Live Review: Hans Zimmer Delivers the Greatest Cinematic Masterpiece
By Sheldon Ang
Photography by Sheldon Ang Photography
Hans Zimmer – 12 October 2026 – at RAC Arena Perth Western Australia
If the eyes are the windows to the soul, then Hans Zimmer Live is the language of emotion, spoken when words fall silent.
And silent we were.
13,000 fans stood still without a whisper. We sat in awe, entranced and bedazzled, as the scores drew us into an undulating journey of visceral catharsis, from Earth to the infinity of space.
Tension, chaos, hope, exhilaration, love, loss, redemption, adrenaline, transcendence, joy, contemplation. For three hours, emotion arrived in waves, carried by a multilayered orchestra and ethereal, cinematic voices that became instruments in their own right, filling the arena with mood, depth, space and time. Sight and sound fused into a fantasy film world, and by the final note, it felt as though we had stepped out of the dimension of imagination.
Last night, we had the honour of immersing ourselves in the music of Hans Zimmer, arguably the greatest German composer in modern film music. As both a photojournalist and reviewer, I was privileged to be part of the spectacle. I found myself fighting back tears while photographing it, then again while writing about it.
Put simply, we had just witnessed one of the greatest shows ever staged at the RAC Arena in Perth…
* * *
At 7.45, the bright lights fade into dark hues, and the sound of distance seeps into the arena. We cross into a twilight zone.
The Dark Knight rises, metaphorically and, to a certain extent, literally, as Hans Zimmer stands high on the four-tier stage beneath smoky hues. Propelled by “Like a Dog Chasing Cars”, the lighting and thunderous thuds entwine and resonate across the arena as the intensity grows. Trickling strings from violin and cello signal chaos, repeating over and over and building tension without release. We can thank the eye-catching cellist Mariko Muranaka and the triple-threat violinists Amy You, Alexandra Tirsu and Molly Rogers for that. The dog is not tired; he knows only pursuit. Brass erupts. Then come the thunderous kicks.
BOOM, BOOM, BOOM. The lighting punches across the arena, sweeping over the canopy of heads. On Level 1, percussionists Steven Doar and Aleksandra Suklar, alongside drummers Aicha Djidjelli and Holly Madge, pummel their instruments as though their lives depend on it, signalling danger. Their hair flies like that of drummers in an ’80s heavy metal band. Energy cascades through the chaos they create. The hypnotic savagery is addictive to watch and hear. They are the centrepiece of this score.
Zimmer descends the stairs, grabs a guitar and begins jamming with the musicians one by one, including a friendly duel with one of the world’s greatest guitarists, Guthrie Govan. He smiles and laughs, standing among players a generation or two younger than him.
The strings begin to race, triggering flashes of light in the background. Mariko swings her bow with such intensity that the audience begins to sway from side to side. The tension keeps building, with no ending in sight. That is the beauty of the moment.
We are sitting in the middle of Gotham City as danger approaches from somewhere we cannot see, and still there is no ending in sight.
The title comes from one of the Joker’s most famous lines in the 2008 film: “I’m like a dog chasing cars. I wouldn’t know what to do with one if I caught it. You know, I just… do things.”
His point is that, even if he wins, he has no final objective. He is driven by the chase itself. Hans Zimmer captures this brilliantly through constant intensity, without an endgame or crescendo.
We then move through screaming string notes, unsettling electronics and growing tension that echo the Joker’s unpredictable psychological menace, before settling into recovery and resilience. Bruce Wayne emerges as a protagonist broken both physically and mentally, making this one of the most emotionally powerful pieces in the Batman section.
RIP Heath Ledger.
We will not analyse every track, as that would turn this review into a book. But we are tempted.
We then head towards destiny and faith, beginning with “Paul’s Dream” from Dune.
We are carried on a journey by ethereal voices, unusual timbres and expansive sonic landscapes. Standing high on the multilayered stage and drenched in red hues, soloist Loire Cotler soars above the orchestra, adding to the vastness of an arena filled with 13,000 people. The New Yorker brings another layer of sound and human emotion. We are captivated and entranced, as though propelled into another chapter.
We progress to “What Are You Going to Do When You Are Not Saving the World?” from Man of Steel, with its simple motifs, broad orchestral sweep and noble harmonic progression. We feel the humanity in it, always striving upwards.
