there is no single piece of music that
is able to transport me back in time
remind me of home and growing up making
me feel like a kid again more than this
[Music]
this opening Cascade of piano notes that
follows a quietly increasing string is
the sound of my childhood the title
screen to Ocarina of Time Is So iconic
to so many people in a way that is
nearly Indescribable it just hits the
notes don't kick in immediately instead
the silence is first broken by the sound
of opponent's Hooves Galloping on hard
dirt most title screens at the time were
about selling what you're about to
experience to the player a loud bright
frame or action heavy sequence all meant
to overwhelm the player in an attempt to
keep their attention and show off just
how cool the following hours will be
Ocarina of Time was different it's slow
it's calm it's Serene you could make the
argument that the Legend of Zelda at
this point had built a certain level of
prestige among fans and an instant hook
isn't necessary but I think that's
missing the bigger point the Zelda
franchise has a very specific goal when
it comes to music in mind and this title
screen is a a perfect reflection of that
and it's the reason there is nothing
else that sounds like a Zelda game
Nintendo has mastered the art of scoring
their franchises in a way that feels
distinct to each individual property
while retaining an overall feeling that
says this is still a Nintendo game even
within their own franchises the music
can twist and evolve as the series
themselves do and for the most part the
musical progression between each game
feels As Natural as the mechanical
Evolution from Mario's more pop music
styles to Metro Prime space influence
ambient Electronics every game has its
own feel to it but no game within
Nintendo's catalog demonstrates this
more than the Legend of Zelda the range
of music is vast and versatile and as a
result of that many people can point to
two different songs and say that one is
their favorite and you'd be hard-pressed
to find two people who agree on the
subject series composer Koji kondo is
undoubtedly a legend within the industry
and his influence from all games he's
scored can be felt across the medium but
there is something about the work he has
done on Zelda that feels different and
that Legacy has lived on in even the
games he had no in scoring so what is it
exactly that makes the Zelda series feel
so unique on a more tangible level there
are a ton of things that people can
point to and say this is what makes a
Zelda game a Zelda game and those things
can range from dungeons to its heavy
Reliance on themes for storytelling and
even its sense of exploration but
honestly those are easy to replicate
while the results May Vary from title to
title you can point to a game like tunic
and say it's a Zelda clone and you would
understand right away what that person
means however it doesn't feel like a
Zelda game despite having a lot of the
trappings that you would expect from one
and I am willing to bet a lot of that
intangible feeling comes from the music
one of my favorite Koji condo quotes of
all time is how he set out to write
music for the original Legend of Zelda
on the NES in 1986. with Mario the music
is inspired by the game controls and its
purpose is to heighten the feeling of
how the game controls with Zelda I was
trying to enhance the atmosphere of the
environments and locations the sound of
Mario is kind of like popular music and
Zelda is like a kind of music you've
never heard before so I try to
incorporate many different types of
music to create an otherworldly feel and
otherworldly feel is a concept that has
remained since that first title and
while the series has what you could call
for lack of a better word more
traditional music it still has those
moments of other worldliness that is
especially prominent in Dungeons and
that to me is the unreplicatable feeling
Zelda clones Miss and it makes sense
creating a style of music that people
haven't heard before isn't an easy task
how do you copy an unknown how does
music that is so unfamiliar create such
an intense connection with its audience
let's go back to that title screen for a
moment one of the reasons people play
video games is escapism a way to get
lost in another world and take some time
away from your own for however long you
need or can the title screen is the last
barrier that needs to be crossed before
entering a world it should Prime you
ready to go and that's something Koji
kondo understood perfectly when
composing this piece it's not
otherworldly not yet it has those hints
but it lulls you into a sense of what's
to come or if you're returning it has
become familiar comforting like a second
home almost all of the Zelda title
screens do this in some way or another
they manage to capture the tone of its
game in a way that makes you feel like
you are returning to a place to see the
next incantation of link and explore the
world of most likely Hyrule with him
from Majora's mask's cheery hopeful
plucking of strings that turns around
right at the end reflecting how the
citizens feel about the world versus how
it actually is two skyward Swords more
filled out Orchestra rendition of an old
classic fairy fountain symbolica fee and
her forthcoming adventure with the hero
clad in green
when it comes to accompanying a game
