The Music Theory Behind Astral Observatory

[@cptnoremac]

What a wonderful song. I'll never forget the feeling this gave me in 2000, cursed into a twisted form and looking through a telescope at a world full of chaos, but finding some small comfort in the kindness of an old man.

[@allisongross2946]

This is the biggest reason the melody is so hauntingly beautiful. It's one moment of calm in a world of pain.

[@zarles1]

Beautifully said!

[@AshenSnowMusic]

I feel that the opening run tension is perfectly done because as the player, you're not expecting this bright and colorful area after traversing the dark sewers. It takes you by surprise and the music reflects that moment

[@nebulous9280]

I remember being a kid with our Collector's Edition disc for the Gamecube. My sister would always make her way to the Astral Observatory and just... sit there. Listening to the music. It's quite the piece.

[@mistwowlol]

Yo, that’s how I first played Majora (and the series as a whole). I would also stick around, mainly because I was bad at the game lol. But it’s since become a piece of nostalgia that reminds of the days where I just enjoyed the novelty of playing video games.

[@jerppursh7570]

8 year music theory

[@MsErfwe]

I've been subscribed since your first video! Hadn't realized that's been nearly a decade

[@8bitMusicTheory]

I can't believe it's been that long! Thanks for sticking around all this time!

[@CaptainROARosaurus]

Been here since the "Why does Mario sound Fun"-Video. Thanks for all the years of content

[@roc-88]

His first video was based on Zelda, no less.

[@whatsf2]

dayum I also remember the first video, that’s 1/4 of my age 😭

[@molgeraxproductions6671]

I literally just learned how to play this song on the piano last week, because I had a strong, sudden surge of nostalgia. What a coincidence!

[@sdw-hv5ko]

My theory is that the opening run was written at the end of the loop as a way to bring a little melodic flavor to close the loop, to keep the melody from feeling too static. Then he decided to stick it at the start of the piece as a pickup, hence the unintuitive rhythm. That’s my guess! Either way it’s such an amazing choice in such an amazing piece

[@RachelRichards]

I think you're exactly right.

[@bluesuzaku3229]

I love this theme so much ❤. One way I can describe it is looking at a burning or suffering world from a place of peace and tranquility, a bittersweet observation. In my opinion, this perfectly sums up the tones of the game in an elegant, mystical manner.

[@jdryan629]

Im so happy with u, hope someday u can notice me, I speak Brazilian portuguese and sometimes I need to do other things to understand better your videos, I REALLY love to study with your vídeos, u ARE a gift! THANK u so much ❤

[@aydenwoyus7943]

8-bit music theory notice this guy

[@pastpatour]

Brasil sil sil!

[@datnastysalad5616]

When I was a kid, I really didn't know what I was doing when playing Majora's Mask. I could never figure out how to leave clock town, or even get to the ocarina. My childhood memory of this game effectively ends after the peril and intensity of the sewers, entering the Astral Observatory - the first place that you feel safe. This song sounds like thay relief of safety, but also the sadness of knowing you'll have to face danger ahead. It's one of my favorite songs in the Zelda franchise, even if I didn't play the game all too much.

[@NathanSimonGottemer]

You should go back to it imho. My opinion that it’s the greatest video game ever made is perhaps the only favorite I’ve managed to choose of any category of thing…it’s one of those experiences that will give everyone something that speaks to them, and that’s coming from someone who normally has a lot of trouble with games involving realtime combat.

[@datnastysalad5616]

@NathanSimonGottemer back in covid I went back to it, but school got busy so I never went beyond the great bay temple. My winter break is coming up so maybe that's how I'll spend some of my time! I've always wanted to get back into it and this is the motivation I need haha

[@kursedmilk]

The piece oozes with a melancholic sense of nostalgia

[@alexmott507]

I got this game for Christmas in 2001, hanging out in the Astral Observatory on Christmas Day while eating an oversized Hershey bar while holding a ridiculously large third-party N64 controller is a core memory for me

[@CptFitzgerald]

I saw someone in your discord saying they had never played Majora's Mask, and I pity them. Coming into the observatory for the first time as an 11 year old kid in 2000, this world after having beat Ocarina of Time a year earlier the year prior- I felt emotional confusion. Decades later I realised that this moment was to teach children with innocence that there is hope in the face of grieving. Even more eerie is the fact that I thought about this song this morning when I inexplicably woke up at 5:30 a.m. this morning before this video came out.

