The Music Of The Lord Of The Rings Films - Doug Adams' Book & Rarities Archive

[Maglorfin 196]

So the book is coming out in the beginning of October, right?

Yes the book which includes the Rarities Archive CD will be released around the time of the Radio City Music Hall performance of FotR in the beginning of October (October 9th and 10th to be exact).

Superb. Do you maybe also know where we will be able to (pre)order it first? ;-)

[Incanus 5,713]

So the book is coming out in the beginning of October, right?

Yes the book which includes the Rarities Archive CD will be released around the time of the Radio City Music Hall performance of FotR in the beginning of October (October 9th and 10th to be exact).

Superb. Do you maybe also know where we will be able to (pre)order it first? ;-)

At this point that has not come up on Doug Adams' blog. I would very much like to know that myself.

[Incanus 5,713]

Doug Adams announced this on his blog (which just changed layout): What I can tell you is that we have a 416-page hardcover book packed with music examples, score pages, film stills and artwork from John Howe and Alan Lee. Living in the back cover is a 23-track CD featuring unused, alternate, and early-draft music from FOTR, TTT, and ROTK ... and even a little discussion with Howard Shore and myself. The book and CD will be released this fall in a single package available worldwide

416 pages!!! Now there is some serious discussion about this music!

[indy4 155]

This sounds really cool...any mentions of the price?

[Quintus 5,399]

I'll probably get it; but I'd rather they'd release a recording of the score on dvd or BR, to be honest.

[MattyO 62]

Some moron over at FSM has already complained that there's possibly an audio interview on the CD with Doug Adams and Howard Shore. This is a rarities ARCHIVE - why wouldn't it include some commentary from Shore? And it's in the form of an audio interview, so what! I'm seriously fed up with some of the elitist bullshit going on at the FSM boards - I know Lukas Kendall is too. Where are all the decent film score fans?

[Quintus 5,399]

Not here, that's for sure!

[Incanus 5,713]

Not here, that's for sure!

JWFan the Home of Indecent Film Music Fans (In association with FSM MB)

Your daily dose of cynicism and pessimism

I do believe it will turn out to be spectacular book and CD. It is not like we don't have the complete scores already. This is just extra.

[Quintus 5,399]

Ha! I know it will be an essential purchase for fans like us. I was only joking above, as I think you knew

[gkgyver 1,645]

Honestly, I'd rather have more music than Howard Shore discussing yet again the difference between Gondor and Rohan - but it's not a cause to vomit all over it.

Just depends on how long this interview is.

They do have a point, you know. Since it's called the *Rarity* archives, there should only be rarities.

Howard Shore discussing LOTR is not exactly a rarity, since he's been asked in dozens of interviews before the films' release, after the films' release, and in every interview about other scores he did.

Had it been a DVD, well, then there'd have been plenty of room for both music and commentaries. Here, we have a standard audio disc of approximately 80 minutes, which should be pondered over how to spend intelligently.

Bottom line, 65-70 minutes of unused LOTR music is fantastic, but the interview wouldn't have been necessary, since I severely severely doubt it will contain anything remotely new.

[MissPadmé 17]

How exactly do you know that the Shore Interview segment does not offer any rare information, that he wouldn't tell anywhere else?

[Richard Penna 3,667]

23 tracks... that's around 7 tracks per score. Take off a couple for synth demos and you've got 4 or 5 alternate/unused cues per film. Sounds decent.

[Incanus 5,713]

Bottom line, 65-70 minutes of unused LOTR music is fantastic, but the interview wouldn't have been necessary, since I severely severely doubt it will contain anything remotely new.

And they could actually (gasp!) be discussing the Rarities in question and not the LotR music in general.

Like a quick commentary on the music you know.

[crocodile 7,979]

Bottom line, 65-70 minutes of unused LOTR music is fantastic, but the interview wouldn't have been necessary, since I severely severely doubt it will contain anything remotely new.

And they could actually (gasp!) be discussing the Rarities in question and not the LotR music in general.

Like a quick commentary on the music you know.

That's exactly what I was thinking. Introductions to different abondoned ideas. Sounds good enough to me.

Karol

[Joe Brausam 214]

Plus it's Adams who would be conducting the interview -I'm sure he could lead the discussion in an interesting direction.

[MattyO 62]

The spectacular quality of the CR's should give everyone abolsute faith that Doug will be releasing something topnotch.

[Luke Skywalker 1,792]

IMO... i would have prefered the interview to be written in one or two pages of the book rather that take space from the CD...

Lets hope at least it is interesting and not 'rehashed material'.

[Ollie 1,059]

Good lord, we have almost 10 hours of music with the CR's. People are gonna gripe for more?

I don't need an hour of alternates from each film. I wouldn't want that with any composer.

[crocodile 7,979]

We have already 3 CD's of alternates. Well... sort of.

Karol

[Ollie 1,059]

That too.

[Brónach 1,301]

And we're going to end up with 14 discs and 3 DVDs... It's the pinacle of film score releases...

Me wants certain classic scores to be treated like this...

