The collected works fo the Tolkien Ensemble
Arturo Magidin | Lafayette, LA USA | 08/08/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"First note: this is the same product as "The Lord of the Rings: Complete Songs and Poems", with two small differences. Being an import, the information booklet is in both English and Danish; the content of the discs is the same. But as of this writing, it costs slight more than half as much as the domestic version.
Over ten years ago, the Tolkien Ensemble formed to put to music the poems that appear in The Lord of the Rings. These are not "songs inspired by" or "music inspired by." This is the text of the poems as they appear in the books, put to music. Receiving the blessings of the Tolkien Estate after performing some of their results in concerts, their first disc was "An Evening in Rivendell", which contained all the lighthearted hobbit songs, and a few others (such as Galadriel's song of Eldamar, and a couple of versions of the Hymn to Elbereth). A few years later, "A Night in Rivendell" tackled some of the darker poems: the lament for Boromir, the funeral hymn for Theoden, Frodo's rememberance of Gandalf, etc. Then came "At Dawn in Rivendell", which also enlisted the great Christopher Lee to make readings of some poems that are clearly meant to be spoken rather than sung, and songs like Legolas's "Song of Nimrodel". And finally came "Leaving Rivendell", with all remaining songs and poems.
This set contains all the material that was included in the previous four discs; the difference being that in this set the poems and songs appear in the same order as they occur in the books. The first two CDs contain the songs and poems that occur in "Fellowship of the Ring", the third contains the ones from "The Two Towers", and the fourth and final the ones from "Return of the King". Except for a few repetitions that occur in the book, all the poems and songs from the trilogy are in the CDs. Even so, some repetitions receive reworked treatment (there are three versions of the Elven Hymn to Elbereth, for example).
The style of music varies as much as the style varies in the book. From a great choral arrangement for the Burial Song for Theoden, to aethereal voices singing to Elbereth, through a more bardic style for the Song of Nimrodel; a great piano arrangement for the Lament for Boromir, lively renditions of "There is an inn..." and Sam's troll song, and stately readings of the Rhymes of Lore by Christopher Lee (who also provides the voice of Treebeard in some songs). No doubt the style of some songs may strike some listeners as odd or a false note (I for one imagined the Burial Song in a more traditional, single bard, style than a choral arrangement; and one might certainly debate how appropriate the sounds of a piano might be in the context of the fantasy tale); but by and large, it just sounds right.
The Tolkien Ensemble has done an outstanding job in translating the poems to actual songs, and in providing ambient music for the dramatic readings where appropriate. Next time you read the trilogy, you will find yourself singing the poems and not merely reading them."
Track Listings (69) - Disc #1