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Author	Topic: who is your favourite composer,Jerry or john?

zimmerito Standard Userer	I know i'm playing with the devil with this post. both are the 2 memorable composers. Jerry said in a interview " there are enough space for john and me" well....I think John williams is a one of the great composers of the history. But....Jerry goldsmith is my favourite.For me jerry is the best composer of all time. your thoghts :P NP:Win and the lion
posted 10-12-2005 10:43 AM PT (US)

Marian Schedenig Standard Userer	Anton. With John and Jerry tied for second place. NP: Walking With Dinosaurs (Benjamin Bartlett)
posted 10-12-2005 12:31 PM PT (US)

Jasom Standard Userer	John Williams without a doubt. Jerry has some really good scores, but John has had more memorable and inspiring scores than any other composer. I am a big theme based score collector and John has a lot of memorable themes. Jasom np: The Corpse Bride
posted 10-12-2005 01:27 PM PT (US)

Dinko Standard Userer	quote: Originally posted by Marian Schedenig: Anton. With John and Jerry tied for second place. LOL!
posted 10-12-2005 01:41 PM PT (US)

Lou Goldberg Standard Userer	Well, I know that most people consider JW to be the better of the two and JW is a talented guy and a very nice personality but when it comes to making an orchestra do interesting things that I love, I think JG edges out JW, at least for me.
posted 10-12-2005 03:58 PM PT (US)

nuts_score Standard Userer	quote: Originally posted by Lou Goldberg: Well, I know that most people consider JW to be the better of the two and JW is a talented guy and a very nice personality but when it comes to making an orchestra do interesting things that I love, I think JG edges out JW, at least for me. Couldn't agree more with you, Lou. Excellent analysis!
posted 10-12-2005 05:40 PM PT (US)

Al Standard Userer	Zzzzzzz...
posted 10-12-2005 05:43 PM PT (US)

moontrekker Non-Standard Userer	I dont choose. I love them both. sd
posted 10-12-2005 06:02 PM PT (US)

gkgyver Standard Userer	John Williams, clearly. I've listened to some of Goldsmith's scores (that are commonly considered as some of his best) like Star Trek: First Contact, Supergirl or Alien, but his style doesn't appeal to me. He might do clever things with the orchestra, but Williams is more listenable.
posted 10-12-2005 06:09 PM PT (US)

Al Standard Userer	More listenable! Why, I hear Kenny G is pleasant on the ears as well!
posted 10-12-2005 06:21 PM PT (US)

workaluk Standard Userer	For me it's Goldsmith,since his death,i dedicated myself in hearing almost all his scores,and i must say,James Horner is still my favourite composer,but Goldsmith is up there too... As for John Williams,i trully like his scores,but no match for Goldsmith... Just my opinion.... Nuno Cunha
posted 10-13-2005 02:09 AM PT (US)

plindboe Standard Userer	Goldy is my 3th favorite film composer, and Willy my 6th or 7th favorite, so if I can only choose between those two, then Goldy is my choice. Peter
posted 10-13-2005 03:53 AM PT (US)

fiat0299 Non-Standard Userer	I admire both composers greatly and grew up listening to their music. However, Goldsmith is still the greatest of all film composers in my mind. Williams 2nd, a close 2nd perhaps, but still 2nd. During his career, Goldsmith was considerably more prolific and inventive and consequently progressed film music in terms of ideas and influence to other composers (Goldsmith is more regularly cited as an influence to other composers than Williams, easily). Despite Williams' brilliance, I don't think he has ever rivaled the sheer thrill and excitment generated by some of Goldsmith's music - the Main title from Capricorn One for instance, or the 'Hijacking' cue from Air Force One. Williams music has always been much more conventional; Goldmsith's more varied, inventive and original. Imagine if Williams had written Gremlins, perhaps a good case in point...
posted 10-13-2005 05:31 AM PT (US)

zimmerito Standard Userer	GKGYver I know what you are saying.Alien or planet of the apes are hard to enjoy for me. try to listen "first knight,Lionheart,13 warrior,Rudy,Mulan,Ghost and the darkness,Rambo,Total recall,the mummy" For me,jerry goldsmith is more listenable than Williams and more "modern".
posted 10-13-2005 07:50 AM PT (US)

Scorro Standard Userer	easy for me, it's Jerry Amazing what he did considering so many of the movies he scored were B-grade forgetables. Generally, his music was far far better than the movies themselves. Too bad he didn't get some better projects at times.
posted 10-13-2005 04:58 PM PT (US)

nuts_score Standard Userer	quote: Originally posted by Scorro: easy for me, it's Jerry Amazing what he did considering so many of the movies he scored were B-grade forgetables. Generally, his music was far far better than the movies themselves. Too bad he didn't get some better projects at times. It's like Brian Tyler is living this life now. Incredible scores, but the movies . . . yuck.
posted 10-13-2005 06:02 PM PT (US)

