I worked quite a bit extra this week to make up for missed time from vacations. Dr. Moser and I met early in the week, and he offered suggestions for my pieces, the most important of which I have outlined here:

Droids for Sale - Less predictable, remove random downbeats or other beats, just to throw the listener slightly off kilter

Lost in the Desert - Needs something for the transition in the middle of the scene

“Your Father’s Lightsaber” - Needs a change of timbre when Leia’s message first turns on (maybe just take out droid theme)

The Millennium Falcon - Once ship takes off, lose tension, then regain it when they realize they’re being chased

          I am on vacation this week, and have finished less than I had hoped. I did complete several small scenes scattered throughout the second half of the film, which at least made me feel better about the number of cues I have completed. I have a busy week coming up, but I am determined to complete as much as I possibly can.

          Since these cues were mainly small, I did not need to incorporate much thematic material or any romantic influences. However, I did (quite by accident) create my leitmotif for the heroic team (Luke, Han, Chewie, and Leia). This leitmotif emerges when they arrive on the Death Star, as it is their first situation in which they must all work together. It is introduced rather late compared to the rest of my themes and leitmotifs, but its prominent usage in the film’s second half will be more than enough to connect with the audience.

          I spent a large portion of my time this week writing music for the scene, “The Millennium Falcon.” Dr. Moser and I had discussed the importance of this scene in an earlier meeting. Since Han’s previous scenes were in the cantina with the diegetic music playing, this scene is his first “musical” introduction. His theme needs to be prominent in this scene so that the listener forms an immediate connection that lasts the entirety of the movie.

          This week doesn’t offer much for me to journal about, simply because I focused on scoring scenes, and didn’t use any specific romantic influences. I spent a large portion of my time at the beginning of the week working on the cue “In the Garage.” This was an important scene for me; it really introduces the viewer to Luke, but also spotlights Leia, the droids, and briefly mentions Obi-Wan. That gives me a lot to introduce musically. A scene this full of important character background could easily give the listener thematic overload, so I struggled to maintain a consistent flow. I decided this scene needed a more tonal approach than some of my other scenes, but this isn’t a bad decision in my mind. Luke is introduced as a homebody, someone that’s lived on the farm his entire life. It makes sense that he would be surrounded by “tonal” music during this portion of the movie, and as he begins to experience life outside the farm, the music becomes less and less tonal.