Lord of Rings composer Howard Shore protests shoddy UK concerts
OrchestrasA message from the website of the composer of Lord of the Rings:
We feel it is necessary to alert fans and followers of The Lord of the Rings in Concert that there are a number of concerts that have no association with Howard Shore in the UK and Germany being billed as “Der Herr der Ringe und der Hobbit” or “The Music of The Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit” produced by Star Entertainment. Please be warned, Howard Shore has nothing to do with these concerts. There is a current lawsuit in process to have the concerts stopped. The music that is being played is assembled from unauthorized bootleg arrangements and not at the standard of quality insisted upon by Howard Shore.
We are so disappointed to hear of the recent disaster in Portsmouth UK at the Portsmouth Guildhall on April 1, 2023. The Guildhall should not have initially booked the concert or allowed the performance go on. If you were an audience member at any of the “Der Herr der Ringe und der Hobbit” productions by Star Entertainment, we would suggest you contact the hall for a full refund.
The wonderful fans of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit films deserve better than these subpar productions.
Howard Shore and CAMI Music are committed to presenting only the highest quality performances of The Lord of the Rings in Concert using the original scores created by Howard Shore himself for these concerts from his award-winning composition performed live to the entire films.
pictured: Howard Shore with team of The Song of Names
The Portsmouth Guild Hall website says the following (so now you know but if I were you, to be Shore, I wouldn’t book any tickets):
The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit in Concert due to be performed at Portsmouth Guildhall on Tuesday 8th November 2022, then Saturday 1st April 2023, then 17th February 2023 has been re-scheduled back to Saturday 1st April 2023.
The date changes are due to operational challenges and the ongoing situation in Ukraine and the permissions required for the Ukrainian State Orchestra to join the tour and continue to provide the finest performances
You sound as if you believe that the “Ukrainian State Orchestra” actually exists?
The orchestra for this tour is also advertised as
“The Belorussian state orchestra”
“The Symphonic film orchestra”
“The Philharmonic Orchestra”
“The State Academic Orchestra of the Academy of Belarus”
“The Magical Symphony Orchestra”
The London Philharmonic Orchestra”
https://www.datathistle.com/event/1632926-the-magical-music-of-harry-potter-live-in-concert/
All with the caveat that the ticketing websites are not responsible for the accuracy of the information contained.
Surely then the VENUES should do some checking before allowing these scam promoters to book their premises?
You write as if you ignored the part where says he’s merely quoting the venue’s explanation.
These shows are booked in Australia as well – https://premier.ticketek.com.au/shows/show.aspx?sh=LOTRHOBB23
I went to the Sydney Concert, it was disgraceful.
Looking for a refund now.
Bootleg ORC-estrations
Any musician considering accepting any of the work for Star-Entertainment LORT/Harry Potter tour that Howard Shore is referring to would be wise to read what happened in Portsmouth. The entire audience was refunded, and there were multiple complaints after the Usher Hall show.
https://www.reddit.com/r/lotr/comments/128ydfm/portsmouth_guildhall_lotr_concert_disaster/?sort=top
Worryingly musicians bookings include this message “A playback is being used so the musicians are needed more for the the orchestra to look full on stage rather than for the sound.”
Barbican York Theatre wisely cancelled but other theatres are going ahead….
Thanks for the link, Pat. Having read ahornywalrus’s list of 29 failures during this concert, I kinda wish I’d been there. I’ve never witnessed a train crash in real life!
I have asked a refund from The Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on 23rd April on the basis that I didn’t know I was seeing an unlicensed/illegal show…..no response so far.
Oh christ I almost got booked for one of these. Happy to know I dodged a bullet.
My poor friends went to the Portsmouth do thinking it was a Wagner night, but sadly only the old Tolkien films, and badly done by!!
All the Lord of the Ring film soundtracks were recorded in the UK as were the Harry Potter Films and the Amazon TV series “Ring of Power”.
Star-Entertainment Berlin really excelled themselves when they unknowingly tried to book the same musicians to mime in concert to the original soundtracks!
I don’t blame him!
Shocking!
Complaints over recent performance of Lord of the Rings music at Bord Gáis Energy Theatre
Sorry….
Link here
https://www.thejournal.ie/complaints-recent-performance-lord-of-the-rings-music-6041506-Apr2023/