The Story Behind How Jonathan Bailey Ended Up Playing A Clarinet Solo On Jurassic World Rebirth’s Score: ‘It Was The Most Terrifying Thing’

by

Many enthusiasts are eagerly anticipating the upcoming release of Jurassic World Rebirth next week. Some might be particularly thrilled to witness Jonathan Bailey, famed from “Wicked”, take on his next major role in this sci-fi action epic. Interestingly, not only will we see a new facet of him on screen, but we’ll also get to appreciate a different aspect of him through the movie’s soundtrack.

It wasn’t common knowledge that Jonathan Bailey could play the clarinet, in addition to singing and dancing. However, it was revealed that he is quite skilled with the instrument when he had the opportunity to join the orchestra during the recording of the Jurassic World Rebirth score. In an interview with SiriusXM, he shared that his visit to Abbey Road Studios for entertainment led him to pull out his clarinet and give it a try, feeling inspired by the experience. He elaborated…

The previous week, I worked on ADR with Gareth, and the next week, they were recording at Abbey Road Studios. Eagerly, I decided to tag along, as I was captivated by film scores, particularly Alexandre Desplat’s work in this production. It was absolutely mesmerizing! On the first day, I happened to be performing in a play, so it served as a peaceful respite. There, I found Conrad, the original orchestrator for John Williams, and it was an elite 105-piece orchestra. Overwhelmed, I thought, “I could bring my clarinet,” as I hadn’t played it seriously for nearly two decades.

After some persuasion, Bailey ultimately agreed to join the orchestra for a performance. He enjoyed the experience, primarily because he wanted to play the famous Jurassic Park theme composed by John Williams. Interestingly, despite the passage of 18 years, his clarinet skills were still quite impressive, as Alexandre Desplat, renowned composer of Rebirth, acknowledged him and even invited him to stay longer. Moreover, Bailey was even given a solo part, although he initially declined, not wanting to disrupt the experienced musicians. However, he persisted in his musical journey…

Indeed, I concur with your statement. You understand that nobody desires an actor suddenly claiming to perform a task, but in this instance, I simply mimicked the John Williams score at first, and then Alexandre said, ‘You can play, you’ll stay.’ A clarinet solo was suggested, and they asked if I wanted to perform it. My response was a firm ‘No, no,’ and that moment was absolutely petrifying.

It’s reasonable and praiseworthy that Bailey hesitated to grab the solo from an orchestra member initially. However, it appears everyone was fine with it. When the chance for a solo came again, he was once more given the opportunity, and this time he accepted. The timing couldn’t have been better. As Bailey said…

The situation became more peculiar because that sequence hadn’t been written in the original script. During our interaction with the Titanosaurus, there were additional scenes planned, and we filmed these for a week and a half. Interestingly, after recording John Williams’ score, there was a clarinet solo that was supposed to be played, but I felt uneasy about it. This feeling persisted, and when it came up again, the director encouraged me, saying “Now or never,” and I reluctantly agreed. Remarkably, this happened to coincide with the exact moment my character interacted with the dinosaur. What’s more, the clarinet solo wasn’t even scripted initially; the composer wrote it specifically for that scene.

If you’re catching Jurassic World Rebirth next week, keep an eye out for Jonathan Bailey interacting with a dinosaur and playing a clarinet solo – that’s him on the instrument! It’d be great if I hadn’t given up the clarinet back in fourth grade.

Read More

2025-06-27 19:09