The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King [ENHANCED] [SOUNDTRACK]

Howard Shore

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 25, 2003)
• Original Release Date: December 17, 2003
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Enhanced, Soundtrack
• Label: Reprise / Wea
• ASIN: B0000DZEA1
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (262 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,742 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
This final chapter of Peter Jackson's sprawling adaptation of Tolkien's "Ring" trilogy closes out one of the most accomplished cycles in cinema--and film music--history. As he's done for the saga's first two installments, composer Howard Shore has honed a mature, brooding orchestral masterpiece that's long on subtle shadings of mood and nuance, while eschewing the hollow bombast that's characterized all too many mainstream action and adventure films for three decades. If anything, he's pared this chapter of his music for Middle Earth even closer to the bone, the trilogy's familiar themes repeated with a sparing hand that only heightens their dramatic power. Like Herrmann before him, Shore has a preternatural understanding of orchestral timbres and their almost mystical connections with human emotions, and he's used it here to close out this remarkable trilogy with Wagnerian dramatic sweep, yet one with a distinctly modern, understated melodic sense that is Shore's alone. James Galway and Renee Fleming make key instrumental and vocal contributions, respectively, while Annie Lennox's soulful "Into the West" makes the expected, if unobtrusive, bow to the theatrical pop song conventions. --Jerry McCulley

Product Description
The regular jewel-case version will contain one of seven collectors’ cards.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

112 of 121 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The perfect fit for the perfect movie, December 20, 2003

By	Dave (from Gondor) - See all my reviews

Howard Shore has proven his talent beyond any doubt with this, the third and final of the three soundtracks for The Lord of the Rings movies. The music is the perfect score for the three most incredible movies the world has seen, taking us from emotional heights, to depths, to simple and quiet moments with some of the most wonderful music you'll ever hope to hear, regardless of whether or not you have seen, or even wish to see, the cinema trilogy by New Line.

I'd hoped to do a track-by-track analysis, but I simply don't have room, so I'll share some of this CD's better tracks.

Track 3 (3:38): It starts out with dangerous overtones, as Pippin attempts to steal the Palantír from Gandalf, and the terrible consequences of his deed. Gandalf takes him to the city of Gondor, and we hear the premiere of Shore's theme for the City of Kings. (Actually, we first heard a sampling of the Gondor theme in the first movie, when Aragorn is first spoken of as the exiled king, and again in the motion picture preview released earlier in 2003) A wonderful choir makes way to the splendorous, magnificent theme for Gondor, perfectly capturing all the wonder and awe of the city. Awesome. Actually, the solo by Ben Del Maestro, I have concurred, is the part that plays when the White Rider dashes out onto the planes to challenge the Nazgûl.

Track 4 (3:25): A solemn tune, with distinctive Death of Boromir overtones, then the theme for Gondor again, just as grand as before. I believe (I'm big on figuring out which part of the soundtrack goes to which part of the movie) that this is the glorious music that plays as Gandalf rides through the citadel of Gondor, to the very top level of the city.

Track 5 (3:53): Not EXACTLY one of my favorite picks, but I had to comment on this one since it is the one with Billy Boyd's solo. In the beginning, it is primarily flute, along with other, somber-sounding instruments mixed in. Gondorian theme again, quieter this time. This, I have figured out, is the sad music that plays as Faramir leads his troops out onto the field. At 2:35 on the CD counter, Billy Boyd begins his quiet, dirge-like solo which provides the background theme for Faramir's suicide charge on enemy ranks. And yes, it is a very lovely, though somber and sad song. Billy Boyd sings it very well.

Track 7 (2:09): The action-oriented muster of Rohan's troops. As you could expect, the theme of Rohan from The Two Towers prevails in a heroic and magnificent way. In the middle, there is a quiet moment where Shore makes use of the generally-saved-for-hobbits Celtic-sounding flute. The track picks back up triumphantly before it ends.

Track 10 (2:35): Quiet beginning, with Rivendell overtones. Another tune begins, a very royal and glorious as the sword of kings is reforged anew. The end transitions to the creepy Paths of the Dead theme.

Track 13 (3:26): Slow beginning, then a very drawn-out tune of hopefulness. Rohan's arrival to Gondor's aid? Then the stunning, dramatic theme for the Ringwraiths is blasted out by the incredible choir Howard Shore commands. It may be the bad guy theme, but it is still incredible to hear. The track is too short, in my opinion.

Track 15 (4:02): The last desperate stand of Aragorn's troops before Mordor's endless ranks. At the same time, the quiet flute plays as Frodo works against all odds to climb the mountain of doom. This track and the next are the themes for the most powerful, poignant moments in the movie, and are NOT to be missed. (Referring to the music, but the movie too!)

Track 16 (5:13): Terribly desperate, frantic choir plays during the final moments of the climax at Mt. Doom and the Black Gate. A silent moment appears, with a slow solo by Renee Fleming, as Aragorn faces down the Eye of Sauron. Shore makes brilliant use of the choir - well, pretty much any time he uses them for his Lord of the Rings film score, but especially in this case.

