ERIK OCHSNER AND THE FILMHARMONIC ORCHESTRA PRESENT “STAR WARS: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK” IN 3 IMMERSIVE CONCERTS
Interview conducted by Alain Brunet
While die-hard music lovers consider film scores to be part of the minor arts and light entertainment, others believe that soundtracks composed for symphony orchestra constitute the classical repertoire of our time. Who is right?
One thing is certain, Hollywood film music regularly draws on the romantic and post-romantic period. Obviously, it’s much more successful than contemporary music for obvious reasons. In recent years, many symphonic experiments with real-time film projections have taken place. The halls are full and this will be the case again in Montreal this weekend: three times the Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, nothing less!
From the direction of small ensembles to that of symphony orchestras, Erik Ochsner has forged a solid reputation; one of his trademarks is conducting orchestras in live screening film concerts. He is unquestionably one of the main conductors in terms of symphonic performance of film music in front of an audience.
He served as the main tour bandleader for La La Land Live in Concert . He conducted 50 performances of Justin Hurwitz’s Academy Award and Grammy Award-winning score. He conducted the world premiere of Mary Poppins in concert at the Sydney Opera House, Love Actually with the San Francisco Symphony, Beauty and the Beast in concert in Taiwan and Poland, Back to the Future, Bugs Bunny at the Symphony, ET the Extra-Terrestrial, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Pirates of the Caribbean, Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek Into Darkness. Ochsner created The Music of Star Warswith the National Arts Center Orchestra in Ottawa, was Music Director and Conductor of the 2017 Opera America New Works Showcase, and guest conductor at the Nanjing Forest Music Festival, China . Mr. Ochsner is also founder and musical director of the SONOS Chamber Orchestra.
More recently, he conducted performances of Star Wars in Concert: Episode 4: A New Hope with FILMharmonique de Montréal. For upcoming performances in Montreal, he will conduct Star Wars in Concert: Episode 5: The Empire Strikes Back , presented at Place des Arts next Friday and Saturday.
With a solid musical education, Ochsner attended the Pierre Monteux school and graduated from the renowned Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. He has dual Finnish and American nationality. From New York where he lives, he tells us about his next challenge in Montreal.
PAN M 360: We observe that live film music for symphony orchestras attracts more attention from an audience that would not come to symphony houses to listen to the classical repertoire. What is your own perception of this phenomenon?
ERIK OCHSNER: You know, I have a complete classical education, my goal in life was to become an opera conductor, which is not the case today. But, in a certain way, I direct works intended for another type of total spectacle. We always have new audiences coming to see these films with orchestras. And we always hear comments from amazed spectators, like “Oh, I didn’t know an orchestra was that big”, or “I didn’t know how it worked”!
PAN M 360: How are you perceived by the classical milieu?
ERIK OCHSNER: Classical purists still think that’s a bad idea. I think that we artists need an audience. And by offering these concerts, we continue to serve our community. There are people who only come to concerts to hear Beethoven and the great repertoire, and that’s fine. Today, we also have people who also come to hear film music performed by large orchestras. So I don’t think it’s a loss or a setback for anyone.
PAN M 360: One could argue that the audience for film music in symphonic version does not systematically migrate to the great repertoire, after having had an experience in concert. Why is that?
ERIK OCHSNER: Indeed, many will not go back to a symphonic concert, except if it’s film music. People recognize symphonic music through their daily lives. They recognize this music that was in an advertisement, when in fact it was Vivaldi. This is explained: the parents of today are not really interested in classical music, because their parents did not initiate them. My own parents made me discover it and I loved it. So our duty is to inform and educate. Invite the public to lectures, encourage them to read the program notes. We must not ignore the phenomenon, while being aware that we cannot force anyone to take the step towards the great repertoire.
PAN M 360: We can also guess that you find real qualities in musical works composed for the cinema.
ERIK OCHSNER: I can’t talk about all film score composers, but I know, for example, that John Williams is a genuine post-romantic composer. There are also more contemporary passages in his work, even if they are not dominant. Yes, film music is often a tribute to composers of the past, but also includes elements of contemporary music. That said, Williams keeps coming back to his favorite post-romanticism, that of Richard Strauss, Gustav Holst, etc. Otherwise, you know, it wouldn’t work. In 50 years it may be very different, but not now, because people haven’t been educated to feel comfortable in the “serious” repertoire of the last 75 years.
PAN M 360: Have you ever met John Williams to discuss your symphonic performances?
ERIK OCHSNER: No, I’ve never met John Williams, whereas I’ve already discussed with other composers like Shameer Tandon, Howard Shore, Justin Hurwitz or Michael Giacchino. However, I have conducted several scores by Williams. Obviously, I was told his expectations: he wants to obtain impeccable sound and great quality of execution, on stage. But he’s not the one planning anything. A local orchestra decides, “Hey, we want to play music from a movie and have to negotiate with the music rights management company.” In the case of Star Wars , the music of John Williams is the property of Walt Disney, so if you want to do concerts with Star Wars music, you need the agreement of the license managers of all these films in the world. A team will then have to go to the concert venue, ensure that the screen size is correct, that the projector is powerful enough and that the orchestra is serious. For management, John Williams has approved a list of potential leaders and I am on that list. Apparently they like what I do.
PAN M 360: Have you ever conducted in Montreal?
ERIK OCHSNER: Yes, I conducted the music for La La Land at the Montreal Jazz Festival, it was in 2017 I think. With GFN productions, we were supposed to do Empire Strikes Back in 2020 and then 2021, but the pandemic decided otherwise and we are finally back in 2022.
PAN M 360: How do you approach performing The Empire Strikes Back soundtrack ? Is there a Disney recipe to follow?
ERIK OCHSNER: Disney and John Williams have established a protocol. So, if a producer is interested in a particular title, he has his own technical estimate, which specifies the size of the screens, the quality of the projectors, the instrumentation of the orchestra or the number of flutes, for example. Thus, Disney can determine what it will earn from each concert. It’s still a business, whereas the mainstream world operates as a non-profit business. It’s fair to say that these movie projects are considered for-profit ventures. The music must be “rented” to companies that make a profit.
PAN M 360: You often do business with freelance orchestras. How to ensure quality in execution? How to ensure that freelancers can form a coherent whole?
ERIK OCHSNER:I don’t audition musicians. Instead, I’ll talk to musicians I trust and ask for their recommendations. When all the musicians from each section get together, several know each other because they have often played together. I want it to be friendly, I want it to be pleasant for the musicians hired. In any case, they work well together, generally speaking; it seems to be nice. And that’s exactly the feeling I had working with the musicians gathered for the FILMharmonique. They are very good musicians. Yes, I observe that there are several excellent musicians in Montreal and in Quebec. Obviously, they all know each other, so the chemistry is there.