Music of the Ainur, redux

Cafe Society
1

I previously started this thread during the Time of Unnumbered Tears, before the World was broken in the mighty battle of the Powers. Since I have no intention of letting one of my most successful threads die, and there are currently no Tolkien threads on the front page of the Cafe, I thought I’d re-start it.

The idea is to decide which to which instrument each Ainu’s part would be likened, in the Great Music. There were many wonderful suggestions, but of course, they’re lost now. From what I can remember, this is what we came up with:

Manwë: Trumpet, violin
Ulmo: Conch-horn
Aulë: Timpani, Lithophone
Oromë
Námo (Mandos): Basson
Irmo (Lórien)
Tulkas: Drum
Varda: Flute, Violin
Yavanna: Dulcimer
Nienna: Oboe, bagpipes
Estë
Vairë: Harp
Vána
Nessa
Melkor: Saxophone, Electric guitar, Trombone, Violin

Ilmarë
Eönwë: Coronet
Ossë
Uinen
Melian
Olórin (Gandalf)
Curunír (Saruman): Theramin, cello
Aiwendil (Radagast): Bird whistle, Pan pipes
Alatar: Kazoo
Pallando: Kazoo
Arien
Tilion
Gothmog and assorted Balrogs
Sauron: Electric guitar

If I’ve forgotten your contribution, attribute it to my faulty memory, not to anything personal. And, of course, if you’ve anything new to add, please do!

2

I always pictured Gandalf as an accordian.

3

Nothing to add right now, but just saying I’m glad you’ve reinstated this thread. I’m off to play my coronet.

4

I don’t know who would get it, but SOMEBODY has to have a mouth harp. And maybe a slide whistle.

5

Chronos, I found this on BoardReader. Is this the first part of your original thread?

6

Thanks to rowrbazzle for letting us recover my favorite posting of that thread, by one slortar:

“Not sure about Melkor, but Sauron would definitely have to have the flying v electric guitar with the skull paint job. He’s definitely the spandex-wearing cheese metal guitarist of the entire Mythos.”

7

Bless you, rowrrbazzle, it is! I am at your service, and your family’s. May the hair on your toes never fall out!

How did you find that? When I tried BoardReader, all I could get from it was a link to the SDMB’s “Invalid Thread” error message.

I count 24 replies in the BoardReader copy, and I seem to remember 30-something in the original thread, so that’s most of it, at least.

8

Chronos, glad I could help.

I just searched on chronos “music of the ainur” and this was the first of three threads that came up. I clicked on the link and there it was.