[Jay 37,271]

Doug Adams on the FSM boards:

Quote

The ‘Howard and Doug Yammering Away’ bit takes up two tracks at the end of the disc. And you’re exactly right, we had a little extra room and wanted to find something appropriate to fill the space.

 

More than that, however, we felt it was in keeping with the concept of the overall project. The overarching goal here is to foster a deeper understanding and appreciation for Shore’s work on this series—but to do so in an aesthetically expressive way. We’re shooting for beautiful analysis, I guess.

 

The Rarities Archive is an extension of this idea. It has a little of everything: entire compositions you’ve never before heard, familiar compositions with new structures and passages, unused songs, theatrical versus DVD alternates, original demo material … and yes, Howard and myself sounding a little like Ernie and Bert lost in deep thought. (Basso profundo voices we have not!) If you’ve heard us speak in the past, no, it’s probably nothing shockingly new. But the pre-concert lectures have been a popular part of the live performances. While I suspect a good number of ‘we dedicated few’ on this board have already seen the lectures, many fans have not. Howard liked that the talk gave the project a little bit of a human touch, so we included it at the end of the disc. (And I’ll tell you a secret … we had a couple of pieces of unused music that were incomplete recordings—just fragments a few seconds in length, no clean starts or stops, but quite unique nonetheless. You may hear those pop up in the talk as a mini-bonus!)

 

This disc literally took us years to figure it all out. It’s an archive at heart, but while we imagined people navigating around and picking out a track here or there, we also wanted to present a rounded listening experience that could be played straight through. Tracks 1 through 21 are pure music … everything we had after years of digging through hard drives, recording logs, and thousands of CD-Rs stashed in a file cabinet. The curtain falls neatly at the end of 21, then we come out for a little post-concert conversation. Frankly, depending on the mood I’m in, I’ll often skip these last two tracks as well. Like anyone else, sometimes I want to think about the music’s creation, and sometimes I just want to hear the music. And sometimes I just don’t want to hear my dorky voice.

 

Anyway, we wanted to give the audience a true archive-worth of materials, and allow people to listen as they see fit. It’s a unique thing. I think that once you see the track list it will be obvious that we didn’t drop any music in favor of the talking.

 

So that was the thought process. I won’t be offended it you hit stop after track 21. Howard, however, oh he’ll find you …

 

D

[Luke Skywalker 1,792]

oh yeah, i was going to mention that in my post: if the interview is there filling space that was gping to be unused i cannot complain

Doug's description sounds good.

[Incanus 5,713]

Thanks for posting this Jason! I rarely visit the FSM board so I would have missed it. Doug's explanation and elaboration sounds good to me.

[Jay 37,271]

I rarely visit the FSM board

Lately, you're not missing much. It's been infested with trolls in recent times.

[Wojo 2,453]

I visit it from time to time, but only ever lurk. It seems quite hostile.

[Jay 37,271]

JWFan is a much better place to talk about scores

FSM board is good to learn about upcoming releases right away, and get the occasional insight from some people from the labels who post there

[Ollie 1,059]

I've been a member of FSM's message since its beginings in 1996 or 97.

Like every board you have to learn how to wade thru the BS. There are quite a bit of thoughtful posts there. I think some of the trouble makers have toned down their behavior over the past few months.

But Lukas is more lenient toward posters and has admitted so.

[John Crichton 4]

Good lord, we have almost 10 hours of music with the CR's. People are gonna gripe for more?

I don't need an hour of alternates from each film. I wouldn't want that with any composer.

What he said. I'm really looking forward to reading the book though. Over 400 pages?

[gkgyver 1,645]

It almost makes my head explode figuring out how they decided what to use for the CD out of those boxes and boxes of material.

400 pages is great; Im hoping for lots and lots of sketches and "final" score sheets.

[Quintus 5,399]

I never visit FSM and I'm not member there.

[John Crichton 4]

I think I joined FSM just to scratch the MB itch one of the times that we went down. I probably have 2 or 3 posts there at most.

[indy4 155]

I lurk there quite often...usually at least several times each week.

[Charlie Brigden 7]

I post occasionally (under a different name). Like Mark said, there are some good peeps there, you just have to wade through a lot to get to them sometimes.

[Wojo 2,453]

I just go there to learn about upcoming scores before this board mentions them.

I suppose I should join them to ask MV when LLR is going to get stock of Blazing Saddles, to complete my May Madness order.

[Quintus 5,399]

I lurk there quite often...usually at least several times each week.

I hate to point out an oxymoron, but...

[indy4 155]

I lurk there quite often...usually at least several times each week.

I hate to point out an oxymoron, but...

I hate it when people have to explain their jokes, but I don't get it...

[Trent Hoyt 13]

I can't wait for the book. Hopefully they put it up for pre order soon.

[Jay 37,271]

It appears that Doug has some sort of news planned for tomorrow:

http://www.musicoflotr.com/2010/07/tomorrow.html

[indy4 155]

Awesome! I hope we get a price tag soon.

[Jim Ware 525]

But it's tomorrow TODAY!!