Track 19 (5:48): Of the three songs (May it Be, Gollum's Song, and Into the West) that Howard Shore has featured on his soundtrack, I nominate this one as the best. It is sung by Annie Lennox, whose voice credit-viewers may recognize from Apollo 13's end credits. Her voice in this sounds somehow a little less feminine, and a little more like a male with a high-pitched voice, but that's just an observation, not a complaint. The song itself is really great. It sings in very poetic, descriptive terms basically of Heaven. For anyone, but particularly believers in Jesus like me, it is an especially inspiring and thrilling song of hope for the World to Come; of heaven. Beautiful. And as usual, the end credits song also includes a bit of the film score after the song.

Folks, Howard Shore's soundtrack abilities remain unequaled. For fans of the film, the music is an excellent way to relive parts of the movie when silly things like, say, real life prevent you from going to the theater. For people who haven't seen the movie, this music is awesome no matter which way you dice it. Please, please buy this CD.

54 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Into the West and into Greatness, July 4, 2004

By	J. Whitford (Falls Church, VA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

In a time when most studios bank on a combination of bubble gum pop, hip hop and rap to sell soundtracks for a film, we are gifted with true greatness. Howard Shore looked at each film as a separate entity that required a continuous bridge as a theme, and different voices to carry each movie to the next. You had Enya (May it Be) for Fellowship of the Ring. For the Two Towers it was Sheila Chandra (Breath of Life), Isabel Bayrakdarian (Evenstar), Ben Del Maestro (Forth Eorlingas, and with Elizabeth Fraser on Isengard Unleashed) and Emiliana Torrini (Gollum's Song.)

On the final soundtrack, we get a host of voices to treasure. We have the sublime in Renee Fleming (Twilight and Shadow, The End of All Things) and Ben del Maestro (Minas Tirith). We also have the flute of James Galway (The Black Gate Opens, The Grey Havens.) But what is most endearing is the voice of Billy Boyd (The Steward of Gondor)and Viggo Mortensen (The Return of the King) singing laments to mark their historical journeys.

Peter Jackson has created a gut wrenching, emotional trilogy. Howard Shore has blessed us with music that grabs your heart and soul and never lets go. I highly recommend all three magnificant sound tracks.

30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars There and Back Again: A Grand Finale, December 8, 2003

By	Richard Stoehr "Idle Rich" (Bremerton, WA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This music is the completion of a journey begun over two years ago.

When I first heard, quite a while ago now, that Howard Shore had been selected to write the music for "The Lord of the Rings" films, I wasn't sure what to think. I liked Shore's music well enough from movies like "Silence of the Lambs" or "Seven," but I wasn't sure how he would handle the epic nature of something like this. Three times over now, Shore has proven to me (and to many others) that he is quite capable of expressing everything that makes "The Lord of the Rings" such a grand story in his music.

The score for "Return of the King" is the most grand and sweeping of the three scores, which is as it should be, since the events of the story are of the largest scale. And yet, somehow the music finds moments of intimacy and soft beauty, even amidst all the epic movements and operatic themes.

Each of the different tracks on the album is recognizable for its theme: "The White Tree" is a powerful and noble theme for Gondor, "Shelob's Lair" is a terrifying piece for its namesake, "The Steward of Gondor" is a softly moving march accompanied by panflute, with a surprisingly-moving vocal piece by Billy Boyd (Pippin in the film), and "Minas Morgul" is an even more intense repriese of the recurrent theme for the Nazgul. "The Fields of the Pelennor" will rouse you right out of your seat, and "Twilight and Shadow," with the incomparable Renee Fleming lending her gorgeous voice, will make your eyes tear up.

The track that will rip your heart out, though, is definitely "Into the West," with Annie Lennox singing vocals. Such a beautiful, powerful, emotional song is the perfect coda to these films, and an excellent summary for all that has gone before. The first time I heard this song, before I even saw the film, I was left with tears rolling down my cheeks. Of the three songs which play at the end of each film, "Into the West" is easily the best one, the most moving, and the most deeply-felt.

If you get the Special Edition version of this soundtrack, the DVD that accompanies it has some pretty interesting stuff, but it's mostly for movie music buffs. If you're into the process of creating music for motion pictures at all (I definitely am), then the short documentary shown on this DVD is an excellent one. Other than that, the other interesting features are an extra music track ("Use Well the Days," again performed by Annie Lennox) and a long "supertrailer" for the three films. Both are worth seeing, but the documentary was the best part for me, and the real selling point of the extra DVD edition of the soundtrack.

The point of it all is that this is It. From the Fellowship theme to the music of Rohan, from the violent strains of the Dark Lord's minions to the gentle tones of the Shire, this soundtrack brings it all together. It is operatic in scale but intimate in effect. Whether you want to relive the film itself or just find a good accompaniment to read the books by, Howard Shore's music for "Return of the King" provides the perfect musical companion. It is unquestionably a masterful acheivement, and should be required listening for any fan of the films, or any fan of the works of Tolkien.