Santa Barbara Symphony Presents John Williams Tribute Concert in March

Get swept away by the magic of movie music! The Santa Barbara Symphony presents John Williams: A Cinematic Celebration on Saturday, March 18 at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, March 19 at 3:00 p.m. Guest conductor Rei Hotoda takes the podium to lead the Symphony in a tribute concert where powerful cinematic moments will come to life through live orchestral accompaniment.

Audiences will have the chance to hear iconic cinematic moments played by many of the same musicians who recorded the original motion picture soundtracks alongside the inimitable John Williams himself, from Star Wars, Harry Potter, E.T., and so many more. This concert is also a part of the Granada Synergy Series.

In a career spanning more than five decades, John Williams at 91 is one of America's most accomplished and successful composers for film and the concert stage, and he remains one of the nation's most distinguished and prolific musical voices. He has composed the music and served as Music Director for more than 100 films including all nine Star Wars films, the first three Harry Potter films, Superman, JFK, Jaws, Home Alone, and many more.

Santa Barbara Symphony musicians are no strangers to John Williams' work; in fact, many of the orchestra musicians are studio regulars for Williams and have played on numerous original film scores, including Concertmaster Jessica Guideri, Erik Rynearson, Principal Viola; Trevor Handy, Principal Cello; Lara Wickes, Principal Oboe; Don Foster, Principal Clarinet; Teag Reaves, Principal Horn; and Jon Lewis, Principal Trumpet.

Conductor Rei Hotoda has been hailed as an inexhaustible dynamo with a deep commitment to reimagining the 21st-century concert experience. Her vision can be seen through her thought-provoking programming, passionate allyship to marginalized artists, advocacy for arts education, and unwavering commitment to presenting the music of our times.

Hotoda's success as the Music Director of the Fresno Philharmonic since 2017 has resulted in the extension of her tenure through the 2025 season. She has appeared as a guest conductor with many of today's leading ensembles, including the Symphony Orchestras of Baltimore, Chicago, St. Louis, Dallas, Detroit, Toronto, Winnipeg, Hawaii, and Utah as well as the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, among others. Her interpretations of such epic centerpieces of the classical canon such as Shostakovich's Symphony No. 8 and Britten's War Requiem, make her one of the most sought-after conductors of today.
John Williams' 45-year artistic partnership with director Steven Spielberg has resulted in many of Hollywood's most acclaimed and successful films including Schindler's List, E.T. The ExtraTerrestrial, Jaws, Jurassic Park, and the Indiana Jones films, among so many notable others. He has received five Academy Awards and 52 Oscar nominations, making him the Academy's most-nominated living person and the second-most nominated person in the history of the Oscars. He has received seven British Academy Awards (BAFTA), 25 Grammys, four Golden Globes, five Emmys, and numerous gold and platinum records. His contributions to television music include scores for more than 200 television films. In 2009, Mr. Williams was inducted into the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, and he received the National Medal of Arts, the highest award given to artists by the U.S. Government. In 2016, he received the 44th Life Achievement Award from the American Film Institute- the first time in their history that this honor was bestowed upon a composer. In 2020, he received Spain's Princess of Asturias Award for the Arts, as well as the Gold Medal from the prestigious Royal Philharmonic Society in the UK.