with music not only does its tone need
to be matched it also needs to elevate
the experience in its own way it's the
reason a soundtrack like outer Wilds for
example is so beloved you can't really
have one without the other after they've
been paired and experienced together
listening to a song from a game or
really any medium should bring you back
to that exact moment it was there to
serve the reasons other music is so
iconic is because Koji kondo leaned into
this idea instead of creating music to
act as something that said in the
background as players adventured through
Hyrule he instead opted for that
otherworldly feeling to go along with
something that's almost tangible in a
way the atmosphere something you can
feel but cannot really explain that
otherworldly feeling might feel like the
Metroid soundtrack to some if you were
to say it outright but here it's not
that it's not off Planet otherworldly
it's more that the songs become a Vibe
an instance where the walls and
inhabitants are talking in song creating
a backing track to your adventure rather
than convention instruments you would
find that usually make up an OST so with
that we've broken up Zelda songs into
two main subcategories those more
traditional songs the ones you'd hear in
an open field or open Waters as link
Adventures forth to New Horizons these
are more familiar and even if you'd
never heard them before they placed a
sense of comfort on a player that says
it's okay to go forth and seek new
things it's what you are meant to be
doing it helps keeps a sense of
grounding within the world the other is
that one that's a little harder to grasp
these are generally used within the
dungeons the unknown and unexplored a
sense of Unknowing and sometimes dread
lingering and looming over players to
help build a tense atmosphere that asks
if you should be where you are
while Dungeon music in most cases isn't
inviting it also manages to not be
off-putting instead it feels almost
agnostic to the existence of Link an
extension of a temple you're exploring
rather than some instruments played to
imitate its stature allowing room for
questioning but also giving space for
answers the Lo hum of the wind in
arbiter's ground or the sterile
mechanisms of breath of the wild shrines
feel like they have been playing long
before you arrived and will continue
after you leave it is not always clear
if the tracks are actually diegetic or
not but it always feels as if link is
hearing exactly what the player is
hearing every dungeon past the original
NES titles which had the unfortunate
lack of memory for more than a few songs
and variations have their own distinct
feel and have carefully mimicked what it
would sound like if the walls could sing
you know you're in the forest temple in
Ocarina because the instrumentation
sounds like wood imps crying down the
corridors and the Tower of the Gods
feels as powerful as its name implies
because bells ring out loud and long
while a choir localizes the hymn as a
respect presence of Otherworldly forces
is felt through the music as link must
explore and solve puzzles it's why a
battle with an enemy mini boss or big
boss theme feels jarring it's out of
place an invasive presence somewhere it
shouldn't be coming in with harsh
strings before hitting its Melody a way
to catch you off guard before launching
an attack a sharp juxtaposition that
snaps you out of the exploration to
remind you what's really at stake within
the world
this is why a sky with swords Dungeon
music feels less celebrated than the
rest of the series while interesting in
its own right without the vision of Koji
condo the tracks feel a little more
traditional than its predecessors
there's distinct Melody and
instrumentation that's easy for most
people to pick out and pin down as a way
to familiarize themselves with their
surroundings and feel comfortable rather
than out of place this isn't a bad
approach it's just not the Zelda
approach and I suspect this was many of
the reasons people didn't connect to it
in the same way honestly condo's
departure from the series might have
something to do with this however the
other explanation I have thought about
since the game's release is the fact it
is the first game in Series history to
use a full Orchestra with live
instruments for a majority of its music
with regards to Twilight Princess condo
reveals he wanted to use an orchestra
But ultimately due to a lack of time to
pull it off withdrew that decision
what's interesting though is he wanted a
string section for lyrical moments of
the game and that is something that
feels like it carried over into Skyward
Sword despite having a new composer
Zelda has never had spoken dialogue at
this point but it didn't need it the
music replaced the emotion of words with
songs and it led to some truly memorable
moments any fan of the series can tell
you it doesn't lack any emotional weight
part of that is the emotional resonance
that the series can hold in its songs
whether it's hearing the cause on
Zelda's Lullaby played on a harp as if
it was the first time it was ever played
and then passed down from the world of
Skyward Sword to Ocarina or epona's song
lasting through multiple Generations
there is nothing like waiting for an old
favorite to appear again somewhere along
a New Journey however it's not just old
