| The Mission | |
|---|---|
| Theme music byJohn Williams | |
| Genre | Orchestral, television theme |
| Commissioned by | NBC News |
| Published | 1985 |
| Premiere | |
| Date | September 9, 1985 |
| Performers | NBC Orchestra |
| Used by variousNBC News programs includingNBC Nightly News,Meet the Press, andToday | |
"The Mission" is anorchestralsuite composed byJohn Williams in 1985 as atelevision news music package forNBC News.[1] It consists of four movements:The Mission, used forNBC Nightly News, with variations used for some other NBC programs,Fugue for Changing Times, used forBefore Hours during 1987–1988, Scherzo for Today, used forToday until 1990, andThe Pulse of Events, used byMeet the Press and specialbreaking news reports.
At the time Williams was approached to write the NBC News suite, he was already well known for his work onStar Wars,Superman, andE.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. NBC engaged Williams due to the network's desire to contrast with thesynthesized music common for news programs at the time. Williams stated he wanted to convey the concepts of nobility of purpose, consistency, and dignity. The original recordings were made with an 80-piece orchestra.[2]
The suite consists of fourmovements. The original recording included two versions of each movement to open and close each show, and elevenbumpers conveying varying moods.[2][3]
The first movement is also calledThe Mission, and has been used forNBC Nightly News since September 9, 1985. It has also been known asThe Sound of the News.[2] Its opening features a distinctivesyncopatedfanfare over a violin line. A reviewer forSlate compared it to the work ofRichard Strauss andAaron Copland, and noted that the piece makes "you feel that you've been asked to join an exciting journey for truth".[4]
The Mission was re-recorded in October 2004 with a 100-piece orchestra conducted by Williams at theSony Pictures Studios. This recording has a crisper and cleaner sound.[3] The opening theme ofThe Mission was updated on November 8, 2004, in preparation forBrian Williams succeedingTom Brokaw as the anchor onNightly News, and the closing theme ofThe Mission was updated on March 26, 2007, as the program began broadcasting in high-definition. Another update was made in 2011, containing only subtle changes.[3]
Variations ofThe Mission have also been used forNBC News at Sunrise prior to 1996, forThe Chris Matthews Show, and forToday from 1985[3] to 2013, when it was replaced with a new piece byAdam Gubman conveying a "more newsy and less cinematic" sound.[5] The theme has also been used on some NBC affiliates for their local newscasts.
Australia'sSeven Network adopted the original theme for itsnews bulletins in 1988. Seven has since updated its version of the theme three times independently from NBC that each have utilized a modernized "hard news" cadence compared to the original theme's strictly orchestral composition. One Seven Network affiliate,TNT (for itsNightly News) inTasmania, also use the theme for their local news programming. Before 2015, the intro for the news of theRadio Television of Djibouti also used to feature a short part of the Seven Network's theme.
Fugue for Changing Times was used forBefore Hours, a 15-minute early morning business news program hosted byBob Jamieson, which aired between March 1987 and September 1988.[3]
Scherzo for Today is a short two-minute piece composed for use as the opening theme ofNBC'sToday. Its mood was intended to be celebratory and flashy.[2] Like mostscherzos, it is light and upbeat, and utilizesternary or "ABA" form. The "A" theme, carried by the strings, is rather jumpy and loud, with thebrass serving as a raucous accompaniment, and the "B" theme, the theme ofThe Today Show, is smoother and more melodic. The new music gave the program a distinctly modern and refined sound.
The music was used until 1990, when it was replaced with a variation onThe Mission.[3]
The Pulse of Events was originally intended formidterm election coverage on November 4, 1986[citation needed] and was later adopted byMeet the Press in 1989[6] andbreaking news interruptions in 1993.[7][3] It was meant to convey a worldly and serious tone.[2]Slate characterized the piece as having "fast, complicatedmodulations that sound more urgent and wary than [The Mission]: They foreground the show's relentless, logical ethos".[4]
NBC commissioned John Williams to write new music for NBC News and uses it forToday...
