In 2004, The Lord of the Rings swept the Oscars with 11 historic wins; 23 years later, a French Gothic landmark in Los Angeles is hosting a classical tribute to its score

On February 29, 2004, Middle-earth marched into Los Angeles and made itself at home. At the Kodak Theatre—now the Dolby Theatre—The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King won all 11 Oscars it was nominated for. This was no ordinary victory lap for Frodo and company; it was a sweep that put Peter Jackson’s epic alongside Ben-Hur and Titanic, tying their record for the most Academy Awards won by a single film.

For composer Howard Shore, the night came with a particularly satisfying double flourish. He won Best Original Score for The Return of the King and shared Best Original Song with Fran Walsh and Annie Lennox for “Into the West,” the farewell song performed by Lennox.

This season, that Hollywood gold gives way to a different kind of glow as Candlelight: The Lord of the Rings brings a tribute to the trilogy’s beloved music to Immanuel Presbyterian Church—a French Gothic Revival landmark in Koreatown. No acceptance speeches, no envelope suspense, just an evening celebrating a score with plenty of gold to its name.

Candlelight: The Lord of the Rings in Los Angeles

Candlelight: The Lord of the Rings is an hour-long concert of music from The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, played by a local string quartet surrounded by thousands of candles. It’s an official series, co-presented by Fever and Warner Bros. Discovery Global Experiences for the trilogy’s 25th anniversary.

Shore approved the 13-piece setlist and its sheet music himself. It opens with “Prologue: One Ring to Rule Them All”, finds room for both “The Return of the King” and “Into the West”, and signs off with “The Grey Havens”. No singers, no choir: the string quartet carries every melody, songs included.

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Immanuel Presbyterian Church in Koreatown

Architect Chauncey Fitch Skilling designed Immanuel Presbyterian Church in French Gothic Revival, and it was completed in 1929 with a 205-foot corner tower and a stained-glass rose window above the entrance. It’s been a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument since 2003, and film crews love it: you may have seen it in The Amazing Spider-Man or John Wick.

📍Address: 3300 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90010