#the silmarillion playlist

[camille-lachenille]

The Silmarillion ultimate playlist

It’s the time of Spotify wrap-ups and whatnot and this gave me an idea: let’s make a giant, collaborative playlist for the Silmarillion!

Drop the songs that make you think of a specific character, your OCs, relationship, event, place, or just gives you major Silm Vibes in the reblogs and tags. Put links to them, write essays about these songs if you want, or just reblog to share further, but the goal is to have fun and discover as many songs as possible.

You can share any song or musical piece you want, no matter the genre or language, the only rule is that it can’t be a song by Tolkien nor a track from the LotR movies or musical, nor the Hobbit or any musical adaptation of Tolkien’s works (I see you Finrod Rock Opera. I will listen to you one day).

Anyways, here are my songs, and the link to the collaborative playlist:

Eärendil, Starwing: Sailboat of Mine - Eurielle & Mario Grigorov

Eöl, Nan Elmoth: Hotel California - Eagles

Aredhel: Touch the Sky - Brave; I want to Break Free - Queen;

Nerdanel, Anairë and Eärwen: Friends will be Friends - Queen

Findis: Ave Maria - Franz Schubert (specifically sung by Maria Callas)

Morgoth: Back on the Throne - Firewind

Lúthien: Savage Daughter - Sarah Hester Ross; Queen of King - Alessandra

Maglor’s Gap: I wanna be in the Cavalry - Colm R. McGuinness (both the original and the reprise)

Maglor: Requiem, Lacrimosa - W.A. Mozart

Fingon/Maedhros: Princes of the Universe - Queen

Túrin Turambar: Live and Die by the Sword - Firewind

Fëanor (from the moment he swears the Oath to his death, but specifically Alqualondë and Losgar): Wars of Age - Firewind

Amarië: I will survive - Gloria Gaynor

Eluréd and Elurín: Erlkönig - Franz Schubert; Come Little Children - Hocus Pocus (cover by Erutan)

Finwë: Sin - Lia Marie Johnson

Helcaraxë: Rise from the Ashes - Firewind

Nirnaeth Arnoediad: Bloodstained Ground - Eluvetie

Sons of Fëanor: Threefold Death - Eluvetie

Edain/ end of the War of Wrath vibes: Prologue - Eluvetie

Fingolfin: Last of the Lords - Battlelore

Tuor/Idril: Song of the Sea - Nolwen Leroy

Maglor, Elrond and Elros: The Magic Lullaby - Eurielle

Thingol/Melian: Cat People (Putting out Fire) - David Bowie

Nolofinwëans: Hey Brother - Avicii

Celegorm and Curufin in Nargothrond: (Do)minion - Eluvetie

As you can see, this playlist is completely random, jumping from lullaby to death metal to 80’s pop without rhyme nor reason. It’s just a giant melting pot of Vibes

And now, it’s your turn to play!

[velvet4510]

I guess I’m one of those weirdos who so deeply feels the essence of an instrumental leitmotif from a film score associated with a particular character or couple, that I start associating said leitmotifs in my head with ANOTHER character from an entirely different film/book/series. And I’ve built up a whole library of leitmotifs for LOTR characters even though I ADORE Howard Shore’s original score for the trilogy. I consider these leitmotifs to be add-ons, NOT replacements.

Nor do I intend to completely dissasociate all of these themes from their intended films/characters; some of them are perfect fits for the films they were written for. It’s just my mind going wild like usual. (But I admit, in some cases, the pieces are from films I dislike, and thus I would rather see these great songs associated with something of LOTR quality rather than what they were actually stuck with, especially when the lack of lyrics gives you the freedom to let the melody take you wherever it takes you, personally.)

In the case of Silmarillion characters and relationships, well, it’s a different story - it really is my attempt to cobble together what could be a hypothetical score, if it were brought to the screen. Obviously it’d never be this exactly, but I would hope a composer for a potential screen adaptation of The Silmarillion might be inspired by themes like these.

In some cases, the characters these themes were originally written for don’t resemble the corresponding LOTR characters very much, or at all. Also some of them have titles that by themselves could not be more different from and unfitting for Tolkien’s world. It’s just the melodies on their own, without context or even name, performed by these gorgeous orchestras, that have come to remind me of particular Tolkien figure(s).

I also have found lots of “love themes”, both romantic and platonic, for character relationships, as you’ll see. I’ve included romantic themes for canonical couples, as well as for pairings that I personally ship. I know Shore already gave Aragorn and Arwen a theme, but as I said, these are all extra additions and not replacements.

And yes I have a lot of Star Wars stuff in here, because I love Star Wars…but I love Tolkien more.

For the heck of it I’ll share some of these, with links to each song on YT. It’s hard to explain why I made these choices/associations, but maybe you’ll get it if you listen to some of them.

CHARACTER THEMES

The Valar = “Guardians of the Whills Suite” by Michael Giacchino

Lúthien Tinúviel = “Once Upon a Time in the West” by Ennio Morricone

Túrin Turambar = “Anakin’s Theme” by John Williams

Nienor Níniel = “Helena’s Theme” by John Williams

Frodo Baggins = “Romeo” by Nino Rota

Sam Gamgee = “Rey’s Theme” by John Williams

Aragorn = “The John Dunbar Theme” by John Barry

Gandalf = “Yoda’s Theme” by John Williams

Legolas = “Rose Tico” by John Williams

Éowyn = “Marion’s Theme” by John Williams

THEMES FOR LANDS/LOCATIONS

The Undying Lands = “Out of Africa” by John Barry

ROMANTIC LOVE THEMES

Frodo x Sam = “Love Theme from Ben-Hur” by Miklos Rozsa

Beren x Lúthien = “Love Theme from The Godfather” by Nino Rota

Faramir x Éowyn = “Han Solo and the Princess” by John Williams

Aragorn x Arwen = “Love Theme from Cinema Paradiso” by Ennio Morricone

Sam x Rosie = “Love Theme from Dances with Wolves” by John Barry

Bilbo x Thorin = “Andante Cantabile” by Bernard Herrmann

Thingol x Melian = “Indecent Proposal” by John Barry

Fingon x Maedhros = “Wuthering Heights” by Alfred Newman

Galadriel x Celeborn = “Central Park” by James Newton Howard

Finrod x Bëor = “Somewhere in Time” by John Barry

Aegnor x Andreth = “Love Theme from The Scarlet Letter” by John Barry

Finduilas x Gwindor = “Deborah’s Theme” by Ennio Morricone

Túrin x Beleg = “Across the Stars” by John Williams

Mablung x Nienor = “Wanda and Vision” by Christophe Beck

Tuor x Idril = “Conversation Piece” by Bernard Herrmann

Eärendil x Elwing = “Tennessee” by Hans Zimmer

Elrond x Celebrían = “And Then I Kissed Him” by Hans Zimmer

Pippin x Diamond = “Love Theme from East of Eden” by Leonard Rosenman

Merry x Estella = “Love Theme from Rebel Without a Cause” by Leonard Rosenman

Elanor x Fastred = “Theme from A Summer Place” by Max Steiner (arranged by Percy Faith)

PLATONIC RELATIONSHIP THEMES

Elrond & Elros = “Brothers” by Hans Zimmer

Merry & Pippin = “Flying” by John Williams

Legolas & Gimli = “Rain Man” by Hans Zimmer

Boromir & Faramir = “Luke and Leia” by John Williams

Bilbo & Frodo* = “The Mother’s Love” by Miklos Rozsa

Sam & Elanor = “The Ludlows” by James Horner

I may add to this as I think of more, or even replace certain songs entirely if I come across a better match. Always return to the pinned post here to see the most recently updated list.

* Bilbo & Frodo’s melody is heard in the first minute of the linked track, 0:00–1:01, and again at 1:48. Also, the love theme I associate with Frodo & Sam starts playing at 1:03, making this whole thing fit all the hobbits even better.

[general-illyrin]

I just heard Natural by Imagine Dragons for the first time and I am chewing the carpet

Tell me "Took an oath by the blood on my hand, won't break it" doesn't scream Maedhros (and the Feanorians in general, tbh)

(lyrics below the cut, for those interested)

Will you hold the line When every one of them has given up and given in? Tell me In this house of mine Nothing ever comes without a consequence or cost, tell me Will the stars align? Will heaven step in? Will it save us from our sin, will it? 'Cause this house of mine stands strong

That's the price you pay Leave behind your heart and cast away Just another product of today Rather be the hunter than the prey

And you're standing on the edge face up 'Cause you're a natural A beating heart of stone You gotta be so cold To make it in this world Yeah, you're a natural Living your life cutthroat You gotta be so cold Yeah, you're a natural

Will somebody Let me see the light within the dark trees shadowing? What's happening? Looking through the glass find the wrong within the past knowing Oh, we are the youth Cut until it bleeds inside a world without the peace, face it A bit of the truth, the truth

That's the price you pay Leave behind your heart and cast away Just another product of today Rather be the hunter than the prey

And you're standing on the edge face up 'Cause you're a natural A beating heart of stone You gotta be so cold To make it in this world Yeah, you're a natural Living your life cutthroat You gotta be so cold Yeah, you're a natural

Deep inside me, I'm fading to black, I'm fading Took an oath by the blood on my hand, won't break it I can taste it, the end is upon us, I swear Gonna make it I'm gonna make it

Natural A beating heart of stone You gotta be so cold To make it in this world

Yeah, you're a natural Living your life cutthroat You gotta be so cold Yeah, you're a natural

Natural

Yeah, you're a natural

[edennill]

I love how as a fandom we've collectively decided that Just A Man ia a perfect song for the Fëanorians because to be honest when does the reason become the blame, is just such a succinct way to summarise the whole issue with the Oath imo.

[el-peredhel]

"he was as noble and fair as an elf-lord, as strong as a warrior, as wise as a wizard, as venerable as a king of dwarves, and as kind as summer."

elrond peredhel: a playlist

[sadlybeans]

I just realised I’ve been meaning to share this here!

This is a playlist with general elven vibes :) Most of them can be from the point of view of the sindar leaving for Valinor for the first time at the end of the Third Age, but it also works just in general for the entire Elven Aesthetic.

It definitely is nostalgic! I’ll keep adding more as I go as well… I like listening to it as I write my fics because it helps me keep going haha

You can find it here

[urwendii]

Type of music you can hear in the various Maiar workshops:

house of Manwë: baroque classical

house of Varda: space ambient

house of Aulë: metal (pun intended)

house of Yavanna: indie folk

house of Irmo: psychedelic trance music

house of Estë: chill-lofi

houses of Oromë + Tulkas: epic instrumental soundtracks

house of Námo: white noise + asmr

house of Ulmo: the little mermaid ost + Ossë's heavy metal playlist

house of Nienna: sad love songs

Bonus:

Angband: k-pop

[fistfuloflightning]

I had all and then most of you Some and now none of you Take me back to the night we met I don't know what I'm supposed to do Haunted by the ghost of you Oh, take me back to the night we met

The Night We Met, Lord Huron

[princessaredhel]

♛ Findekáno | a fanmix for Fingon the Valiant [spotify]

“Of all the children of Finwë he is justly most renowned: for his valour was as a fire and yet as steadfast as the hills of stone; wise he was and skilled in voice and hand; troth and justice he loved and bore good will to all, both Elves and Men, hating Morgoth only; he sought not his own, neither power nor glory, and death was his reward.”

1. Eternal Light - Future World Music | 2. Above and Beyond - Audiomachine | 3. Centurion - Ilan Eshkeri | 4. Kill the Boy - Ramin Djawadi | 5. Connor's Life - Lorne Balfe | 6. Heart - Thomas Bergersen, Two Steps From Hell | 7. The Eagles (feat. Renée Fleming) - Howard Shore, Renée Fleming | 8. Unashamed - Confidential Music | 9. Statues - Alexandre Desplat | 10. Dogs of War - Brand X Music | 11. You're Where You Belong / Give 'Em Hell - Harold Faltermeyer, Lady Gaga, Hans Zimmer, Lorne Balfe | 12. A Good Omen - Howard Shore | 13. Hero's Theme (String Build Version) - Adam Saunders, Mark Stephen Cousins | 14. Optimus - Steve Jablonsky | 15. Undying Love - Thomas Bergersen, Two Steps From Hell | 16. Woad to Ruin - Hans Zimmer | 17. The Lion's Heart - Audiomachine | 18. Destiny of the Chosen - Trailerhead | 19. Someday I'll Be Redeemed (No Vocals) - Epic Score.

[fragile--void]

Felt compelled to share my Maedhros playlist. Because I love it and I love him.

[youareunbearable]

I made a spotify playlist for one of my fav Silm fics of all time "A Thread Unraveled" by ScribeofArda on Ao3 or @theheirofashandfire here on tumblr

Summary of fic: "Maedhros wakes up again, on the first morning of the Nirnaeth Arnoediad. Of course, nobody calls it that. For them, it hasn't happened yet."

The paylist follows the general vibe of the narrative: Maedhros' realization of the cycles, his struggles, his saving grace, and his determination to succeed in battle with his loved ones alive no matter how many times he has to get back up and try again. The songs genre is mostly: indie, folk, with some musical numbers thrown in because honestly, its not one of my playlists without a musical song or two

This is a brilliant fic so if you havent read it already i would reccomend! It's also an ongoing series and I've probably read the entire thing over a dozen times, its really become one of my favourite comfort fics/series of all time.

[camille-lachenille]

My theme song for Maedhros post third Kinslaying specifically but also post Nirnaeth in general

Will you look at me?

