A peça coral de abertura no início é chamada de "Footsteps of Doom"; as letras são em sindarin, escritas por Philippa Boyens e traduzidas pelo linguista David Salo; eles traduzem para:
Who enters here?
Who brings to us this token of Doom?
That which has stood so long against the darkness
will now fall.
O tema da string principal, que eu acredito ser o assunto principal da questão, é uma peça diferente intitulada "History of the Ring". De A pontuação anotada (negrito é minha ênfase):
Most prominent in this sequence, however, is the History of the Ring theme, which makes its debut appearance following the opening Lothlórien clip. Throughout the Prologue, Shore highlights a single purpose of his History theme: "It's showing you how the Ring has traveled from hand to hand." Galadriel continues her narration, as again this History theme introduces the Ring to its new owners: Isildur, and then Gollum/Sméagol (skulking in his dank cave and accompanied by his Pity theme).
The Music of the Lord of the Rings Films Part 1: The Fellowship of the Ring: The Annotated Score Disc 1 Track 1: Prologue
The Fellowship of the Ring has been broken. The Dark Lord Sauron’s influence reaches deeper into Middle-earth, while those who would stand against him suffer. And yet, hidden from view, the One Ring continues its journey towards the fires of Mordor. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers opens with horns and strings delicately ascending, until the London Philharmonic Orchestra comes to rest in familiar territory. Howard Shore's History of the Ring theme parts the curtains with a cold, bi-tonal setting of the figure that sets the A minor melody over an F minor harmony, and nestles us back into J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth.
The Music of the Lord of the Rings Films Part 2: The Two Towers: The Annotated Score Disc 1 Track 1: Glamdring
The Return of the King begins with an uncharacteristically gentle and bucolic tone. Oboe and strings introduce a purling waltz that soon sweeps a familiar melody to the fore. As it has twice before, the History of the Ring theme accompanies the on-screen title, and the final third of The Lord of the Rings begins.
The Music of the Lord of the Rings Films Part 3: The Return of the King: The Annotated Score Disc 1 Track 1: Roots and Beginnings
Tal como acontece com todas as músicas da série de filmes Senhor dos Anéis , ambas as partes foram compostas por Howard Shore.