Music, classical or otherwise, for LOTR

Post by **Crucifer** » Tue May 06, 2008 8:27 pm

lali, could you post the link to that vid please?

Aravar, I hope you mean Sir John Elliot Gardiner's version of it, where he takes the opening bit at a snails pace, and the fanfaric bits at hyperspeed...

kams: Do Dwarves Do Barbershop? Or is it a sort of "Everyone's singing really low but there're loads of interesting overtones" type thing?

Post by **WampusCat** » Tue May 06, 2008 8:33 pm

I thought it was "Hi ho, Hi ho, it's off to work we go ..."

Post by **Primula Baggins** » Tue May 06, 2008 8:34 pm

I imagine Dwarves doing something along the lines of Mongolian throat singing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPFYTRRH ... re=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0M3YFK3s ... re=related

Edit: I deleted a redundant post of mine than I thought I had edited away and replaced with this one before posting, but evidently not. My mind is all higgledy-piggledy these days.

Post by **Crucifer** » Tue May 06, 2008 9:07 pm

I love Mongolian throat singing...

I can't do it though...

I saw a group of 4 live once. Haunting...

Post by **kams** » Tue May 06, 2008 9:33 pm

Crucifer wrote:kams: Do Dwarves Do Barbershop? Or is it a sort of "Everyone's singing really low but there're loads of interesting overtones" type thing?

Given that they are dwarves and not professional musicians or traveling minstrels, I was just thinking that they'd have a hodge-podge of instruments when they gather. So at Bilbo's hobbit hole, when they sing the tale of their stolen loot, we HOF-folks would be a perfect fit! We could bring drums, viola, piano, clarinet, pennywhistle, bagpipes, guitar and whatever-all-else. Since I don't really play any instrument well, I'd lend my voice.

And I'd be glad to take throat-singing lessons if it would land me a trip to NZ and a part in the movie!

This is all akin to what "Flaming Red Hair" did in FOTR.

Post by **Lalaith** » Wed May 07, 2008 5:56 am

Crucifer wrote:lali, could you post the link to that vid please?

I can't seem to figure out how to do that. I went to the iTunes store and did a search for Patrick Gowers. It comes up as one of his songs, and you can click on it to listen to a 30 second clip. I don't see a url anywhere to give you. Sorry!

kams, I think you're on the right track. Our hodgepodge group sounds like a perfect fit for dwarves--really, for hobbits, too, I think. It's the idea that you play whatever you have on hand, depending on who was there with what instrument.

What is "Flaming Red Hair" in FotR? I have flaming red hair. (Well, it used to be. Now that I'm getting older, it's more like fading red hair....

)

Lali

Post by **ToshoftheWuffingas** » Wed May 07, 2008 8:28 am

Just going back to Aravar's suggestion of Elgar's Introduction and Allegro for strings; that is good. The great sweeping sounds fit the sense of openness and waving grass and even horses moving about. Were you thinking of the Ken Russell film for Monitor?
I have thought once or twice about how (some) composers who were contemporary with Tolkien seem to fit his work and if it could be put down to the zeitgeist.
Is Zadoc the Priest the right fit for the coronation of Aragorn? That passage seemed more about dignified humility coupled with an informal acclamation rather than intense pomp. The field of Cormallen perhaps though the music doesn't really last long enough. Perhaps the first meeting with Celeborn and Galadriel?

Post by **Aravar** » Wed May 07, 2008 10:35 am

crucifer wrote:Aravar, I hope you mean Sir John Elliot Gardiner's version of it, where he takes the opening bit at a snails pace, and the fanfaric bits at hyperspeed...

I'm not familiar with it, unless it's the version used in The Madness of King George. The version I have is Trevor Pinnock and the English Concert.

