Mark Boehnlein

"The Maelstrom"

Composed and performed by Mark Boehnlein

This piece portrays the events that happen when the companions are aboard the Perechon. Place yourself just off and behind the ship.

As the strings and timpani begin the piece, the ship begins to pitch and the sky is turning into a swirling cauldron of black clouds. Then the timpani hits in groups of 3 as the wind begins to pick up and pull the sails taut. The waves increase in size and the ship pitches even more as the strings present the main melody. Then the timpani role ushers in the lightning from the clouds, which is represented by the cymbal crash. The following timpani role brings on the full fury of the Maelstrom, with lightning, thunder, the pitching deck, the taut rigging, the billowing sails and the sea spray as it crashes against the ship and up onto the deck. It also introduces the dragons on the horizon as Tanis collapses against Caramon after realizing he had been used and followed. The interlude that follows this section is where Maquesta takes control of the situation and tries to rally her crew to get full sails up. Men scramble across the deck to fill their captains orders as Maq yells to Berem to keep the ship along the edge of the storm.

The main theme returns with a cymbal crash as Berem realizes his peril, freaks out, and turns the Perechon directly into the Maelstrom. Maq yells for him to turn back but the sharp turn does damage to the ship and sends some of the crew into the Blood Sea. The ship flounders and the rigging goes slack as he turns the ship back, the rigging again goes taught and the sails billow. Just then, the blue dragons come shrieking through the clouds. The green gem flashes on Berem's open chest and the Highlord's eyes zero in on it.

Slow motion… Kitiara sees Tanis as the timpani and low strings take over with a slow tempo. Raistlin strides onto the deck and his hood is blown back by the gusting wind. Caramon comes up beside him as Kitiara notices her brothers. She wrestles with having to kill them and Tanis but as Kit's theme enters the music, she affirms her resolve and dives atop Skie.

Normal motion resumes as Skie begins his dive only to be pummeled by the driving hail and buffeting winds. A wave breaks over the deck and sends men skidding across the deck. The sails split in to and men go overboard, screaming as they fall into the Blood Sea of Istar. As Tanis looks up, the dragon and Kit have gone and the crew of the Perechon try to save their boat from the clutches of the maelstrom.

- Mark Boehnlein

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Copyright Info
All music in this section is original and © 2000 Mark Boehnlein. All Rights Reserved. You may download this music for your personal, non-commercial use only.

Player Notes
These files are compressed using the MIDI format. The quality of playback of MIDI files is directly related to the quality of the sound hardware in your computer. The cheaper the sound card, the crapper MIDI playback will sound. Most common media players like Winamp, Windows Media Player, or Quicktime can play MIDI files.