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Howard Shore - Ask Me Anything (Reddit AMA 12/9/14)


Lewya

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Apparently Shore is going to have an AMA on reddit on tuesday, 4 pm EST. Check the side bar here - https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/

Get your questions ready! Haha, ask about King Kong, Complete Recordings and the use of Nazgul theme in An Unexpected Journey xD I'm going to ask him why he isn't on Twitter too.

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These are all good questions. I hope someone's compiling a list of these. We should also ask him why he hates New Zealand and NZSO so much that he couldn't be seen dead recording at the Wellington Town Hall

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I wanna ask why we don't hear the Thorin vs. Azog theme again in BotFA!

What I really want to know is why the awesome Thorin vs. Azog theme from the film version wasn't used again in BOFA.

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I wanna ask why we don't hear the Thorin vs. Azog theme again in BotFA!

What I really want to know is why the awesome Thorin vs. Azog theme from the film version wasn't used again in BOFA.

Nebabithama, maganane

Netabdam daurad

Nepam ned

abarat-aglar

ido Nidir nenakham

Bari 'n Katharad!

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Remember Howard Shore's AMA on Reddit at 4PM EST, so 9PM UK time, fuck knows everywhere else. There are certain questions he needs to be asked. The mystery of the Misty Mountains/Company theme must be one of them.

We need to think of other, serious questions before it starts. This opportunity doesn't come up too often

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There is no mystery. Shore wrote one theme for the film but it was soon decided to use Misty Mountains theme. By the second film there was no room for either as both Thorin and House of Durin fulfill the same role and fit the tone better.

Karol

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I don't buy that Shore wrote a main theme (that heard in 'Edge of the Wild') and that it was replaced by the Misty Mountains theme. He used the MM theme to notable effect in the first trailer. I expect he always planned to integrate it, but alongside his main theme, so that the two would work in balance (so Misty Mountains dominates in 'The World is Ahead', his theme dominates in 'Edge of the Wild'). But things changed.

And like BB I have a problem with accepting that it was simply dropped because it was no longer deemed suitable after AUJ. There has to be something more there.

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Agreed. The MM theme is the main theme for the company, the so-called "original company theme" is a Journey Theme for their adventure.

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I don't buy that Shore wrote a main theme (that heard in 'Edge of the Wild') and that it was replaced by the Misty Mountains theme. He used the MM theme to notable effect in the first trailer. I expect he always planned to integrate it, but alongside his main theme, so that the two would work in balance (so Misty Mountains dominates in 'The World is Ahead', his theme dominates in 'Edge of the Wild'). But things changed.

And like BB I have a problem with accepting that it was simply dropped because it was no longer deemed suitable after AUJ. There has to be something more there.

Who can fathom the unfathomable depths of Peter Jackson's brain? The song was always there as it was composed very early for the dwarves to sing so I am sure Shore was asked to interpolate it to this trailer music and after that to the score of the first film. Shore must have written his own theme but PJ probably thought the MM theme worked so well he decided to have Shore use it more extensively. Seeing the whole scoring show on AUJ it is no wonder. These things happen. In DoS the decision was made to discard it for what ever reason and I am sure it was mutually agreed upon by PJ and Shore.

And the geography is not the point or reason of discarding the MM theme. It is the idea of almost everything familiar disappearing when they cross the mountains, including the theme for the company from the first film which was their rallying call. PJ mentions this even in the DoS music documentary.

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And like BB I have a problem with accepting that it was simply dropped because it was no longer deemed suitable after AUJ. There has to be something more there.

Well, that's not exactly what I said.

You pulled me up on that just because I questioned your skill in analogies didn't you? Admit it!

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I really would have liked for the Misty Mountains theme to make one appearance in BOFA, at some point during the battle.

I am fine with the Journey theme disappearing after they arrive in Lake-town, but it should have not been discarded entirely. I also wouldn't have said no to a cameo for Bilbo's return journey home somewhere.

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You think the Journey theme is weak? Blasphemy! It's my favorite theme of the trilogy!

Its weary in the ears after a while. Its a nice melody, but not a very malleable one I'm afraid. It sounds meh in action mode.

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You think the Journey theme is weak? Blasphemy! It's my favorite theme of the trilogy!

Its weary in the ears after a while. Its a nice melody, but not a very malleable one I'm afraid. It sounds meh in action mode.

