{"id":17657,"date":"2022-06-29T12:46:12","date_gmt":"2022-06-29T10:46:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1669709"},"modified":"2022-06-29T13:09:10","modified_gmt":"2022-06-29T11:09:10","slug":"how-obi-wan-kenobis-composer-created-new-sounds-for-old-characters","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/how-obi-wan-kenobis-composer-created-new-sounds-for-old-characters\/","title":{"rendered":"How Obi-Wan Kenobi\u2019s composer created new sounds for old characters"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Christopher Connor\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Wednesday, 29 June 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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Thanks to the work of legendary composer John Williams, the Star Wars saga has one of the most iconic soundtracks in movie history \u2013 which must make it a little daunting for new composers coming to the franchise to follow in his footsteps.<\/p>\n

Still, Obi-Wan Kenobi<\/a> composer Natalie Holt faced even more pressure when Williams himself unexpectedly offered to contribute to the series alongside her own work, keen to finally write a theme for Ewan McGregor\u2019s Jedi Master.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Williams] said to Kathleen Kennedy [executive producer] that he wanted to give Ben a theme, because Obi Wan is the only heritage character that he didn\u2019t really give a theme to originally,\u201d Holt told RadioTimes.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving John scoring Obi-Wan\u2019s theme just felt so appropriate. It had just the right balance for that character. John\u2019s got this 40-year history within the franchise, he\u2019s a genius, but he\u2019s also been scoring Star Wars from its infancy, so he is the voice of Star Wars.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still, he\u2019s not the only one any more.<\/p>\n

Following the conclusion of Disney Plus<\/a>\u2018s latest Star Wars adventure, we sat down with Obi-Wan Kenobi series composer Holt to discuss how the show\u2019s sound fits into the broader franchise, as well as what it was like working with Williams and director Deborah Chow while creating new music for iconic characters, such as Princess Leia and Darth Vader.<\/p>\n

Holt, who also composed for fellow Disney Plus series Loki, discussed how her creative process differed for Star Wars and the MCU, while still striving to bring the same sort of unorthodox sounds to Obi-Wan Kenobi that she worked into the Tom Hiddleston series.<\/p>

So, Natalie, were you a fan of Star Wars growing up?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yes. I watched it with my dad when I was a kid on VHS, so I saw it many times on repeat. I had a huge crush on Luke. I think it was my first romance, you know?<\/p>\n

How did you get into film and TV composing?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Watching ET when I was a kid was the thing that made me really notice music in a film. I don\u2019t think I realised it was there before, but hearing that music when they\u2019re riding their bikes, and then having it stuck in my head, was a big moment for me.<\/p>\n

John Williams was a huge influence, too. When I met him, I said, \u201cYou\u2019re the reason I started composing.\u201d He was like \u201cOh, sorry about that.\u201d<\/p>\n

How was actually working with him?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Getting to work with him was surreal. We weren\u2019t sure if he was going to give us permission to use his themes at first. Then he watched [Obi-Wan Kenobi], heard some of my music that I\u2019d already recorded, and allowed us to use it.<\/p>\n