Lou Goldberg Standard Userer	I find these responses really interesting since I'm used to more Williams love. The AFI list just put STAR WARS at the very top of film scores, the absolutely #1 score ever. If you ask people on the street about film music all they know is John Williams and maybe Horner for TITANIC. But getting away from the average guy to the more informed, I'm still somewhat surprised there have been more votes for Jerry here but pleased. It's not that I dislike Williams. I love a lot of his music but I just don't play him or rank him as highly as others like Goldsmith. I agree that the question of ranking is personal and maybe a little silly but someone asked the question and so I answered it. Now when it comes to the listenable, I guess we're talking melody and themes, and when it comes to interesting, I guess we're talking about orchestral effects like color, tone, inventive orchestration, rhythms, and motifs. Williams and Goldsmith can do both, they both have range to write themes, write songs, and be atonal modernists depending on what is required. Alfred Newman was incredibly impressed by Goldsmith's versatility saying that in earlier days he could have run a major studio music department. But range and versatility alone isn't enough. Guys like Herrmann or Rozsa had less range and versatility than most composers but they were the absolute best anyway. What matters is the quality and originality of the music and I just prefer Goldsmith's overall works, ability, and sound to Williams. In Hollywood, Goldsmith was considered 2nd to Williams, someone you hired when you couldn't get JW, but I like his music more.
posted 10-15-2005 12:36 AM PT (US)

lars b Standard Userer	[QUOTE]Originally posted by Marian Schedenig: [B]Anton. With John and Jerry tied for second place. Now Marian, is that 'Anton aus Tirol' or Bruckner ?
posted 10-15-2005 08:46 AM PT (US)

Marian Schedenig Standard Userer	The one from Upper Austria, not the one from Tirol.
posted 10-15-2005 05:35 PM PT (US)

scored for life Standard Userer	Yes, Jerry is the most prolific. That is why he is also not as good. He pumps out the scores in such volume that none gets the chance to stand out (with few exceptions). I like Jerry but the problem is this: we are judging on the basis of our listening experiences, not on how the music fits the movie. A John Williams score is more likely to be appreciated on its own without the visual element than a Jerry Goldsmith score. It boils down to different styles of composing: thematic or accompaniment. I prefer thematic since I am not always interested in conjuring up images from a movie but using my own imagination. It's just my opinion.
posted 10-18-2005 11:02 AM PT (US)

Timmer Standard Userer	Ralph followed by John followed by Ennio, John , Jerry & Bernard
posted 10-18-2005 12:08 PM PT (US)

Lou Goldberg Standard Userer	I like that moniker Scored for Life, a very witty pun that I'm sure most of us here can relate to. I'm not sure that being prolific also means you're a hack. And when I say I prefer Jerry to John, I'm not suggesting that Rent-A-Cop is superior to Close Encounters. For us listeners there are two ways of approaching film music: Does it work in the film and Does it work as music to listen to away from the film. Steiner scores work better in their films than they do as stand-alones. I can think of many scores which sound great on their own but which are too much or not quite right for the films they were written for. But when it comes to who is best, I look at it as whose music do I enjoy listening to away from the films more. In any case, depending on the score, I find I get more out of listening to Jerry on his own apart from the films than I do John. I wish I could explain why precisely but I find it hard to articulate opinions about music.
posted 10-18-2005 01:28 PM PT (US)

Al Standard Userer	Thematic and accompaniment are two different styles of composing? I'm pretty sure both Jerry and John film scores have thematic approaches while accompanying the films. What it all really boils down to, like you said, is flat-out personal preference. Argue it as intellectually as you want with as many generalizations as you please, but in the end, it has the same weight as saying: I like John Williams. Me likes the Star Wars. (or vice versa and so on and so forth) Of course, that's just the way I see it, which you might as well take with the sincerity of a drunk running around naked in a bar throwing darts at people.
posted 10-18-2005 01:28 PM PT (US)

gkgyver Standard Userer	I don't think "listenable" and "interesting" can be defined like this. Scores that heavily rely on thematic material and the complexity of thematic material can be very interesting without turning the classical rules of orchestration upside down. Lord of the Rings is the prime example here. Shore's orchestrations are not exactly what could make a Williams lover jump over joy, and yet these scores are fascinating as well as listenable. And I don't think a score has to offer slap in the face- themes to be enjoyable/ listenable. Just look at Matrix Revolutions. Of course, these are my views.
posted 10-20-2005 11:32 AM PT (US)

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