Channels, Fall 2017

Channels • 2017 • Volume 2 • Number 1 Page 115 consists of strings rather than a piano, which gives a stronger impression of folk music than Swann’s edition. As this is a different culture than that of the hobbits, though, it was likely intentional that Swann’s was less influenced by folk music, and keeping in mind the idea that each song setting is meant to fit within the story and take into account different cultures, Swann’s setting is the more effective of the two. In Western Lands Swann’s edition of the fourth song, “In Western Lands,” is the only setting of the poem with approval from the Tolkien family or the films. 13 In the novels, the song appears in The Return of The King, when Sam Gamgee reaches the top of the Tower of Cirith Ungol. 14 He does not truly believe he’s at the top, but cannot find another way up and feels defeated, especially because he cannot find Frodo. In this state, he begins singing songs from the Shire to comfort himself, and eventually comes to “In Western Lands.” The lyrics of the poem are optimistic, speaking of springtime in western lands despite present struggles, and the poet states, “Though here at journey's end I lie / in darkness buried deep… I will not say the Day is done / nor bid the Stars farewell.” However, as the singer speaks about spring, many of the chords in the first stanza are minor or diminished and remain so throughout the beginning of the second stanza as the singer mentions being in darkness. It is only when the lyrics state, “I will not say the Day is done / nor bid the Stars farewell,” that the song is firmly in a major key. While the listener does not expect to hear a minor key surrounding the subject of spring, Swann made an effective choice. In Sam’s despair, even talk of spring is not truly happy, but by the time he finishes the song, when he resolves not to give up and finds strength, the piece is in F Major, and the song ends triumphantly. Namárië According to Swann, the fifth song in the cycle, “Namárië,” was revised by Tolkien to sound like a Gregorian chant. 15 Meaning “Farewell,” this poem appears in the books when the hobbits are taking boats to move onwards from Lórien and Galadriel sings to say farewell to them. 16 This is the only song in the collection not primarily in English, and although there are interludes comprised of a piano part, the singing is a cappella. It is also the only song in the cycle that Tolkien himself wrote the melody to – while there are other settings of the poem, notably from the Tolkien Ensemble, it is important to see what the author of the song had in mind when he wrote it. Written in the fictional language Lórien, this song and its performance notes have been used by linguists to delve deeper into Tolkien’s methods of creating language. However, what is most important to take note of is the idea that this music is from a far-different culture than any of the other pieces in the cycle. With the exception of Treebeard’s song, the other songs are all from the Shire, while this piece is from the culture of the Elves. Accordingly, its style is far different from the other songs. In 13 Donald Swann and J.R.R. Tolkien, The Road Goes Ever On (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1967), 18-21. 14 J.R.R Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2012), 888. 15 Donald Swann and J.R.R. Tolkien, The Road Goes Ever On (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1967), 22-24. 16 J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring ( Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2012), 363.