John Williams

John Towner Williams is an American composer, conductor and pianist born 8 February 1932 in New York.

He is mainly known for his film scores. He is credited with reviving the symphonic film score with what remains his most famous work: the music for the Star Wars saga. The regular composer for Steven Spielberg and George Lucas, John Williams has, over a career spanning more than sixty years, composed a great many of the most famous film scores in Hollywood history, including, besides Star Wars, those for Jaws, Home Alone, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, Superman, Schindler's List, and the first three films of the Harry Potter saga. He has also composed the music for four Olympic Games, for NBC Nightly News, for President Barack Obama's inauguration ceremony, and for numerous television series.

Williams has won the Academy Award for Best Original Score five times, as well as 4 Golden Globes, 7 BAFTA Awards and 21 Grammy Awards. With 54 Oscar nominations, Williams is the most nominated film composer in history. Historically, only Walt Disney has done better, with 59 nominations. John Williams was also inducted into the Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame in 2000 and received the Kennedy Center Honors in 2004.

Williams has also composed numerous classical works at the request of leading orchestras. For example, a Horn Concerto for Dale Clevenger and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, a Cello Concerto for Yo-Yo Ma and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, a Bassoon Concerto for the 150th anniversary of the New York Philharmonic, and others. He was himself the principal conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra from 1980 to 1993.

His talent for composition, orchestration and performance, his longevity, the popularity and influence of his works, and his numerous awards and honours, lead most film and music specialists to consider John Williams the greatest film composer of all time.