ToshoftheWuffingas wrote:Just going back to Aravar's suggestion of Elgar's Introduction and Allegro for strings; that is good. The great sweeping sounds fit the sense of openness and waving grass and even horses moving about. Were you thinking of the Ken Russell film for Monitor?
I have thought once or twice about how (some) composers who were contemporary with Tolkien seem to fit his work and if it could be put down to the zeitgeist.
Is Zadoc the Priest the right fit for the coronation of Aragorn? That passage seemed more about dignified humility coupled with an informal acclamation rather than intense pomp. The field of Cormallen perhaps though the music doesn't really last long enough. Perhaps the first meeting with Celeborn and Galadriel?

I haven't seen the Ken Russell film, it's just the music evokes that sense of openness.

I think for the Field of Cormallen, at least the presentation of Frodo and Sam, that Worthy is the Lamb from Messiah would be appropriate. I agree that Zadok would also be approriate for Celeborn and Galadriel.

I'll think some more about the coronation.

I'll also suggest the first movment of Tchaikovsky's Serenade for Stings for the first approach of Gandalf and Pippin to Minas Tirith. I think it fits well with the great city at dawn.

Post by **ToshoftheWuffingas** » Wed May 07, 2008 12:53 pm

If you look in my most recent post in the LOTR TV serial you will see I have juxtaposed Tallis's Spem in Allium with the field of Cormallen.

Ken Russell's film was one of his early works he did for the BBC arts programme Monitor. It was a dramatised biography of Elgar with an actor as Elgar galloping over the Chilterns (?) to the sound of the Introduction and Allegro for Strings. It was very in keeping with the Rohan landscape though a little too lush for the inhabitants.

and yes it is Zadok, sorry for the typo.

Post by **kams** » Wed May 07, 2008 3:29 pm

Lalaith wrote:What is "Flaming Red Hair" in FotR? I have flaming red hair. (Well, it used to be. Now that I'm getting older, it's more like fading red hair.... )Lali

Flamin Red Hair is the name of the group who played at Bilbo's party in FOTR. (There is a quick shot where Pippin joins them.)

Post by **Lalaith** » Wed May 07, 2008 3:42 pm

Yes, I remember seeing that. What a great name for a band!

Lali

Post by **kams** » Wed May 07, 2008 5:14 pm

I knew you would approve!

Post by **solicitr** » Thu May 08, 2008 2:55 pm

For Aragorn's coronation myself I always heard Rimsky-Korsakov's 'Procession of the Nobles' from the unfinished opera Mlada.

Thu May 08, 2008 3:05 pm

[ot]Lali, I love your new lolcat pic![/ot]

Post by **axordil** » Thu May 08, 2008 3:17 pm

Voronwë_the_Faithful wrote:[ot]Lali, I love your new lolcat pic![/ot]

[still ot] Indeed. [/still ot]

I have a lot more music in my head for pieces of the Sil than LOTR...but in a fit of 70s-centrism I have always associated Elton John's "Funeral for a Friend" with Gandalf and Pippin's ride to MT.

Don't ask me why.

Post by **Lalaith** » Thu May 08, 2008 3:26 pm

[ot] Thanks!

It cracked me up, too. [/ot]

Is there any way everybody could post links to the music they are recommending? I mean, no one has to go on a 3 hour hunt for something, but maybe just see if it's on YouTube?

Lali

Post by **solicitr** » Thu May 08, 2008 3:39 pm

Lali, I looked for a decent clip of the R-K, but all they have are pretty lame (mostly high school bands).

Post by **ToshoftheWuffingas** » Thu May 08, 2008 5:56 pm

And I don't have a sound card in my comp (I think) which makes it dumb of me to start this thread!

Post by **kams** » Thu May 08, 2008 7:31 pm

Don't worry about appearing dumb. I just noticed that this thread is about music for LOTR and here I've been posting about my wishes for the Hobbit!!

Post by **Lalaith** » Thu May 08, 2008 7:38 pm

Well, I just feel dumb because I don't know half of the suggested pieces--which is why I appreciated the links whenever possible.

And I love classical music.

(solicitr, no problem! Thanks for looking.

)

Lali