[@noahha4858]

can’t believe ive been watching these since middle school, i jusr finished my first semester of music school your videos definitely gave me inspiration to analyze music from a young age, thank you

[@luckysgi-5karrow378]

The strangeness of the timing to disorient the listener and seamless looping fits the theme of a telescope peering into the twinkling stars and the vastness of space, no?

[@smoothbeak]

I can't say it's ever made me want to "cry", but I know what you mean. I'd describe it as "awe-inspiring" perhaps, and energising

[@JohnDengisYT]

The piece is very melancholic and it fits perfectly with not only the theme of the game, but the part of the story that is being revealed to you when you first reach the astral observatory. You use the telescope to look at Skull Kid, who is a very sad character, and watch as a moons tear falls to the ground. Is that the Skull Kid's tear, since he created the moon? It's all very tightly coupled together thematically and that's why it's so emotional and memorable.

[@treywoody4706]

It took me forever to get the secret code for the tunnel as a kid. Can't believe I almost gave up before I even got to the Observatory. It's probably my favorite room in all of video games.

[@GimmeTOKYO]

Man, I’m not the only one that gets emotional from this theme. ❤ it’s one of my faves of the entire game. Also happy 8-years man! I’ve been enjoying since the beginning 🎉

[@NickOleksiakMusic]

This reminds me of the chorus of "Walk on By" by Burt Bacharach. Beautiful piece!

[@goldenalpaca3881]

Rozen did a breathtaking cover of this song, keeping the emotional core while developing the short loop into a full 4 minute song It's magnificent, I'd highly recommend seeking it out.

[@carlcael417]

Mark of Two similarly has a fantastic one.

[@thace622]

This cover actually made me cry with emotion, Rozen does an amazing job elevating Koji Condo’s work in all his Zelda albums.

[@nova338]

A challenge with this type of video is that often times, the narrator talks about a part of the song while a different part is playing in the background. This pacing in this video is absolutely perfect, i love singling out specific parts and having that audio compliment the narration!

[@kitchentechnology7220]

Happy you mentioned the glockenspiel overtone. That is the magic that can't be described. Theory in that regard, is pointless; it doesn't make sense, and it doesn't have to. It makes the piece mystical and wondrous, in two places at once: the vast openness of space. I find the more I listen to the overtones (especially in a slower version, it changes the harmony in very beautiful and cohesive ways even though it "shouldn't" make sense. I believe it was intentional to have it that loud-let the stars sparkle!

[@takemetoyonk]

Very soulful in a way that reminds me of something like Let the Sunshine In, or the way the background vocals in the chorus of the Evangelion OP return to the 5th and 6th of the scale, even though that's common to do in the backing of a piece. Astral Observatory is probably one of the songs that got me INTO listening to instrumentals of vocal songs, because it acts like one. It does so much while staying "in the same place," which hypothetically gives a lot of room for another melody to come in right on top of it, but it never comes. Edit: Out of the whole analysis, 4:16 is my favorite point about this because I never thought about it, as someone who grew up listening to this familiar song every year of my life.

[@aaronglynnwalker]

You made this for me my friend. This song has gripped me for... .25 years? What a masterpiece Thanks for talking through it

[@Jessecwebb]

One of the greatest pieces of video game music ever composed!

[@jonsullivan1749]

my god he's doing my favorite game song of all time it's HAPPENING

[@optikaros]

im so happy you finally did this video, this song means so much to me. there's a cover of it by Mark of Two that i've listened to for at least over 5 years now i think? its a beautiful rendition that constantly is evolving on itself to push the boundaries of the original 12 bars into a 6 minute piece, so its cool seeing the music theory behind the original ^_^

[@WaNoJudo]

OMMMMMGGGGGGG ! MY FAVORITE SONG EVER BY 8 BIT THEORY ???? I CAN NOT BELIEVE IT !!! Thank you so much !! Gonna be so helpful to know such things in my playing !!!

