horncall of buckland

[Estelyn Telcontar]

Even simple hunting horns without valves (which give modern concert horns the ability to play precise notes) can be played with various notes. Compare that to the bugle in military use - every soldier knows whether it is sounding attack, retreat, reveille, or taps. In LotR we also have examples of brass instruments playing signals that signify persons - Beregond identified the "sound of a trumpet ending on a long high note" (RotK) as Faramir's call. No magic involved there either.

Tolkien had military experience, something that a majority of his readers has not had. The most logical explanation for the warning in the Shire and all others uses of horns, trumpets, etc. is that the melody they played had a specific meaning, and each warning had a different sequence of notes.

I remember weekly signal "rehearsals" of the emergency warning signals in my home town when I was young - three long meant something different than one continuous, for example. Even with only one note, the rhythm denoted various meanings.

It could be that each of the words (fear, fire, foes, awake) had its own signal, and when combined, the highest level of warning was sounded.

[alman]

It was a generic horn call, A 911 bugle blast to account for all sorts of emergencies.
And the Hobbits had no magic. Absolutely none

The did have magic, but it came from the outside. Old Took had magical cufflinks, gifted by Gandalf. (perhaps the talking horn of buckland was a gift from Gandalf as well! maybe even in Gandalfs voice.)
Bilbo had sting, and Bilbo also gave many presents on his 111st birthday that were obviously magical.

Also, the horn, if magic, could only have been enchanted to alert a static message in emergencies. It need not have been intelligent and recognize specific danger, just to go off when sounded.

It just seems odd, that with all the horn blowing in the books, only one has words associated with it. (why didnt Theoden toot out "forward!!" instead of a generic blast?)

[Nerwen]

Originally Posted by alman

The did have magic, but it came from the outside. Old Took had magical cufflinks, gifted by Gandalf. (perhaps the talking horn of buckland was a gift from Gandalf as well! maybe even in Gandalfs voice.) Bilbo had sting, and Bilbo also gave many presents on his 111st birthday that were obviously magical.

Surely– given the extreme rarity of magical items in the Shire– the existence, and origins of, a talking horn would be worth mentioning? (We know where Sting, the cufflinks and the presents came from.) And the phrase, from memory, is "the horn–call of Buckland," not "the horn of Buckland"– emphasis on the sound, not the instrument. And more than one horn sounds the call, so it would have to be multiple talking horns.

Originally Posted by alman

Also, the horn, if magic, could only have been enchanted to alert a static message in emergencies. It need not have been intelligent and recognize specific danger, just to go off when sounded.

See my first post– why create something magical that only does what the mundane version could do just as easily?

Originally Posted by alman

It just seems odd, that with all the horn blowing in the books, only one has words associated with it.

As odd as the presence of a brass band's worth of (pointlessly) magical instruments in the Shire, with nothing to show how they got there? I think not.

Besides, isn't it much cooler to imagine horn calls echoing through the night, than some guy's voice yelling?

[Morthoron]

Originally Posted by alman

The did have magic, but it came from the outside. Old Took had magical cufflinks, gifted by Gandalf. (perhaps the talking horn of buckland was a gift from Gandalf as well! maybe even in Gandalfs voice.)
Bilbo had sting, and Bilbo also gave many presents on his 111st birthday that were obviously magical.

Ultra-rare gifts are not like some generic, magic horn that sits outside in all types of weather. The Hobbits, and I am referring to the vast majority of the whole Shire, would have never been acquainted with any sort of magic in their entire lives. Tolkien said the Hobbits possessed no innate magic, and goes to great lengths to show the mundanity of their lives, where eccentric folks like the Old Took and Bilbo Baggins are such an exception to the rule that they are considered bizarre by the common halflings.

Originally Posted by alman

Also, the horn, if magic, could only have been enchanted to alert a static message in emergencies. It need not have been intelligent and recognize specific danger, just to go off when sounded.

A static, pre-programmed magic horn? This isn't some rap song with sequenced music.

Originally Posted by alman

It just seems odd, that with all the horn blowing in the books, only one has words associated with it. (why didnt Theoden toot out "forward!!" instead of a generic blast?)

Tolkien is using metaphor. He uses metaphor often. There were no locomotives in the Shire, but Tolkien refers to a train as a point of comparison. Look up the terms metaphor/simile. It may aid in your understanding of literature.

[Puddleglum]

Originally Posted by alman

why didnt Theoden toot out "forward!!" instead of a generic blast?)

Because he had already delivered a more energizing call to the charge...

Arise, arise, Riders of Theoden!
Fell deeds awake: fire and slaughter!
spear shall be shaken, shield be splintered,
a sword-day, a red day, ere the sun rises!
Ride now, ride now! Ride to Gondor!

Besides, it conveys a lot more energy to blow so hard the horn bursts
than just to "toot" out a "forward" call.