songs that can have this effect midna's
lament is one of the most devastating
songs in the entire series midna's
regular theme is slow it hesitates in
the same way link does with his new
companion but when it comes to her life
on the line that Melody is sped up and
desperate moving from a wind instrument
to a piano that can convey more range of
emotion and for as much hate as fear
might get in Skyward Sword her farewell
theme the accumulation of all her
moments coming to her head in one final
goodbye is maybe the most tear-joking
moment in the franchise and it's for a
character you probably grew to despise
but the music can just carry so much
emotional weight it's hard not to feel a
little bit sad as the flute plays her
Melody one last time
this is where Skyward Sword succeeds the
most in creating an almost cinematic
soundtrack that perfectly scores the
most heartfelt moments of the game in a
way it almost feels like a conclusion in
celebration of all that came before it
using that Orchestra in live instruments
to almost sell your performance of old
favorites it may be the first game in
the Canon but it feels like the last Act
of its Musical
and so if Skyward Sword is the
conclusion of Zelda music breath of the
wild is the aftermath
Hyrule we find in breath of the wild has
long since broken it's barely rebuilding
and it's what makes the soundtrack feel
so haunting
it's a different approach to the typical
formula of audio because the game is a
different approach towards mechanics
neither one managing to forget their
Roots but rather they embrace them in an
unconventional way you will find
familiar landmarks and hear an old
Melody but it's not what it once was
it's broken like this land finding a
fairy fountain is met with a familiar
but now desperate plea like Clock Town
on day three it has a second more
ominous low Melody that is almost
begging link to flee while its high
notes cry for his help the two almost
clash with each other as their notes
Play Breath of The Wild soundtrack can
get a lot of unnecessary Flack from the
community at large at times and to an
extent I can see why the sounds can
often feel empty but that Emptiness is
purposeful the fields at night can feel
lonely when only a few keys of a piano
can be heard but that's because link is
for the first time in a long time in the
franchise he is alone he is scraping
together memories he has no partner at
his beck and call all all of his friends
died a hundred years ago with the
Calamity music only arises when it needs
to either in the form of the old world
trying to make itself known again with
the breaking notes of a piano or in the
sterile sounds of future Tech in the
shrines the ideas and foundations of the
series are always there they've just
changed to fit what has now become of
Hyrule
there are way too many songs and even
games to cover within the franchise it
would take a lifetime to examine them
all in a way that Garners the respect
they deserve but one thing remains
persistent whether it's the haunted
Melody of the ghosts that inhabit ikana
playing out in Stone Tower Temple all
the non-traditional instrumentation for
an orchestral arrangement in low rules
Overworld theme there's a way for
everyone to connect with the music found
within the Legend of Zelda and it will
always hold a special place in the
hearts of those who played it tethered
to them like the harp of a goddess or a
flute that can uncover the memories of
the past in fact in the original
Japanese version of the first NES game
what we know as the recorder item was
called a flute or shakuashi I hope I
said that right I probably didn't an
instrument used in legends that recall
things that happened before the player
was born what is most impactful about
this isn't its mechanical use but its
musical Motif a quick 3 second Melody
[Music]
that is charming but more significantly
is used as the main backing Melody to
the Ocarina of Time title screen theme
it could be a callback to Old fans but I
like to see it as a subtle hint that the
way music is used in the series is about
to become much more significant
instruments were significant in Zelda
before this but starting with Ocarina of
Time not only the way you progress and
directly affect the world around you but
it's also how link connects with his
friends old and new this is what makes
Twilight Princess feel that much more
Bittersweet the stones wolf link learns
songs to Howl at a hanging moon are
found on what look like tombstones the
graves of his old incarnations leaving
behind their long-lasting connection to
help him again whenever the need arises
even in death their songs persist each
instrument link plays or controls
reflects his Adventure in the Wind Waker
he is conducting the Symphony of the Sea
The Lost Guardians who once held this
land before the flood and passed those
duties on to its new denizens the heart
an instrument of Angels in Greek
mythology is passed from Link's best
friend Zelda before being sealed away
only to return centuries later as the
very instrument Sheikh uses to help him
Traverse Hyrule once again link is a
vessel for connection one that retells
new variations of a legend that started
long before him and music is the threads
that tie them all together
[Music]
foreign
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]