Majestic Fanfare
| Company type | Composition |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music, Broadcasting |
| Founded | 1935 |
| Founder | Charles Williams |
| Products | Orchestral composition, News theme music |
Majestic Fanfare is a brief orchestral composition created by British composer Charles Williams in 1935. It is best known as the signature tune for ABC news broadcasts and remains in use on ABC NewsRadio as well as ABC News.
1943 version
The initial recording of this piece occurred in 1943, performed by the Queen's Hall Light Orchestra under the baton of Williams himself. A shortened variant gained recognition in Australia as the theme for radio coverage of the Parliament of Australia, later becoming synonymous with ABC news programs. This usage commenced on 1 January 1952, supplanting a truncated version of Advance Australia Fair that had been employed during World War II. The adoption of Majestic Fanfare was favored due to its neutral and non-political character.
1982 version
To celebrate ABC's 50th year in 1982, Majestic Fanfare underwent modernization with the addition of synthesizer elements and was transposed up by a semitone to E major. This refreshed arrangement was adopted as the theme for ABC News television broadcasts.
1988 version
In preparation for the 1988 Australian Bicentenary, ABC commissioned Richard Mills to re-orchestrate the piece, infusing it with a contemporary Australian sensibility. The new version was recorded by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra under conductor Stuart Challender at the Sydney Opera House, and Mills' interpretation has continued to hold significance. His original scores are preserved within the music library at the University of Melbourne.
Currently, Majestic Fanfare remains in use for ABC Radio news bulletins. Although a replacement theme created by Armiger was proposed in 2005, it was ultimately not adopted for radio broadcasts. The composition exists in two distinct lengths: an 18-second rendition used for regional radio and extended bulletins, and a shorter 9-second edit for most other news segments.
Other ABC News themes
When ABC replaced its evening news program with The National in 1985, Majestic Fanfare was supplanted by Alan Hawkshaw's Best Endeavours, a theme also utilized by Britain's Channel 4 News.
Following the relaunch of ABC News later that year, Majestic Fanfare was not reinstated. Instead, two themes composed by Australians have been employed since then. The first, simply titled ABC News theme, was written in 1985 by Sydney musicians Tony Ansell and Peter Wall and remained in use for nearly two decades. The current ABC News theme, introduced on Australia Day 2005 and composed by Martin Armiger, incorporates motifs from the original Majestic Fanfare. Updated versions appeared in 2010 and 2017, while a remastered edition of the Ansell and Wall theme premiered in 2024.
In 1991, audio engineers Paul McKercher and John Jacobs from ABC-owned Triple J produced a remix of the original 1943 recording. This version features samples from NWA's "Fuck tha Police" and Prince's "Gett Off" and has been used to open the station’s news bulletins since that time.
In 2010, Australian-English drum and bass group Pendulum released their remix of the 1985 theme, which reached number eleven on the Triple J Hottest 100 chart. Pendulum performs this track live exclusively within Australia and regard it as one of their preferred live pieces.
External links
- Majestic Fanfare on Australian Screen Online; contains the 1943 performance by the Queen's Hall Light Orchestra.
- A Sixth Garland of British Music, MusicWeb International; provides a concise biography of Charles Williams and information regarding Majestic Fanfare.