(left): 

Fellowship of the Rings, Aragon defends Frodo (screenshot from

YouTube). During this scene, we hear "Aragorn's Theme" at 1:43.

(right): Gandalf rides his horse into the distance (screenshot from YouTube).
During this scene, we hear "The White Rider" at 0:58.

These are just a few of the leitmotivic connections between all of the themes in
Howard Shore's scoring to the Lord of the Rings  trilogy. As you can see, there
are many subtle connections that connect various themes together---and we
haven't even discussed singular transformational techniques! These types of
techniques are found in many epic franchises, but are also found in some
movies that you might never expect. Movies like Titanic and Groundhog
Day  and even How to Train Your Dragon  also use leitmotivic techniques in their
soundtracks in ways to enhance the dramatic and emotional connection
between the film and its audience (though perhaps not as sophisticated as
found here!)