The Answered Question is a weekly podcast from WCRB that unlocks the mysteries of classical music through the voices of composers, conductors, and other musicians.
John Williams, the Laureate Conductor of the Boston Pops and composer of iconic scores for Star Wars, Jaws, and dozens of other films, will be the first composer to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Film Institute next month. The award will be presented by Steven Spielberg on June 9, and TNT will air "AFI Lifetime Achievement Award: A Tribute to John Williams” on June15.
WCRB’s Brian McCreath talked with Williams during rehearsals for this spring’s Boston Pops Film Night performances, and the interview is included in the latest episode of WCRB’s The Answered Question. Williams describes his reaction to the wildly successful release of the first Star Wars film in 1977, how he got his start as a composer of film scores, and why he decided to succeed Arthur Fiedler as Conductor of the Boston Pops in 1980.
