The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Beginning with a simple whistle tune that paints the hobbits' homeland, it is music in which more than fifty melodies each take up a character, a race or a place, woven together into one vast epic.
At a glance 🔭💭
Some coordinates adapted from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0) · Pleiades (CC BY 3.0)
The people behind it ⏳🌊
- ComposerHoward Shore
He wrote and conducted the trilogy's music over nearly four years, and won the Academy Award for Best Score for this film.
- DirectorPeter Jackson
He filmed Tolkien's novel as a trilogy all at once in New Zealand, and was often present at the recording sessions.
- ScreenplayPhilippa Boyens
A co-screenwriter, she wrote the English source texts for lyrics later rendered into Elvish and Dwarvish, such as the Moria chorus.
- ScreenplayFran Walsh
A co-screenwriter and producer, she wrote the lyrics for “In Dreams,” the boy soprano's solo at the end.
- ComposerEnya
Composed and sang “May It Be” and “Aníron.”
- Lead roleElijah Wood
Played Frodo Baggins, the hobbit who takes up the Ring and sets out on the road.
I. A composer summoned to Middle-earth
(Production) Peter Jackson divided J.R.R. Tolkien's novel “The Lord of the Rings” into three films and shot them all at once in his native New Zealand. James Horner and Wojciech Kilar were considered for the music, but in the end the Canadian composer Howard Shore was chosen. (Composer) Shore was born in Toronto in 1946. He served as the original music director of American television's “Saturday Night Live,” collaborated for many years with the director David Cronenberg, and made his name with scores for dark, taut films such as “The Silence of the Lambs” and “Se7en.” Until then, his résumé held no large-scale fantasy epic. (Preparation) Shore first visited the set in 1999 and sketched the Shire theme and Frodo's theme before filming had even begun. In August 2000 he watched rough cuts of the first and third films. He built his themes by holding on to the novel and the screenplay before the finished footage existed. The whole trilogy took him nearly four years. (Scale) Most of the music was played by the London Philharmonic Orchestra. It was recorded in a concert hall in Watford, outside London, and mixed at Abbey Road Studios. The adult choir London Voices and the boys' choir London Oratory School Schola sang, and the linguist David Salo translated the lyrics into the Elvish and Dwarvish languages Tolkien had invented. Released the same year as “Moulin Rouge!,” which this series has also covered, the film was nominated alongside it for Best Picture the following year, and it was this film that won the Oscar for its score.
The album's first track, an early version written before the film's prologue music. You can hear the material from which the Ring theme set out.
- The finished film used a more detailed prologue. This track is the music for an earlier prologue that was later cut, so it differs slightly from what was heard in theaters.
- Over a low-lying chorus and strings, the Ring theme rises and falls as if coiling. This short melody becomes the leitmotif (a short recurring melody attached to a character or object) that signals the Ring throughout the trilogy.
- Listen for the rough timbre of the rhaita, a North African double-reed wind instrument. Blending a sound unfamiliar to the orchestra, it conveys an ancient and alien power.
II. The pipes of the Shire
(Prologue) The film opens with a narration recounting the history of the Ring, from its forging to its disappearance. Beneath this passage runs a low, chill, coiling melody — the Ring theme that threads through the entire film. Shore blended into it the rhaita, a North African double-reed wind instrument, to clothe it in the strange air of a distant past. (Hobbits) When the screen shifts to the Shire, the texture of the sound changes at once. Celtic folk instruments come to the fore: the tin whistle, a small metal pipe; the fiddle, a violin played in folk style; the Irish bodhrán drum; the dulcimer and the harp. The calmer, more contemplative Shire theme is said to have grown out of a rustic fiddle tune. (Party) Bilbo Baggins's eleventy-first birthday party has Gandalf's fireworks and dancing. The music follows the merriment of the village celebration step for step, creating the most carefree stretch of the film. (Three faces) The Shire theme appears in three guises: reflective, rollicking and rustic, and solemn as a hymn. Thereafter, however far the Fellowship travels, the moment this melody sounds the audience thinks straight of home. The Shire theme does not stop at depicting a place; it keeps reminding us what the hobbits are trying to protect. (Shadow) As Bilbo leaves the Ring to Frodo and departs, the Ring theme begins to seep in, bit by bit, beneath the peaceful village scenes. From this moment, when the bright major-key folk melody and the dark Ring melody begin to overlap within a single scene, the story is set in motion.
