The Lord Of The Rings: Fellowship Of The Ring (The Complete Recordings)
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Free Music Notes for The Lord Of The Rings: Fellowship Of The Ring (The Complete Recordings)
Free Music Review: Amazing, awe inspiring and the stuff of legends!
Hit: 5 Stars
What can I say that hasn't already been said about Howard Shore's magnificent score for the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy? A soundtrack can define the whole atmosphere of a film, and this fully orchestrated work certainly does that with sweep, splendor and wonder, alternately humanizing (hobbit-izing?) the characters, imbuing the landscape with magic and capturing the world-shaking impact of events of mythic proportions. And this was no easy task considering the iconoclastic status of the story and the superb quality of Peter Jackson's filmmaking. This is a truly a soundtrack for the ages--a fitting accompaniment to a film for the ages! Every aspect of life, from the extreme to the mundane, is captured in this music. Listening to it can make every remembered moment of the movie come alive again in your mind, from the most horrific battle to the smallest moment of humor or kindness. I think "The Fellowship of the Ring" is my favorite of the three "Lord of the Rings" soundtracks. I enjoy the juxtaposition of the lighter moments, like the sweet, simple hobbit theme, with the grander and more menacing sections of the music. What impressed me most as I watched "The Fellowship of the Ring" was how scary the music was when the hobbits were being pursued. Those relentless drums and eerily screaming drums made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up, even though I knew the story like the back of my hand and knew for a fact that the poor little heroes would manage to escape. But the music truly made me wonder otherwise ... Now that's good composition! And the fact that the filmmakers chose to include background music in so many of the scenes, almost continuously ... well, that's just good filmmaking! The other impressive thing about Howard Shore's score is how the voicing and the repeating musical motifs tie the whole thing together, like the finest of symphonies. In "The Two Towers" all the familiar themes from the first sound track return, reinvented as need be to link the films together while adapting to new developments in the action and the story. In this album, I particularly like the hardanger fiddle-infused theme for the Rohirrim, the Viking-like horse-riders of the steppes, and the ponderous, quirky music for Treebeard, the walking, talking tree. I would have enjoyed a bit more of these distinctive elements, which lend levity and diversity to a sometimes depressing and overwhelmingly intense body of music. Here, they make all-too-brief appearances, at least from a listener's point of view. But soundtracks are ultimately slaves to the script, and in conjunction with the film itself, the timing and phrasing of Shore's music is impeccable. Mysterious, menacing, folksy or heroic, the total effect is utterly convincing and utterly transporting. The battle scenes in "Return of the King" are incredible visuals, blending live action and computer-generated imagery so seamlessly and densely that it boggles the mind. But what would they be with only screams and snorts and scuffles to give them voice? It's Shore's frenetic, string-laden, brass-filled, drum-spurred fury that truly gives them life, waxing, waning and cueing the audience as to when the greatest menace is about to threaten the war-weary heroes. The musical themes from the first two movies continue to be developed here, wending their way in and out of expanded interpretations whose dense complexity rivals that of Tolkien's story, not to mention Peter Jackson's filmmaking itself. Jackson chose well when he picked Shore as his score writer. Very, very well! Make sure to get the extended edition DVDs of the movies themselves, with hours and hours of fascinating commentaries and behind-the-scenes documentaries about the making of the films. Truly a bargain at any price! For more seminal soundtracks, try John William's defining scores for the "Star Wars" series and Basil Poledouris's spectacular score for the original "Conan the Barbarian." You can hear more hardanger fiddle music (the inspiration for the Rohan/Rohirrim themes) in the work of Scandinavian fiddler Annbjorg Lien or any of the varied releases from the NorthSide label. Finally, for authentic music from bygone ages, why not try the real thing? There are many fine early music groups out there. Here's just a sampling: Anonymous 4 (pure-voiced sacred chant by four women), The Baltimore Consort (jaunty popular music from the Renaissance), David Munrow's Early Music Consort of London (simply perfection), Christian Mendoze's Musica Antiqua (lively, percussive Renaissance dance music), The Toronto Consort (great variety), Ensemble Unicorn (worlds of fun!), Wolgemut (brash buzzies and bagpipes with attitude), and the magical early/folk fusion of Cantiga and Burlap Lute. Have some fun with them and live your own fantasy!Free Music Review: Style and substance
Hit: 5 Stars
This score will naturally appeal to fans of J.R.R. Tolkien, Peter Jackson, and Howard Shore, but it is also a real gem for anyone interested in the way music is composed and recorded and in the way themes are developed.
