[Huinesoron]

Originally Posted by Galadriel55

What I dread most of all is that this train of thought is about to derail straight into the dark pit that has "canonicity" spelled in big letters over it, and that is not where I want to go.

[...]Perhaps Fingon recounts it after Thorondor brings back Fingolfin's body. Or perhaps Maedhros recounts it after Fingon's death. This is totally unfounded on any textual evidence, this is all headcanon.

The good thing about this question is that the canon is "it happened, and then nothing more is written". It all has to be headcanon, fanon, or theorising, because... there's no text. Just what we think the characters would be most likely to do.

I have to think it was on their minds when they planned what became the Nirnaeth, though. "Manwe's eagles helped us at the gates of Angband - Manwe's eagles helped Beren and Luthien escape with a Silmaril - what if he'll help us out again if we make a proper go of it?" And in the event... no. No eagles, not to any of the people who'd previously been aided by them (Maedhros, Fingon, Hurin, and Huor were all at the battle!).

Originally Posted by Galadriel55

As an aside, is it a bad thing that I've been searching Youtube periodically this week to see if any new clips came up after Sunday's performance? (They haven't, none that I've found)

A'course it's not! We must have every recording indexed, or else what's the point of us?

Originally Posted by Galadriel55

So I wrote an intro for Dream (with only a little help from Les Mis ), but now I wonder if I should not instead use this intro for Showdown and make Dream a little more slow and, hmm, dreamy. Thoughts?

I agree. It's a lovely intro, but not for this song. We're coming off the back of a slam-cut to black at the end of Aria, and into the very gentle camp trio. Checking V1, Finrod even drops his reprise of "Oath" into a melancholy tone, and that's probably the highest-energy part of the trio. (In many ways, the three songs together serve as a sort of Enteract: Act 1 is the Kingdoms of Light, Act 2 is the Kingdoms of Dark - Tol-in-Gaurhoth and Fallen Nargothrond - and these three are the breathing space between.) So yeah - pocket it for Showdown, and try for something gentler for Dream if you can.

Originally Posted by Galadriel55

I think I only realized now how much parallel there will be between the two songs, and how man different variations we can go with for each, especially at the end. For instance, some versions include a musical interlude before the final stanza, and some don't. Do we want to put in a stanza of music into both pieces, or just one, and which one if so - or maybe neither? Then, Beren and Luthien sometimes sing together, or sometimes Beren starts off and Luthien echoes (e.g. "let winds rage") before catching up with him on the 2nd or 3rd line.

I guess in a sense, Dream is a literal prophecy of Showdown. I mean, it's a dream - that's how you get information about the future, right enough.

I'm happy to let you figure out what sounds best in terms of extra stanzas and duets. I think we've got them both listed as a full duet on the last stanza, but that's just because V2 did it that way. ^_^

Originally Posted by Galadriel55

Also, that line of Luthien's - "I will fight for that which always will be mine" - I still don't like it. It felt wrong in the past tense, it still feels wrong in the future tense. I don't know if it's the tense that is the wrong thing or something else, but it just sounds weird. Maybe in the present though it would sound less awkward, or at least raise fewer eyebrows. "I will fight to [synonym for defend? keep? restore?] that which is mine"? ...shield from harm? That sounds a bit too much like she's talking about Beren himself, whereas I think she's talking more about her love.

Soooo. How many times does she use that line?

Dream: "And I will fight for that which always will be mine!"
Showdown: "I command you: give me back that which is mine!"
Showdown again: "And I will take what is and always has been mine!"
V1 Sons of Feanor: "And I will follow love to seek for what is mine!"
V1 Sons again: "And I will fight for that which always has been mine!"

... can we just steal that "follow love" version? She does literally say "love is leading me", so it makes logical sense. Or if we don't want the love:

And I will seek what is and always has been mine!

Google thinks the Russian is "And I will win back what belongs to me." So maybe we do need 'fight'. I think you're right to sneak in another verb.

And I will fight to hold once more [/again] that which is mine!

Or even claim once more (take once more?); in Showdown she uses a very possessive "give me back", so this isn't out of place.

On the graphic front: these three songs are going to use a single arch foreground over three different forest backdrops. I have the arches, and two of the forests are Doriath and Aman; I just need to draw a nighttime forest for Camp itself.

hS