An Echo of a Dream

[Parthegon]

Sunday night, after having performed some gnostic work, while I was passing through that liminal phase between waking and sleep, I unexpectedly heard an Elf-maiden's voice singing in Quenya. I couldn't make out the words she sang, but I was awake enough to fumble for my phone and hum a snippet of her melody into my voice recorder. Here's a musical transcription of what I remembered:



It doesn't look like much on the page, admittedly, but the effect of that voice was remarkable. I have a new appreciation for the arresting quality of elven song described by the Professor in his works.

The singing drew nearer. One clear voice rose now above the others. It was singing in the fair elven-tongue, of which Frodo knew only a little, and the others knew nothing. Yet the sound blending with the melody seemed to shape itself in their thought into words which they only partly understood.

There came a time near dawn on the eve of spring and Lúthien danced upon a green hill; and suddenly she began to sing. Keen, heart-piercing was her song as the song of the lark that rises from the gates of night and pours its voice among the dying stars, seeing the sun behind the walls of the world ...

The song of Lúthien before Mandos was the song most fair that ever in words was woven, and the song most sorrowful that ever the world shall hear. Unchanged, imperishable, it is still sung in Valinor beyond the hearing of the world, and listening the Valar are grieved ... and Mandos was moved to pity, who never before was so moved, nor has been since.

[Lomelindo]

Ah, I can't read music. Is there any way you can upload to Youtube or something and then post the link? I would be interested in hearing the melody.

[Lúthien]

wow, this is interesting, Parthegon!

I can set it to music and upload it somewhere, no problem.

[Lúthien]

Here it is, using a piano sample:

[Lúthien]

And here's one with a female choir, transposed to fit in the vocal range adding two more voices below the main one to add some harmony.
I only have some simple choir sounds that can do aaa, ooo, uuu and mmm sounds, but maybe it gives an impression.



btw sorry for the crackling noise - at least, I have that, it seems to be a Logic pro issue and I haven't figured out yet what the problem is

[Lomelindo]

Interesting. The first clip reminded me of Middle-eastern music.
The second one with the choir reminded me of Byzantine chants you might find in Eastern Orthodox Christianity.
I was raised as Russian Orthodox (though I do not believe it it today) but it reminds me of something I would hear in church when I was little.

[Lomelindo]

Here is an example of Byzantine chant.

[Lúthien]

Thanks! I never heard that before. It's interesting that it sounds indeed very oriental, with those - how do you call them, ornaments, trills? - in the singing, that's reminiscent from Turkish music as well.

PS the video did not show because for all video's and other media you can just put them in the post without any tags around it, so I removed those.
There's a media plugin that handles all that, it seems to work fine.