I love that someone finally made an entire video about the Sinnoh Lake theme

I love that you named your rival "Minor iv"

I love how he named his pokemon after chords

Hearing the lake music revamped was one of things I was most excited for in this remake because when I was a child I'd just keep my DS open while I was in this location and just listen 😌

I just want to call out my favorite metric modulation of all time, the ending of the Fugue from Britten’s “Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra”. It starts out in a blazing fast 2/4, and right at the climax of the piece the strings continue playing their 2/4 countermelody as the time signature changes to 3/4, creating a 2:3 hemiola. In this new 3/4 time signature, the heavy brass plays the opening theme of the piece in a 4:3 polyrhythm. So there are three different, valid ways to feel the pulse, all pulled together with the same metric modulation trick

I really love how you've started playing the chords as you're talking about them! I used to really struggle understanding your early videos, because there were long stretches where you would talk without demonstrating, and it all just flew over my head. Playing the chords as you mention them makes it so much easier for me to follow along! Thank you!

12:25 i LOVE how "getting shot up into the air like this" is coordinated with bVII7#11's shot

As a metal songwriter, metric modulation is probably my favorite device in music and I try to incorporate it in my music as much as possible. Truly an underrated technique to throw the listener a curveball and keep things interesting. Great video!👍

This is the best way to make infinitely repeating music. It helps make the music both catching and homey, but also interesting enough to not get bored even when it repeats. It's an important technique to reuse musical ideas effectively

12:00 that 3-3-2 grouping is a rhythm you find all over the place, and it's what I generally consider to be the most driving rhythm ever. It's either called a pop clave or a tresillo (you mentioned it in your ace combat video), and it's *amazing*

Every song in the original Pokemon DPPT soundtrack is like this. All of them. It is almost unbelievable the level of care, attention and depth that this entire soundtrack manages to derive using the DS's sound limitations

Another great example of metric modulation in recent games is "Butterfly Kiss" from Persona 5. That one even has the extra spice of modulating the keys/bass back to the original meter while the drum set stays in 6/8 for a short time. Sick stuff.

Cool - this kind of modulation heavily reminds me of "Blue Rondo a la Turk" by Dave Brubeck. There three eighth notes become a fouth and the transistion is as smooth as it gets.

As a music theory lover/newbie who is currently playing Shining Pearl, this is a treat. Gen 4 always had my favorite OST in the series, and I knew a lot of it was cleverly written, but I didn't yet have the words to explain why. Thanks for this video.

Metric modulation? Sorry, mate, I’m American. We do modulation in feet and inches here.

Man I remember last year when I got to replay platinum, when I listened to the lake theme couldn't identify the IVmaj7(#11) chord the first time I heard it, and it sounded so fancy. When I went to the piano and found out it was just a IV-I progression I was dumbfounded.

To be fair I am already a musician but your analysis' always feels so well structured and thoughtful in a way that I believe anyone could understand, as long as they properly listen and digest what you demonstrate. Your work is amazing and I hope I can become as musically wise as you so I can further elevate my craft!

Pokemon Diamond has one of my favorite soundtracks of all time, so happy to see one of it's songs covered in a video! Great analysis!

Having played percussion throughout middle school and high school, metric modulations are common fair in "concert" style etudes, lol. Once I had a handle on exactly what you meant, I was like "oh yeah, those. Those are rare?" 😅 I didn't ever think about how rare they actually are in "normal" music because of how standard they are in the percussion etudes I used to play. I always think of them as essentially changing the time signature, but rather than using the main beat note as your "anchor," the change is anchored to a different note. Changing the tempo ends up being more of a technical requirement (very necessary when programming music, like when sequencing midis) -- performance-wise, it's secondary to the change in subdivision "feel." That's how I've always processed it in my brain, anyway ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Metric Modulations are some of my favorite things to encounter in a piece, since my first real step into music past those mandatory music "classes" in elementary school was as a drummer. Asymmetric time sigs and metric modulations. A perfect topic and great timing for the release of these remakes.

I have absolutely no idea of Music Theory but it's entertaining to hear you talk ^^

The Lake theme is in my top 3 favorite Pokemon songs (all three are from DPPt)

Really great explanation. Thank you for pointing out how sophisticated music in video games are. Love your vids.

