Subject: Lyr Add: THE MAN IN THE MOON (J. R. R. Tolkien) From: NightWing Date: 10 Nov 00 - 06:47 PM In Chapter 8 (?) of _The Fellowship of the Ring_, where the hobbits are in The Prancing Pony Inn in Bree, Frodo sings an absolutely wonderful drinking song (see below). Now, I know that there's a recording or two out there where Tolkien himself reads and sings from his work. Does anyone have them? Did he ever sing this song? (I have an MP3 of him *reading* the song, but not singing it.) Is there a tune that really belongs to it, according to JRR? If not, can anyone suggest a good tune for it? One that matches the meter? (Or whatever you call it. I just sing. I don't *know* anything about it. :)
J. R. R. Tolkien
There is an inn, a merry old inn
The ostler has a tipsy cat
The landlord keeps a little dog
They also keep a horn'ed cow
And all the rows of silver dishes
The Man in the Moon was drinking deep,
The Man in the Moon took another mug
And the ostler said to his tipsy cat,
So the cat and his fiddle played hey-diddle-diddle
They rolled the Man slowly up the hill
Now quick as a fiddle went deedle-dum-diddle,
With a ping and a pong the fiddle strings broke.
The round moon rolled behind the hills
P.S. I may have gotten a few of the words wrong. I didn't copy it from the book, but transcribed it from the MP3 recording I mentioned above. |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: The Shambles Date: 10 Nov 00 - 06:53 PM This may be of interest and help. Lord of the Rings. Movie and songs. |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: Matt_R Date: 10 Nov 00 - 07:00 PM NightWing, I believe I remember reading about what tune it was based on, in The History of MiddleEarth series. Let me get back to you on it... --Matt (Tolkien scholar) |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: Greyeyes Date: 10 Nov 00 - 07:23 PM In the BBC radio version of LOTR this song is virtually spoken by Ian (now Sir Ian) Holm. My memory is vague but I think there was a lone violin accompanying him. The late Stephen Oliver composed the music for the adaptation, some of which was excellent, I always loved the tune to Boromir's dream, "Seek for the sword that was broken...etc". |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: Matt_R Date: 10 Nov 00 - 07:24 PM In Imladris it dwells... |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: Greyeyes Date: 10 Nov 00 - 08:03 PM There shall be councils spoken |
Subject: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: Clinton Hammond2 Date: 11 Nov 00 - 02:09 AM I've asked around those gompies out here in cyberland who are Rabid Tolkien Fans and we've come up fruitless for an original tune... the only example I have of Old JRR sining is him doing Namarie... and it's horrible.. he was not a singer... I also have an album of music by Donald Swan of songs that JRR put his stamp of approval on.. and they're mostly really rotten to, so I'm enclined to believe that Prof Tolk' wasn't much in the music department... |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: Martin Graebe Date: 11 Nov 00 - 03:05 AM I heard Ken Landsbury sing this at Stroud Singer's Club on Tuesday. He's been doing it for a number of years but I doubt he's ever written the tune down. It was, though, very similar to the nursery rhyme 'Old Mother Hubbard' with the fourth line stretched and then repeated - try it and see. Martin |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: Snuffy Date: 11 Nov 00 - 06:52 AM The tune of Old Mother Hubbard is similar to that of Hey Diddle Diddle. It would appear that Tolkien's poem provides the "back story" to that nursery rhyme, so why not adapt that tune in the way that Greenjack suggests? I can post a MIDItext here if you're not familiar with it. Wassail! |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: AllisonA(Animaterra) Date: 11 Nov 00 - 07:14 AM Please post it, Snuffy! |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: Snuffy Date: 11 Nov 00 - 08:23 AM I found two different tunes for Hey Diddle Diddle - the first one (3/4 time Key C) is what I am familiar with here in England, but the Great Songbook says the other one (6/8 in E) is traditional too.
MIDI file: HEYDID~1.MID Timebase: 480 Tempo: 160 (375000 microsec/crotchet) This program is worth the effort of learning it. To download the March 10 MIDItext 98 software and get instructions on how to use it click here ABC format: X: 170 MIDI file: HEYDID~2.MID Timebase: 480 Tempo: 140 (428571 microsec/crotchet) X: 169 Here's my effort at adapting the first tune to fit Tolkien's words. Feel free to change, adapt or reject as you think fit.
MIDI file: MANINM~1.MID Timebase: 480 Tempo: 160 (375000 microsec/crotchet) X: 171
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Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: John P Date: 11 Nov 00 - 09:57 AM I wrote a melody for this song years ago, but I've never written it down. It's based VERY loosely on a 13th century troubadour melody called "Dehors lonc pre", which can then be used as an instrumentat break. The melody is twice as long as the verses, so each pair of verses ends up sounding like one verse. Or it is possible to leave off the second part of the melody and have shorter verses -- it resolves nicely half way through. I suppose I could write it down if anyone is interested, but I don't know how to do ABC and am unlikely to have the time to find out. I could probably get my wife to scan it a put it up on the web somewhere, but I don't know how to make a blue clicky thing either. John |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: MMario Date: 11 Nov 00 - 08:21 PM JOhn - if you can scan the dots, send it to me at lpola.edutech.org and I can convert to midi and abc. Please. please? |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: John P Date: 12 Nov 00 - 11:45 PM Ok, there's a GIF image and a PDF file at http://members.aol.com/jpeekstok |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: GUEST,JD Date: 13 Nov 00 - 03:48 PM I dont now the tune but I never knew Tolkien wrote songs far out I love his books
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Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: MMario Date: 13 Nov 00 - 04:20 PM Thank you John.
