Jump to content

Howard Shore's An Unexpected Journey (Hobbit Part 1)


Jay

Recommended Posts

Are we also forgetting that Jeff Grace was additional music composer for The Lord Of The Rings?

False.

I think he was being sarcastic.

Though his site (and imdb) say he was Shore's assistant....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

@KK

The fiddle melody we first associated with Radagast is also present at the end of the sample to "A Very Respectable Hobbit", or is that just me? Could be a Bilbo motif.

Yes. It's there and in several other Shire cues. Its not a Radagast motif. I think its probably a side Bilbo motif like "Bilbo's Antics". But it goes through such dark variations, I wonder if its maybe an idea associated with the adventure itself.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

20)Over Hill: Lothlorien theme!!! Galadriel in her full grace! It's a gorgeous statement on the oboe too...I've never heard it quite as beautiful. Again, expanding on some of the harmonies of the reflective "Axe and Sword" motif. And then a wonderful statement of the Shire theme.

24) Brass Buttons: Rhythmic male choral chanting (we seem to have a lot of it here). It's very different from what we heard from LOTR and yet not all that different from stuff like Khazad-dum. It sounds fantastic, like a far more invigorating expansion of that kind of choral and brass action we heard in Soul of the Ultimate Nation.

:drool: :drool: :drool: goodness gracious me.

december feels so far away...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was right!

Doug Adams says:

The melody of "Misty Mountains" is a composition that Plan 9 and David Long created for the Dwarves to sing in Bag End. (We've all seen the scene in the 2011 teaser.) It was a good tune -- nice and moody and fairly malleable -- so Shore wove it into the score in a few key spots. In my opinion, he really makes it his own, but I guess I'm biased! Anyway, the variations are stunning: all sorts of shifts in harmony, meter, and melodic contour. Shore was extremely careful to make his settings fit in with the rest of his Dwarf music so that there's a beautiful cohesion to the work.

The song at the end of the end of the album was a collaboration between Neil Finn and David Long of Plan 9. Shore was not directly involved with this song.

Hope this clear everything up!

http://www.musicoflotr.com/2012/11/sounds-official.html#comment-704278866

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It's the composers job to do what the director wants

And honestly it makes sense to me. The dwarves are sitting there in Bilbo's house, and start singing. It wouldn't be right to have underscore behind it. It makes it more real that way. Most of the LOTR cast singing had no underscore behind it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

@KK

The fiddle melody we first associated with Radagast is also present at the end of the sample to "A Very Respectable Hobbit", or is that just me? Could be a Bilbo motif.

Yes. It's there and in several other Shire cues. Its not a Radagast motif. I think its probably a side Bilbo motif like "Bilbo's Antics". But it goes through such dark variations, I wonder if its maybe an idea associated with the adventure itself.

It never sounded like anything for Radagast to me.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Im just curious as to why Shore didnt set Misty Mountains to music. Surely he was already "on board" even at that stage?

Hi tannhauser (love the name!),

Shore didn't work on the diagetic music for the LOTR films either. That's always been a Plan 9/Fran Walsh thing (or Billy, or Vigo ...). Only real difference this time is that the diagetic piece has been brought into the score a little bit more.

Best,

Doug

Link to comment
Share on other sites

20)Over Hill: Lothlorien theme!!! Galadriel in her full grace! It's a gorgeous statement on the oboe too...I've never heard it quite as beautiful. Again, expanding on some of the harmonies of the reflective "Axe and Sword" motif. And then a wonderful statement of the Shire theme.

24) Brass Buttons: Rhythmic male choral chanting (we seem to have a lot of it here). It's very different from what we heard from LOTR and yet not all that different from stuff like Khazad-dum. It sounds fantastic, like a far more invigorating expansion of that kind of choral and brass action we heard in Soul of the Ultimate Nation.

:drool: :drool: :drool: goodness gracious me.

december feels so far away...

Hell yeah. The switch to the Shire statement is wonderful - a very longing, homely feel.

Also loving the bit just as An Unexpected Party cuts off - lovely wandering melody.

