The story behind The Rings of Power opening credits sequence

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is airing now on Prime Video. The show takes place thousands of years before the story we know, when hobbits wandered the land in nomadic tribes, dwarves were at the height of their civilization, and Sauron hadn’t yet made the One Ring. It’s been a pretty good ride so far; especially with the introduction of the mythical island kingdom of Númenor, J.R.R. Tolkien’s take on Atlantis.

Of course, any show ambitious enough to adapt Tolkien must have a suitably epic opening credits sequence. The theme for The Rings of Power’s opening was composed by Howard Shore, the same maestro who created the music for Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies.

Yet the opening itself is more subdued than you might expect. We watch grains of sand bounce and shift as they make a variety of recognizable shapes from Tolkien’s mythos, such as the nine rings of power gifted to the kings of Men and the two Trees of the Valar, Laurelin and Telperion.

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power opening uses Cymatics

So how did this opening sequence come together? If those bouncing grains of sand jogged something in your memory, you’re not the only one.

Per Kotaku, Game designer Alexander King had been wondering over the meaning of the sand symbols in the credits like the rest of us, when he recalled their similarity to Chladni figures. Named for German physicist and musician Ernst Chladni, the figures are formed by something lightweight (such as sand) when vibrations flow across a rigid surface. In this instance, the vibrations are specifically coming from sound, sound just being vibrations of differing wavelengths. This phenomenon is known as Cymatics.

The story behind The Rings of Power opening

After King’s tweet about the Chaldni figures went viral, Anthony Vitagliano, the creative director behind The Rings of Power opening credits, chimed in to thank King for his detailed breakdown, confirming that the Chaldni figures were indeed an inspiration for the theme.

This all fits with Tolkien’s mythos incredibly well, considering the importance of music to the formation of his fantasy world. In The Silmarillion, the world was sung into existence by angelic beings called Ainur. We see this theme carry over into The Rings of Power through that ethereal choir that we hear whenever the elven paradise of Valinor is on screen.

Plains of Yonder, the production company which put together the credits, published a blog post explaining how they drew inspiration from Cymatics and Tolkien’s writings:

"Taking inspiration from J.R.R Tolkien’s Ainur, immortal angelic beings that sing such beautiful music that the world is created from their very sound, we conceived of a main title sequence “built from the world of sound.”Cymatics is a natural phenomenon that makes sound visible to the eye. Vibrations of fine particles on a flat surface display striking symmetrical patterns that reflect audio frequencies. Cymatics are understood by physicists and mathematicians, but to us mere mortals, they are nothing short of magic.The sequence conjures an ancient and invisible power, struggling to be seen. Symbols form, flow, push, and disappear as quickly as they came. The unknowable realms of sound create fleeting visions of conflict and harmony that move in lockstep with Howard Shores’ opening title score."

Pretty cool stuff! No doubt this will make many of us take a second look at those shifting sands next time The Rings of Power opening credits plays.

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power premieres new episodes on Prime Video every Friday.

To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.

Get HBO, Starz, Showtime and MORE for FREE with a no-risk, 7-day free trial of Amazon Channels