The music turns towards darkness in “To Every Captive Soul” from Hannibal, with orchestral colours and a beautiful undercurrent of unease, before moving into “Chevaliers de Sangreal” from The Da Vinci Code. Its gradual crescendo layers choir upon choir, expanding towards harmonic release as we experience every rise and fall.
It feels like destiny and faith.
We also hear folk influences as the orchestra mirrors Sherlock Holmes’s mind, racing through problems faster than everyone else through unusual instrumentation and unpredictable rhythms in “Tick Tock (Shadow Part 2)” and “Discombobulate”. The sonic ambience is fast-paced and chaotic, while a map of Sherlock’s thoughts resonates in the background.
We then enter the Gladiator Suite, the emotional centrepiece of the concert, where Maximus begins as a soldier and ends as a symbol through “Homecoming” and “Barbarian Horde”. The four percussionists and solid basslines bombard us. One standout piece is “Elysium”, as we drift into a sense of equanimity beyond time, even though we know the film offers no such peace. This may be the most beautiful section of the suite. We feel the weightlessness of soloist Lisa Gerrard; her angelic voice lingers for eight minutes or so, and she could continue for another hour while we remain lost in time. After a very long battle, we breathe again with flautist Veronika Vitazkova and cellist Mikako. Just brilliant. We feel the tension and rhythm, but Gladiator is ultimately driven by memory, grief, honour and transcendence.
If music tells a story, this is it.
A 20-minute intermission awakens us from the dream and returns us to reality.
And just like that, the fantasy begins to collapse with “Dream Is Collapsing” from Inception. Zimmer shifts from emotional cataclysm into rapid acceleration and restlessness. It feels as though aliens have arrived.
The strings race in repeating patterns, brass punches through the texture and percussion drives everything forward. Instability has arrived. We go from resolve to chaos, and once again everything feels urgent in “160 BPM” from Angels & Demons. There is no room to breathe. The orchestra pushes harder and harder, every musician running at full speed.
From the pounding percussion, the music flows into the string orchestra in one of the strongest transitions of the entire concert.
Then the music settles into the Pearl Harbor suite, built around “…And Then I Kissed Him” and “Tennessee”. The orchestra becomes more intimate, with soft strings and lyrical tenderness, yet urgency remains beneath the surface.
You do not need to have watched Pearl Harbor to feel its emotional reach. This suite contains some of Zimmer’s greatest work, moving us deeply and reminding each of us of someone we have loved.
Fast-forward, and we hear “F1” from F1 and “Dune II Suite, Part 1, Intro” from Dune: Part Two. We are immersed in human voices that feel tribal, ritualistic and almost ancient. The vocalist from the first Dune returns, and with her comes a sense of awakening. Once again, we are floating.
The next major suite is Interstellar. Zimmer introduces “Day One” with a feeling of awakening, bringing in the organ, the emotional centre of the entire score, tracing a journey from exploration to love, fear and heartbreak, making the suite the emotional core of the concert. Just like the film, it stirs the ache of separation and a mixture of emotions. The organ gives way to warm strings as the music becomes more lyrical, focusing on emotional connection before culminating in the climax. It feels like a single journey. The music moves from wonder to love, then fear and separation. The organ creates a sense of infinite space, the strings bring warmth, and the slow-building crescendo makes the emotion grow larger with every passing minute.
While the organ can represent religion, Zimmer uses it to represent scale.
Our eyes then shift to the space above the front of house. Floating high above the arena, an aerial performer in a body suit dabbled with a thousand glitters spins, stretches and somersaults on an apparatus, carrying us into the realm of human imagination for a distant, as though we are watching from a distant galaxy.
Then, we are awaken by reality. We move into an African adventure with The Power of One. Zimmer opens with African percussion, choir and solo vocals by Lebo M, while the rhythm section becomes more distinctive. Drums drive the music forward. This is one of the most energetic sections of the concert.
The transition feels like an awakening. While the Interstellar suite makes us feel small beneath the stars, this score makes us feel alive again. It is only natural that the next suite is The Lion King, where the music shifts from orchestral power to the most expressive instrument of all: human connection. It is the warmest section of the concert.
We hear the sweeping vocal lines and choir harmonies of “He Lives in You”, where community and heritage sit at the epicentre. Then the famous declaration explodes into the arena through a solo call from vocal powerhouse Refi Sings is nothing short of breathtaking.
