Florence and the Machine and Ramin Djawadi
Hello, hello! It has been quite a while since I last dropped a post on the blog. I want to go ahead and send a huge shout out to everyone who has been patient with me, and the more sporadic nature of my writing. Everything is a work in progress, and continuing to write about music remains in “progress” mode. Moving onto the music, I would be remiss if I didn’t include this particular song. Why? Because it may just be one of the single greatest musical moments to come out of the world of Game of Thrones and television as a whole.
As you all may know, Florence Welch is a singer I am completely in awe in. She has harnessed something so magical in music, something so enchanting that you cannot help but be enamoured by it. Her voice has the power of a tidal wave, soaring and crashing as she chases the high notes and smashes the lower notes. But her voice can also be gentle and deep, like the calm waves of a splendorous ocean. The versatility and depth with which she can sing made her such a perfect choice for this song. For those of you who don’t watch or follow Game of Thrones, the episode which featured this song is one that is bittersweet. It marks reunions between friends, old wrongs which have been forgiven, a love that has been acted on, and a moving moment of honour. The episode also marks a general nervousness and fear and a hunger to survive the night. Bearing the complexity of feelings and moments, Florence and the Machine performed a bittersweet ballad which perfectly captures the haunting and eerie moments before the storm.
The ballad is one about war and love. Lyrically, the song is about a woman who wants to dance her life away with the ghosts of those long gone. A prince must decide whether to accept his inheritance and become king or to follow his heart and love a commoner. In the end, the prince chooses to love, leading to a rebellion in which many die. After the rebellion, the woman locks herself away, and dances with their ghosts.
Musically, the song carries a more Celtic tune. But Florence and the Machine composed the song in a way to make it haunting, foreshadowing the doom and gloom to follow. Part of the beauty in this song is how it was sung by Florence, and how it was sung by a character on the show. In the show, the song is sung to be an uplifting and hopeful moment, a way to draw away from all the terrible things to come. The way Florence sings it, the song turns into a sombre and foreboding track, one that is almost eerie in nature. And I love how each version of the same song creates very different emotional responses. The way each version offers a different interpretation of the song.
The musical composition is rather simple, allowing us to fall into a dreamlike state as Florence’s voice washes over us. Florence kept the song as bare as possible, retaining the beautiful simplicity of the melody and the lyrics. As this is a ballad, there is a heartbreaking and moving story to be found in the lyrics, and by keeping the song simple, we are able to experience and understand that story. And a common theme throughout the Game of Thrones world is that life can and will break your heart. The song is a lament of love, the cost that love can bring. But somehow, that love is enduring, even after death. The bare bones of the song allow us to feel every word, savour every note. We are able to fully immerse ourselves in the haunting bittersweetness of the song – from the words and the melodies and the music itself. While the version sung in the show takes on the sweeter side of the song, Florence’s version takes on the bitterness, foreshadowing the night to come. For all that can be said about this final season of Game of Thrones, this song is one of the most beautiful and moving moments.
Today’s instrumental song simply had to be a composition found in the Game of Thrones score. Ramin Djawadi created such an incredible score, one that will always evoke a world and a story which has had such an influence. The pieces are all recognizable and evoke memories of a certain character or certain moments from the show. The precision and beauty with which each piece is composed is simply awe-inducing. And with that, I felt it was necessary to post another ballad from the show, one which is also rife with an eerie and haunting beauty. This composition is one we can instantly recognize and are immediately filled with emotion. There have been a few renditions of these songs; some have bands creating the vocal versions and others are the orchestral version. For today’s song, I wanted to show you the orchestral version. The version which leaves us all speechless. The version which we have all come to associate with a certain house. The version which has so much sadness surrounding it. Let us lament the end of Game of Thrones, but forever remember the music which helped make the show the brilliant work of art which it is. I hope you enjoy the music and please feel free to comment!
As you all may know, Florence Welch is a singer I am completely in awe in. She has harnessed something so magical in music, something so enchanting that you cannot help but be enamoured by it. Her voice has the power of a tidal wave, soaring and crashing as she chases the high notes and smashes the lower notes. But her voice can also be gentle and deep, like the calm waves of a splendorous ocean. The versatility and depth with which she can sing made her such a perfect choice for this song. For those of you who don’t watch or follow Game of Thrones, the episode which featured this song is one that is bittersweet. It marks reunions between friends, old wrongs which have been forgiven, a love that has been acted on, and a moving moment of honour. The episode also marks a general nervousness and fear and a hunger to survive the night. Bearing the complexity of feelings and moments, Florence and the Machine performed a bittersweet ballad which perfectly captures the haunting and eerie moments before the storm.
The ballad is one about war and love. Lyrically, the song is about a woman who wants to dance her life away with the ghosts of those long gone. A prince must decide whether to accept his inheritance and become king or to follow his heart and love a commoner. In the end, the prince chooses to love, leading to a rebellion in which many die. After the rebellion, the woman locks herself away, and dances with their ghosts.
Musically, the song carries a more Celtic tune. But Florence and the Machine composed the song in a way to make it haunting, foreshadowing the doom and gloom to follow. Part of the beauty in this song is how it was sung by Florence, and how it was sung by a character on the show. In the show, the song is sung to be an uplifting and hopeful moment, a way to draw away from all the terrible things to come. The way Florence sings it, the song turns into a sombre and foreboding track, one that is almost eerie in nature. And I love how each version of the same song creates very different emotional responses. The way each version offers a different interpretation of the song.
The musical composition is rather simple, allowing us to fall into a dreamlike state as Florence’s voice washes over us. Florence kept the song as bare as possible, retaining the beautiful simplicity of the melody and the lyrics. As this is a ballad, there is a heartbreaking and moving story to be found in the lyrics, and by keeping the song simple, we are able to experience and understand that story. And a common theme throughout the Game of Thrones world is that life can and will break your heart. The song is a lament of love, the cost that love can bring. But somehow, that love is enduring, even after death. The bare bones of the song allow us to feel every word, savour every note. We are able to fully immerse ourselves in the haunting bittersweetness of the song – from the words and the melodies and the music itself. While the version sung in the show takes on the sweeter side of the song, Florence’s version takes on the bitterness, foreshadowing the night to come. For all that can be said about this final season of Game of Thrones, this song is one of the most beautiful and moving moments.
Today’s instrumental song simply had to be a composition found in the Game of Thrones score. Ramin Djawadi created such an incredible score, one that will always evoke a world and a story which has had such an influence. The pieces are all recognizable and evoke memories of a certain character or certain moments from the show. The precision and beauty with which each piece is composed is simply awe-inducing. And with that, I felt it was necessary to post another ballad from the show, one which is also rife with an eerie and haunting beauty. This composition is one we can instantly recognize and are immediately filled with emotion. There have been a few renditions of these songs; some have bands creating the vocal versions and others are the orchestral version. For today’s song, I wanted to show you the orchestral version. The version which leaves us all speechless. The version which we have all come to associate with a certain house. The version which has so much sadness surrounding it. Let us lament the end of Game of Thrones, but forever remember the music which helped make the show the brilliant work of art which it is. I hope you enjoy the music and please feel free to comment!
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