I also like that when you learn these 3-note-motif songs you are Kid Link, and when you learn the other songs which has more complex melodies you are Adult Link, kinda like when you just got your instrument you learn simple songs first but as you practice and grow you learn more complex songs

I'm like 99% sure playing this game as an 8 year old planted the seeds of wanting to become a musician. These songs will be in my brain until I die.

Daily reminder that The Song of Healing from Majora's Mask is just Saria's Song backwards - It's truly crazy how different the two songs feel while utilizing the exact same melodic notes

Me: “Wow! These Ocarina songs are so iconic! I wonder if I could write something cool with these five notes!” *Scarecrow’s Song* Me: ⬅️➡️⬅️➡️⬅️➡️⬅️➡️

Calling the initial notes a 'question' and the remainder of the section an 'answer' is genius because it even makes sense considering the Ocarina as a magic conduit : you, as the player, ask for a certain power through the ocarina, but only play the question: then, in response, power is granted through playing the Answer

8-Bit Music Theory: Teaches us about the genius of Ocarina music. Background: Absolutely getting wrecked by Moblins in the deep forest maze.

I always thought this would be a cool idea for a video - you definitely didn’t disappoint! Zelda’s Lullaby is really interesting because it predates this game mechanic - it was used in Link to the Past. I would assume Kondo started with that and expanded his pitch set from there - by adding the tritone and octave you mention in the video.

Exposure to the works of Koji Kondo at such a young age is legitimately why I'm a musician today. Around maybe five or so, I sat at my grandmother's piano and figured out so many songs from OoT, and it only grew from there. My friends and fellow musicians always tell me that the music I write sounds like it belongs in a Zelda game, and it makes me feel so proud to have been influenced by such a great composer as Kondo. I got a tattoo of the treble clef from this game on my right wrist; that's where it feels like the music flows, and I like to remember where that love for and connection to it came from.

There's no doubt about it, Koji Kondo is the greatest game composer. There's always been something so masterful about those early Zelda games' soundtracks, and Ocarina of Time has always stuck to me in a way almost no other game soundtrack has (as someone who really enjoys prioritizing melodies and such lol). Great video, loved hearing this get talked about

The cool thing about the Serenade of Water is just how malleable its chord structure can be, regardless of whether it's being used as a i-IV or vi-II. How malleable? Well, it is the first two chords in the Smash Ultimate theme song, but it's also the first two chords of "Mad World"'s chorus.

This was awesome! I'd never transcribed these pieces and I hadn't touched the game since before I went to music school so I always just sort of assumed the notes were some form of pentatonic, but in retrospect, you're right, that really wouldn't make all that much sense.

What's interesting to me is that Zelda's Lullaby actually wasn't composed with these specific limitations in mind; it's actually reused from A Link to the Past. Was it just a happy accident that this song fit into the patterns of the ocarina songs in Ocarina of Time, or did Koji Kondo choose the notes and patterns for Ocarina's music based on this already-existing piece?

What I found most fascinating is how he was able to the herculean effort of composing these songs with only 5 notes. Leaving oneself to think that he made every possible song possible with those 5 notes. But then he just one ups himself and does it all over again for Majoras Mask, that makes it even crazier

He didn't mention that Zelda's Lullaby predates Ocarina of Time. It was in Link to the Past! So in order to use it in OoT, Kondo already had three of the five notes set in stone, giving him even less flexibility for the other songs.

You could actually play almost all the notes if you use the thumb stick to bend up or down from the normal 5 buttons :) They couldn't be used in the button codes for spells obviously, but an interesting feature is that if you bend to a different note while playing the spell songs they won't work, because it's the wrong notes even though you're hitting the right code. I had a fun time standing around in game trying to play a bunch of random songs on the ocarina.

I can not put into words how freaking perfect and beautiful the sound track for Ocarina of Time is, as well as the whole. I spent my entire childhood playing this game, so much that I get intense nostalgia from it that I literally cry when I here the opening menu music!

Koji Kondo and Nobuo Uematsu are my two favorite. Everything they’ve done is memorable, nostalgic, and iconic.

Something that makes the ocarina songs even more impressive to me is that Zelda's Lullaby wasn't introduced in Ocarina of Time, it first appeared in Link to the Past. Not only did Koji Kondo do such a phenomenal job with making the ocarina songs distinct and memorable and all that with only five notes, he did so while only actually getting to choose two new notes. Three of them were already set in stone.

