TehanuTehanu was at the Wellington booklaunch for Weta’s latest creation, The Crafting of Narnia. It got her thinking about the influence Weta and Wingnut have had on fantasy fans over the years. Read all about it in the latest Tehanu’s Note. [Read More]

LOTR SymphonyThe St. Louis Symphony will be be performing Howard Shore’s ‘The Lord of Rings Symphony’ at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 19 and 20 at Powell Hall in St. Louis, MO. Tickets go on sale to the public Monday June 16, 2008 at 9:00 a.m.

Ludwig Wicki, conductor – Saint Louis Symphony Chorus – Capture the Ring with the SLSO! Since its premiere in 2003, Howard Shore’s The Lord of the Rings Symphony has received standing ovations on four continents. The musical experience is heightened with projected illustrations and storyboards. “Shore’s musical opus is every bit as impressive as Tolkien’s literary one…even when liberated from the majesty of [Peter] Jackson’s trilogy.”—Seattle Times

Howard Shore’s LOTR score will go down in history as one of the best of all time. If you can make this show, you won’t regret it! Thanks to UncleAndy for the heads up! [St Louis Symphony]

New Zealand’s TV3 has an interview with Richard Taylor in the new Weta Cave, which he’s clearly very proud of. It’s long been a dream of his to have a permanent place where his team’s work could be enjoyed and appreciated. To display the results of over twenty years work in the film industry, much of it in collaboration with Peter Jackson, Weta have created a fantasy grotto stuffed with props and models. View

NarniaDayWeta recently opened its “Weta Cave” to give visitors something cool to see when they make the journey to the gentle neighborhood in Wellington where one of the world’s most important film special effects houses sits. I visited the Cave a few weeks before it officially opened and believe me, I felt like I was walking sacred movie-production ground. This Sunday the already must-visit destination is the site of a pretty incredible afternoon celebrating the New Zealand release of “Prince Caspian.” Continue reading “Weta Cave’s “Narnia Day” set for Sunday”

John Howe Forging Dragons

Kristin Thompson, from The Frodo Franchise reports that John Howe is releasing a new book, titled Forging Dragons.

It contains John’s paintings of dragons, as well as the sketches he made in preparing them and some information on how he did them. There’s even discuss of the mythological background of each dragon. The book’s not due out until October 10, but already Amazon has it available for pre-orders here.

So there you go. A fitting release for the beginning of pre-production of The Hobbit and the preparation of what Guillermo del Toro has described as THE dragon. [The Frodo Franchise]

Kaitlyn LuskKaitlyn Lusk will include four songs from the LOTR soundtrack–May It Be, Breaking The Fellowship, Gollum’s Song, Into the West–on her new recording, FilmSong. You can hear a preview and purchase a Special Edition Single of “Into the West” at her website.

Kaitlyn is the featured vocal soloist for the Lord of the Rings Symphony and the Fellowship of the Ring Symphony (performed live to the movie) and is a big fan of the music. She wrote at Doug Adams’ blog:

Sitting next to the conductor and directly in front of the orchestra, I’m the only person who takes in both the audience’s perspective as well as that of the musicians. Whether through the vibrations of my seat, or looking out into the enraptured crowd, I’ve uniquely witnessed hundreds of nights filled with the human and artistic emotions that are inspired by Tolkien’s story and Howard Shore’s beloved music. After five years of singing this music…I can whole-heartedly say I am as thrilled today as I was the first time I got the call to sing. Funny story: after jumping and screaming on the phone they asked if I needed the music and I replied, “Are you kidding? I already know it!”

Thanks to Doug Adams for his heads up on Kaitlyn’s new recording.

Photo by Chuck Fong.

[Kaitlyn Lusk] [Howard Shore] [Doug Adams]