Only 4 weeks to go!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"Hill of Sorcery"?

Barrow downs?

or ringwraith tombs?

That's the translation for Dol Guldur, if I remember correctly.

Yes the Dol Guldur is Sindarin for Hill of Sorcery. It is also called Amon Lanc, the Naked Hill because it apparently was devoid of life and vegetation.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

20)Over Hill: Lothlorien theme!!! Galadriel in her full grace! It's a gorgeous statement on the oboe too...I've never heard it quite as beautiful. Again, expanding on some of the harmonies of the reflective "Axe and Sword" motif. And then a wonderful statement of the Shire theme.

24) Brass Buttons: Rhythmic male choral chanting (we seem to have a lot of it here). It's very different from what we heard from LOTR and yet not all that different from stuff like Khazad-dum. It sounds fantastic, like a far more invigorating expansion of that kind of choral and brass action we heard in Soul of the Ultimate Nation.

:drool: :drool: :drool: goodness gracious me.

december feels so far away...

Hell yeah. The switch to the Shire statement is wonderful - a very longing, homely feel.

Also loving the bit just as An Unexpected Party cuts off - lovely wandering melody.

Only 4 weeks to go!

5 actually. Well just under 5 if you live in the UK, where its released on the 13th

Link to comment
Share on other sites

20)Over Hill: Lothlorien theme!!! Galadriel in her full grace! It's a gorgeous statement on the oboe too...I've never heard it quite as beautiful. Again, expanding on some of the harmonies of the reflective "Axe and Sword" motif. And then a wonderful statement of the Shire theme.

24) Brass Buttons: Rhythmic male choral chanting (we seem to have a lot of it here). It's very different from what we heard from LOTR and yet not all that different from stuff like Khazad-dum. It sounds fantastic, like a far more invigorating expansion of that kind of choral and brass action we heard in Soul of the Ultimate Nation.

:drool: :drool: :drool: goodness gracious me.

december feels so far away...

Hell yeah. The switch to the Shire statement is wonderful - a very longing, homely feel.

Also loving the bit just as An Unexpected Party cuts off - lovely wandering melody.

Only 4 weeks to go!

5 actually. Well just under 5 if you live in the UK, where its released on the 13th

I think he meant 4 weeks until the soundtrack is released, on 10th or 11th of December. :)

Great to have the Over the Misty Mountains Cold thing settled as well. I am perfectly ok with Shore using it as a recurring idea here and there in the score. It is a nice way of bringing the Dwarven quest into the music, the song translating into a musical call in itself on score's subtextual level.

I am very giddy after hearing all these clips. Shore has really combined his old with the new in a wonderful way. I am sure listening to the entire score for the first time will be a brilliant experience.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think he meant 4 weeks until the soundtrack is released, on 10th or 11th of December. :)

I am very giddy after hearing all these clips. Shore has really combined his old with the new in a wonderful way. I am sure listening to the entire score for the first time will be a brilliant experience.

Should we start a countdown for the release of your complete score review?

I am sure I can manage one without a countdown, which is obviously too much pressure. But I'll definitely will write a review even though I have a feeling Doug Adams has a bit more to say about the music with greater depth than I. :P
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Looks like the samples have been removed and Doug Adams has removed his mention of them on his site. Maybe they put them up too early?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Looks like the samples have been removed and Doug Adams has removed his mention of them on his site. Maybe they put them up too early?

http://www.qobuz.com/album/the-hobbit-an-unexpected-journey-original-motion-picture-soundtrack-howard-shore/0794043163890 ?

alice - who was just having a moment of weakness and seriously thought about listening to the samples.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Personally, I'm not disappointed about that, just surprised. I'm way more disappointed by the fact that the theme doesn't be seem to be used as much as I thought it would be (and as much as I would have liked it to be), since I love the melody, and I thought it was going to be the Fellowship's theme equivalent for that movie.

As did I. It was so great to hear in the trailer and I thought we all just found the new "Fellowship theme". But as the theme's performances are limited, I wonder what the overarching "Fellowship theme" of this score will be. It might be what I pointed out as "Thorin's Company Theme", or something else. We'll see...

