The Theme from the Magnificent Seven is the first video by the Orchestra at Temple Square (without the Choir) to reach 1 million YouTube views. It has become a beloved Orchestra piece on our YouTube channel and inspires comments such as:

• “This performance leaves me breathless.”

• “OBSESSED WITH THIS”
• “There are no words to express how I feel looking at the conductor and the orchestra for pulling this all together.”
• “This is my dad's ringtone, amusingly.”
• “Wow...... one of the best performances of this piece I have heard. Magnificent. pun intended.”

The Magnificent Seven is a 1960 Western film, which starred popular actors of the time such as Yul Brynner, Eli Wallach, Steve McQueen, James Coburn, and Charles Bronson. Although the film wasn’t a box office smash, the music by Elmer Bernstein was one the reasons for the film’s continued admiration throughout the years, earning Bernstein an Oscar nomination for his score. In September 2016, a remake of The Magnificent Seven was released starring Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, and Ethan Hawke to name a few.

The Theme from the Magnificent Seven, which was inspired by composer Aaron Copland, was a personal favorite of Bernstein, who once said, “Every once in a while—it doesn’t happen often—you hit on something really feel quite thrilling. I remember being very excited when I found that opening rhythm. It was like a surge of energy.”

The theme was covered by jazz guitarist Al Caiola and reached no. 35 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart. It has also been used in popular music, commercials, television, and films, including Arthur Conley’s “Sweet Soul Music,” Moonraker (James Bond), and by Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band as an entrance for their concerts in 2012.

In 2015, Laura Osnes was the guest artist for the annual Pioneer Day concerts in Salt Lake City, Utah, where she performed songs such as “Climb Ev’ry Mountain,” “A Lovely Night,” “If I Loved You,” “All the Things You Are,” and more. Watch the entire concert »

The Orchestra at Temple Square opened the Pioneer Day concert with The Theme from the Magnificent Seven. Watch and share: