---------------------------------------------- MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS...150 MPH...240 KM/H ABOUT 205 MI...325 KM E OF GREAT ABACO IN THE BAHAMAS ABOUT 385 MI...6...

© 2019 Deutsche Grammophon On August 30, Deutsche Grammophon, the classical music label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG), will release Anne-Sophie Mutter and John Williams: Across the Stars, a collection of 12 movie themes composed by John Williams and performed by German violin virtuoso Anne Sophie Mutter with the Recording Arts Orchestra of Los Angeles. This unique collaboration between the dean of modern film score composition and one of the world's foremost violinists is the result of a long-time mutual appreciation and a friendship that began when Mutter was married to the late composer and conductor Andre Previn. Anne-Sophie had been a fan of Maestro Williams' movie music since she was a teen living in Germany's Schwarzwald region when George Lucas's Star Wars (1977) was one of the few distractions for young residents of that beautiful but rural area. Per Deutsche Grammophon's website: “There is only one John Williams,” says Anne-Sophie Mutte...

Cover photo © Los Angeles Philharmonic © 2019 Deutsche Grammophon On March 29, Berlin-based Deutsche Grammophon released Celebrating John Williams: Gustavo Dudamel/Los Angeles Philharmonic, a 2-CD set that presents 19 of the world-renowned composer-conductor's best-known (and best-loved) themes. Recorded live at the Los Angeles Philharmonic's (LAP) home in the Walt Disney Concert Hall, the album showcases music from Maestro Williams' illustrious career, including selections from the Harry Potter series, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and other films by Steven Spielberg, the 1984 Summer Olympiad in Los Angeles, and more.  No other world-class orchestra champions the classic film music tradition like the Los Angeles Philharmonic does - and the close working relationship its Music and Artistic Director Gustavo Dudamel has established with legendary film-music composer John Williams makes this the ultimate showcase album of the composer's greatest works. - B...