Shaping Our World: The Power of Music and the Spoken Word
Signum University, in partnership with the Withywindle Smial of Kansas City, invites you to join us on Saturday, 17 October for Middle Moot 2026. This hybrid event will occur at the National World War I Museum and Memorial in Kansas City, Missouri, USA. For our return to the “Cradle of Jazz”, we gather together to listen, create, speak, and play with our theme, Shaping Our World: The Power of Music and the Spoken Word.
Register Here for Middle Moot!
Price: $50.00 USD for in-person attendance, $25.00 USD for remote attendance
“Then the voices of the Ainur, like unto harps and lutes, and pipes and trumpets, and viols and organs, and like unto countless choirs singing with words, began to fashion the theme of Ilúvatar to a great music ….and the music and the echo of the music went out into the void, and it was not void.”
Throughout Tolkien’s works we see the power of song and words wrought for both good and evil. The music of the Ainur and the words of Ilúvatar bring the vision of the world into being (“Therefore I say: Eä! Let these things Be!”). Finrod and Sauron engage in a powerful battle of song. Gildor bestows a blessing on Frodo at their parting and names him Elf-friend, which Goldberry later can perceive when she meets him. Tom sings Old Man Willow to sleep and drives away the Barrow Wight with his singing. Morgoth, in his bitterness and envy, curses Húrin’s offspring with devastating effect, and Saruman uses his voice in attempt to manipulate others and bend their will to his own purposes. Fëanor and his sons swear a “terrible and blasphemous oath” that drives them to commit numerous atrocities, and ultimately their own destruction. Proverbs 18:21 states the “Death and life are in the power of the tongue..”, and this theme is certainly woven throughout the Legendarium.
We also see how storytelling can bring comfort and encouragement: Strider comforts the Hobbits at Weathertop with the tale of Beren and Luthien, and Sam recites ‘Oliphant’ under the shadow of the Black Gate. Reading aloud, and telling stories has a profound impact on the hearer – it brings out the musicality of the words on page, comforts and soothes, stirs courage, and gives us the Elven ability to create visions in the mind of the hearer.
We will explore this theme with activities that include opportunities reading aloud, reciting favourite passages and/or poetry, singing, and more! You are also invited to join us the evening before Middle Moot (Friday, 16 October) for Tolkien Trivia Night with Dr. Corey Olsen – the Tolkien Professor – and the Withywindle Smial of Kansas City.
Submit Your Presentation Proposal Here!
Please note that a conference theme helps tie the day together and optimize fun, and we welcome anyone to respond to the Call for Proposals. Our moots are supportive environments for practicing or developing your presentation skills regardless of your experience.
This Call for Proposals will close after 17 September. We will finalize the schedule then and post it here.
Please read our Regional Moot Recording and Privacy Notice. You will be required to agree to its contents in our registration system before completing your ticket purchase.