The music for the scene in which Frodo and Gandalf enter the Shire. This piece creates the most peaceful few minutes in the film.
- The tin whistle (a small metal pipe) and the fiddle (a violin played in folk style) lead the melody. The bodhrán (an Irish hand drum), dulcimer, and harp add Celtic folk color.
- The same Shire theme changes clothes, from rollicking rustic dance to a calm, song-like air. Throughout the film this melody becomes a marker that calls home to mind.
- Shore sketched this theme when he visited the set in 1999, before filming began. It is one of the first melodies of the trilogy to be born.
III. The pursuit of the Black Riders
(The past) Gandalf confirms that Frodo's ring is Sauron's One Ring. The album's “The Shadow of the Past” is the music for this passage, and each time the Ring's history is told, the Ring theme darkens. Frodo leaves the village with Sam. (Isengard) Meanwhile Gandalf seeks out Saruman the White, but Saruman has already taken Sauron's side. In “The Treason of Isengard,” Shore hammers out a rhythm that cycles in units of five beats on steel plates, Japanese drums, and chains. The machinelike nature of Isengard, which tears up the earth and stamps out armies, is captured whole in that rhythm. (Nazgûl) The nine riders hunting the Ring are given low brass and male chorus. The choral text is written in Adûnaic, which Tolkien conceived as the tongue of Númenor, an ancient kingdom of Men. The choice of language carries the history of the riders, once kings of Men who became slaves of the Ring. (Stillness) When a Black Rider halts above the hobbits hiding beneath a tree root by the road, the music all but withdraws. The horse's labored breathing, the rider sniffing the air, and insects crawling out of the earth build the tension. This film also knew when to take the music away. (Weathertop) At the inn in Bree the hobbits meet the Ranger Aragorn and follow him onto the road. In the ruins of Weathertop Frodo is stabbed with a Morgul blade, and the Elf Arwen carries him on horseback to the Ford. In “A Knife in the Dark” and “Flight to the Ford,” the music never lets go of the chase's speed.
The passage in which the nine riders hunting the Ring come down to the edge of the Shire. Hushed silence and sudden chorus alternate.
- The male chorus sings in Adûnaic, which Tolkien conceived as the tongue of an ancient kingdom of Men. Through language, it hints at the history of riders who were once kings of Men.
- Low brass hurls down short, sharp figures. The same sound is heard whenever the riders appear, so that it becomes an alarm in itself.
- At the moment a rider halts by the roadside, the music almost vanishes. This passage builds tension by taking sound away, so it comes through more clearly when heard with the film.
IV. The nine are formed
(Rivendell) Frodo wakes in Rivendell, the valley of the Elves. In “Many Meetings” harp and women's chorus paint the Elven realm in clear, high tones, and the Shire theme returns for the reunion with Bilbo. After the chase scenes, it is the first moment to catch one's breath. (Council) At the council convened by Elrond, the representatives of Elves, Dwarves, and Men raise their voices over what to do with the Ring. At a moment when the Ring on the table seems to reflect their quarrel, Frodo steps forward and says he will go. Only then does the music move. (Fellowship) At the very moment the nine come together, the Fellowship theme sounds for the first time in full, led by the horns. In the early part of the film this theme is heard only in fragments; it is completed the moment the Fellowship is formed. From then on it swells and shrinks, scatters and regathers, with the company's fortunes. (Lovers) Woven into the same track is “Aníron,” sung by Enya. It flows over Aragorn and Arwen's night conversation, whispering longing in Sindarin, one of the Elvish languages. On the album the song is not a separate track but part of “The Council of Elrond.” (Departure) In “The Ring Goes South,” as the Fellowship leaves Rivendell, the music glances briefly at the Shire theme before passing into the Fellowship theme. The order of the two melodies captures exactly the hobbits' situation as they leave home behind and walk into a shared task.
