On October 9th and 10th, the music of The Lord of The Rings came to Radio City. Live performances of the entire score of The Lord of The Rings: The Fellowship of The Ring by over 300 musicians to an immense projection of the film, it was nothing short of a spellbinding orchestral and cinematic experience. And, a wee bit late, here are my thoughts.
Howard Shore Fun Fact: Lord of The Rings composer Howard Shore was the first band leader on Saturday Night Live.
The Lead Up
I’m trying to recall the first time I heard about The Lord of The Rings at Radio City. It was some months ago, maybe as far back as New York Comic Con this past February, and it was from a fan. It was a die-hard Tolkien fan who told me about the event, although, if memory serves, he didn’t get it quite right. “A Lord of The Rings musical is coming to Radio City!” As the months passed, I heard about The Lord of The Rings at Radio City some more — from The New York Times and WNYC as well as The Onion, TheOneRing.net, and New York Comic Con. And, just as I first heard about the concerts from fans, it was the fans again — through TheOneRing.net and New York Comic Con — that I heard the drum beat most loudly leading into fall.
I should state now that, beyond the occasional posts on Suvudu, I’m responsible for the guests, panels, and special events at New York Comic Con as well as much of NYCC’s involvement with The Lord of The Rings. So, feel free to call “bias”, as there no doubt is one, but there’s also a new point of view of the entire LOTR concert experience. (I should state, too, that despite being involved with The Lord of The Rings at Radio City, I’ve never had a soft spot in my heart for fantasy. I’ve never been able to get excited by wizards, trolls, and elves, and even The Lord of The Rings is no exception.)
CAMI Music, the organizers of The Lord of The Rings Radio City concerts, knew the power, the meaning, and the reach of the LOTR name, but they also knew where to find its core, and as self-congratulatory as is sounds, it was smart decision for them to partner with New York Comic Con to speak directly to NYC’s greater geek community. We did a lot with The Lord of The Rings in the months leading up to the concerts including photo contests, art contests, promotions at The Brooklyn Book Festival, The New York Times Great Children’s Read, and The New York Anime Festival, outreach to other websites, and a total newyorkcomiccon.com takeover. One promotion and one event, though, stick out most in my memory.
