A Hard Hobbit to Break

Soundcheck | May 3, 2010
One of the more remarkable stories of the orchestra world this season has been the success of Howard Shore’s “The Lord of the Rings Symphony,” a two-hour, six-movement work created from the movie scores he wrote for the three installments of Peter Jackson's film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's trilogy. So far the symphony has been performed by orchestras in more than 40 cities around the world and this weekend, it will be performed by the New Jersey Symphony. Today, Shore tells host John Schaefer how he wrote the piece using Tolkien's invented languages (including ''Elvish'' and ''Dwarvish''), and with exotic instruments like an Irish whistle, pan flute, and a Hardanger fiddle, chosen to help evoke a mythical world of the past.
Additional Resources:
» The Lord of the Rings Symphony at NJPAC

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