Koji Kondo is the John Williams of gaming, thanks for this much-needed serotonin hit!

I still say Gedudo Valley's guitar riff is absolutely the song that comes to mind to me when someone mentions OoT.

I've always thought the N64 Zelda games have such a different vibe than the rest of the series. Partially due to their comparatively darker themes as well as their heavy draw from real world cultures. Whenever I think of video game music it doesn't take long for OOT or MM to come up, especially the dungeon themes.

The sheet music at 8:10 is Kaepora's theme (that owl that everyone hates who shows up and yammers on and on), in case anyone was wondering.

Watching this channel while taking a theory class hits differently than before

I think Ocarina of Time definitely sparked my interest in playing songs by ear on the piano. The first song I played by ear was the Song of Storms. The music was so special because it made so many memories for me. This game not only had great music, it had music that made you want to play an instrument!

Something that didn't get mentioned, Zelda's Lullaby didn't actually debut in Ocarina of Time. It was already firmly solidified as Zelda's theme in A Link to the Past. That means that Koji Kondo had even _more_ of a restriction on what notes he could choose because he had to make sure Zelda's Lullaby could fit. He had inadvertently chosen three of his five allotted notes in the previous game! Not only that, but the songs you learn as young Link have a series of three notes that repeat once before automatically flowing into the "answer" of the song, whereas the songs you learn as adult Link follow no such pattern. This was almost certainly a deliberate design choice in order to make the first songs in the game the easiest to learn. Again, Zelda's Lullaby was already following that 3x2 pattern in its initial composition, which means that once again, he had already set up one of his restrictions many years prior. Many pieces of the Zelda series fit together like a long since scattered puzzle, and the music is absolutely no exception.

Out of all of these I mostly feel impressed how Kondo just went I know that the Descending Bass has been somber and sad for CENTURIES from Bach's Crucifixus to Chopin's Prelude in E minor to more recently in Les Miz and even Up BUT I'm going to make it homely and calming in Lon Lon Ranch.

Ocarina of time/Koji Kondo is the reason why I'm a music student today 😍😌

I think the effect of all this is a soundtrack that feels insanely coherent, and thus memorable. If you think about it, Kondo did basically the same thing for Super Mario World; pretty much all the level music in the game is a series of declinations from a single core idea (the overworld theme). No doubt this approach was used in OoT to craft melodies from, again, one core structure (the 5 notes). It's brilliant, really! Edit: OMG I never realized that Sun's song plays at the beginning of the Hyrule Field track!!!!! WOW!!

You're absolutely correct about the sunrise theme. I've never thought of it when I think of Zelda music, but I was hit by a wave of nostalgia the second you played it! Reminds me of waking up early Saturday morning to play some Zelda :)

Koji Kondo is THE reason why I got into music as a kid that led me to become a Cellist. Absolute legend. Still get goosebumps hearing music from this game

He took just 5 notes and made 12 tracks that all sound so distinct from each other. It's a feat that i've always appreciated since first playing Ocarina.

I'd be really interested in seeing a follow-up video discussing the similar limitations present in The Wind Waker and how the games approach them differently, both musically and in regards to gameplay.

I have been waiting for this video since 1998. Since day 1, I have been so blown away by how many GOOD songs Kondo composed out of these 5 notes, and just how different all of the songs sound. In particular, the bit about Sun's Song and how it fits into the morning theme of Hyrule Field is something that resonated with me (no pun intended), as its one of my favorite bits of video game music ever. Though I admit when you asked rhetorically what songs were the most memorable from this game, my brain went GERUDO VALLEY before shorting out.

Oh yeah, this is what hit me the hardest when I first played OoT. I never had a N64 as a kid so I was like I think 17, maybe, when I first played it. At that point I had played music for more than half my life and I immediatley noticed how limiting five notes seemed and then the game just hits you with banger after banger! Glad someone could put it into words better than I could!