MIDI file: manmoon.mid Timebase: 192 Name: The Man in the Moon This program is worth the effort of learning it. To download the March 10 MIDItext 98 software and get instructions on how to use it click here ABC format: X:1
midi to alan for those (like me) who have to HEAR it; NWC to DickG. |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: Uncle_DaveO Date: 13 Nov 00 - 04:28 PM Guest JD: If you didn't know he wrote songs, you need to reread his books! Or at least they are poems denominated songs in the books, whether he or someone created tunes for them or not. Dave Oesterreich |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: NightWing Date: 13 Nov 00 - 05:49 PM Very cool! Three tunes 'stead of just one. Guess it's time for me to get off my butt and learn that MIDI-Text converter program so I can hear the three tunes. Yes, I can read the dots, and I can (a little anyway) read ABC, but it'll be easier to compare and decide which I like by actually hearing them. And, yes, regardless of being able to read the dots and (a little anyway) read ABC, *learning* the tune is easier when I hear it. *G* Dave and JD, I would hesitate to claim that he "wrote songs". Up toward the top of this thread, Clinton Hammond described Prof T singing ("sining"???) Namarie and the recording by Swan. While I've never heard either, I *have* heard several other people agree with Clinton's assessment: that Prof T couldn't sing to save his life and didn't exactly have much taste in music. However, it's very clear that THIS poem was intended as a song. In The Prancing Pony, Frodo is called on for a song. He stands on the table and sings it. When the locals call for it again (to learn it?), he gets to the climax (about the second or third to last verse) and is dancing slightly to the tune, when he falls off the table. His hand in his pocket slips into the ring and he vanishes in front of the entire barroom crowd. After the four hobbits return from Gondor after the war, they stop in the Prancing Pony on their way from Rivendell to the Shire. The locals ask about where they've been and what has happened. Toward the end of the night, someone who WASN'T at the Pony the first night calls for a song ... and is quickly hushed by everyone else, who obviously do NOT care for a repeat of "the vanishing Mr. Baggins". *LOL* Thanks again for the tunes! Now to go pick the one *I* like the best *G* BB, NightWing |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: John P Date: 13 Nov 00 - 09:36 PM I found out a long time ago that Tolkien's poetry makes a lot more sense if you read out loud. There is a strong rhythm in most of them that doesn't really come through if you don't hear it. John |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: GUEST,Menno Date: 14 Nov 00 - 04:22 AM On another note, there is also a song about a Troll that runs rather well to the tune of a song called "The Fox". (Fox went out one chilly night. He prayed for the moon to give him light. For he'd many a mile to go that night. Before he'd reach the town-oh, town-oh, town-oh, many a mile to go that nightbefore he'd reach the town-oh). The only problem I have with the Troll song is that it doesn't actually rhyme everywhere even though it looks that way. Menno. |
Subject: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: Clinton Hammond2 Date: 14 Nov 00 - 12:29 PM what's wrong with songs that don't rhyme??? any dullard can rhyme....
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Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: MMario Date: 14 Nov 00 - 12:37 PM visual rhymes... |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: NightWing Date: 15 Nov 00 - 12:34 PM Well, drat! I posted this last night, but it seems it didn't get in. *pout* John, You may damn me for a blasphemer, but I made a slight change in the tune and now I really like it (for this song). Without changing ANY of the dots, change the key to D major (from D minor). The minor feeling just didn't seem to work for these happy-go-lucky words. In fact, all I did was to take the ABC and change the value of K: from "F" (D minor) to "D" (D major). ABC2WIN did the rest. This is the first I've used ABC2WIN and it's a VERY COOL TOOL! I have to learn it better.
BB, |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: Melodeon Date: 15 Nov 00 - 01:16 PM Greenjack - I heard Ken Langsbury sing Man in the Moon at Stroud Singers club on Tuesday. Which one was you? Melodeon |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: John P Date: 16 Nov 00 - 09:19 AM Nightwing, I change tunes from major to minor and vice versa all the time. I'll try this one in D major . . . John |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: GUEST,skarpi at work Date: 16 Nov 00 - 03:02 PM Halló all, heres one i think it is from Canada. If I was the Man on the Moon I´d shine down my light on your room... cant remember more at the moment more when I get home. all the best skarpi Iceland. |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: GUEST,skarpi at work Date: 16 Nov 00 - 03:03 PM Halló all, heres one i think it is from Canada. If I was the Man on the Moon I´d shine down my light on your room... cant remember more at the moment more when I get home. all the best skarpi Iceland. |
Subject: RE: Tune Req: Tolkien's 'The Man in the Moon' From: Alan of Australia Date: 18 Nov 00 - 10:46 PM G'day, Thanks to MMario the tune for "The Man In The Moon" can be found here at the Mudcat MIDI site.
Cheers, |
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