ESB 8: Asteroid Feelings (Minutes 36-40 with Dennis Hamm)

2023-01-02

We're getting into the Asteroid Field with Thundercat pianist Dennis Hamm! In this episode, we explore the complex harmony, emotion, and triumph in this cue that John Williams once called "a ballet of flying spaceships and asteroids colliding." Dennis also administers a fun listening test toward the end that you'll want to stick around for (there are no wrong answers). This is The Empire Strikes Back minutes 36-40. Timstamps: 0:00 - Hello there! 3:59 - Listening to the minutes. 10:13 - Leia's themes touching on Lydian...

We're getting into the Asteroid Field with Thundercat pianist Dennis Hamm! In this episode, we explore the complex harmony, emotion, and triumph in this cue that John Williams once called "a ballet of flying spaceships and asteroids colliding." Dennis also administers a fun listening test toward the end that you'll want to stick around for (there are no wrong answers). This is The Empire Strikes Back minutes 36-40.

Timstamps:

0:00 - Hello there!
3:59 - Listening to the minutes.
10:13 - Leia's themes touching on Lydian mode.
11:36 - Thinking in chords vs. melodies.
16:17 - Modal modulation. David Huron. Acoustic Ethological Model (AEM).
22:05 - A theory on why Han and Leia's theme sounds melancholic. (It involves overtones.)
29:48 - Four quadrants.
37:28 - Triumphant splash. More lydian talk.
45:14 - Beginning of 4M3 The Asteroid Field.
51:15 - "A ballet of flying spaceships and asteroids colliding."
58:46 - Flat 2 representing tension, aggravation, distress.
1:02:02 - Violins are running up (run) and sliding down (glissando).
1:09:33 - Asteroid Field Subsidiary Motif.
1:17:57 - Instruments uniting for the regal Asteroid Field theme.
1:28:19 - "Sir, the possibility of successfully navigating an asteroid field is approximately 3720 to 1."
1:31:53 - Pianist vs. violinist perspectives, mental shifts.
1:34:37 - Emotions + Intervals Test (There are no wrong answers!)
2:03:16 - Tonicizing, turning notes into roots. A little test on which roots we perceive.
2:09:32 - Sentisonics.
2:16:20 - Polytonality (vertical) vs. modulation (horizontal) in The Asteroid Field.
2:21:39 - The darkest chord progression.
2:23:32 - Comparing the Asteroid Field cue to the concert arrangement.
2:30:48 - Dennis's parting thoughts about these minutes.
2:34:38 - SWMM Questionnaire.

Things Referenced:

Cues and Signals: An Ethological Approach to Music-Related Emotion (David Huron paper) - https://journals.openedition.org/signata/1115
Voice Leading: The Science Behind a Musical Art (David Huron book)
On George Russell's "Ladder of 5ths" - https://www.jasonharmonica.com/WOTG.html
John Coltrane's "Giant Steps" https://youtu.be/xy_fxxj1mMY
Asteroid Field (Concert Arrangement!) by John Williams: https://youtu.be/vLt0nZug-YU
Star Wars 20th Anniversary: Interview with John Williams’ (1997) - https://www.jwfan.com/?p=4553
Complete Catalogue of the Musical Themes of Star Wars (by Frank Lehman): https://franklehman.com/starwars/.
Dominic Sewell Music's analysis and walkthrough of cue 4m3 "The Asteroid Field" - https://youtu.be/LUa5TKeY7Nk

Cues: