Here comes the latest from the Hall of Fire topic think tank:

Music and Middle-earth

From its creation down to the last chapter of Middle-earth’s history, music is a powerful and significant presence in the writing of J.R.R. Tolkien. Music and song is a common theme not only to the passage of time in Arda, but also to all the peoples of Middle-earth. We find singing orcs, hobbits, dwarves, goblins, ents, elves, humans, gods, and demi-gods. I’ll wager Sauron himself hummed a dark ditty as he crafted the One Ring at Mount Doom.

What does Tolkien achieve and evoke with all of this music and song? How is music used as metaphore, image, emotion, magic, or even substance? What resonnates with you and the music of Middle-earth?

Warm up those fingers and vocal cords and come join the throng. This chat is scheduled for Saturday, July 29, at 5:30 p.m. EDT [10:30 p.m. GMT]. If this time doesn’t work for you, come to our European-time session, which is on Sunday, July 30, at 6:00 p.m. GMT [7:00 p.m. Central Europe Time and 1:00 p.m. EDT].