This set includes not only the music that was included in the theatrical and extended cuts of FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING, but also additional music that was not included in either version of the film. Highlights from Disc 1 include Gandalf (Ian McKellan) singing a portion of a poem written by Tolkien at the beginning of "Bag End." Bilbo (Ian Holm) can be heard singing the same verse during "Keep It Secret, Keep It Safe." And at the end of "The Nazgul," Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen) sings a passage from Tolkien's poem "The Lay of Luthien," as heard in the extended cut of the film. Disc 2's biggest highlight, for me, is the track "The Great Eye," which was heard briefly in the extended cut of the movie but is greatly expanded here. This song incorporates the theme for Gondor, which makes a more prominent appearance during RETURN OF THE KING. The Gondor theme can also be heard during Disc 3's "The Mirror of Galadriel." Although there are only nine tracks on the third CD, it is actually the longest disc in the set due to several extended pieces of music that were written to accompany the battle scenes at the end of the film.
Another major plus for this set is the interesting and informative booklet that accompanies it. Rather than taking the easy and obvious route of writing a track-by-track synopsis of the score, writer Douglas Anderson instead identifies instruments, themes and motifs within the music that correspond to specific characters, races and environments in the film. Some of the material may be a bit difficult to grasp for those who are not familiar with the finer points of orchestral composition, but overall, the booklet goes the extra mile and becomes an essential part of the listening experience.
Is there a downside to this set? Yes. Quite frankly, the price is too high (although, thankfully, amazon offers a healthy discount). Don't get me wrong - it's a top-quality collection in every respect. However, in light of the fact that you can get the actual extended cut of the movie, which includes not only the film but more than 6 hours of bonus content spread across 4 DVDs, for about half the price of this collection, something seems amiss. (Also, while the booklet is perfect, it is a few pages shy of the "48" promised on the packaging... why can't the record company just be honest?) It is common knowledge that the score for FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING is actually the shortest of the soundtracks for Peter Jackson's trilogy. I can't imagine the scores for THE TWO TOWERS and RETURN OF THE KING fitting on only three CDs. If the forthcoming "complete recordings" for those movies include not three, but FOUR CDs plus a DVD for each set, can we expect the price to go up even higher than $60? Probably, but I hope not.
Price concerns aside, this soundtrack comes highly recommended. It is a perfect gift for fans of Tolkien's books, Peter Jackson's movies, and audiophiles in general.
Free Music Review: Beautiful and much is new. Yes, it's worth it! (Plus, book gives an education in epic film scoring)
Hit: 5 Stars
Admittedly I was hesitant: like many fans of the music, I already own all three Lord of the Rings scores. Was it really worth buying more? I took the chance, and just a few minutes into listening I had my answer: You bet.
Not only does this first-time release of the complete Fellowship score give you hours of beautiful new music not previously available, but it also includes gorgeous new orchestrations of the themes you already have if you own the abridged albums.
These are better.
All those tracks that were cut short, deleted or combined to fit on the original CD are restored to their full length and orchestration. This music is far superior to the original CD, and is worth every penny.
A terrific bonus is the booklet on the score. Not mere liner notes, this is a detailed education into how an epic film score is created. You get a glimpse into the mind of Howard Shore and how he conceived every theme and variation.
With brief bars of the score printed alongside detailed notes, including exactly where on the CDs we first hear each theme and each variant, you can get as richly rewarding a listening experience as you desire. I found it fascinating to learn, for example, why Shore chose a boys chorus at one point and a solo Irish whistle at another for the same theme, to evoke specific moods and places; or why the main Fellowship Theme develops in mere fragments at first until it is finally heard much later in all its fully orchestrated glory; or how it actually utilizes part of the sinister Seduction of the Ring Theme, transposed to a major key; or why Shore chose to make the Ring theme the only one that does not vary in instrumentation, key or style. These and dozens more more insightful tidbits broaden your appreciation of the score -- and the careful design of the film.
It is packaged beautifully and intelligently, as you can see in the photos Amazon has provided. I cannot wait for the next two to be released.
(Two track details: 1. I'm particularly happy this set includes one of the most beautiful Lord of the Rings themes, in my opinion, which until now one could only hear in the extended versions of the movies [or at Shore's symphonic concerts]. Here, it's on Disc 2, partway into Track 9 ["Gilraen's Memorial"], at 3:00. Brief, but powerfully stirring. 2. Thankfully, this set also includes the full version of the heartrending theme played after Gandalf's fall -- it runs over twice as long as the original abridged release. Disc 3, Track 1 ["Khazad-Dum"], at 5:45.)