Great vid! The point about repeated 3-note phrases being memorable for the player is a great one, and leads me to think it was a great design call to WAIT on the 6-note songs (minuet of forest, serenade of water, etc) until later in the game when the player is already familiar with the ocarina mechanic :)

It’s worth mentioning that Zelda’s lullaby wasn’t composed for Ocarina of Time but was already an established song from A Link to the Past, which may have acted as a jumping-off point in Kondo’s process for picking the 5 different notes Edit: and of course someone else already made almost this exact same comment lol. Guess it means it’s a strong theory!

You can close your eyes and know exactly whats going in this game. The sound and music is perfection.

Man, I love the temple of time music. There's not many songs that are able to just instantly give me shivers as strong and consistently as this one.

These songs have stuck with me longer than anything else. They’re so simple, yet powerful. Super catchy, yet unique. You hear them once and find yourself humming them forever

The little "drawing a line" sounds add some "real" feeling to the video which makes it perfect to watch.

And then he did it again in Majora's Mask, though quite a few of those ones are reversals or modifications of Ocarina songs. Which is a great and clever way to solve that problem, to be sure.

Granted this is a great video, might you do one breaking down the original Xenoblade Chronicles soundtrack? They use very strange instruments and themes throughout.

Crazy to remember how many amazing titles came out in '97 and '98

Every time I hear the Temple of Time music I get emotional. I don't know what it is about the theme but I have ALWAYS loved it ever since I first played the game, and it's stuck with me all these years.

This is an amazing video. I was always impressed by how iconic and different all the ocarina tunes were while only using the same few notes, I’m glad to discover a deeper appreciation of that through this video

I just finished OOT 3D the other day, and I think this video touched on so much of what made the atmosphere of that game special-the soundtrack stems from a very simple ocarina system (that's made more dynamic by, as you said, giving the player the power to play each note rather than picking songs from a menu).

Seeing what Koji Kondo managed to do focusing on just 5 notes is crazy inspiring, and the point about those songs being some of the most iconic in video game history is mind blowing. It makes it much less intimidating to try writing music because you don't need to know many complex ideas to make something beautiful, just use few ideas extremely well.

2:22 Same chord that The Great Fairy Fountain music starts with! :o

I just want to say that I really appreciate these videos so much. As much as I love the music of video games, I don't understand near enough about music to really understand what goes into making the soundtracks and just how impressive they are. This series allows me to fully appreciate the music I love so much. So thank you. Thank you for helping me find even more reasons to love the music and even greater appreciation for the composers and musicians behind the soundtracks.

Had to see this right after getting the notification! I think the relative simplicity of melodies in Ocarina of Time and being able to fiddle with the ocarina are what led me and, I assume, a lot of other young kids to become interested in music. I would definitely like to see more videos about the series. And I like how you included the Owl theme in the background which is one of my favourite OoT songs.

That guitar lick at 5:26 made me giggle 😂 the “only scale” we know 😁

Bruh this man is iconic and you have to keep in mind that he even made a new palette of songs for majoras mask with the same notes

The thing with the ocarina songs, I know that there are future games with just...items that do these various things, or a simple menu...it doesn't FEEL as good as doing a thing to do these more utility magics. Playing the ocarina just...FEELS great.

This sounds like a fun composition exercise! “ Write a series of motifs and themes using only 5 specific notes.” While it’s common to use 1-5 in a specific mode or major/minor pentatonic scales I think you learn a lot about compositing/yourself as a musician when trying to write in less conventional ways. It’s also a great tool for writers block. For anyone looking to take this challenge up try this: find a song that you like the vibe of, take the main melody of that song and try to create 4 or more short tunes 2-8 measures) using only the first 5 notes. You can experiment with different tempos and meters as well as keys if the chosen notes allow the flexibility. But do your best to stick to those 5 notes. This will surely make you write in ways you don’t typically try. Finally, if you come up with a cool idea where you need to use a note outside of the self-imposed limit, remember that rules are made to be broken. 😊 Enjoy.

