VSO goes to the movies

The hills are alive with the sounds of lightsaber duels and laser blasters and Darth Vader’s creepy mechanized breathing.

The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra is headed to the movies this month, with a pair of programs spanning the breadth of cinema — from outer-space adventures to crisp apple strudel.

First is the “Pops” concert that you’ve been waiting for. “For years our patrons have been asking us to present a Pops concert with a little lighter repertoire,” said VSO manager and principal clarinetist Igor Shakhman. “Almost every orchestra in the world presents at least one Pops concert per season to attract a wider audience. Finally,” he said, the VSO has done that too — and, to make sure the music is truly popping, the program will be drawn entirely from well-loved films with well-loved scores.

Launching the show will be the world’s most famous fanfare — the one that plays over swirling spotlights and the art deco “20th Century Fox” monument. Then comes “Star Trek,” “Tribute to Henry Mancini” (including “The Pink Panther” ), the supercool “James Bond 007” theme, “Titanic,” “Gladiator” and the spooky sound of the “Harry Potter” movies.

That’s the first half. The second half is a tribute to America’s favorite film composer, John Williams, who has penned unforgettable themes for movie adventures from “Raiders of the Lost Ark” to “Star Wars.”

Last December, in conjunction with the latest “Star Wars” installment, VSO maestro Salvador Brotons conducted a concert of Williams’ music at the spectacular Palau de la Musica Catalana in his native Barcelona. A few special guests dropped by in costume: Darth Vader and his stormtroopers swarmed the stage to put down any Forceful rebellions.

Barcelona is a galaxy far, far away, but Brotons has warped over to Vancouver to repeat the experience with the VSO. Imperial crackdown will be courtesy of the Cloud City Garrison, a “Star Wars” costuming club that’s committed to being the best-looking villains they can be, displaying cinema-quality costumes at charity events. Last year, the Cloud City Garrison raised $16,000 for such causes as Make-A-Wish Oregon and Doernbecher Children’s Hospital.

After the Barcelona concert, The Columbian asked Brotons whether offering movie-soundtrack “Pops” feels like a compromise. Not at all, he replied.

“It’s phenomenal music, great music,” Brotons said. “It’s brilliant. It’s beautiful. It’s melodic.” Furthermore, he said, if you love John Williams, you’d probably love his influences — renowned classical composers like Holst, Prokofiev and Dvorak.

“To be honest, the music is very challenging and will require same diligent approach as any other ‘traditional’ classical works,” Shakhman said.

The sound of what?

If John Williams wrote the most stirring sounds in space, what’s often billed as “The Happiest Sound in All the World” is thanks to composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II — as brought to you by film director Robert Wise, who also made “West Side Story.”

Decades later, another talent unearthed a trove of behind-the-scenes tales about “The Sound of Music”: Julia Hirsch, a Clark County newcomer who moved with her husband to Brush Prairie last year.

Hirsch will be the guest speaker on Dec. 19 when the VSO screens, as a fundraiser, a singalong version of the 1965 classic at the Kiggins Theatre.

Hirsch worked for Wise as a story editor in the late 1980s. After a “wildly unsuccessful” stint as an actress, she said, she kept trying to break into show business as a writer. Wise was constantly getting fan mail about “The Sound of Music,” and Hirsch realized that a “Making of” book was long overdue. She got the blessings of Wise and 20th Century Fox to research and write it. Most everyone connected with the film was still alive at the time, she said, and nearly all were happy to participate.

The only exceptions were the child actors, who grew up trapped by film fame and were mightily sick of lederhosen and “Doe, a deer,” by the time Hirsch got to them. Not among them, she added, were future stars like Mia Farrow and Richard Dreyfuss, who auditioned for juvenile roles but weren’t cast.

Similarly passed over for the leading man role were Sean Connery, Yul Brenner and even Walter Matthau. The eventual star, dark and moody Christopher Plummer, behaved badly on the set of what he called “The Sound of Mucus.” He hated the material and considered his appearance a career move only.

Years later, at Wise’s memorial service, he publicly apologized; Hirsch was there to hear it.

Others, including Andrews, always had faith the film would be a smash. Their pet name for it was “The Sound of Money.”

As filming began in the mountains of Austria, Hirsch said, so did an endless downpour. Trucks full of people and equipment couldn’t make it up steep, washed-out roads, so a more effective form of local transport was employed: ox carts.

Cast and crew languished under a tarp, playing cards and waiting out sunbreaks. The iconic opening scene that features Andrews skipping around mountaintop meadows was actually as difficult as moviemaking gets, Hirsch said.

First, a stand of trees and a small pond had to be built. A choreographer hid in the bushes and hollered “Now!” for Andrews to start frolicking about as a low-flying helicopter came zooming forward with a cameraman literally dangling beneath it.

Andrews kept getting blown down by the prop wash. After 10 takes — 10 times removing grass and twigs from her hair — the famously polite star declared that she was done with that.

“The Sound of Music” is beloved by many — it won five Academy Awards and was the highest-grossing film of all time for years — but reviled by some. Critic Pauline Kael called it “goody-goody” and a “sugar-coated lie.” Nondramatic facts from the real story were changed — like the Von Trapp family’s actual escape from the approaching Nazis not by sneaking across the Alps, risking life and limb, but by stepping aboard a comfortable train at the nearest station.

Serendipity

Hirsch’s “The Sound of Music: The Making of America’s Favorite Movie” was published in 1993 as a paperback. She was never happy with the quality, and eventually she bought the publication rights. An improved edition is expected out in 2017, she said.

Meanwhile, Hirsch is working on her own historical novels — and that’s how she wound up connecting with this “Sound of Music” screening. One of her fictional scenes takes place in an old-fashioned movie theater projection booth, and she called owner Dan Wyatt to ask for a peek inside the Kiggins’ booth. The VSO “Sound of Music” event was already scheduled; the arrival of behind-the-scenes expert Hirsch was amazing serendipity, she said.

“I think it’s fascinating to look behind the scenes at classic movies like this,” she said. “For me to able to write it was a dream come true.”