One of my favorite examples of Metric Modulation is the song "The Mirror" by Dream Theater, which features a 3-note figure played as eighth notes (1 & 2 _ 3 & 4 _ ) in a slow half-time feel, then transitions into 3 sets of triplets spaced evenly in a bar of 4/4 (or playing the first three notes of every group of 4 in a bar of 12/8: 1 & a _ & a 3 _ a 4 & _ ), and then finally as eighths again but with the upbeats of 2 and 4 filling the gaps between the 3-note figures (1 & _ & 3 & _ & ) with an upbeat/faster tempo feel.

As a game soundtrack and prog rock composer, I just wanna say how happy you made me by making a video about one of my favorite composition tricks! I use it all the time, it's so fun and powerful 😍

Very nice! I love this theme. I tried learning this on piano, but as a beginner I didn't have much luck 😅

I'm learning a song on the piano, and I laughed at 9:56 because the song I'm learning starts in C and then transitions to A with exactly that feeling, and then I laughed even harder at 10:52 because that's exactly how the song I'm learning does it.

I really appreciate the effort to which you have gone to present a lovely piece of music in this detail. Years ago I decided to follow my passion for physical sciences instead of music and ended up on my current career path, but watching videos like this always make me wonder what could have been for me.

“Into the Open Air” from the Brave soundtrack has a fun way to keep its metric modulation in your mind. Starts in 6/8 and goes to 4/4 for most of the song so that the previous quarter notes are now quarter note triplets. It has this acoustic guitar riff that’s used in both sections at the same tempo, however. So first as quarter notes and subsequently as triplets. It was my introduction to metric modulation. Underrated soundtrack imo! Even if the music felt tacked on.

these videos are so well made! Ive never heard anyone go so much into detail about this with examples

Ah the good old DS days with this song chilling in the background good to see your analyzing it I love it!

Sometimes, when programming music and your tool works with rigid subdivisions (e.g. using a tracker like MilkyTracker), to insert any triplets at all you have to temporarily modulate the tempo such that your smallest time units are now triplets compared to before -- scaling all other voices' rhythms to compensate -- then shift back once your triplets are done. One piece of music I arranged and sequenced actually had sixteenth notes and sixteenth triplets playing simultaneously between two voices, so I had to modulate the whole thing's tempo to subdivide the beat into 12 for that brief measure 😅

Similarly to how the modulations can add depth to a piece so it can be seen in a new light, your videos allow me to do the same thing with just about every piece you cover. Thank you for continuing to make these videos, they always brighten my day up.

I'll definitely use that groove change technique in future tracks! It feels so intuitive. Man, listening back to DPPt soundtracks makes me realizes how TIGHT they are. Like, wow.

I’m so glad my absolute favorite piece from Pokémon is being reviewed. It’s not necessarily under appreciated but it could definetly use more attention

I would die happy if I got to hear you break down why the xenoblade chronicles x sylvalum theme absorbs my mind body and soul.

I accidentally wrote a metric modulation into a song i was writing before watching this video, and now i actually know what i did so thanks for that! great video as always! also Go Ichinose is a god let it be known!!

The way you explained chord extensions made something click in my brain. I never even knew there was an actual method to tell what notes will undoubtedly sound good over what chords. I've never heard anyone even imply that there was a pattern, so I just assumed that it was one of those things where you just have to memorize them or look it up to be able to figure it out. And that's why I love this channel so much. You explain advanced music theory concepts in a way that makes perfect sense (to my ADHD brain, anyway) without being overwhelmingly technical or obnoxiously boring. And you wrap it all up in the neat little bow of some of the best video game music of all time. Thank you for your contributions to the internet :)

Another way to think about those passing chords at 7:34 is through the lens of a circle progression. Em7 - Eo7 - DM9 can be written Em7 - A7b9 - DM9 i.e. a II - V - I progression in D, except that the middle chord doesn't feature an A (it's rootless). The same argument applies to the F#o7 as a II - V - I in E. Using that same idea of rootless substitutions for passing chords, the entire phrase becomes a big circle progression IV - (VII) - III - (VI) - II - (V) - I in D, with the F/G acting as a dominant and pivot chord to get us back to the Bb in the [A] section.

I have next to no knowledge on music theory and the closest I've come to writing music was composing a town theme in animal crossing for DS, but videos like this always fascinate me. Really goes to show how much thought, effort and creativity goes into music. There's tons of rabbit holes like it (for example pixel art, shaders, level design), but none have quite the same magic to them.

