If you thought Peter Jackson had plundered JRR Tolkien’s massive tome The Lord of the Rings to its deepest depths with his three blockbuster films, you’d be wrong.
Showrunners Patrick Mackay and John D Payne returned to Tolkien’s novel and its appendices to bring audiences The Rings of Power in 2023. It’s a story set thousands of years before the events we’ve seen on screen in both The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogies.
The Rings of Power, which has now returned for a second series, finds Middle Earth characters both familiar and new finally living in relative peace after a great war, though the dark shadow of the evil Sauron is growing and a set of powerful rings is forged that will change the lives of generations to come.
It’s quite the epic, then, and with a potentially bewildering visual feast of of lands and characters, each with equally bewildering names. Cue the music then, which uses some good old fashioned devices to help us out.
Who wrote the music for The Rings of Power?
The show’s producers cunningly turned to someone with more than a little experience in writing music for Middle Earth for the opening title theme: Howard Shore – who is to be honoured at London’s first ever soundtrack festival in 2025.
The Oscar-winning composer of Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies penned the orchestral music which opens each episode of The Rings of Power.
Shore casts his theme from a familiar musical mould, with a prominent, noble horn, ethereal choir and comforting swathes of strings. Having Shore compose the title music makes for a grounding anchor for viewers coming to the prequel series from the films.
But that’s where Shore’s involvement ends, for the show’s score is written by Emmy-winning composer Bear McCreary who has crafted some of the very best music heard on TV in a long time.
What else has Bear McCreary written music for?
McCreary is no stranger to blockbuster television series’ having composed the music for popular shows like The Walking Dead, Outlander, Battlestar Galactica, Snowpiercer and Black Sails, not to mention Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and episodes of Black Mirror.
He won an Primetime Emmy for his music for Da Vinci’s Demons in 2013 and shared a BAFTA for his music for the videogame God of War Ragnarök in 2019.
For the big screen, McCreary has written the music for the likes of vampire thriller Last Voyage of the Demeter, Godzilla: King of Monsters and 10 Cloverfield Lane among many others.
Other videogames featuring music by Bear McCreary include entries in the Assassin’s Creed and Call of Duty series’, Star Wars: Tales from Galaxy’s Edge and Gotham Knights.
What is the music like in season one of The Rings of Power?
Bear McCreary’s music for The Rings of Power is, like the series itself, epic. For the most part it is written for full orchestra and choir, with instrumentalists and vocalists in the mix. The score is in many respects an old fashioned one, featuring large forces and sounding luxurous and lyrical.
McCreary utilises a leitmotif structure (à la John Williams’s Star Wars scores) which aids the viewer in understanding where they are in Middle Earth and whose story they’re watching. This comes in the form of different melodies, but also different instrumental sounds and musical styles.
McCreary’s central theme belongs to the captivating Elf, Galadriel, who is treated to the most noble, stirring melody, and one which pervades the series’ score.
The Harfoots (small, woodland folk a bit like Hobbits) are defined by a distinctly Celtic sound, with harp, flute, folk percussion and Uillean pipes, while the Elves have an ethereal music, often featuring womens choir.
The Dwarves’ music features metal percussion, stoic rhythms and male choir, while the music for the stubborn and the brilliantly funny Durin features a swaggering cello (a little like Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean scores), while the world of men features fiddle (possibly a Hardanger, as in Howard Shore’s film scores).
There’s a classic love theme for Bronwyn and Arondir, featuring a lovely oboe line and warm strings, while the evil Sauron sounds just that with frenetic strings and ultra-low male voices.
A standout theme from the first season is that for ‘The Stranger’, a mysterious man (giant to the diminutive Harfoots) who falls from the sky.
McCreary underscores him with an odd, almost clockwork motif which rises and falls, underlining his curious arrival and behaviour. A benevolent, slightly grandiose theme takes over for this unusual being who has descended from the stars.
Song plays a part, too, with a haunting piece called ‘Where the Shadows Lie’. Sung by American singer-songwriter Fiona Apple and featuring Tolkien’s classic verse about the forging of the rings (‘One ring to rule them all etc…’).
It’s an eerie performance, not dissimilar in feel to Howard Shore’s captivating ‘Gollum’s Song’ from The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.
What’s the music like in Season Two of The Rings of Power?
Bear McCreary returns for the second season of The Rings of Power, once again contributing big-boned and very beautiful music.
Like season one, it’s a heady mix of melodies and styles, taking the viewer (and listener) on an epic journey and sees the return of many of the first season’s themes, along with a host of new ones.
The score features the song ‘Old Tom Bombadil’, based on Tolkien’s original verse and brilliantly performed by Rufus Wainwright (and in the series itself by actors Rory Kinnear and Daniel Weyman).
McCreary also uses the Grammy-winning vocal ensemble The Mystery of Bulgarian Voices, a women-only choir with a very distinct sound.
The Stoors (another race of Hobbit-like people) are given another folsky sound, while the giant spider Shelob sounds suitably creepy with lots of frenetic clacking, pizzicato and stabbing strings.
Standout moments in the season two score come in the form of the music for the ‘Barrow-wrights’, for whom McCreary employs really unnerving, rasping voices, while ‘The Last Ballad of Damrod’ features the heavy metal vocals of Messhugah front-man Jens Kidman.
It’s a brilliantly thrilling fusion of orchestra and heavy metal.
Where can I listen to the music from The Rings of Power?
Bear McCreary’s music (and Howard Shore’s main title theme) is available on a generous soundtrack album, with a second season album now available. Both can be streamed wherever you enjoy your music.
Mondo Music released the first season soundtrack album on double CD and LP in 2023, followed by a ten-disc complete release in April 2024. They will likely follow that with the music from season two.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is available to stream now on Amazon Prime (subscription required).