Violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter has been astonishing audiences since her first performance with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra at age 13. She has performed around the world, made dozens of acclaimed recordings, and inspired great composers to write for her, including Sofia Gubaidulina, Krzysztof Penderecki, and John Williams. On this magical 2019 album, Mutter and Williams collaborate on some of the film composer’s finest movie themes, mixing the famous (Star Wars and Schindler’s List) with the not-so-famous (Dracula, Munich, and The Adventures of Tintin). A highlight is Williams’ new arrangement of “Hedwig’s Theme” from Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, which showcases Mutter’s incredible technique with virtuoso violin writing worthy of the great violinist and composer Pablo de Sarasate. This deluxe edition of Across the Stars features the world premiere of “Markings,” a short, intense work for violin and orchestra composed by Williams specially for Mutter. And it ends on a note of contemplation, a beautiful arrangement of the affecting “A Prayer for Peace” from 2005’s Munich.