“The Journey / Kopano, Part III” from Tears of the Sun brings layered percussion and choral textures, carrying the weight of struggle and survival. The feeling becomes collective, and the sense of community grows in “Busa”. By “Stampede”, percussion explodes, strings race and brass attacks. It truly is a stampede, filled with brewing chaos. Finally, the intensity falls away. The orchestra becomes emotional again, the strings carry the melody and the choir softens. The room grows quiet once more. It is a cultural celebration. By the time “Remember” ends, Zimmer has carried the audience from the loneliness of space in Interstellar back to Earth, culture and identity.
The encore begins in unexpected darkness after the celebration of the African suite. The room suddenly dims, and the audience descends into the depths of Pirates of the Caribbean. With “Jack Sparrow”, everything becomes lighter. The music swaggers with a touch of his humour. Musical insanity brews through racing strings as Zimmer creates instability. “He’s a Pirate” becomes the audience’s most interactive moment, a final burst of recognition and exhilaration.
For the finale, we return to Interstellar with “Time”. A simple piano motif begins, which feels like a melancholy solo, but then the strings enter and the brass expands. The percussion deepens, and the entire orchestra begins to breathe again. Zimmer’s famous crescendo rises, leaving the audience with one final thought…
…we all have limited time. Use it well.
And that, in itself, is one of the most powerful endings of one of the greatest shows we’ve ever covered.
Hans Zimmer Live are touring across Australia. Tickets are available from Frontier Touring
Sheldon Ang Media would like to thank Frontier Touring and Hans Zimmer for the photo and media accreditation
Hans Zimmer at the RAC Arena Perth. Photo by Sheldon Ang / Sheldon Ang Media
Setlist
Set 1
Like a Dog Chasing Cars (The Dark Knight, 2008)
Why So Serious? (The Dark Knight, 2008)
Gotham’s Reckoning (The Dark Knight Rises, 2012)
The Fire Rises (The Dark Knight Rises, 2012)
Paul’s Dream (Dune, 2021)
What Are You Going to Do When You Are Not Saving the World? (Man of Steel, 2013)
If You Love These People (Man of Steel, 2013)
To Every Captive Soul (Hannibal, 2001)
Chevaliers de Sangreal (The Da Vinci Code, 2006)
Tick Tock (Shadows, Part 2) (Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, 2011)
Discombobulate (Sherlock Holmes, 2009)
Homecoming (Gladiator, 2000)
Barbarian Horde (Gladiator, 2000)
Duduk of the North (Gladiator, 2000)
Elysium (Gladiator, 2000)
Honor Him (Gladiator, 2000)
Now We Are Free (Gladiator, 2000)
Set 2
Dream Is Collapsing (Inception, 2010)
160 BPM (Angels & Demons, 2009)
…And Then I Kissed Him (Pearl Harbor, 2001)
Tennessee (Pearl Harbor, 2001)
F1 (F1, 2025)
Arrival (Dune: Part Two, 2024)
A Time of Quiet Between the Storms (Dune: Part Two, 2024)
Day One (Interstellar, 2014)
Murph (Interstellar, 2014)
Coward (Interstellar, 2014)
S.T.A.Y. (Interstellar, 2014)
The Journey / Kopano, Part III (Tears of the Sun, 2003)
Circle of Life (The Lion King, 1994)
Busa (The Lion King, 1994)
Stampede (The Lion King, 1994)
Remember (The Lion King, 1994)
Encore
The Kraken (Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, 2006)
Jack Sparrow (Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, 2007)
One Day (Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, 2007)
Up Is Down (Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, 2007)
He’s a Pirate (Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, 2003)
Time (Inception, 2010)
About Sheldon Ang Media: Sheldon Ang, photojournalist, writer and the founder of Perth-based Sheldon Ang Media (est. May 2022) has been accredited to over 250 of the hottest acts including Taylor Swift (ERAS Tour in Sydney), Coldplay (Perth), AC/DC, KISS, Metallica, Iron Maiden, RHCP and P!NK with reviews shared by the likes of Belinda Carlisle, UB40, Delta Goodrem, and Roxette. He has interviewed the late Ace Frehley (KISS), Suzi Quatro, John Steel (The Animals), Frank Ferrer (Guns N Roses), Phil X (Bon Jovi), Andrew Farris (INXS) plus over 100 artists. He’s also a contributor on Triple M Radio as a music journalist.