[@jacksonlovesnintendo]

first off, congrats on 8-years!! I think I’ve been subbed since ~2018, and can’t believe how fast it’s gone in some ways. second, I wholeheartedly agree with your praises for this track. While I do enjoy the Switch era Zelda soundtracks, and they’re clearly produced with an extremely high-quality, I miss when the OST’s were more melodically driven like this game.

[@Vextrove]

I remember the Chrono Trigger nonfunctional harmony video like it was yesterday

[@MatrixEvolution17]

this is one of my favourite VGM tracks, I used to play it as a lullabye for my niece when she was little and she would always drift to sleep peacefully to it lol

[@cadenacarlos3198]

Congratulations! I'm also surprised it's been 8 years since I started enjoying your channel. This video absolutely made me day! I've been hoping you'd cover this piece. Hearing the enthusiasm in your voice is an added bonus! Great work, as always!!

[@threepwood0007]

eight years was a good feeling. I love your vids. and I always wondered about this as a kid. now I know more. thank you

[@MJTruePal]

This is my favorite song in all of gaming. I love that you did this one! Definitely feels like Christmas!!! This made my evening!!!

[@level99challenge8]

Something I find interesting is the use of the choir MIDI instrument. In most N64 games' scores, as I recall, that choir instrument doesn't come in except for the big ending (Star Fox 64) or a place of great reverence (Temple of Time in Ocarina of Time). So here, after the frenetic build-up, we're hit with the choir and subconsciously realize, "Oh, this place is special." As other commenters have said, it's a place isolated from the chaos and despair of the world around it, a place to reflect upon your significance in the grander scheme of things, a place to feel safe for a moment even as time keeps ticking on. It's a really special piece, and I'm glad you discussed it! Helped me think about it in new ways, which is always a plus

[@svenkorac2566]

We’ve been waiting for this! One of the best songs of all time. It has a special place in my heart after i played it as a kid and grew up with it.❤

[@ForceRoundsPenguin]

I love the way the glockenspiel sounds in this track. It’s unique

[@ActiveAdvocate1]

This is the SADNESS of the moon falling. Not the fear, not the denial, not the Nihilism. This is the sadness.

[@Thelostrune]

Thanks for this video, which I didn't realize I needed. Ever since I heard it, I've thought this piece in particular's one of Kondo's greatest works and didn't understand why. The way it has such a satisfying and hypnotic loop reminds me immensely of Pokémon's Petalburg City, which coincidentally also lasts 32 seconds before looping.

[@marcstarvaggi]

Been here since the beginning, an amazing journey learning about game music from you!

[@airglow4684]

The first full song I learned on piano was an arrangement of this. It is such a magical, warm blanket of a song! Great video, as always!

[@NathanSimonGottemer]

This game holds a special place in my heart as it’s the only game I’ve ever played that actually moved me to tears, and it managed to do that with a callback to an implied part of a side quest’s story that shows during the end credits. This game achieved with 5 seconds of screen time what multiple others couldn’t with their entire storylines and musical scores combined. Just…wow

[@gangganggang2219]

The themes of the music match with the themes of the game very well. The push and pull of darkness, wonder, and even some yearning are beautifully explored in such a short piece.

[@jonathancangelosi2439]

One of those songs I never quite know how to sing along to, but is utterly mesmerizing.

[@roxorsoxor]

i always saw this as a in-space theme, with the scale intro being us breaking the atmosphere and entering the vast space after

[@theaddictofgaming9174]

I've been watching since the FFVII battle theme analysis back in 2016, I was 12. 20 now, still just playing old, in college for game music. Thank you so much, its been a great time

[@NoshuHyena]

This song is perfect for representing the Cosmos: it's comforting, frightening, deeply sad, and unfathomably beautiful all at the same time. It's one of those rare songs that's truly transcendent.

[@loool72]

amazing anaylsis as always, thank you for being such an amazing resource to learn theory from

[@yvanspijk]

Another video of yours that I love. This piece captivated me the first time I heard it. Thanks for the last eight years!

[@jmbw4271]

Theres this animation (weird, silly, unsettling but interesting) in yt called "The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Pass" with a remix of this song with lyrics at 1:51. And it's all i hear now...

