ANH 10: Cantina Band Shot First (Minutes 46-50)

Star Wars Music Minute

Kris AKA Star Wars Lawyer joins me in a discussion about the music and sound in the infamous cantina scene of Star Wars: A New Hope! This takes place during minutes 46-50 of the film.

This episode is also on YouTube: https://youtu.be/vMV5GadqP5o

Discussion Guide:

• 00:00 - Hello there!
• 04:55 - How the upbeat music in the cantina goes against some expectations.
• 05:39 - The upbeat swing music was George Lucas's idea.
• 09:38 - Benny Goodman's influence ("king of swing")
• 13:21 - Comparison of "Cantina Band" (A New Hope) and "Canto Bight" (The Last Jedi)
• 19:06 - Cantina Band soundtrack recording versus what we hear in the film.
• 21:09 - Worldizing (sound technique)
• 24:33 - How realistic is this scene in terms of portraying musicians and live music?
• 28:14 - First time we get to see a lightsaber being used in action.
• 32:59 - Weird cut in the music
• 37:55 - Han Solo being a blowhard. What makes him sound so ?
• 43:42 - Greedo's voice
• 43:48 - All the random sounds we hear in the cantina.
• 53:57 - Band shoutout! Figrin D'an and the Modal Nodes play kloo horn, fanfar, ommni box, bandfill, and Dorenian Beshniquel
• 1:00:45 - Actual instruments for the recording were 2 saxophones, trumpet, clarinet, Rhodes piano, steel pan drums, drum kit, percussion, and an ARP synthesizer
• 1:01:30 - The difficulty of syncing movements and music onscreen in the diegetic context.
• 1:05:02 - Ben Burtt's creation of alien voices/languages.
• 1:07:09 - Background babble of voices = the editors on helium.
• 1:08:43 - Kris's personal favorite sound effects and music in Star Wars
• 1:12:14 - What is Finn's theme?...
• 1:21:00 - SWMM Questionnaire
• 1:23:58 - Theme list, soundtrack list, Shazam test
• 1:25:09 - Where to find Kris (Star Wars Lawyer)

Things Mentioned:

• The Soundtrack Show (hosted by David W. Collins) Star Wars Part II episode - https://www.iheart.com/podcast/105-the-soundtrack-show-29021108/episode/star-wars-the-music-part-ii-29333139/
• Star Wars Music Minute episode with the steel pannist from the "Canto Bight" track: https://youtu.be/JWTWFCUw5pc
• "Sing, Sing, Sing" by Benny Goodman and His Orchestra - https://youtu.be/u_E0UVNtJ9Y
• "Finn's Theme" in Battlefront 2 by Gordy Haab: https://youtu.be/w5JMwjR47cQ
• Samuel Kim's mashup of Kylo's and Rey's themes (Reylo): https://youtu.be/7JGe5GAhOf4
• "World's Worst Bedtime Storyteller" from Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom by Michael Giacchino: https://youtu.be/VavUXawVQG0
• Frank Lehman's Complete Catalogue of the Musical Themes of Star Wars: https://franklehman.com/starwars/ .

Themes:

• No "themes" other than the diegetic songs.
• In universe, "Cantina Band" is called "Mad About Me" and "Cantina Band 2" is called "If I Only Could Let Go and Cry"

Soundtrack: "Cantina Band," "Cantina Band 2"

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STAR WARS MUSIC MINUTE QUESTIONNAIRE:

1. In exactly 3 words, what does Star Wars sound like?

• A galactic symphony

2. What's something related to Star Wars music or sound that you want to learn more about?

• A deeper dive into the Star Wars themes (motifs, etc)

3. What's a score or soundtrack you're fond of besides anything Star Wars?

• Interstellar (composed by Hans Zimmer)
• Tron: Legacy (composed by Daft Punk)
• Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (composed by Michael Giacchino)

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