Huh? This is the Journey theme:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxQSwI5aPja9cWZ1ZEZDNmFFMk0/view?usp=sharing

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My guess it was never the MM theme wasn't meant to be included in his thematic tapestry so early on, as he wrote several other themes with similar motives. But interpolated it into his work when asked/suggested to do so. But it just doesn't have room in something as thematically dense in DoS I suppose, and Shore probably preferred to his own themes for which he's already laid put a foundation and a path for.

Or PJ could have just asked to scrap as much of the AUJ material as possible.

The Journey theme is never used in action mode KK!

Oh, I've clearly confused the Journey theme and the MM theme!!

I'm on my phone now, is the journey theme the Edge of the Wild one?

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I think he always intended to incorporate MM into the score from the beginning, no question!

Anyone who thinks it isn't malleable hasn't listened to it's unreleased appearances in the cave when Bofur and Bilbo talk, and the end credits opening before the song!

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Oh, I've clearly confused the Journey theme and the MM theme!!

I'm on my phone now, is the journey theme the Edge of the Wild one?

Yes, of course!

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I'm preparing questions for Mr. Shore. Hope he answers some of them... I won't ask about the themes for AUJ though, someone else has to do that! I will ask about King Kong though...

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You think the Journey theme is weak? Blasphemy! It's my favorite theme of the trilogy!

Its weary in the ears after a while. Its a nice melody, but not a very malleable one I'm afraid. It sounds meh in action mode.

Huh? This is the Journey theme:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxQSwI5aPja9cWZ1ZEZDNmFFMk0/view?usp=sharing

Where'd you get that from? The music that is.

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Anyone who thinks it isn't malleable hasn't listened to it's unreleased appearances in the cave when Bofur and Bilbo talk, and the end credits opening before the song!

That is not malleability.

You think the Journey theme is weak? Blasphemy! It's my favorite theme of the trilogy!

Its weary in the ears after a while. Its a nice melody, but not a very malleable one I'm afraid. It sounds meh in action mode.

Huh? This is the Journey theme:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxQSwI5aPja9cWZ1ZEZDNmFFMk0/view?usp=sharing

Where'd you get that from? The music that is.

Production Diaries.
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Cool! It's a shame we never got any of those for this film...

Seeing how worn out he was at the London premiere, I can kind of forgive him. (I think we may get one after the film, covering all 6 films or something)

Besides leaves more original features for the DVD!

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Watch him answer that one and ignore one of the better questions


On the subject of Hobbit Complete Recordings:

I guess we'll see in time. It took quite a few years to prepare the complete recordings of LOTR - Fellowship took a year, Two Towers took a year, and Return a year, so it was a total of 3 years of preparation for those releases - so I have to now go into the archives and see what we haven't released at this point in the two-disc editions for each of the films. Remembering that in LOTR, there was only one CD disc released initially on each of the 3 films!

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On the subject of Hobbit Complete Recordings:

I guess we'll see in time. It took quite a few years to prepare the complete recordings of LOTR - Fellowship took a year, Two Towers took a year, and Return a year, so it was a total of 3 years of preparation for those releases - so I have to now go into the archives and see what we haven't released at this point in the two-disc editions for each of the films. Remembering that in LOTR, there was only one CD disc released initially on each of the 3 films!

OK, so this basically confirms they haven't started working on them. And I don't like the sound of that last sentence!

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You guys PLEASE go on reddit and ask some good questions, the ones that are getting answered on there are atrocious. If you've ever watched an interview with Howard you know the answers to almost everything he is being asked.

Such a waste.

http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2osjqp/this_is_composer_howard_shore_lets_talk_about/?sort=new

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BTW Shore quoted Williams!

I'll try.

You guys PLEASE go on reddit and ask some good questions, the ones that are getting answered on there are atrocious. If you've ever watched an interview with Howard you know the answers to almost everything he is being asked.

Such a waste.

http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2osjqp/this_is_composer_howard_shore_lets_talk_about/?sort=new

At least you got the right thread this time.

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BTW Shore quoted Williams!

I'll try.

You guys PLEASE go on reddit and ask some good questions, the ones that are getting answered on there are atrocious. If you've ever watched an interview with Howard you know the answers to almost everything he is being asked.

Such a waste.

http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2osjqp/this_is_composer_howard_shore_lets_talk_about/?sort=new

At least you got the right thread this time.

Hahahaha...yeah I really made an idiot of myself. SORRY EVERYONE. I was really so disappointed.

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My question:

I really enjoyed your scores to all of the Middle-earth films, but I also loved the LOTR symphony, have you considered doing a Hobbit symphony?

(P.S. If you were to write music based off of events in the First Age, would it sound different than if you were to write music based off of events in the Second and Third ages?)

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