Note on price: it is very fair and absolutely worth it. Some have complained it shouldn't be more expensive than the extended DVD movie, but one must remember that far, far fewer people buy scores than DVDs, and fewer still will buy a 3-disc extension of a score they already own. To be worth the extensive time and cost of producing it for a niche market, this must be priced a bit higher. Given the extremely high quality and detail and extras that have gone into this set, I am perfectly satisfied.
Free Music Review: Stunning....absolutely stunning
Hit: 5 Stars
I'm a musician, which means I'm pretty good at separating what is good and what is kitch, in terms of music. I've just finished listening to the DVD-Audio version of this soundtrack, and I am absolutely blown away. Firstly, for all the learned researchers out there who continue to muse about whether or not the human ear can actually hear the difference between the enhanced DVD-audio sound and CD-quality sound, I would like to say that yes, there is a difference, and yes, it can be heard. It can be heard in the same way that a good listener can hear the difference between the warmth of a vinyl album and the early sound of the original analogue-to-digital transfers that went into the first commercial CD's. I would ask you to do the following, if you are skeptical: place the DVD-audio version of this soundtrack in your computer (which is the only thing I have a 5.1 set of speakers attached to) and crank up the volume. If the hair on the back of your neck isn't on end after you've made it through the first few minutes of prologue, then you are dead.
As for the music itself, I've never bought a soundtrack album in my life, previous to this. Most soundtracks are crap. This one is absolutely remarkable, even for the slight flaws that have crept into the production. Firstly, I don't actually agree all that much with the one reviewer who finds Ian McKellan singing near the beginning to be disconcerting. I DID find the sudden break between two pretty ominous passages, in order to hear hobbits singing, slightly jarring, but of course this IS a soundtrack following the movie narration, and it DOES actually make sense to create a small break between two heavy sections with a lighter passage. Secondly, there are spots when the DVD moves from one track to another where the audio "dies" and then returns as the music moves from track to track. And yeah, that's annoying after one has gotten immersed in the music and suddenly is confronted with the reality that this really is a facsimile of a musical performance, and not the performance itself. Otherwise, though, the sound quality here is extraordinary. I've heard the terms "pompous" and "bombastic" used to describe Shore's music, but this isn't really fair. The movies themselves are really just a modern interpretation of the Nibelungenlied and a few other Northern European sagas mixed in for good measure, so it makes perfect sense for the soundtrack to have a Wagnerian atmosphere to it. Well, I highly recommend this soundtrack.
Free Music Review: The Road goes Ever On
Hit: 5 Stars
I received this package today,on J. R. R. Tolkien's
birthday. The reason for the high price became apparent when
opening it. It has the DVD on one side, with a firm peg to hold
it in. The deeper other side contains the three cd's with a nice
ribbon around them, to pull up the cd booklet. Under the ribbon
lies the printed booklet. I became blind at birth, so couldn't
get into that, but immediately I began browsing the dvd and
cd's. The dvd sounds great, unfortunately my player would not
allow forwarding and rewinding through the tracks, which became
annoying, so I switched to the cd's. As one without physical
sight, I can say that the music definitely contains the story.
Often, it can let you know what goes on by itself. Hearing the
complete score brings back the movie even more than the original
soundtracks. It feels like the difference between the theatrical
and extended versions of the movies, except even more so. The
original soundtracks did the job, but the discerning listener
would quickly realize the deletions, especially with the song at
the end. This suite has it all! Firstly, Gandalf singing The
Road goes Ever On helps add a vividness to the music. Bilbo then
sings the same song, and with just the music, it actually sounds
darker than in the movie. Hearing the music like this adds a
full appreciation of its qualities. For me, the biggest
highlight came at track eleven, The Passing of the Elves. I
first got into LOTR when a friend invited me over to watch the
movies. When the part with the wood elves came on, we both
wanted to hear the song by itself. It sounds even more haunting
and beautiful than it does in the movie. It gives the sense of a
real Elvin choir. Other highlights include the song of Luthien,
and the complete end music. The soundtrack cut off the second
song. This set delivers everything it promises, and more. It
also felt very fitting to receive it on Tolkien's birthday. I
first became familiar with Tolkien's work almost two years ago,
and it has shaped and improved my life immeasurably. To those
who do not want to say that they have come to journey's end, this
set and the knowing that the other two will come, can help keep
Middle Earth alive within.