Composer and sound engineer Jordan Rannells (who you might recall from his acclaimed The Lord of the Rings ambient audio soundscape project) has just released a new, immersive work designed to synchronise with Andy Serkis’s unabridged audiobook reading of The Silmarillion.
The project, called The Soundscape of Eä, follows The Silmarillion’s full journey from the Music of the Ainur and the formation of the world, through the wars of Beleriand, and more.
Rannels says that the new soundscape is timed to exactly match Serkis’s audiobook reading, and combines foley audio, original music, ambient nature recordings, and carefully timed sound effects, all engineered in Dolby Atmos to deliver a 3D immersive audio journey through J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth.
“This is not just a bit of added music: it changes how we can experience these stories,” he says. “We get to hear the song of the Ainur. The hissing and darkness of Ungoliant, and the might of Ancalagon in the War of Wrath.”
Get 25% off any of Jordan Rannell’s soundscapes with TORn
Until January 6, TORn readers can get 25% off not only The Soundscape of Eä, but any of Rannell’s soundscapes over on his website. Just use the special code TORN25 at checkout.
You can also listen to a few samples from The Soundscape of Eä in the Youtube clip below:
The release of The Soundscape of Eä also means listeners are now able to sync an immersive audioscape to Harper Collins’ audiobooks of the three key works of Tolkien’s legendarium: The Silmarillion, The Hobbit (An Unexpected Soundscape), and The Lord of the Rings (A Long-Expected Soundscape). Handily, if this appeals to you, Rannells has bundled them all together in The Legendarium Collection.
Have you ever wanted to listen to the sounds of Mirkwood? Hear the flow of the Brandywine River? Or perhaps stand in the midst of whistling winds on Caradhras? Soon, you will be able to – thanks to the extraordinary concept and creativity of Jordan Rannells.
Jordan is a composer and sound engineer, with many years experience in the business. His work will be familiar to some Middle-earth fans: he’s an editor for the Prancing Pony podcast. He also has his own podcast – Music of Middle-earth – and, as if that wasn’t enough, he worked with renowned Tolkien artist John Howe on his audiobook Ultimate Fantasy Art Academy.
But Jordan has a dream and a vision – or perhaps one should say, a ‘hearing’! He has long felt that audio books are lacking something. In computer gaming, the artificial realm is brought to life with music, sound effects and ambient sound; the same has long been true of radio plays. And yet, when we listen to books record by brilliant readers such as Stephen Fry and – most recently in Middle-earth – Andy Serkis, we generally only hear their voices delivering the text.
Jordan has a plan to change that. He’s creating (to quote his own words) ‘an audio soundscape to accompany your journey through Middle-earth while you read J.R.R Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings’. He tells us:
This is something that has never been done before. It is on a scale far above any of our wildest Tolkien fan dreams. I will have CHAPTER SPECIFIC audio.
I will be writing an entire score. Each piece will run alongside the length of an entire chapter of the book.
I will be using advanced 3D immersive audio equipment to record the natural world. These recordings will be inserted into the Soundscape to make you feel like you are walking alongside the Fellowship.
I will be designing and mixing sound FX for creatures like the Balrog, Ringwraiths, and many more to appear along your journey through the story.
All of these layers will be presented separately and together to have a multitude of listening experiences for your adventures in this world. They will be composed and mixed for the purpose of listening while you read, but these files will also be excellent for relaxing, D&D nights, immersing into other fantasy worlds, and more!
Composer and Sound Engineer Jordan Rannells
Jordan recently shared with TORn some insight into HOW exactly he will create this incredible soundscape. Thanks to the latest technology (such as 3D microphones), he can capture locational sound, which will surround the listener. He intends to record specific, different sound environments for all the realms of Middle-earth (no two forests will be the same!); and to have continuous, through-composed audio, with no looping. He also plans to create different speed versions of the soundscape – with one timed perfectly to be played as background whilst you listen along to Andy Serkis’ recording of The Lord of the Rings!
All of this is a huge undertaking, of course! We’re looking forward to hearing how Jordan’s journey to create this audio feast progresses; we hope to connect with him in the coming months, as he conjures and explores his soundscape for Tolkien’s world. Meanwhile, if you’re as excited by this project as we are, you’ll definitely want to know more – and see how you can get involved, and perhaps even lend your voice to the work! Click here to read all the details about this amazing undertaking. We wish Jordan the best of luck – can’t wait to hear the finished product!
