Harpers Tolkien Music & Elric Action Figure

Plus Festival of the Forgotten Soundtrack by V Is For Villains

Let’s talk about the Harpers.

No, not the D&D Forgotten Realms secret society…

…and not the Roy Harpers either…

Instead, let’s talk about a couple of harpers¹ who play J.R.R. Tolkien-inspired music on the harp.

First up is Emma Horwood. She is a harpist and singer who has posted several Tolkien-related songs on her YouTube channel. Here she is playing the harp and singing an excerpt of the poem “The Man in the Moon Stayed Up Too Late” written by Bilbo Baggins and performed by Frodo at the Prancing Pony:

For a very different version, you might want to check out the Frank Zappa Tolkien Tapes that I covered in a previous newsletter:

Zappa's Tolkien Tapes & Other Tolkien-Music Connections

And here Emma is reading from The Return of the King and performing the song “In Western Lands Beneath the Sun” as sung by Sam Gamgee:

Next up is Stephanie Claussen. According to this recent World Music Central article, she is “a Minnesota-based harper, arranger, and educator specializing in both Celtic and western classical music.” On her own website, she wrote a three-part article on “Harp in the Fantasy Novel.” I learned about the differences between harps in real life versus how they are portrayed in fantasy novels in this excerpt from part 2:

Harps in fantasy novels tend to be small. The Journey is a major theme that dominates the plot line of many fantastic novels. Forcibly these tales feature smaller, portable instruments.

For example, in Tolkien’s The Hobbit, Thorin owns a “beautiful golden harp” wrapped in a green cloth…My pedal harp, or even my folk harp for that matter, could not be “wrapped” in a green cloth. Draped yes, wrapped no: so Tolkien must have envisioned something quite a bit smaller, especially when contrasted with a dwarf.

Stephanie went deeper into Thorin’s harp in an article called “Of Harps and Hobbits”:

In the first chapter of The Hobbit, Tolkien described Thorin’s harp as beautiful and golden and when he struck it, “the music began all at once, so sudden and sweet that Bilbo forgot everything else, and was swept away into dark lands under strange moons, far over The Water and very far from his Hobbit-hole under The Hill.”

To set the mood for some Tolkien-style fantasy RPG playing, listen to Stephanie’s original composition "Moss, Wood and Thicket - That Feeling You Get When You Think about the Lord of the Rings":

Elric Action Figure

Harvinger Studios is producing an action figure of Michael Moorcock’s legendary character Elric:

It includes the swords Stormbringer and Mournblade, along with three swappable heads. Toy-loving fans of Hawkwind, Cirith Ungol, and Blue Öyster Cult can learn more and pre-order the Elric figure here. And I hope everyone can enjoy the following Elric-related classic tunes:

Festival of the Forgotten - Soundtrack

Storytellers Forge has an active crowdfunding campaign for Festival of the Forgotten: A Dark Carnival D&D 2024 Handbook. Here is a description:

The Festival of the Forgotten is coming to your kingdom, and you are invited to attend! To witness the spectacle of your freaks and outcasts when they were nurtured and allowed to thrive. Come see the wonders beyond your high walls and try your skill at unearthly games for prizes that your peers will covet.

This player handbook and adventure campaign is designed to interrupt your current storyline and provide eldritch secrets for your party… or a new home for them to travel with. If they can pass the test to answer a question every storyteller is eternally curious about that is—what really matters to your character?

Of special note for music fans, the campaign includes a stretch goals for a soundtrack by V Is For Villains, who have a very cool sounding bio:

After his first spinal surgery, the lead singer-songwriter for V Is For Villains was told he would never be able to perform on stage. Three spinal surgeries, one knee surgery, and a lobectomy later, Mr. Agitator continues to write and perform his unique brand of dark electronic industrial rock.

V Is For Villains are in high demand at anime, pop culture, and horror events, and have played massive conventions and clubs across the country. They have performed at and headlined conventions such as Dragon Con, Colossal Con, Mad Monster Party and Dark Side of the Con, as well as headlined clubs such as The House of Blues, Hard Rock Cafe, and The Metro Chicago. ​

This high-energy, nationally touring band of costumed “Villains” now includes the supremely talented Morrigan Darke on keyboards, and has recently followed up an extensive discography of original music with a cover album of favorite 80's hits. Some will call them heroes; most will call them villains.

I was a backer of a previous TTRPG project from Storytellers Forge: The Black Ballad included an album by the band DiAmorte, a theatrical act that blends “operatic performances with the raw energy of orchestral and metal music.”

You can support Festival of the Forgotten here.

1. I am aware there is a difference between a harper and a harpist. According to this Folkstrings article, a harpist “implies classical training and playing a pedal harp” while a harper is typically “associated with historical and folk music traditions on lever harps.”