#the imperial march

[wackywriterwhowriteswhenever]

When your theme song is so iconic that this is the subtitle that pops up when it plays

[imperatrice21]

Damian is a Star Wars fan and I will die on that hill

[weregonnabecoolbeans]

I think Omega might have my favourite theme out of every star wars character

[gahooliganspod]

Who wore it better? We discuss in episode 6: Flintmops and Fratricide! Listen now, anywhere you find your Ga’Hooligans podcast!

[skellymom]

Powerful and haunting version of The Imperial March by the talented Pianistec. Enjoy!!!

[thecleverqueer]

The fun fact about fascism is that it usually starts by “othering” people, then it becomes indiscriminate in its oppression and cruelty.

Take the example of indiscriminately oppressive nature of fascism in “Tales of the Jedi”:

The fascist brother of Ahsoka’s girlfriend admirer thought that the Empire was great. He thought that the Emperor had brought peace and prosperity to the Galaxy. When the old man by the fire spoke up and said, “through persecution,” the fascist boy scoffed at him and said only the rebels and those that opposed the Empire suffered.

Fast forward just a little bit (as this was a super short short), he rats Ahsoka out… he is certain that he’ll be rewarded for doing so, but instead they set his whole town ablaze and slaughter almost everyone. Then, he sits in a complete state of shock with a lightsaber burning the hair off his neck and face as they threaten him for his obedience. Luckily for him, Ahsoka saves his ass from being sliced in half. People in the real world aren’t typically so lucky.

This IS how it works… in fiction and in real life. You kowtow to their demands. You quietly watch as they take away the rights and liberties of the “other”. You think that you’re good just because you’re white and male and heterosexual and a Christian. Then all of a sudden, you’re not…because despite looking and acting like them, you aren’t really one of them. You’re a pathetic expendable cog in a wheel, and now that you’ve realized that, it’s too late.

[who-canceled-roger-rabbit]

Based on my earlier comparison between Ottoman Janissaries and the Jedi Order, now I want someone to remix "Ceddin Deden" together with the Imperial March. I'd do it myself but I'm both lazy and fairly inexperienced with sound mixing.

[thatfantasylovingdork]

Darth Vader got a beautiful, softer rendition of his theme song played when he died. As far as I can recall, Kylo didn’t get such a luxury. 😏

[terephin]

A religous experience mother of gods.

[hauntingsoundtracks]

Star Wars Episode V : The Empire Strikes Back (1980), directed by Irvin Kershner

The Imperial March, original soundtrack composed by John Williams

[skellymom]

STAR WARS (OFFICIAL TRAP REMIX) Imperial March (OFFICIAL Darth Vader's T...

KICKS ASS!!!

[the-far-bright-center]

Great analysis of a lesser-known track. Here it is again just in case the original link is no longer working:

Allow me to introduce you to my all-time favorite hidden gem of any Star Wars soundtrack. One that is rarely ever mentioned or noticed because it resides at the very end of the end credits of Attack of the Clones.

Don’t worry, you don’t have to listen to the entire 6-minute masterpiece. Most of you already know how the end credits typically go in a Star Wars film. The Rebel Alliance fanfare is played before John Williams delves into what he most likely considers to be the most important theme of the film. In this case, it was Across the Stars because…love story.

Now…just for reference, I need to make sure you know some themes in order for this to be as powerful as it can be. Those being:

The Imperial March which I’m sure all of you are quite familiar with. If you are new here or confused by the name, it is also commonly referred to as “Darth Vader’s Theme”.

Across the Stars is Anakin and Padme’s love theme throughout the Prequel Trilogy. If you can’t seem to remember or haven’t listened to it in a while but want to, just start the video from the 0:50 mark.

Anakin’s Theme is lesser known and also harder for people to remember since it’s not played very often. Don’t worry, I’ll let you know when it happens so you know you’re hearing it.

Now…onto the reason I’m here…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikcTJ-yh6w8

If you skip to 4:25, you will hear a breathtaking rendition of the spectacular love theme played on a harp.

What happens after that is pure magic and pure genius on John Williams part.

At 4:55, we hear Anakin’s Theme. Though it doesn’t quite evoke childhood innocence as much as it did in the orchestral recording for The Phantom Menace. Now, it’s more distraught, more disjointed, more melancholy, and overall much more haunting.

At 5:13, we hear Across the Stars, a theme that is nothing short of beautiful every time it’s played…but listen to what’s happening underneath it.

At 5:18, while Across the Stars is still heard, we hear an undertone of The Imperial March. It interrupts the beauty of the love theme and lets you know of the darkness that surrounds that love.

At 5:25, John Williams takes that love theme to incredibly chilling heights.

At 5:35, the end credits close with a very foreboding rendition of The Imperial March. A rendition that is so gut-wrenching and stomach-churning even for the short 10-seconds that it plays and you’re almost begging the music to return to it’s happier, higher tone…but it doesn’t. That’s how it ends.

The end credits of The Phantom Menace ended with Vader too but that was only because Anakin’s Theme actually ends with a small snippet of it. This particular piece of music heard at the very, very end of Attack of the Clones is not featured anywhere else in any other Prequel Film as it’s written here. John Williams didn’t have to do that, he didn’t have to go that hard when it was the last few minutes of, not just the film, but the end credits. But…he did and I am oh, so glad he did because it gives me chills and makes me want to cry every time I hear it.

In short, that small piece of music magic, starting from Anakin’s Theme, manages to tell you the entire story of the Prequel Trilogy in less than 2-minutes and all through the power of music. 

[sea-owl]

Modern day Francesca would 100% play the Imperial March on the piano whenever an angry Anthony entered the room to scold one of his siblings.

[sayruq]