[@oops6876]

I was always so excited to get to the observatory as a kid, just for this song. Right up there with Stickerbush Symphony, Forest Interlude, and Aerith’s theme, it gave me a sense of euphoria in just how gorgeous it is ❤

[@thace622]

Please do more on Koji Kondos pieces or even a deep dive into his entire anthology. I’ve always been mystified by his work since A Link to the Past in the early 90’s and he is probably my favorite composer ever, I’ve never heard any music quite match his style and I’ve never known why. This video is amazing!

[@visualizermusictracks]

I was hoping you would also cover this track. There is also a baroque influence there. And in other tracks from Majora's Mask. If you wanna see and hear the instruments isolated check out the visualization I made where I also discuss the music theory and cultural influences of the piece and the rest of this Zelda soundtrack

[@roc-88]

Appropriate plug. I'll check you out.

[@martasanchez7379]

we meet again¡ Your Zelda essays are literally a game changer

[@ineedavacationbadly]

Great Song and great breakdown. Thanks 8-Bit!

[@mkselite7461]

You did this amazing song justice!

[@garrettblack]

Every comment I've seen explaining why this song leaves such an emotional impact is right. This song is everything.

[@bitcrushed-thing]

One of my favorites, I am guilty of spending hours listening to this! this video was super informative!

[@LordoftheDice]

So much more going on in this song than you would think just listening to it. It seems so simple, yet hauntingly beautiful. This and the Milk Bar theme are some of my favorite Zelda songs.

[@kirjian]

Happy anniversary bro. These videos are some of my favorite content on KZbin.

[@desertTooHot]

I always thought this song was underappreciated and was going to learn it on piano soon. Gosh tyty for the transcription. That should help so much learning it.

[@desertTooHot]

It also makes me wanna cry too.

[@DumbSongsFeed]

Always LOVED this song. Thanks for the deep dive.

[@Gboysonic]

I always love your zelda videos. I hope you analyze more of the songs. Maybe do midna's lament next?

[@whatsf2]

I hear that kurzweil piano and roland harpsichord… also the editing here is really slick with the camera always moving around the space

[@wowmom98lol]

This video is fantastic for me since as a beginner piano player, Astral Observatory is the one song that I know how to play by heart at any time, I absolutely love it

[@peepopopo7140]

Such a beautiful song for such a small part of the game

[@cerumen]

I always found this piece simultaneously cold, clinical, overwhelming, strangely cheesy, desperately sad, and very unsettling. Which, I guess, is entirely appropriate for the scientific research center where, with its hideously baroque carpet bathed in a technicolour light display, a kindly, hunched-over old professor, wearing what is quite clearly a wizard’s outfit, encourages you to press your newly wooden eye socket up against the cold steel barrel of a giant mechanical telescope, to observe another masked wooden child, floating in the night sky, psychically dragging the hateful, two-thousand-mile-wide grimace of the actual literal fucking moon toward the Earth, and watch, as what looks like a single, glistening tear falls burning from its eye socket, and plunges, with a force that shakes the very building, into the ground beneath you. Sometimes not liking the music is the point.

[@seereebee]

I feel like this piece captures Majora's Mask's vibe perfectly. It's somber, yet hopeful.

[@danpangelina]

been waiting for someone to make this video my whole life it feels like

[@spencerlemon2679]

Fantastic video (as always). Do Tunic next!

[@zakizdaman]

This is definitely one of my favorite vgm tracks. Its so good

[@Snow_Crab]

Thank you man! This piece of music has haunted me for years

[@MumboMod]

Oh man, the beautiful isolated glock at the end. Undescribable and beautiful.

[@kylebower8167]

I honestly thought I was the only one who was profoundly affected by this song. This is incredible to see

[@robertsteinberger]

It's such a beautiful and amazing tune and I never understood why it's even there.

[@LampsrequiredNC]

Been waiting a while for this one ❤

[@fjalar4856]

Congratulations on 8 years🎉

[@oddracir28]

Yes, this video is definitely for me. Totally made my day.

[@remziel]

Looking forward to another 8 years of videos ❤

[@bergamt]

I’ve listened to this song for decades and until you mentioned it I didn’t even notice the harpsichord.

[@DanyRobertHunselar]

The music itself is magical, even for video games

[@snowjack101]

Wow 8 years in the making, Congrats

[@benjaminstedman868]

I've always been blown away by how wonderful this music is, considering how relatively unimportant the observatory is in the game

[@ubermentch]

Cool that it feels like it's 3 measures followed by 5 measures, and that the melody feels like 3 eighth notes followed by 5 eighth notes every measure

[@ChumpChange93]

I don’t know if you ever listened to Theophany’s Majoras mask covers. But astral observatory is one of my favorites from their second album.