At the moment the nine resolve to set out with the Ring, the Fellowship theme reveals itself in full for the first time. Enya's “Aníron” is contained in the same track.
- Heard only in fragments in the early part of the film, the Fellowship theme rings out whole on the horns at the moment of formation. The point at which the melody is completed coincides with the point at which the company is completed in the story.
- Enya's “Aníron” is sung in Sindarin, an Elvish language. It plays over Aragorn and Arwen's night scene, the voice, recorded in many overlapping layers, spreading dreamlike.
- Enya later included a longer version of this song on her own greatest-hits album. Comparing it with the film version reveals the differences in arrangement.
V. The darkness of Moria
(Caradhras) The Fellowship tries to cross the mountain Caradhras but is turned back by a blizzard raised by Saruman. In the end they take the underground road through the Mines of Moria, the Dwarf kingdom where Gimli's kin live. (Dwarrowdelf) In “A Journey in the Dark,” Gandalf kindles the light of his staff, revealing a hall of stone pillars stretching beyond sight. A low male chorus sings in Khuzdul, the language of the Dwarves. The lyrics were written in English by the screenwriter Philippa Boyens and translated into Khuzdul by David Salo. Tolkien left only a handful of Khuzdul words, so Salo had to expand the language from those fragments. The glory and the ruin of a vanished kingdom are held together in this single chorus. (First recording) This Moria music was the very first music recorded for the entire trilogy. It was played by the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra in the Wellington Town Hall, New Zealand, in early 2001. (Balrog) As hordes of Orcs swarm in, “The Bridge of Khazad-dûm” begins. Drums and brass relentlessly repeat a single figure, and the chorus piles on top, building the pressure. When the Balrog, a being of fire and shadow, reveals itself, the music becomes the most massive block of sound in the whole film. (Loss) On the narrow stone bridge, their guide stands alone. When the confrontation ends, the roar of the orchestra falls away, and a frail solo voice and strings remain over the slow-motion images. Even as the Fellowship stumbles out of the mines and collapses in the sunlight, the music does not hurry, holding on to grief for a long time. This near-silent moment at the heart of the film becomes the climax the audience remembers.
This music carries us from the chase through Moria to the Balrog's appearance and the confrontation on the stone bridge. It forms the climax at the very center of the film.
- An ostinato (repeated figure), in which drums and brass stubbornly hammer out the same rhythmic pattern, builds up the pressure of the chase.
- The male choir sings in Khuzdul, the language of the Dwarves. The lyrics were written by screenwriter Philippa Boyens and translated by linguist David Salo.
- The Moria music was the first music of the trilogy to be recorded. The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra performed it at the Wellington Town Hall in early 2001.
- Listen for the contrast after the confrontation, when the whole orchestra withdraws at once and only a slender voice remains. The quietest sound is placed right after the loudest.
