"This work attempts to capture, in music, the events and characters portrayed in Tolkiens epic 3-part tale. The music is incredibly diverse, including pieces inspired by Celtic folk, jazz, country, all infused with hard hitting rock, backed up with heavy orchestrations. Words do not do it justice, it needs to be heard!

In putting together this first CD, I found it impossible to write a piece for every chapter, so I decided to just write a series of pieces that captured the feel of it all and let people find their own placements for each piece within the story. Some I hope are quite obvious, for example “The Departure of Boromir". For me this was always going to be the opening of movement 3, with the sad swell chords of the pedal steel, the lamentation of the vocalisations, the distant horns, and the melancholic yet melodious bass work, all very fitting for the funeral of a great warrior of Gondor.

Other people may not feel this piece the same way, and it could just as easily represent the golden woodland kingdom of the Elves of Lothlorien, or the mines of Moria, and so I have not named any of the 26 pieces. Instead, I have created an overture and four movements. At the moment, I am half way through writing the second CD, and I think that this will also follow the same format, although the pieces here are developing larger soundscapes, so I think it will only comprise about 8-9 sections, we'll see!"

Alan Hitt

"The Quest" - Music inspired by "The Lord Of The Rings" features the following musicians:

• Alan Hitt - Writer and arranger, co-producer. Electric and acoustic guitar; pedal steel guitar; keyboards and programming; drums; percussion
• Colin O'Neill - Five- and six-string basses; orchestral percussion
• Simon Taylor - Soprano, tenor, and alto saxophones; tin whistle
• Adam Aggiss - Drums
• Paul Hay - Didgeridoo, mandolin, vocalisation
• Jezz Larder - Additional keyboards
• Richard Mills - Additional keyboards
• Keith Buckman - Additional acoustic guitar
• Peter Hurst - Lead vocals

"The Quest" was recorded at Skyline Studios, Epsom, Surrey; and mastered at Hatch Farm Studios, Addlestone, Surrey. "The Quest" was recorded and mastered digitally. Copyright Arena-Bucks Publishing Ltd 2001.

To buy "The Quest", see the Contacts page.