5 Composers Who Should Create Music for Amazon’s ‘Lord of the Rings’ Series

Lisa Granshaw
TV Streaming
TV Streaming Fantasy

Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings films set the bar high for any adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic trilogy and one of the best aspects of the films was composer Howard Shore’s beautiful music. His music helped us feel like we were in Middle-earth, setting the tone for the adventure we watched unfold on screen. The three soundtracks are undoubtedly among Shore’s finest work and continue to be classics to this day, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible for someone else to give us the next great soundtrack for Tolkien’s world. In fact, we’re eager to see who might tackle it next in Amazon’s upcoming series.

While we’re still low on details for the show, we’ve been wondering who might play the young Aragorn the series may be about, and what else would be great to see explored on the series. Naturally we’re also thinking about which composers should try to create the epic soundtrack for this new journey to Middle-earth. It will be no easy task composing music for the world that was given an amazing score with Shore, but there are quite a few we think can bring something new and just as impressive to the music for this new story.

These are the five TV composers we want considered to bring their talent to the music of the series.

Ramin Djawadi

If there’s another composer that knows all about creating a stirring fantasy soundtrack, it’s Ramin Djawadi. He’s scored one of the most memorable TV soundtracks ever for Game of Thrones. The title music is recognizable in just the first few notes and his work completely captures the feeling of Westeros. That’s not the only acclaimed HBO series he’s worked on either. Westworld can also thank Djawadi for the amazing music that accompanies us on an unforgettable sci-fi journey.

These might be the best examples for why Djawadi would be a perfect fit for tackling Tolkien’s world, but if that wasn’t enough he’s worked on shows like Prison Break and Person of Interest too as well as on equally ambitious scores for movies like Pacific Rim and Iron Man. The Emmy-award winning composer would be more than up to the challenge of a Lord of the Rings series and we’d be excited to see what he could come up with for it!

Bear McCreary

Remember the incredible score that guided us on the journey of the rebooted Battlestar Galactica? That was Bear McCreary. McCreary is one of the best TV composers in the business. He’s composed memorable music for many shows including The Walking Dead, Outlander, and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.. His work is often unique, striking, and stays with you long after you hear it.

McCreary’s TV credits alone show why he would be a great choice for Amazon’s series. For more proof though you can listen to his soundtracks for the video game God of War and the movie 10 Cloverfield Lane. From space to the zombie apocalypse, can you imagine how amazing his take on a Middle-earth soundtrack would be?

Murray Gold

Murray Gold worked in the wibbly wobbly, timey wimey universe of Doctor Who from the first revival season in 2005 to the end of the Twelfth Doctor’s run last year. Much of his Doctor Who music became unforgettable additions to the classic sci-fi franchise that perfectly captured the spirit of the show. His experience composing for the many different settings in time and space that the Doctor traveled to with his companions in the TARDIS would make him a very interesting choice for Amazon’s new show.

Not only did he work on Doctor Who for more than a decade, he also composed the themes for Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures as well as additional music for Torchwood. When you listen to these pieces you can see how Gold moves between different styles that fit each show to create compelling music for TV. We think if he had the chance to hop from the TARDIS to the Shire he could make something truly memorable!

Trevor Morris

Transporting listeners into thrilling stories with music is common for Trevor Morris. Morris has a lot of experience creating distinctive soundtracks for a range of TV series. You’ll hear his work on shows like Vikings, Reign, The Tudors, Iron Fist, and Castlevania. His work beyond TV on the video game Dragon Age Inquisition is another example of why he would be an excellent choice for The Lord of the Rings series. It’s a wonderful, exciting game soundtrack you’ll find yourself listening to again and again.

The Emmy-award winning composer can clearly work with any setting to create extraordinary music. It’s why if he’s at the helm of the soundtrack you’ll want the new show to visit every setting in Middle-earth just to see what he might compose for it.

Danny Elfman

Danny Elfman might be more familiar to you for his work in film. The movies he works on are often those where you immediately recognize the music. There are almost too many of these to list, but some of his best work can be found in Batman, Beetlejuice, Men in Black, and Spider-Man. While he continues to create amazing movie soundtracks, he’s created remarkable TV music as well which is why he should definitely be considered to work on The Lord of the Rings series. On TV, The Simpsons, Desperate Housewives, and The Flash themes were all Elfman.

With that in mind, just imagine the direction he’d go for The Lord of the Rings! It would be the perfect mix of something different from Shore’s soundtrack yet still capturing the right essence needed for the Tolkien-inspired series.

The new Lord of the Rings show is set to go into production in 2019.

Freelance writer. Founder of GeekFold.