Game:

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (2023)

Duration: 1:52

7,373 views

115

Sheet Music + MIDI + MP3:
https://www.mediafire.com/?whfjjoblppr0rgq

I wanted to transcribe this thing since there are some really interesting harmonies going on. The original mix is pretty dense in some places, so I wouldn't be surprised if I missed some things here and there (since this is a reduction anyways I inevitably left out some stuff). My ears aren't the best, but they get the job done.

Essentially, this piece is modal mixing up the wazoo. It mainly uses a few (aeolian, dorian, phrygian) but it never stays in one for too long, and it doesn't help that it modulates quite frequently. It really blurs the line between properly modulating and just borrowing chords to add color. Most of the chords have a good deal of extensions too, so it feels somewhat like an impressionist era kind of piece, but you can still hear the typical VGM moves for sure.

Anyways, the most interesting chord is at m. 31 where the melody plays an A# minor phrase, bass holds down an A, and in between there's some kind of cluster-sounding harmony going on. At first I was tempted to say it was A7b9#11b13, but even that wasn't gritty enough. The closest thing to it I think is an A#m7/A polychord with a D# thrown in there for good measure. Don't take my word for it though, try to figure it out yourself! It definitely feels and functions like a tritone sub for the G#7 on the next measure.

Chorus is at m. 38, and it's real catchy. The chord progression there is like Cm9 - Abmaj7#11 - Fm9 - Dbmaj13#11 for the first part and Cm9 - Am9 - Fadd9 - G7sus for the second part, though the first iteration of it plays around with the progression by using Cm69 in place of the Abmaj7#11 and holding down a pedal C for the first two chords of both parts. Fundamentally it's a variation on a common progression, but the alterations present here makes it sound fresh and hip. Who doesn't like a little dose of chromatic mediants?

The whole piece feels like it easily lends itself to be adapted to a jazz setting, what with the thick chords and all. I also really like the celtic-inspired melodic writing throughout, and with a harmonic environment that's rife with extensions, it does sound like a track that'll fit nicely in modern Fire Emblem games like Awakening and Fates.

All in all, solid tune. Thanks for reading if you make it this far. =D

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