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Digory and the Bell

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Cleander
(@the-mad-poet-himself)
NarniaWeb Guru

*Lured into this thread by topic of music*
I wonder if the Narrowhaven scene and music in the Walden VDT was inspired by this scene in the Magician's Nephew. Think about it- a desolate town, a weird, almost inaudible creaking noise in the background, (not to mention the hall full of bells and images of kings in which the Narnians get captured by slave traders). Sound vaguely familiar?
As to the score for the actual bell scene, I was imagining silence at first, like JFGII just said, and then perhaps a slowly loudening bass choir singing a sustained, really deep note. A sound like that evokes a feeling of "ancient menace" very clearly.
And the bell note should really be deafening! As in they'll have to put a caption on the screen that says, HEADPHONE WARNING!!

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Posted : April 6, 2019 8:19 am
waggawerewolf27
(@waggawerewolf27)
Member Hospitality Committee

I wouldn't say no music at all. Just very, very soft, to convey tension, as such music often does in movies. I should imagine such music should convey enough creepiness & deadness to convey the menace of the place. Incorporating very soft noises, like the echo of the children's footsteps, maybe the fall of a dislodged stone, that sort of thing. The menace in such music should increase until Digory actually does strike the bell. The noise of the bell, at first merely distinct, should increase in volume, until it is like a clap of overhead thunder, which masks Jadis's movements but not what she first says.

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Posted : April 6, 2019 1:55 pm
Col Klink
(@col-klink)
NarniaWeb Junkie

It might be a good idea to use the same musical theme for when Digory is tempted to ring the bell as when Uncle Andrew offers Polly a ring. But maybe that would be unsubtle.

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Topic starter Posted : April 6, 2019 4:09 pm
fantasia
(@fantasia)
Member Admin

Col Klink, I have never, ever noticed that before until you said something just now, but you're absolutely right! Polly is tempted by the ring (sort of, she's more tricked, but even so... ) and Digory is tempted by the bell. So in a way, Polly isn't completely innocent either. I hope they play that up in the movie series.

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Posted : April 6, 2019 4:13 pm
waggawerewolf27
(@waggawerewolf27)
Member Hospitality Committee

Reading the book, did anyone notice that Polly, herself, noticed a sound, something like vaccuuming a couple of rooms away, when she first saw the rings? And that the noise seemed at its strongest when she & Digory found the tray of rings in Uncle Andrew's room?

It might be a good idea to use the same musical theme for when Digory is tempted to ring the bell as when Uncle Andrew offers Polly a ring. But maybe that would be unsubtle.

Possibly you are right. But I think even a thematic musical score, such as your observation is suggesting, can be varied to conform to different situations. A bell tone might be up to an octave higher, for instance, depending on its calibration. Have you ever seen a Carillon? That is to say, a collection of bells, in a tower of some sort, that can be used for hammering out musical scores using those bells?

Famous bells include the Liberty Bell, & Big Ben, the tower of which is currently undergoing renovation.

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Posted : April 7, 2019 9:21 pm
Jasmine
(@jasmine_tarkheena)
NarniaWeb Guru

I actually did a thread about Ticking Time Bomb In Narnia and one of them was Digory and the bell.

And yes, let's not use the Green Mist for this! "Oh, the Green Mist all came from Charn!" Besides that, given that the Green Mist was created to be a set up for the Lady of the Green Kirtle, it would allude to the idea that the White Witch and the Lady of the Green Kirtle are the same person! We certainly can't have that! Angry No no  

I think there's a creative way to play up the tension with Digory and the bell! Perhaps, when he sees Jadis at the end, sitting, he could be like in a trance! His expression could even change! Then when he reads the inscription, like he wants to ring the bell. Then there can be tension between him and Polly! "No, no! This is wrong!", but of course he does it! 

It is the ticking time bomb there! The real drama in The Magician's Nephew comes from Digory makes a wrong choice, and later he's going to undo the wrong!

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Posted : March 29, 2023 3:59 pm
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