VI. Paths that scatter
(Lothlórien) The weary Fellowship enters Lothlórien, the forest of the Elves. Shore clothes Galadriel's wood in the Hijaz scale used in the Middle East, lending it a sense of immeasurable age. Where the forest Elves mourn the one they have lost, Elizabeth Fraser, formerly of the Cocteau Twins, sings a lament in Elvish. This piece is contained within the album's 「Lothlórien」 track. (The great river) In boats given to them by the Elves, the company travels down the Anduin. In 「The Great River」, as they pass between the colossal statues of the ancient kings, the Fellowship theme rings out grandly once more, but now the sound carries weight in place of the giddy spirit it had when the company was formed. (Amon Hen) At Amon Hen, a hill above the river, Saruman's army of Uruk-hai attacks, and the Fellowship scatters to fight, each defending the others. 「Amon Hen」 drives the battle forward with the metallic rhythms of Isengard. Then, as one character's choice comes to its conclusion, the music lets the din of battle fall away and wraps the scene in slow choir and strings. What happens there is best seen in the film. (Breaking) Frodo resolves to go east alone, and Sam follows him. In 「The Breaking of the Fellowship」 the Fellowship theme scatters, and the Shire theme fills the space it leaves. It is as if the music were reminding them once more what they are going for. (Afterglow) Over the end credits, boy soloist Edward Ross sings a song that sets words to the Shire theme, and then Enya's 「May It Be」 begins. The story does not end but passes on to the next installment, and the music, too, releases the audience with the road left open rather than brought to a close.
This is the passage where the grieving Fellowship rests in the forest of the Elves. The lament sung by Elizabeth Fraser is contained within this track.
- Beneath the forest melodies lies the Hijaz scale used in the Middle East (a ladder of pitches mixing half steps with wide intervals). That is why it sounds more distant and ancient than the other Elvish music.
- Elizabeth Fraser, formerly of the Cocteau Twins, sings a lament in Elvish. It is a way of singing that conveys grief even if you cannot understand the words.
- The Fellowship theme is almost inaudible. This is how the music shows a company that has lost its guide, standing still for a moment.
This piece links the final scene, in which Frodo decides to leave alone and Sam follows him, to the end credits.
- As the company scatters, the Fellowship theme is heard only in fragments, and the Shire theme slowly fills the space it leaves.
- The second half is the end-credits edit. Boy soloist (the high voice of a boy before his voice breaks) Edward Ross sings 「In Dreams」, a song that sets words to the Shire theme.
- The song weaves together three faces of the Shire theme: the contemplative, the rustic and the hymnlike. It gathers up at the very end the melodies of home that had been scattered throughout the film.
Enya's song closes the credits. It flows like a prayer offered to a journey that is not yet over.
- Enya composed and sang it, and Roma Ryan wrote the lyrics. Its feeling is that of a blessing sent to someone walking in darkness.
- The song was nominated for the Academy Award and the Golden Globe for best original song.
- Enya's signature choral texture, built from many layers of her own recorded voice, closes the film with a grain different from Shore's orchestra.
Lesser-known stories
(The first recording) Almost all the music for the trilogy was recorded in London, but the very first piece to be recorded came not from London but from New Zealand. In early 2001 the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra recorded the music for the Moria sequence at the Wellington Town Hall. Peter Jackson later recalled this recording as the starting point of the trilogy's music and praised the resonance of the hall. This is also why the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra's name appears alongside the London Philharmonic in the album credits. (A different version) The official album is not a straight transfer of the music actually used in the film. The first track, 「The Prophecy」, was written for a short early prologue that was replaced by a more detailed sequence in the final film, and the trilogy's soundtrack albums include many early versions recorded while editing was still under way. The music exactly as it sounds in the film could be heard in full only after 「Complete Recordings」, timed to the 2005 extended editions, was released. Because the album had to come out first to coincide with the premiere, many listeners spent years hearing music slightly different from what played in theaters. (Other candidates) When the composer was being chosen, James Horner and the Polish composer Wojciech Kilar were also considered. Shore was then known as a composer of horror and thriller scores, and in 1999, before filming had even begun, he visited the set and wrote the Shire theme and Frodo's theme in advance. He composed his themes first from the novel and the screenplay, before he received any finished footage. (The companion book) Shore allowed musicologist Doug Adams to observe his working process throughout the entire composition period. The result, the 2010 book 「The Music of the Lord of the Rings Films」, is accepted as the de facto official guide. The book catalogued the names and uses of more than fifty leitmotifs, and most later discussion of this music takes it as its reference.
