The Music of the Hobbit (Now with possible Spoilers)

For discussion of the upcoming films based on The Hobbit and related material, as well as previous films based on Tolkien's work
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Elentári
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Re: The Music of the Hobbit (Now with possible Spoilers)

Post by Elentári »

Well, it didn't have the "Nazgûl" theme for starters...

See for yourself - footage with original version restored:

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Re: The Music of the Hobbit (Now with possible Spoilers)

Post by Passdagas the Brown »

Sorry, I thought you were referring to the final Thorin/ Azog fight in BOFA.

I remember the radical change to that scene in AUJ, and though I understood the outcry from those who follow the thematic landscape of Shore's score, I didn't share the fuss. Yes, it's the Nazgûl theme, but it works rather well on an atmospheric level, so it doesn't bother me at all.

Not to mention that one could justify it, thematically, as a "captain of Sauron" theme. Given Azog's relationship to the Dark Lord, it's not entirely inappropriate...

Especially if you see Azog as a Boldog!
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Elentári
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Re: The Music of the Hobbit (Now with possible Spoilers)

Post by Elentári »

Well, yes...and Doug has tweeted about it recently:

https://mobile.twitter.com/Jess5_11/sta ... 102976?p=v
the chorus is singing in Dwarvish (Khuzdul)—but they're singing about Azog and his connection to Mordor and an ancient evil. #HowardShore
which prompted one TORn poster to improvise...
*...dum dum dum dum dum dum dum dum* AAAAAZOG! *Dum dum dum dum dum* IS EEEVIL! *Dum dum dum dum* HEEEE WORKS *Dum dum dum dum* FOR SAAAURON! *Dum dum dum dum* :)
:rotfl:
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Re: The Music of the Hobbit (Now with possible Spoilers)

Post by Sunsilver »

Coming late to the discussion here...

I got the BOFA CDs for Christmas, and am only now getting around to listening to them, as neither of my CD players were working. (Okay, where my stereo was concerned, it's the ancient receiver that's not doing so well. One of the channels is quite static-y and distorted.)

I finally copied both CDs to my computer, and am listening to them that way.

The impression I got when trying to play them on my stereo still holds. What is wrong with the music basically is the same thing wrong with the film. Battles, battles and MORE battles, all of them with very heavy bass and drums. Not exactly the sort of music I enjoy listening to for recreation...

I have the CDs for Fellowship and Return of the King, and have played them over and over. There's the odd track I don't care for, and routinely skip. In both cases, what prompted me to buy the discs were the beautiful final songs: "May it Be", and "Into the West". And that was what caused me to buy the BOFA CDs: Billy Boyd singing "The Last Goodbye"!

I love the version that was first posted on this site, where the song is accompanied by footage from the films, and shots of the cast, crew and P.J. I am assuming some of these shots (especially the ones where they and P.J. are hugging) mark the actor's final day on the set. I keep watching that version of the song over and over on YouTube, because it brings such nostalgic memories of this incredible journey. Now that the journey is over, I've started watching the LOTR films again. It's fun to try to spot the exact out-takes that were used in the song... :)

Anyway, I am definitely not as impressed by the music from The Hobbit as I was with the music from LOTR. I am not alone in this. Both "May It Be" and "Into the West" won Oscars, and Howard Shore won an Oscar for the ROTK score. I don't recall seeing any nominations for the music from these films. :( I very rarely go to listen to music live, but when the LOTR symphony came to Toronto, I jumped at the chance to buy tickets, and was not disappointed. It was fantastic! The clever use of drawings from the films, shown at key moments, was very, very well done, and several times, I found myself incredibly moved as I remembered those moments from the film.

I loved the Misty Mountains song, as well as 'The Last Goodbye'. However, both lack the emotional wallop I experienced when I first heard the other two songs at the end of FOTR and ROTK.

Edit: and now I need to work my way through all 35 pages of this discussion to see what I've missed! :help: So far (10 pages in), I gather the music has been the subject of much controversy, so much so that some changes were made (see above, re. Azog and the Mordor theme.) People are still divided on whether the music was edited poorly, or some of it even lifted directly from LOTR. I haven't seen the films often enough to comment on this, and will have to wait until the extended edition DVDs come out, as I'm too cheap to spend my hard-earned cash on the theatrical editions!
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Re: The Music of the Hobbit (Now with possible Spoilers)

Post by Voronwë the Faithful »

I just saw this at TORC; it was posted a couple of days ago and no one said a word, but I think it is really lovely:

"Spirits in the shape of hawks and eagles flew ever to and from his halls; and their eyes could see to the depths of the seas, and pierce the hidden caverns beneath the world."
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Re: The Music of the Hobbit (Now with possible Spoilers)

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The Vinyamars on Stage! This time at Bag End
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