Take a good look at me

And tell me who it is that I am

This old mirror it is broken

There's too much drift in the dam

It's not the world that's spinning that's me

I go from nowhere to nowhere searching for the key

But there's nothing new under the sun

All that will happen has already begun

Will you savour this in your mind?

This old feeling when you're left behind

Will you hold to this as true?

Or will you dance to another tune?

was watching for a long time

As people crossed the street

Some heavy sadness weighed upon me

As I sat silent in the car seat

Shadows with that same look upon their faces

A child will die that nobody embraces

Everything gets tiresome, everything grows old

With each secret revealed, there's another to be told

Will you savour this in your mind?

This old feeling when you're left behind

Will you hold to this as true?

Or will you dance to another tune?

Will you look at me?

Take a good look at me

And tell me who it is that I am

[velvet4510]

This is the love theme that I have chosen for Fingon & Maedhros.

When you have 3 minutes to spare, you can picture those two doomed Noldor and listen to “their” theme here.

This piece is from the 1939 film adaptation of Wuthering Heights, composed by the great Alfred Newman.

My mind immediately went here when searching for a Russingon theme, particularly this sorrowful violin version by Itzhak Perlman. Wuthering Heights itself is far from a perfect comparison to these two, but the initial beginnings (childhood friends who fall in love) and the aftermath (one dies, the other goes mad) are strikingly similar.

It’s a song full of pain and longing and innocence lost, so well exemplified by Russingon’s story - especially as they spend so much time apart for a variety of reasons, and this song makes me picture them, separated but each thinking about the other…and eventually Maedhros left alone to hallucinate Fingon in his madness…and ages later, re-embodied Fingon left alone to wander the places in Valinor where he and Maedhros used to rendezvous.

Hope y’all like it. :)

[edennill]

In the grand tradition of mini playlists, have the highly specific vibes of "right after the first age, looking back", ft: a lot of regrets:

Antebellum by Vienna Teng

First House on the Left by Katherine Priddy (finrod wandering tirion after everything, of course)

In Our Bedroom After the War by Stars ("we won, or we think we did/when you went away, you were just a kid/and if you lost it all..." makes me crack every time)

The Fellowship by Christoffer Moe Ditlevsen (instrumental)

Forgive the Children We Once Were by Delta Rae ('kay this one's cheating, because I imagine it as sung from a way later perspective, say an inhabitant of third age rivendell... but like, "all the lines we knew back then, they now are faded/...people that I used to hate, I hardly remember" is so heartbreaking in this context. it no longer matters who followed whom, there's two dozen of you left. what did you even personally hate fingolfin for. what did it matter)

[giaffa]

Tolkien Playlists Masterpost

I made a lot of Tolkien related playlists on spotify during the last year to organise my music library, if anyone is interested here they are:

The Legendarium

From the Ainulindalë to the War of Wrath, with an extra mention of the Dagor Dagorath at the end to close the narrative (events in chronological order, mostly metal with some acoustic and ambient pieces)

Second and Third Age, from Numenor to the events of The Hobbit to the full lotr storyline (events in chronological order, mostly metal with some acoustic and ambient pieces)

From the Ainulindalë to the end of the Third Age (events in chronological order, instrumental classical and acoustic music only, including the movies soundtrack)

One Playlist To Rule Them All: a selection of my favourite Tolkien astists on spotify (mostly metal, tracks sorted by artist)

Chill Roadtrip AU: small selection of Tolkien themed chillhop and downtempo

Characters

Eärendil: mostly ambient metal and some acoustic tracks to journey through the stars

Thingol and Melian: Doriath ambient playlist, with some medieval and acoustic tracks, enchanted forest and fae court vibes

Aragorn: acoustic and metal songs for reclaimed kingdoms and long distance love stories

Tar-Miriel: slow and haunted vibes for the Downfall of Numenor, water and drowning themes

Legolas: soft acoustic and folk tracks, relaxing and nature themed with some sea longing vibes

Maglor: metal and acoustic songs for the poorest little meow meow

Fëanor: power metal only for the Spirit of Fire himself

Sauron: mainly black metal, playlist for evil necromancers only

Vibes only

Not strictly Tolkien related lyrics but if you need more vibes I can offer you these playlists:

Cuiviénen: ambient metal to wander under the starry skies

Dreamless Sleep: lullabies for the enchanted forest

Lugbúrz Lo-Fi: dungeon synth ambience for your tower dwellings

Mordor Metalfest: black metal for your evil festival needs

The Party goes on a Roadtrip: epic metal for your epic quest

Sword and Sorcery: ultra epic metal for your ultra epic quest

Songs of Enchantment: soft acoustic folk and fantasy songs to sing in a field