The lightsaber. The Star Destroyer flying into the screen after the initial title crawl. Luke, Leia and Han. All of these are major parts of "Star Wars" lore, but when the famed films are mentioned, it is hard not to think about the music John Williams created for them.

The composer is currently hard at work for the upcoming "Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens," marking the seventh time he has been involved with the franchise. He recently talked to Vanity Fair about his work on the new movie and revealed some interesting nuggets of information. None was more interesting than his response to whether old themes will reappear in the film.

"There are some scenes where we do make reference to earlier thematic pieces. We haven't done it yet, but we're planning to do it. It's something that I think will seem very natural and right in the moments for which we've chosen to do these kinds of quotes. There aren't many of them, but there are a few that I think are important and will seem very much a part of the fabric of the piece in a positive and constructive way," he stated.

Leitmotifs are a major structural part of the Star Wars musical universe and have remained so throughout the original trilogy and prequels. For the most part, themes have cropped up when characters have been referenced or made appearances in the film. There has rarely been an instance in "Star Wars" in which a theme appears without direct reference to a character or symbol onscreen in some form.

Which means that if Williams does not see old themes cropping up more than a "few" times, then it is likely that many of the major characters make few appearances in the film. More importantly, it might also pave way for other composers to take the mantle of composer for future installments.

This happened in the Harry Potter franchise where Williams composed three scores. His final score was a major departure from the first two films, undoubtedly the result of working with a different director.

But it might in a way be the composer's way of moving into new territory and leaving the door open for others to take over the franchise.

It will be interesting to hear what new sounds Williams concocts for the new Star Wars movie and how it differs from other efforts.