Notes on terms 📚🔎
Guiding motive (leitmotif)
(Word origin) Leitmotiv is German for a leading (leit) motive (Motiv). The Korean term yudodonggi ('guiding motive') (誘導動機) carries over the same sense of a short musical idea that leads the way. (In film·stage music) A short melody that recurs whenever a particular character, place or object appears. Hearing the melody alone, the audience knows what it points to. In this film the Ring, the Shire, the Fellowship and Moria each have a melody of their own. It is like knowing that recess is over when the school bell rings, without having to look. (Elsewhere) In literature or everyday conversation, it is also used for a central idea that recurs throughout a work or a person's life.
Cue
(Word origin) The English word cue means a signal given on stage to an actor or crew member to begin their next action. (In film·stage music) A cue is a single block of music written to fit a specific scene in a film. Some last a few seconds, others a few minutes, and the composer writes a separate cue for each scene. A single track on a soundtrack album often strings several cues together. It is like a school play where a pre-chosen piece of background music is played each time the scene changes. (Elsewhere) In broadcasting or live performance, the signal to start right now is itself called a cue.
Ostinato (repeated figure)
(Word origin) The Italian ostinato means 'stubborn.' The name comes from stubbornly repeating the same figure over and over. (In film·stage music) A technique that builds tension or momentum by repeating a short rhythm or melody without pause. Even as other melodies change above it, the same figure keeps circling underneath. The drums and brass pounding the same rhythm endlessly in the Moria chase or the Isengard scenes are an example. It is like jumping rope: when your friends keep turning the rope at the same steady beat, the jumper can move however they like.
Scale
(Word origin) The Korean word eumgye ('sound stairs') (音階) means a staircase (階) of sound (音). It refers to notes laid out in order of pitch, like steps. (In film·stage music) Which scale is chosen can change the mood of a melody dramatically. Do-re-mi-fa-sol-la-ti-do is the major scale our ears know well. Shore clothed Lothlórien in the Hijaz scale used in Middle Eastern music, whose uneven gaps between steps give a strange, ancient feeling. It works on the same principle as a familiar children's song that suddenly sounds exotic when a few of its notes are sung a half step lower. (Elsewhere) In business, the English word scale is used to mean size, and growing in size is called scaling up.
Irregular meter (five beats)
(In film·stage music) Most music is counted in groups of two, three or four beats. Meters counted in rarer groups, such as five or seven beats, or whose group size changes often, are commonly called irregular meters. The Isengard music turns on a unit of five beats, so a listener trying to tap along feels uneasy, as if one beat were somehow left over. Shore used that unease to express the unnatural power of Saruman's forces. Think of marching to one, two, three, four and suddenly being told to count to five: your feet get tangled.
Orchestral writing (orchestration)
(Word origin) The Korean word gwanhyeonak ('pipes and strings') (管絃樂) means music made together by gwan (管), instruments blown like a pipe, and hyeon (絃), instruments whose strings are bowed or plucked. Gwanhyeonakbeop, orchestration, is the method of deciding how to divide the music among those instruments. (In film·stage music) Even the same melody feels completely different depending on which instrument it is given to. In this film the Shire was given the tin whistle and fiddle, the Fellowship the horn, and the Ring a North African wind instrument called the rhaita. This distribution of instruments is orchestration. It is like cooking the same ingredients: the taste changes depending on whether you roast them or steam them.
Boy soloist (boy soprano)
(Word origin) Soprano comes from the Italian sopra, meaning 'above.' It refers to the voice that takes the highest range in a choir. (In film·stage music) The high voice a boy produces before his voice breaks is called a boy soprano. Clearer and with less vibrato than an adult woman's soprano, it is often used to evoke something pure or wistful. At the end of this film, Edward Ross of the London Oratory School boys' choir sings alone. Picture the classmate with the highest, clearest voice singing the first line solo in music class.