The lake theme has been one of my absolute favorite pieces of video game music ever since I first heard it in 2008 when I first played Pokemon Platinum.

Makes me think of "First Circle" by Pat Metheny. Metric modulation (and just odd meter in general) is a main driver of tension and release in that tune. Makes you feel like you're floating on clouds.

it's so nice to see and understand now why I decided to start my musical creation journey through a simple remaking of this song in a GB style. That pentatonic use above those jazzy chords, so nice.

your sudden bursts of excitement got me excited about a song I've been hearing for the 12 years hahaha great vid man

i love that you named your rival Minor iv

This tweak to your style is welcome - I’d love to see more if it, just not at the expense of your more laser-focused-on-one-concept work

I admit that I havent given the Sinnoh lake theme much of a thought aside for an "oh, cool" when I hear it and moving on. This video breakdown actually made me cry tears of happiness! I have found a new love for this theme now

Hitomi Satou's musical contributions to the Sinnoh region in general were awesome

This is a great explanation. I'm terrible at music theory but after watching I feel like even I could implement this technique now

I love this channel because it takes music from video agents seriously and most people will just think it’s not that great because it’s in a video games

I’ve been soft resetting this part of the game to shiny hunt the starter and I haven’t gotten tired of Lake theme, even after hundreds of retries. Such a banger.

the b section of the lake theme is what i call the "ichinose part" i find that in a lot of his themes, there's sometimes a section that goes crazy and just gives it away that he's the one who composed or at least touched the song. i hope to one day make stuff more like him :)

Metric modulation is always fun, and gradual ones are really satisfying

Thank you for this breakdown. I've always loved this song. Having this new perspective and understanding, can really appreciate it in a more complete form.

Thank you for shining more light on one of my favourite pieces in Pokémon. As always, expert analysis. And now if you excuse me, I'll be going to listen to the Lake Theme all day

I keep hearing different Gen 4 themes in your examples, like route 203 for the first one 10:20 this one is def straight from the Pokémon center theme

Opened the video and immediately knew which part the video was about. This theme is finally getting the analysis it deserves

loved how you did a quick lesson on superimoposition @ 6:20

I know this wasn't the point, but your example of a bad/abrupt modulation at 10:38 actually fits really well haha

this may have been covered already, but “Trisection” from Final Fantasy Tactics is a great example of metric modulation. it goes from 3/4, to 5/4, to 6/8, and it sounds awesome.

The bicycle theme from DPPt also has the 332 pattern. Looks like Ichinose likes it, and I love it too. Great video!!

Ahhh yes finally someone made a video about this phenomenon. Besides Britten's YPGO as mentioned by Kyle Silver, another place that something like this happens is the final movement of Tchaikovsky's symphony no.5, but the problem is, most conductors don't conduct it correctly, and thus the effect is lost. Starting at bar 504 (Presto), meter is Cut time with Half note = 144, and then at bar 546, meter is 6/4 with dotted half note = 96. If you calculate that out, quarter note = 288 (144 *2 and 96 * 3 are both 288) for BOTH sections, which means both sections should be played at exactly the same tempi for quarter notes, but the pulse has shifted from 2/2 to compound duple. Unfortunately, most conductors slow it down by half, which means the effect is completely lost.....

Writing melodies in the pentatonic scale that's a 5th or a 2nd above the tonic is so good

Praying for a Gen V video the music in those games is breathtaking

I did this in one of my songs before but I didn't even realize it had a name!! I loved this one

As ive begun looking back on gen 4 after all these years, i cant help but be whisked away and weeping from the music i somehow forgot. Great disection of the song direction dude, clean stuff. For real, never really noticed the chords even change in that beginning bit from how seemless they make that little jump

The opening song on the album Tago Mago, by the band Can, is a perfect example of this. It starts in a very slow, lazy 3 beat waltz, and around 2 minutes in it switches up into a double-time rhythm that emphasizes a two-beat pattern, from which it slowly transitions back into that slower 3-beat waltz rhythm. The whole time, the rhythm is constant, but the pulse goes from a slow {ONE two three} to a very energetic pattern that fits the double time {one two THREE four} pattern that's common in german psych rock of the era (the so-called "motorik" beat), eventually up to what could even be described as a 1:1 meter for a bit. And then it calmly falls back down in pace to the slow waltz. After about two minutes of that heightened energy, the bass comes in with a very convincing explanation of why it's been in 3:4 the whole time, it dwells a bit on that pinnacle, where the original waltz rhythm is now twice as fast as immeasurably more powerful, before dropping back down into the original half-speed waltz. The tempo never changes, but if you were dancing along you'd know exactly how fast to dance at each part. Okay lol, I had thought of that song instantly when you said what metric modulations are, and naturally the song you're focusing on does basically the same thing.. Start on waltz, go into faster high-energy 2- or 4-beat pattern, and return.