[Jay 37,271]

Yea, but since he changed it to "Tomorrow-ish", I'm assuming its now coming tomorrow :cool:

[Jay 37,271]

Quote

CARPENTIER AND ALFRED MUSIC PUBLISHING ANNOUNCE THE RELEASE OF

 

THE MUSIC OF THE LORD OF THE RINGS FILMS

 

BY DOUG ADAMS

 

In-Depth Journey into Howard Shore’s Academy Award®-Winning Score

 

(July, 28, 2010—New York, NY) Carpentier and Alfred Music Publishing are pleased to announce the release of The Music of the Lord of the Rings Films, a comprehensive account of Howard Shore's score for the trilogy, by Doug Adams. The book will be available in the European Union on September 28 and in the U.S. and worldwide on October 5, 2010.

 

The culmination of almost a decade of writing and research, The Music of the Lord of the Rings Films is an unprecedented look at Howard Shore's Academy Award®-winning score, with extensive music examples, original manuscript scores, a rarities CD, and glimpses into the creative process from the composer, himself.

 

The 416-page full-color volume features a Foreword by Howard Shore, an Introduction by The Lord of the Rings screenwriter/producer Fran Walsh, original sketches by John Howe and Alan Lee, and numerous images from the films. Also included in the book, courtesy of Howe Records, is "The Lord of the Rings: The Rarities Archive" a CD presenting 21 tracks of previously unreleased music created for the films, and an audio interview with Howard Shore.

 

The score for The Lord of the Rings film trilogy has been hailed as some of the greatest film music ever written. Sweeping in scope, it is a musical interpretation of J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth—an operatic tapestry of cultures, histories, languages, and people.

 

"Howard Shore's [LOTR] music has touched millions of people the world over," said Adams. "It's been my great pleasure to assemble a piece that chronicles the creation of this music, and examines exactly how it tells this classic story."

 

"Doug was a detective uncovering clues, tracing how one theme or character related to another," said Shore. "He not only shows the themes and motifs for characters, cultures, objects, and their connection to Tolkien's work, but also the ideas that were sometimes buried deep inside the writing."

 

"Researching Shore's music has been a true adventure," described Adams. "His work is every bit as intricate and passionate as Tolkien's Middle-earth."

 

Doug Adams, a Chicago-based author and musicologist, was invited in 2001 by Howard Shore to observe and document his work on Peter Jackson's motion picture trilogy. Adams attended recording sessions, examined the original scores, and was given complete access to the composer's archives. As an acknowledged authority on Howard Shore's music, Adams has become a regular fixture at concerts and events across the globe. He runs the popular blog, www.musicoflotr.com, which documents his work on this project and brings fans together in ongoing discussions.

 

UPCOMING EVENTS

September 27 Book signing and Q&A with Howard Shore and Doug Adams (Chappell of Bond Street, 152-160 Wardour St., London, UK)

September 28-29 The Lord of the Rings: The Return of The King, concert (Royal Albert Hall, London, UK)

October 7 Book signing and Q&A with Howard Shore and Doug Adams (Barnes and Noble, 1972 Broadway, New York, NY)

October 8-9 The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, concert (Radio City Music Hall, New York, NY)

 

ABOUT ALFRED MUSIC PUBLISHING

Alfred Music Publishing is one of the world's largest music publishers. Alfred is based in Los Angeles with domestic offices in Miami & New York as well as around the world including Australia, Germany, Singapore & the United Kingdom.

 

http://www.musicoflotr.com/2010/07/music-of-lord-of-rings-films.html

[Quintus 5,399]

Nice. But the CR are more than enough for me.

[Jay 37,271]

I'm gonna try to make it to NYC in time for that Thursday October 7th Barnes and Noble Q&A!

Now I kinda wish my concert tickets were for the Friday October 8th concert rather than the Saturday October 9th concert!

[Charlie Brigden 7]

Need track listing before I make a choice.

[gkgyver 1,645]

Actually, Doug said that there are several unused bits during the interview as well. Pieces and snippets that have no real beginning or end, but which are nevertheless interesting to hear.

[Jay 37,271]

Actually, Doug said that there are several unused bits during the interview as well. Pieces and snippets that have no real beginning or end, but which are nevertheless interesting to hear.

What?

[Luke Skywalker 1,792]

Actually, Doug said that there are several unused bits during the interview as well. Pieces and snippets that have no real beginning or end, but which are nevertheless interesting to hear.

What?

segments, inserts, revised parts. created to substitute part of another cue, but not recorded the entire cue. Maybe. So not 'alternate cue', just 'alternate segment'.

makes sense?

"Doug was a detective uncovering clues, tracing how one theme or character related to another," said Shore. "He not only shows the themes and motifs for characters, cultures, objects, and their connection to Tolkien's work, but also the ideas that were sometimes buried deep inside the writing."

Ummm why didnt shore explained that to him to make it easier?

This sounds as if even shore did not know all the connections...sounding like the extensive review is an afterthought...

[indy4 155]

Sounds cool, although that press release didn't reveal much about the product that we didn't already know. If the price is right, I want it. Maybe I'll ask for it for Christmas. I'm excited!