Most composers spend just 10-12ish weeks working on a film’s music. John Williams spent around 14 weeks on each Star Wars movie, 40ish weeks total for the whole OT……but composing the LOTR trilogy’s soundtrack took four years
The vocals you hear in the soundtrack are usually in one of Tolkien’s languages (esp. Elvish). The English translations of the lyrics are all poems, or quotes from the book, or occasionally even quotes from other parts of the films that are relevant to the scene
When there were no finished scenes for him to score, Howard Shore would develop musical themes inspired by the scripts or passages from the book. That’s how he got all Middle-Earth locations have their own unique sound: he was able to compose drafts of “what Gondor would sound like” and “what Lorien would sound like” long before any scenes in those places were filmed
Shore has said his favorite parts to score were always the little heartfelt moments between Frodo and Sam
Shore wrote over 100 unique leitmotifs/musical themes to represent specific people, places, and things in Middle Earth (over 160 if you count The Hobbit)
The ones we all talk about are the Fellowship theme, the main Shire Theme, and the themes for places like Gondor, Mordor, Rohan, and Rivendell…but a lot of the more subtle ones get overlooked and underappreciated
Like Aragorn’s theme. It’s a lot less “obvious” than the others because, like Aragorn himself, it adapts to take on the color of whatever place Aragorn is in: it’s played on dramatic broody stringed instruments in Bree, on horns in battle scenes, softly on the flute with Arwen in Rivendell….
Eowyn has not just one but three different leitmotifs to represent her
Gollum and Smeagol both have their own leitmotifs! Whose theme music is playing in the scene can often tell you whether the Gollum or Smeagol side is “winning” at the moment
The melody for Gollum’s Song in the end credits of the The Two Towers is the Smeagol and Gollum themes smushed together (it’s Symbolic)
And then there’s the really obscure ones. Like there’s a melody that plays at Boromir’s death that shows up again in ROTK in scenes that foreshadow a major death or loss
Shore wanted the theme music to grow alongside the characters– so that as the characters changed, their theme music would change with them.
You can hear that most clearly in the Shire theme. Like the hobbits, it goes through A Lot
Like compare the childish lil penny whistle theme you hear in Concerning Hobbits/the beginning of FOTR with (throws a dart at random Beautiful Tragic Hobbit Character Development scene because there WAY TOO MANY to choose from) the scene when Pippin finds Merry on the battlefield, where you hear a kind of shattered and broken but more mature version of that same theme in the background
I could write you a book on how much I love the way the Shire theme grows across the course of these films
Unlike the hero’s themes, which constantly change and grow, the villain’s themes (The One Ring theme, the Isengard theme, etc) remain basically the same from the very beginning of FOTR to the end of ROTK. Shore said this was an intentional choice: to emphasize that evil is static, while good is capable of change
Shore has said that between all the music that made into the movies and the music that didn’t, he composed enough for “a month of continuous listening”……..where can I sign up
A quick reminder for folks in the US: if you haven’t seen anything about ACA open enrollment this year, that is by design. Secretary Azar wants to lower enrollment numbers to justify pulling funds from medicare/medicaid. Here are your dates:
The 2020 Open Enrollment Period runs from Friday, November 1, 2019, to Sunday, December 15, 2019. If you don’t act by December 15, you can’t get 2020 coverage unless you qualify for a special enrollment period. Plans sold during Open Enrollment start January 1, 2020.
I literally cannot overstate how important creative hobbies are when dealing with mental illness. If you can’t draw, there are coloring books. If you can’t write a novel, you can write in short journaling bursts. If you can’t sing in the shower, you can listen to music. Sometimes with mental illness it feels like we have this dark presence inside of us that is bumping around in our brain and organs, causing problems. It helps immensely to let it out.
This doom she chose, forsaking the Blessed Realm, and putting aside all claim to kinship with those that dwelt there; that thus whatever grief might lie in wait the fates of Beren and Lúthien might be joined, and their paths lead together beyond the confines of the world. So it was that alone of the Eldalië she has died indeed, and left the world long ago. Yet in her choice the Two Kindreds have been joined; she is the forerunner of many in whom the Eldar see yet, though all the world is changed, the likeness of Lúthien the beloved, whom they have lost.
solid but workmanlike house words. good implicit threat. could have been a bit more poetic, but then again, so could most of the Boltons 7/10
House Greyjoy: “We Do Not Sow”
really just a sentence that deserves a polite “oh?” in response 3/10
House Lannister: “Hear Me Roar!”
a good and fearsome lion image, but undercut by the exclamation point which frankly by lannister standards is trying too hard. if you asked tywin lannister about this, he would tell you with quiet irritation that the exclamation point was not his doing 9/10
House Arryn: “As High as Honor”
very poetic and elegant, and a nice reference to the Eyrie. clearly means to instill admiration rather than fear, and it works. unfortunately, also invites humorous drug-related double entendres 8/10
House Tyrell: “Growing Strong”
needs serious reconsideration! implies that house tyrell is not already strong! all for the sake of a weak pastoral pun! 2/10
House Stark: “Winter is Coming”
unbelievably goth. not only promises the destruction of you and all your loved ones but also possibly of the starks and all their loved ones. the ultimate buckle the fuck up house words 11/10
House Tarly: “First in Battle”
nicely aggressive! but ambiguous. does this mean house tarly is first onto the field, or first numerically when the winners are ranked, because that’s not really how battles work. it must also be said that these house words sound like a high school superlative. 6/10
House Targaryen: “Fire and Blood”
good use of dramatic standalone nouns. very threatening, if a tad unhinged, which is a decent summation of house targaryen. at least they’re honest about it 8/10
House Martell: “Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken”
are you tho.
9/10 if read alone but 5/10 when read with the cruel dramatic irony of the series
House Tully: “Family, Duty, Honor”
the worse of the two mottos separated by two commas. unlike “Fire and Blood,” none of these nouns is romantic or exciting enough to inspire my loyalty. sounds vaguely like a westerosi sequel to eat pray love 4/10
House Baratheon: “Ours is the Fury”
the perfect house words. confident, dynamic, and unifying. also thrillingly catchy and filled with the thirst of war itself. would be so satisfying to scream before riding onto a battlefield 10/10
House Wode: “Touch Me Not”
same. 15/10
I’ve always gotten the impression that the Lannisters came up with their words mere seconds before the deadline, and then someone came up with “A Lannister Always Pays His Debts several months later in the shower
