Hymn to the Fallen

This piece of music is off the soundtrack to one of the greatest war films ever made. The film is Saving Private Ryan and the piece of music is entitled Hymn To The Fallen which was written by maestro extraordinaire John Williams. It is the soaring piece that plays when the credits roll and it embodies the spirit of every frame of the film which was directed by Steven Spielberg.

Private Ryan didn't have a lot of music in the film, John and Steven wanted it to be as sparse musically as possible, mainly because Steven wanted the audience right in the middle of the action and he didn't want anything distracting them. The music came during the down moments in the film, after the soldiers battled for their survival and contemplated how close they came to death. John wanted Hymn to be a tribute not to just the soldiers portrayed in the film, but those actual soldiers who fought and died in WWII. I think he did an exceptional job.

People originally thought Saving Private Ryan was the kind of film that was outside of John Williams' wheel house, that it took him too far away from his comfort zone. That maybe Steven should look to another composer who had the skills to score a film like this. Steven stuck to his guns, fought for John, and was rewarded...with this. Enjoy!