4:17 I've probably played Ocarina of Time through more than any other video game, and I never noticed the movement in the tenor voice before. (The Eø7 chord with the B♭)

Dude, I just taught a small class on this exact subject last month! These 5 notes in Ocarina of Time hugely inspired my own deep dive into music theory as a kid/teenager, so it's cool to see another musician showcasing it. My class was about 2 hours so I've got a few points that you didn't cover, but you also filled in a couple gaps I had with this video, so this was great to find! Here's a few super quick notes for anyone interested: I liked how you grouped the notes into a DFA group and a ABD group. I had something similar, and classified my songs into three groups: "Songs without F", "Songs without B", and "Songs with F and B". Most of the harmonically adventurous songs are in that third category. In the game you never need to play the songs at tempo or in rhythm, although as a kid I usually tried to do that anyway. Luckily, it seems Koji Kondo also limited his rhythms somewhat. The first six songs are the easiest rhythmically because they have just 3 notes, grouped twice, while the last six are more complex but aren't at crazy tempos and don't go faster than eighth notes. The fastest ones are Bolero and Prelude. Because of how limited the notes are, some of the songs in Majora's Mask have to get even more creative with their harmonies to avoid retreading the same ground over and over. If they made further ocarina games, it would be even more difficult to find unique and memorable tunes that haven't been done already. Although I'll admit even in OoT some of the songs took me by surprise - I assumed Minuet started with G major instead of Em until I was researching it, so that shows Koji Kondo was always trying to include variety. Thanks again, I loved this one. I've been following for some time but I rarely post on anything, but you're doing great. Keep it up!

What I really like is that after Ocarina of Time was released and Majora's Mask began development, Kondo went all out in constructing the ocarina tunes in that game. I especially love New Bossa Nova.

8:28 Question: What happens when you reach the top of a mountain? Answer: You go back down Question: What happens when you reach the bottom of a valley? Answer: You go back up Crescendos are naturally followed by Diminuendos. Diminuendos are naturally followed by Crescendos.

You just helped layer on a whole new level of appreciation for these songs. Thank you for all you do!

I love your content, especially the pacing between the many really useful visual examples in sheet music, playing the track from the game and explaining. yet you keep it simple enough for me to enjoy the information and it so often inspired me to arrange video game music for ukulele or band instruments. really helpful, thanks

Now do Majora's Mask! It even had songs that played on the earlier songs in Ocarina of Time as WELL as new songs!

Is that F# at the end of Requiem of Spirit a "Picardy third"?

Having obtained a degree in music, and also being a Nintendo video game fanatic, this video speaks to me on many levels. What a great analysis!

I’m amazed and fascinated how the guy created such memorising tones and how they still stick with me to this day. I’m amazed how he got such catchy things out of a DMajor 6 chord

The greatest video game composer of all time sounds like a big call until you think about it for literally one second. There’s no one else.

Interesting how Zelda's Lullaby was actually composed for LttP.

When you mentioned the pentatonic scale I immediately pictured kid link busking in the middle of town just cracking out some ripping arpeggios like the Jack Johnson of Ocarina.

This is the exact in depth analysis I needed! Wow! Incredible video. Not only did it shed new light on how these pieces were written, but I now understand the meaning behind those pieces as well. I love the explanation on how limitations can really bring out the creativity one might need for such a game. It can be scary, but it’s something I have to remember!

Dope vid. Kondo is the GOAT!

Ocarina of Time is my favorite game fo all time and to finally see it get a video the channel is just great.

I've been learning a lot about music theory from this channel. I am so happy I became a subscriber!

This is SUCH a well written, edited, researched, and cohesive video. I revisit it every time I'm stuck with my composing. Keep up the good work!

Hard to argue the Greatest Of All Time title! What a legend

I remember getting bored practicing music for band and instead figuring out how to play OoT melodies. I always appreciated how straightforward and recognizable they were. Whenever I tried to recreate other songs from memory I was always worried I'd get the notes or rhythms off. But Saria's Song, or Song of Storms? It's like it was instinct.

I really wish there were more people doing analysis and discussions of video game music, especially since the video game industry is such a prominent employer of modern-day composers, and because a lot of the newest developments and explorations in music theory are tested out in video games. Whenever I have faced burnout in doing music in college these last few years, channels like 8-bit music theory have always done a great job renewing my passion for the whole field. Keep up the incredible work, me and all of my colleagues/roommates love your videos and quote them on a near-weekly basis!

I was actually thinking about this while replaying zelda on 3ds last week. How limited kondo was with the ocarina mechanic yet he still created some of the most memorable themes in all of gaming. Pure genius.

Yes, there's good music in modern games, but I wholeheartedly believe it's because of the technical limitations of the past that make older soundtracks so great, as opposed to the modern day where videogame soundtracks can't easily be distinguished from film charts.

