New Members - Introduce Yourself Here - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

ninja91 · 03-12-2007, 05:41 PM

Welcome, Xyzzy! I hope you enjoy your stay here.

Nimrodel_9 · 03-12-2007, 09:43 PM

Ooo! Fun name! Welcome to the BD, Xyzzy!

shieldmaiden4xsword · 03-17-2007, 06:55 PM

Welcome, Xyzzy.....

we hopes you enjoys it here.

Boo Radley · 03-17-2007, 07:18 PM

Hey there, Hi there, Ho there.
Call me Boo.
I'm from Akron, Ohio (if you can believe that).
Been a fan of Tolkien for about... 35-36 years, so you know I'm WAY old.
Looks like a nice place to enter discussions of Middle Earth and such.

The thing that really blew me away about the Silmarillion is that in it, the universe is created through music.
What a concept!

If I'm not here, I can usually be found over at the Battlefront.com forums.

shieldmaiden4xsword · 03-17-2007, 08:05 PM

Welcome! Yes, wasn't that AMAZING??? I love music, so... yeah.

Boo Radley · 03-17-2007, 09:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shieldmaiden4xsword

Welcome! Yes, wasn't that AMAZING??? I love music, so... yeah.

Speaking of which...
I remember back about a bazillion years ago when I was a beardless youth and a callow boy in college... both of us listened to an album (remember those?) entitled "Songs of Middle Earth", I believe, by some composer named Donald Swann.
My Google-Fu, isn't the greatest and I can't find anything on it, except that it did exist as an LP.

Ever heard of it?

It consisted of a single piano and baritone vocalist and it was really pretty cool.
Here's what it had on it:
1. The Road Goes Ever On
2. Upon the Hearth the Fire is Red
3. In the Willow Meads of Tasarinan
4. In Western Lands
5. Namárië
6. I Sit Beside the Fire
7. Errantry

I'd really like to find a copy.

p.s. This black background is really doing a number on my aged eyes.
Just thought I'd mention...

OH! And I just remembered... it also has Tolkien reciting his poetry on the flip side!!!

Estelyn Telcontar · 03-18-2007, 08:00 AM

Hi there, Boo, and welcome to the Downs! The book and recording you remember is called 'The Road Goes Ever On'; Swann composed the melodies to Tolkien's poetry, and in one case, Tolkien himself sang him the melody as he imagined it, and Swann wrote it down. I own the book with the notes and have enjoyed playing them; except for "Errantry", which has a more difficult piano accompaniment, they're not hard to play for an average pianist. I also have the recording; the singer is William Elvin (what an appropriate name, eh?!).

Tolkien and his wife Edith (who was herself an accomplished pianist) heard and enjoyed at least one performance of these songs - at their golden wedding anniversary, if I remember correctly.

More information can be found here:
Wikipedia entry
Donald Swann's website
Amazon

By the way, it's always nice to have new members who are old-timers to Tolkien! If you want to get to know the Downs' geezers, do look into The Tolkien Coming of Age Club, where we share our experiences - or just companionable silence, whichever we enjoy most at the moment.

Boo Radley · 03-18-2007, 12:41 PM

Thanks for all the info, Estelyn!
I'll have to see if it's possible to get a CD of the recording somewhere, as my turntable passed away several years ago.

03-12-2007, 09:43 PM	#2
Nimrodel_9 Ghost Prince of Cardolan Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Utah Posts: 734	Ooo! Fun name! Welcome to the BD, Xyzzy! __________________ .:A friend is someone who reaches for your hand and touches your heart:.

03-17-2007, 06:55 PM	#3
shieldmaiden4xsword Wight Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: where people stick out their tongues at their youth pastor.... Posts: 183	Welcome, Xyzzy..... we hopes you enjoys it here. __________________ Sometimes the peril is not in what is around us, what enemies or trials that may come, but what is in our own hearts.

03-17-2007, 08:05 PM	#5
shieldmaiden4xsword Wight Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: where people stick out their tongues at their youth pastor.... Posts: 183	Welcome! Yes, wasn't that AMAZING??? I love music, so... yeah. __________________ Sometimes the peril is not in what is around us, what enemies or trials that may come, but what is in our own hearts.

03-18-2007, 08:00 AM	#7
Estelyn Telcontar Princess of Skwerlz Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: where the Sea is eastwards (WtR: 6060 miles) Posts: 7,500	Hi there, Boo, and welcome to the Downs! The book and recording you remember is called 'The Road Goes Ever On'; Swann composed the melodies to Tolkien's poetry, and in one case, Tolkien himself sang him the melody as he imagined it, and Swann wrote it down. I own the book with the notes and have enjoyed playing them; except for "Errantry", which has a more difficult piano accompaniment, they're not hard to play for an average pianist. I also have the recording; the singer is William Elvin (what an appropriate name, eh?!). Tolkien and his wife Edith (who was herself an accomplished pianist) heard and enjoyed at least one performance of these songs - at their golden wedding anniversary, if I remember correctly. More information can be found here: Wikipedia entry Donald Swann's website Amazon By the way, it's always nice to have new members who are old-timers to Tolkien! If you want to get to know the Downs' geezers, do look into The Tolkien Coming of Age Club, where we share our experiences - or just companionable silence, whichever we enjoy most at the moment. __________________ 'Mercy!' cried Gandalf. 'If the giving of information is to be the cure of your inquisitiveness, I shall spend all the rest of my days in answering you. What more do you want to know?' 'The whole history of Middle-earth...'

03-18-2007, 12:41 PM	#8
Boo Radley Wight Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Ohio. Believe it or not. Posts: 145	Thanks for all the info, Estelyn! I'll have to see if it's possible to get a CD of the recording somewhere, as my turntable passed away several years ago. __________________ Don't believe everything you read on the interwebs. That's how World War 1 got started!

03-17-2007, 07:18 PM	#4
Boo Radley Wight Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Ohio. Believe it or not. Posts: 145	Hey there, Hi there, Ho there. Call me Boo. I'm from Akron, Ohio (if you can believe that). Been a fan of Tolkien for about... 35-36 years, so you know I'm WAY old. Looks like a nice place to enter discussions of Middle Earth and such. The thing that really blew me away about the Silmarillion is that in it, the universe is created through music. What a concept! If I'm not here, I can usually be found over at the Battlefront.com forums.

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