Claim: Star Wars is a film.

John Williams ' score for Star Wars was recorded over eight sessions at Anvil Studios in Denham , England on March 5 , 8 -- 12 , 15 and 16 , 1977 . The score was performed by the London Symphony Orchestra with Williams himself conducting . The score was orchestrated by Williams 's frequent associate Herbert W. Spencer , who also orchestrated The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi . The score was recorded by engineer Eric Tomlinson and edited by Kenneth Wannberg , and the scoring sessions were produced by Star Wars director George Lucas and supervised by Lionel Newman , head of 20th Century Fox 's music department .   The film premiered on May 25 , 1977 and by late summer a disco version of the film 's theme by Meco became America 's number one song . In 2005 , the American Film Institute named the original Star Wars soundtrack as the most memorable score of all time for a U.S. film . In 2004 , it was preserved by the Library of Congress into the National Recording Registry , calling it `` culturally , historically , or aesthetically significant . '' In 2016 , the album was re-released by Sony Classical Records on vinyl , CD , and digital formats alongside Williams ' other Star Wars soundtracks . The vinyl release is pressed on 180g vinyl , and features the original 20th Century Records logo . Unlike all of Sony Classical 's previous releases , however , the vinyl version is a remastered version of the original 1977 release , not the Special Edition .