''Summon the Heroes'' is a one-movement

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

l composition written for the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

by American composer John Williams for the National Broadcasting Company (NBC). It premiered on July 19, 1996, in abridged form, at the opening ceremony in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, played by the

Atlanta Symphony Orchestra The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (ASO) is an American orchestra based in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. The ASO's main concert venue is Atlanta Symphony Hall in the Woodruff Arts Center. History Though earlier organizations bearing the same name date b ...

and conducted by Williams. The piece is the third of four compositions he has written for the Olympics, following 1984's ''Olympic Fanfare and Theme'' and 1988's ''Olympic Spirit'', and preceding 2002's '' Call of the Champions''.

Composition and performances

''Summon the Heroes'' is scored for a full orchestra. It is in the key of C major and is marked at 80 beats per minute, lasting about six minutes. The piece is dedicated to Tim Morrison, trumpet soloist of the

Boston Pops Orchestra The Boston Pops Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts, specializing in light classical and popular music. The orchestra's current music director is Keith Lockhart. Founded in 1885 as an offshoot of the Boston Symp ...

. Music journalist Jon Burlingame described the piece as having "antiphonal brass choirs" and added that it was "longer and more complex" than Williams' previous Olympic compositions. Christian Clemmensen of ''

Filmtracks Filmtracks.com is a modern film score review website created and maintained by its sole reviewer, Christian Clemmensen. Since the launch of Filmtracks in 1996, the website has reviewed nearly two-thousand soundtracks dating as far back as 1954, t ...

'' noted "Roman and Greek-like historical appeal" in the brass writing that the work "featured with nobility." Musicologist Margaret Dilling compared the piece to Williams's previous Olympic works, noting their common elements including an opening fanfare, theme performed by solo or soli trumpet, and a penultimate "galloping

bolero Bolero is a genre of song which originated in eastern Cuba in the late 19th century as part of the trova tradition. Unrelated to the older Spanish dance of the same name, bolero is characterized by sophisticated lyrics dealing with love. It has ...

-type ostinato" leading to a "grand-slam finale." It was played in full on the album ''Summon the Heroes'' by the

, released April 30, 1996. The piece was played at the

on July 19 by the

, in an abridged form lasting three-and-a-half minutes, and conducted by Williams.

Reception

In reviewing ''Summon the Heroes'' on the 2002 album ''American Journey'' (featuring an eponymous composition and the 2002 Olympic theme '' Call of the Champions'', among other Williams' pieces), film music critic James Southall highly praised the work, saying that it "...manages to offer in six minutes the kind of development and depth that simply isn't possible in the shorter tracks that have come before." Southall added, "For my money it's Williams's best concert piece, and maybe his best piece period." Christian Clemmensen of ''

'' also praised the work for having more world appeal than Williams' other Olympic compositions.

References

{{Authority control Compositions by John Williams 1996 compositions Olympic theme songs 1996 Summer Olympics Compositions for symphony orchestra Music commissioned by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Concert band pieces 20th-century classical music

Composition and performances

Reception

See also

References