Gears are turning in my head as someone who played OOT as a little kid and then learned music theory as a teenager... Wait, the ocarina scale spells out a Dm6? Is this why I immediately felt so attached to the D Dorian mode? Growing up, I always figured it might be because I'm from Scotland, and Gaelic music traditionally uses a lot of Mixolydian mode (almost a mirror to the major scale as the Dorian's relationship to the traditional minor scale), but this is a way cooler reason

Thanks for the basic tutorial videos your channel . they significantly increased my understanding and appreciation of the rest of your videos!

Love your videos so much! I love music but music theory has always been tough for me to understand but you make it so easy to understand. I love when you’re talking about “D major sus 5” and I have NO idea what you mean but then you pull up the sheet music with your notes and I totally get it. Thanks for doing these, it really helps me appreciate the work that went into the music I love so much

On the topic of this, one of the things that keep me awake at night is the rhythm of the Song of Time. Since I was a child, in my head it always started on a pick up, with the second note being on the first beat. The second note seems to be accentuated, and it's also the D in D minor. da - DAAAAA - da - da- DAAAAA - da But many official pieces based on it (like on the anniversary album for example) and also this video, treat it as if it just started on 1. Which just sounds wrong to me. The rhythm feels awkward and the 1s are all on the fifth note, which makes it sound kinda agressive. Am I mad?

The creative juices flow when your choices in how to approach music is limited or already chosen for you. It seems like the opposite would actually do the same but there are so many techniques and styles of music out there to choose from that it actually gets in the way of creativity because you don't know what to do. Almost like a sensory overload.

Thank you. Having played that game and loved it I already knew basically everything you've covered in this video but I don't have the musical chops to be able to express it. You've explained it here beautifully and captured the essence of why these songs were so amazing.

This channel is just the best. Thank you so much for all the videos, blood sweat and tears you put into it all. Thank you!

I can't say whether or not Koji Kondo is the best composer of our collective generation, but I feel comfortable guessing that he's far and away the most listened to

ITS AH-KUH-REEN-UH

I just want to say I love your work and am so grateful for it. Music and games, these are two of my favorite things, and you bring them together perfectly. Thanks!

I am so excited that you did this video! One of the games that really pushed and reinforced how much I wanted to be doing music and I never looked back. Thanks for this breakdown!

"Thats why Koji Kondo is the greatest video game composer..." *Uematsu has entered chat*

Is his mic buzzing or does my sound system deceive me? Tsk, tsk. 😆

I think this is my 3rd or 4th time rewatching this video, you really outdid yourself with this one my dude! And for a channel of your quality that really is something special

One of the biggest things I love about Zelda music is how each game seemingly evolves the core, "Zelda Motifs." Every game just has that perfect mix of, "yup, that's Zelda Music," in it. The example that stands out the most right now because of Skyward Sword HD is of course Ballad of the Goddess and how it perfectly utilizes the reverse Zelda's Lullaby motif while evolving that new thematic idea into something totally its own.

I don't know if I can get through 15 minutes of you pronouncing ocarina weird

Your videos are always so cool man. You do an incredible job with these.

Love each video more than the last. Amazing channel dont stop any time soon pleaseee

That's the most perfect video I could have on my feed right now. Thank you so so so much

I remember getting the chance to play my ocarina for the first time. The beginner music theorist I was (and still am, i still never beat the game) immediately began to toy with it. I was so proud figuring out that the tonic for this ocarina was D natural, with the A and B in there too That X moves down a half step, Z moves up a half step, and tilting the joy stick up or down moves up or down a whole step! It may have never been used in songs, but boy did I love it! Although I swear the ocarina was in Dmaj, not Dm. I'll check next time I play OoT, which probably won't be soon with TOTK lol. But I'm so proud of my discoveries! I realized a lot of songs are D in some shape or form, it was kinda clever to make them all the same, so players could remember them, yet all different. How they were all different, I didn't know. Now I (kinda) do (I'm still a little baby music theorist)! I think for the most part, I kinda get it. P. S. That F# at the end of requiem of sprit tho... so good!

EXCELLENT video, with wonderfully precise transcriptions and analysis!

Fantastic video. You have a way of taking music theory and making it a bit easier to digest.

I’ve always thought about this topic, and I’m glad to see someone dive deep into it!