I just now realized that the piece changed signature fpr those bars. I was either uneducated at the time I played the original Diamond and pearl or it was done very beautifully by the composer. Probably both

Bro I just discovered this channel. As a music major and and video game lover, this is perfect for me lol

These videos are incredibly well constructed, not only are they super informative but they also heavily inspire me to write stuff, not even including the subject of the video. I don't see anything you could do better here. Good job!

I just realized this guy talks about music theory from games and yet, he hasn't gone over a single song from Outer Wilds (one of the few game sound tracks that can make someone cry from how good it is at telling the story just as well as the game play could)

Man, I had no idea that so much goes into music and why certain things sound good to us! Thanks for this cool explanation!

The pentatonic major skip-step pattern is also used in the intro to Riders of the Storm by The Doors.

So the A part is like the lake being still and calm and the B part is when the waters begin to ripple and something exciting is happening

Chrono Trigger also has a beautiful example of this (across tunes) between Guardia Millennial Fair near the beginning and First Festival of Stars at the end.

I remember playing this game in my most oldest memories, and even then I had that reaction to it the same way you'd see a musician hear something cool. It always peaked my interest, the song, and the harmony was also insane to me

I’ve been feeling less motivated about studying music since COVID, and I’m really stressed and frustrated by my exams but I’ve always wanted you to make a video about this game’s music and it reminds me what I like about Bering a musician so thank you I really mean it

hearing you go "woooooo! damn" healed my soul thank you

i like how u gave tips at the end to help us implement this technique ourselves

This is awesome and so helpful. There are so many concepts I've studied formally and known about for years, but were poorly explained to me by one or more teachers, and you always explain things so clearly and helpfully that even if I understand and can demonstrate a concept going into one of your videos, I always come out having learned something wonderful, that tangibly impacts my future compositions.

imo another way to put the answer to "why modulate?" is that it's the musical version of those art pieces that change when you look at it from a different perspective.

8-bit Music Theory, or the channel that merges childhood nostalgia and adult search for knowledge. Loved your analysis and hearing this theme again! I played hours and hours of Pearl...

Yess this has been one of my all time favorite Pokemon songs and especially overworld. It's so unique in so many ways.

Wow. The detail of this analysis is SUPERB. your channel is such an asset to us musicians (who also love games)

im not a music guy but you make such high quality videos. even tho i don't know what all the chords and numbers mean this is great content

Go ichinose loves doing that kind of passages, also he uses a lot the chromatic bass falls on a lot of theme which gives an intense feeling on the track.

Something I find very nice about this part is also the metric modulation back from 4/4 to 6/8, where the fast background arpeggio run naturally leads into the bright pentatonic melody and keeps the flow, although shifted down from 32nd notes to 16th notes. It makes it so that the music doesn't feel like it's coming to a sudden stop while keeping the momentum at a slower tempo.

You are one of my favorite channels ever TvT just saying it again before I watch this.

This is one of the best channels out there, ever.

Loving these new details! I've been playing through Brilliant Diamond (fun game so far, minus one or two nitpicky details), but what's stood out the most so far is the new music remixes, and it's great to have a name to put to some of the techniques used to revamp these songs for superior hardware.

The lake theme and Pokemon League themes are by far my favorites from 4th gen

Loved how you named your rival minor iv

I know nothing about music but this is still interesting to watch

love this video, the whole dpp ost is god tier and deserves this recognition

Gen 4’s music really leans into the experimental jazzy shit that’s totally juxtaposed with its very synthetic-sounding soundfont. It’s definitely a unique sound that the series hasn’t had before or since.

I watch every videos this channel post like I understand a single thing

Thanks for covering the song I've listened to 1000+ times in the last week as I shiny hunt my starter lol. Great video

Screw you for that "Step Up" Movie Poster xD I laughed so hard i spit my drink xDDD

i never even noticed it tbh it's so well done

FINALLY, i've been waiting for you to make a video about this theme😭