I finally figured out (most of) the
Duel! Still can't hear what Sauron's opening lines are, and having a surprising amount of trouble with the start of Finrod's final ABAB (what I have right now is not quite right). But I have the bulk of it down, and matching the chords in the Russian Libretto! It was a matter of trial and error and a bunch of brute force, stamping out sharps and flats left and right to make the melody fit. I have no idea anymore in what key Sauron is singing. But it fits! I am just impressed at the level of musical complexity they have in this piece, they were really knowing what they were doing composing this song. Fortunately no one has to see my score which is full of "grammatical errors" from a musical theory perspective. Now I just have to make a nice-sounding accompaniment out of it.
There is a rhythmical oopsy-daisy just before Finrod's final ABAB, it will be fixed in the good draft. What do you think of the tempo? Finale is limited in how much it can slow down/speed up during the song, so I need a good base tempo for this. I think a tad quicker than what it is right now will be good. Also, I'm thinking I'll keep the piano and trumpet ("Strength to counter you" can do well with a trumpet backup), but should I add any other instruments? This will need a brief ponder. [Edit: the pros of adding other instruments is cooler music, but the cons are I won't be able to play it even theoretically. But since I don't need to play it in person for the instrumental to work... After re-watching
Pierrot!Finrod's Duel, I am thinking either a flute or clarinet, and maybe a baritone to serve as a lower brass. This can be really nice, I hope I don't screw this up...]
I will keep working on the Duel in the background, but you get to pick the next piece!