May It Be

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"May It Be"
File:May it be.jpg
Single by Enya
from the album The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
B-side
  • "Isobella"
  • "The First of Autumn"
Released10 December 2001 (2001-12-10)
StudioAigle (Dublin, Ireland)
GenreNew-age[1]
Length
  • 4:19 (album version)
  • 3:31 (single/radio edit)
LabelWEA
Songwriters
ProducerNicky Ryan
Enya singles chronology
"Wild Child"
(2001) 		"May It Be"
(2001) 		"I Don't Wanna Know"
(2004)
Official lyric video
May It Be on YouTube

"May It Be" is a song by the Irish recording artist Enya. She and Roma Ryan respectively composed and wrote lyrics to the song, for Peter Jackson's 2001 film The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.[2] The song entered the German Singles Chart at number one in 2002, and Enya performed it at the 74th Academy Awards. "May It Be" was acclaimed by music critics and received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Original Song, the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song, and the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media.

Composition

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Director Peter Jackson approached Enya (under the suggestion of Howard Shore), asking if she would be interested in writing a song for The Lord of the Rings.[3] Thrilled at the prospect, Enya headed to New Zealand to see the preliminary edits of the film.[3] Enya worked on the song with Nicky Ryan, her producer, and Roma Ryan, her lyricist. Nicky produced Enya's vocals and arranged the music while Roma wrote the lyrics. They recorded the song through Enya's contract with Warner Music[4] at Aigle Studio, the Ryans' and Enya's own recording studio.[5]

The vocals were recorded at Aigle Studio in Dublin, and the orchestration was recorded in London, directed by Howard Shore and performed by the London Voices and London Philharmonic Orchestra.[6] Compositionally, the piece is simple, featuring a backdrop of choir and strings. As Doug Adams commented, Enya's contributions "coexist so neatly", with Shore's score, that "neither Enya song is relegated to its own track".

"I wanted Enya's voice," says Shore. "She wrote and I orchestrated, so it's a seamless sound. Her singing grows right out of the choral music and the orchestra." – Doug Adams, The Fellowship of the Ring: The Complete Recordings

Lyrics

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The lyrics of this theme song include English words, as well as words in the fictional Elvish language, Quenya, created by J.R.R. Tolkien.[5] While Enya wrote music, Roma Ryan studied the languages and wrote the lyrics in English and Quenya.[7] They are intermingled with the English lyrics; "Mornië utúlië, believe and you will find your way; Mornië alantië, a promise lives within you now." Mornië utúlië, translates to "Darkness has come".[5] Mornië alantië translates as "Darkness has fallen".[5]

Critical reception and awards

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"May It Be" was nominated for the 2002 Academy Award for Best Original Song, but lost to Randy Newman's "If I Didn't Have You" from Monsters, Inc., sung by John Goodman and Billy Crystal. It won the Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Song and the 2002 Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Song.[8][9] It was nominated for the 2002 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song, but lost to "Until" from Kate & Leopold.[10] The song received a 2003 Grammy Award nomination for Best Song Written for Visual Media.

Enya performed her song at the Academy Awards on 24 March 2002. She was "absolutely" excited about the performance.[3] For her it was the "first time to be nominated, and to get to perform, it's just wonderful, absolutely wonderful."[3]

Release

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Enya's "May It Be" has been featured on various albums. On 20 November 2001, it was released on The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring soundtrack, along with composer Howard Shore's original score "The Road Goes Ever On (Part 2)".[11] It also came out as a single in Europe on 10 December 2001 and in the United Kingdom on 21 January 2002.[12][13] "May It Be" entered the German Singles Chart at number one. It was Enya's second consecutive single to do so, following her song "Only Time".[14] In 2005, it was released as part of the compilation The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring: The Complete Recordings. This time, the version of the song was identical as featured in the movie's ending titles. Enya also included the song on her 2009 album, The Very Best of Enya.[15]

Music video

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The music video was directed by Peter Nydrle. It features clips from the film as well as Enya singing the song. The video runs for 3 minutes and 32 seconds.[16]

Track listings

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European CD single and UK cassette single[17][18]

  1. "May It Be" – 3:30
  2. "Isobella" – 4:27

European maxi-CD single and UK CD single[19][20]

  1. "May It Be" – 3:30
  2. "Isobella" – 4:27
  3. "The First of Autumn" – 3:08

Charts

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Certifications

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Certifications and sales for "May It Be"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[43] Gold 30,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[44] Silver 200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

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Release dates and formats for "May It Be"
Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
Europe 10 December 2001 CD WEA [12]
United Kingdom 21 January 2002 [13]

References

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  1. ^ May It Be at AllMusic. Retrieved 20 December 2010.
  2. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  3. ^ a b c d Enya Fan Studio. Enya Fan Studio, 2005. Web. 22 October 2010.
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  5. ^ a b c d Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  6. ^ Booklet of the collection The Fellowship of the Ring: The Complete Recordings published in 2005
  7. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
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  11. ^ The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Original Motion Picture Soundtrack at AllMusic. Retrieved 20 December 2010.
  12. ^ a b c "Enya – May It Be" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
  13. ^ a b Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  14. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  15. ^ The very Best of Enya at AllMusic. Retrieved 20 December 2010.
  16. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
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  21. ^ "Enya – May It Be" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  22. ^ "Enya – May It Be" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  23. ^ "Enya – May It Be" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
  24. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  25. ^ "Enya – May It Be". Tracklisten. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
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  27. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  28. ^ "Enya: May It Be" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  29. ^ "Enya – May It Be" (in French). Le classement de singles. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  30. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  31. ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 19 January 2024.
  32. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – May It Be". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
  33. ^ "Enya – May It Be". Top Digital Download. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  34. ^ "Enya – May It Be" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  35. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  36. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
  37. ^ "Enya – May It Be". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  38. ^ "Enya – May It Be". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  39. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
  40. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
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