Looks like the samples have been removed and Doug Adams has removed his mention of them on his site. Maybe they put them up too early?

http://www.qobuz.com...e/0794043163890 ?

alice - who was just having a moment of weakness and seriously thought about listening to the samples.

The samples for the Special Edition have been removed. Good thing they're already on youtube ;)

I think he meant 4 weeks until the soundtrack is released, on 10th or 11th of December. :)

I am very giddy after hearing all these clips. Shore has really combined his old with the new in a wonderful way. I am sure listening to the entire score for the first time will be a brilliant experience.

Indeed. The samples shows of the same soundscape of Middle-Earth, but in a different Middle-Earth. And listen to the action material! It sounds even more robust than dare I say, some of the big sequences in LOTR.

Should we start a countdown for the release of your complete score review?

I'll probably be spending days on my own analysis of the score...but of course nothing compares to Doug Adams.

BloodBoal - who thinks KM is actually going to like The Hobbit score, but will be too proud to admit it.

I think he's already fallen in love with the samples and has been playing it non-stop. Won't be long before he renounces Williams and accepts Howard Shore as the true Lord and Saviour of film music :P

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You know what I find funny? There's still a month till the official release, and most of us have heard over a half hour of the score already!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'll probably be spending days on my own analysis of the score...but of course nothing compares to Doug Adams.

BloodBoal - Not a fanboy by any means. Just a BloodBoy.

Oohh I heard about that condition. It doesn't get any worse than that....my condolences.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guys, I look forward to reading your thoughts just as much as I look forward to Mr. Adams' ruminations. There's room for all of it, you know. :)

Well, maybe not in a booklet... but still. ;)

Karol

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If 30 minutes represent half the score, then yes.

Oh, wait. You're wrong.

If I said "half the score" then yes, I would be.

Oh, wait, you're wrong.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

NO! Don't do that! Don't you see what's happening? It's the samples. You can't take your eyes off them; I've seen you. You're not eating. You barely sleep. They have taken ahold of you, Mrs. Brallice. You have to fight them! Let me listen to them for you... Just this once...

you were right, boal. the samples are taking me. they're getting heavier.

alice - who'll listen to three samples only. or maybe four.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I look forward to reading your thoughts just as much as I look forward to Mr. Adams' ruminations. There's room for all of it, you know. :)

Well, maybe not in a booklet... but still. ;)

That and the fact that he knows all the right answers. We on the other hand would just be speculating :P

Link to comment
Share on other sites

AHHHHHH I caved, I listened to about 5 samples. Love what I'm hearing!

Damn! Will I be the last one standing? Ah, no, I can always count on KM to stand by my side till the end, I guess.

BloodBoal - who thinks KM is actually going to like The Hobbit score, but will be too proud to admit it.

I only listened to five, then stopped! And I'm definitely not going to listen to the full album until I've seen the film. This was just a moment of weakness :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I look forward to reading your thoughts just as much as I look forward to Mr. Adams' ruminations. There's room for all of it, you know. :)

Well, maybe not in a booklet... but still. ;)

That and the fact that he knows all the right answers. We on the other hand would just be speculating :P

I'm not sure whether something like "right answers" exists in the case of art, dear KK.

Karol

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If 30 minutes represent half the score, then yes.

Oh, wait. You're wrong.

If I said "half the score" then yes, I would be.

Oh, wait, you're wrong.

Maybe if you hadn't edited your post, I would have been right.

What you just did is cheap. And I don't mean "cheap" in a good way.

Don't insult me Messenger! I would never do such a thing!

I look forward to reading your thoughts just as much as I look forward to Mr. Adams' ruminations. There's room for all of it, you know. :)

Well, maybe not in a booklet... but still. ;)

That and the fact that he knows all the right answers. We on the other hand would just be speculating :P

I'm not sure whether something like "right answers" exists in the case of art, dear KK.

Karol

I certainly agree with you But considering he's been with the big man himself for so long (not to mention he can ring him up whenever he needs to), he'll get as close as anyone could possible get. :P

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Guidelines.