Media and Music: “Harry Potter” and the Timeless Film Score
The slightly altered themes from four different composers encompass the heart of the franchise, from its intricate world-building to its heartfelt story and beyond.
Written by Gracie Warhurst
Illustrated by Sophie Beasley
Photos courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
One of the memorable features that people associate with the “Harry Potter” films is its iconic soundtrack. For the series’ casual audience, “Hedwig’s Theme” uncovers a locked away memory. For its dedicated fans, the leitmotif is like coming home. This wasn’t a happy accident — created by the film’s initial composer John Williams and carried on by the three subsequent composers; the theme is featured in every single one of the movies. Although it changes in tone to follow the increasingly darker themes from film to film, “Hedwig’s Theme” and other symbolic motifs weave throughout the world of “Harry Potter,” and bring to life the fantasy that has become a cultural staple.
The first three installments of the “Harry Potter” movies (“Sorcerer’s Stone,” “Chamber of Secrets,” and “Prisoner of Azkaban”) follow the hero’s journey like most PG movies do: A group of unlikely friends join forces and defeat increasingly difficult obstacles before finally coming out victorious. You can hear this in the scores of the first three movies, all composed by Williams. The first time “Hedwig’s Theme” appears in “Sorcerer’s Stone” is in the piece “Prologue” and is played on an instrument called the celesta. This bell-sounding keyboard adds a dreamy, child-like feel to the theme, fitting for a movie in which the main character is just 11 years old. It is also the watchers’ first introduction to this new, magical world.
In “Chamber of Secrets,” “Hedwig’s Theme” expands to include more orchestral instruments in “Prologue: Book II and the Escape From the Dursleys,” solidifying both Harry’s place in the wizarding world and the motif as the most identifiable notes in the “Harry Potter” movies. It’s fuller, more captivating, and, with billowing horns like open air and a flurry of strings like feathers, it sounds just like how flying would feel. Although the theme is named after Harry’s pet owl, it quickly comes to represent the entire world of magic.
In “Prisoner of Azkaban,” the theme — which appears in “Lumos! (Hedwig’s Theme)” — is again isolated on the celesta at first, joined later by an eerie tremolo of the string instruments in the background that hints at the higher stakes in this film. But “Double Trouble,” both a stand alone piece and recurring theme sung by a children’s choir, revives the youthful, magical feel, reminding the audience that the characters are still just kids. The song plays in its entirety while the students return to Hogwarts for the beginning of term, welcoming them back for another year.
Hedwig’s theme appears in the beginning of each of the first three movies as well as at their very ends. The genius of Williams is in his attention to detail, especially in the full-circle feel of the scores, a feeling that doesn’t end with his involvement in the series. Some might not even realize that the fourth movie switched composers because the sound is so cohesive, progressing naturally from one movie to the next.
The fourth installment, “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire,” deals with heavier subject matter, revealing the return of Voldemort and pivoting the characters away from the carefree character arcs of the first three films. Patrick Doyle continued William’s work while still adjusting to the developing story line. “The Story Continues” begins the film in suspense and, unlike earlier scores, we only hear “Hedwig’s Theme” after about a minute in. This time, the theme is played only on the strings of the orchestra, and is a little faster in tempo. Almost a whirlwind of both familiarity and maturity, the evolved theme foreshadows the same message the audience will find in the movie: Everything is about to change.
Doyle also introduces fans to a new theme representing Harry’s character, its entirety captured in “Harry in Winter.” Harry’s theme plays during fundamental times in his character development. He goes through the natural changes that any teenager does — making things like asking his crush to the ball even more awkward — but is also dealing with mortality in a way none of his peers are. The violin singing out the melody, representing Harry, upon a staccato background shows how singled out Harry truly is by his fate, isolating him even as he’s surrounded by others. His theme appearing in both the trivial and significant moments is extremely telling of what’s to come, marking the divergence from childhood games to a fatal mission.
While both Williams and Doyle based their compositions heavily on the thematic material of the movies, Nicholas Hooper took a different approach with the soundtrack for “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.” He is the first composer in the series to not begin his score with a piece incorporating “Hedwig’s Theme”, although it accompanies the movie’s title scene.
Hedwig’s theme makes its entrance in Hooper’s “Another Story,” the melody for which is shared by multiple instruments and at first plays alongside bells before breaking out into its own swelling verse. The theme is also played in three other pieces for the film. He continues his work in the sixth film, “Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince,” offering a hint of Hedwig’s theme in “Opening.” The introductory piece quickly dives into a first solemn choir and then threatening orchestra, opening the door to the darkness that’s exhibited in this addition to the series.
Hooper’s work in both “Order of the Phoenix” and “Half-Blood Prince” explores musical motifs relating to other characters more so than any of the other movies. Luna Lovegood has her own whimsical theme in “Order of the Phoenix,” and Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy get their respective themes as their characters become more intricately explored. While Harry’s relationship with Ginny develops, a piece — also including "Hedwig’s Theme" — named after her character plays, showing that Harry’s feelings for her are very closely intertwined with his sense of magic.
Alexandre Desplat is responsible for the music in the final two films (“Harry Potter and Deathly Hallows” Parts 1 and 2). He reverted to Williams’ and Doyle’s tactic of heavily thematic pieces, though differed in that he included “Hedwig’s Theme” sparsely. This may have been a purposeful choice, as Hedwig’s theme represents magic and the wizarding world in its purest form, something that Voldemort and his Death Eaters poison in the later films. The main theme in these last two films is the Trio theme which accompanies Harry, Hermione, and Ron as they try to defeat Voldemort.
The Trio theme, according to Desplat, marks the characters’ loss of innocence. The theme can also be heard with another — the theme of grief — that marks fundamentally sad yet important moments, such as when Hermione has to obliviate her parents and when Ron abandons the other two during their horcrux hunt. Despite some criticism of Desplat’s deviation from the established scores in the first films, he encompasses the heart of “Harry Potter” in a more adult manner. As the characters go through life-altering and, at times, world-saving events, the innocence of Williams' score is completely washed away, an aspect that is revealed by Desplat’s critical divergence.
Twenty years after the release of the first movie, the music continues to intrigue audiences. Williams successfully set the foundation for the musical world of “Harry Potter,” especially in his creation of “Hedwig’s Theme,” and passed Patrick Doyle the torch to carry on his style. Hooper diverged from earlier precedent in his score, but also carried on the theme. Desplat tied up the series nicely, creating a more mature score that fit the darker moments in the later films. The many nuances of each composer beg to be discovered, creating an immortal soundtrack that has stood the test of time.