1x10: The Black Queen

Through this sequences, Djawadi introduces some hints of thematic development, but always underneath the dissonant ambiences that support the uneasiness of this scenes, leading to Rhaenyra's miscarriage and the funeral of his stillborn son.

We can hear hints of Viserys' Theme, Daemon's sound motif, the House Targaryen Theme, Rhaenyra's Chanting Motif (this two can be heard in the track "Death and Rebirth"), before culminating in a gorgeous and emotional rendition of the Funeral Theme, dating back to the very first episode, with Aemma's death.

After the funeral, Ser Erryk arrives with "The Crown of Jaeharys", ready to serve the rightful Queen to the Seven Kingdoms, vowing loyalty to her. All the attendants kneel before her, as she is crowned as the Black Queen. This sequences has one of the most beautiful pieces of music Djawadi has created for the show so far. We open with the Heir Theme on strings, that leads into Rhaenyra's Rebellious Theme at 0:52, a lovely chant slowly building in strength and power, intermingling with the B phrase of the Heir Theme as everyone swears loyalty to her.

When she is finally crowned, we hear a lovely rendition of Rhaenyra's Princess Theme, the theme that represents her noble side playing in full, here used to represent her becoming the Queen she was meant to be. The orcehstra soars with emotion and Djawadi supports this whole sequence beautifully, in what is, for me, one of the highlights of the season.

Corly enters Dragonstone and he reveals that House Velaryon and their allies intend to support Rhaenyra as the rightful Queen of the Seven Kingdoms. In "True Meaning of Loyalty", we open with Rhaenyra's Princess Theme, and when Corlys reveals his allegiance to Rhaenyra, we get a complete statement of the noble melody that has been used to represent him and his house during the season, the House Velaryon Theme (listen to it at 1:12 of that track), joined by hints of the Game of Thrones Ostinato

As Rhaenyra sends her sons to deliver messages to the great houses of Westeros, Djawadi brings back the Dragon Flight Motif used to represent this gorgeous beasts soaring through the skies. He joins that motif first with Rhaenyra's Theme, and latter as the dragons depart Dragonstone with the House Targaryen Theme, playing in all of its mighty glory.

This motif becomes is present in the shocking final sequence, and it's here that it achieves its meaning. "Bloodlines Will Burn" opens with percussion and sound effects, and numerous references to this Dance of Dragons motif playing alongside the percussion, as Aemond and Vhagar chase Luke and Arrax through the stormy skies of Storm's End. The tension grows, and the fear is palpable as Luke tries to escape Aemond's enormous dragon. We can hear a lonely statement of the Dance of Dragons motif at 1:17 of that cue, before all hell breaks loose. Arrax disobeys Luke and attacks Vhagar, which becomes angry and furious. Djwadi supports this horryfing moment with clusters of orchestral dissonance that crescendo until Luke's tragic demise is revealed, as he and Arrax persih in Vhagar's jaws.

And just like that, we're done with the first season! It's been quite a ride, and I enjoyed it a lot. This season delivered with a great narrative, exceptional character development, some great set-pieces, shocking twist and turns of events and served as a fantastic introduction the main conflict that is the Dance of the Dragons that will inform upcoming seasons, which as I said, cannot come soon enough! And Djawadi's music also delivered with a vast array of themes and motifs, some great references to previously established themes, and a great musical tapestry from where he can build and expand in further seasons, hopefully in interesting and emotional ways.

I hope you enjoyed this analysis as much as I enjoyed writing them! Feel free to share them with anyone you think might enjoy them, and be sure to check out my analysis of previous episodes, as well as my Rings of Power analysis.