[@TomerII]

Note that the 9th and 13th on the G7 and C7 are an E, which turns into the long drone in the melody when it starts over.

[@smoothbeak]

The glockenspiel is what I think really gives it that mystical quality

[@alondite215]

I love this song. Majora's Mask has some great, off-kilter tracks.

[@cgoldhaber]

I'm surprised by how many surprising reversals their are in such a short and cozy piece. It's always sounded calming to me, even if a little overwhelming. The astral observatory offers a brief respite from the feelings of terror and chaos over in Clocktown. But, as you bring out, it's actually full of so many little twists and turns, and tritones. So it's surprising that it can feel calming. Maybe it's the calm of catharsis, of finding a home even within the chaos.

[@PauLtus_B]

This music made me nostalgic for it the first time I heard it.

[@zeldine1200]

This piece emphasise the feeling of loneliness in a magical and dark way at the same time. The player is aware that he is the only one who can change the fate of Termina...

[@SirBraneDamuj]

I never really played MM so this was pretty cool to learn about. I had never heard of this song before!!!

[@SvintMvrcus]

Sometimes I wonder how much of this stuff is instinctual for people like Kondo and Uematsu because when I see breakdowns of their music especially with context to its role in the game itself I’m like there’s no fkn way these guys are human. How do you just know how to make a song sound like an ethereal observatory? How do you write the perfect theme for a character that literally communicates their feelings and their roles (Tifa and Aerith’s themes)? Idk man maybe I need to start writing with scenarios or scenes or characters made up in my head because nothing I make can even hold a candle to these guys. It’s like when id watch pro skaters as a kid and grab my board all motivated just to realize I suck lol

[@kaitlyn__L]

This is one of my favourite pieces in Zelda too. I love that after 23, 24 years of playing music I finally feel like I can actually grasp theory (rather than it being a slippery thing I kind-of knew some things about from reading sheet music etc). Of course it doesn't help my formal education stopped after a few years and I was subject to Neighbourhood Guitar Teacher's whims for a while after that. But I'm pretty sure I've been watching you since 2016 or 2017, and I knew enough to get the outline back then but I really grok a lot more of the nuances now. It makes me want to go back on a lot of your earlier stuff tbh. Oh, and you were how I heard about the other modes besides just major modes, and I absolutely love modes as they feel so freeing versus the minor/major dichotomy, so having even more modes to play around in was even lovelier. Thank you for that.

[@linkVIII]

Indeed a song I've spent a lot of time with. As a super beginner piano player, was also an easy song to get into. Tended to use the organ voice on my keyboard. I suppose it helps compensate for the missing instuments

[@Deioth]

Opening sounds like "Frog Prince" by Keane, and that band is fucking masterful at melodies of beautiful melancholy and emotionally deep chords. Couldn't get into Majora's Mask for whatever reason, something about that 3 day limit thing fucked with my anxiety lmao so I never got to this place. Here's hoping 8-bit or some patrons agree with me on some things I'd love to see covered one day: Risk of Rain: Entire track is just one constantly repeated leitmotif, RoR2 goes a very different and amazing direction (I like to describe it as "acid space muzak"), but RoR2 brings back that leitmotif of the first game for "...con letitud ponderosa" which is the final level theme and goes SO. FUCKING. HARD. Secret of Mana: Perfect example of how to do reorchestrations of video game re-makes/re-masters wrong versus how to do them right. The SoM remaster soundtrack is, in a word, unsatisfactory. Meanwhile, Trials of Mana (the remake of SoM2) absolutely nails it in every single possible way. Contra 3: I reeeeaalllly wanna know how a jazz musician by trade reacts to the absolute tonal and melodic and timing fuckery going on in this game's amazing sci-fi soundtrack. Lost Ark: Perhaps not as a dedicated video, but if 8-bit goes through any future thematic "Check out how all these games and composers make their boss/adventure/heroic music sound so unique yet land their intended emotion and mood" this game (as arguably bad as it is as an actual MMO despite having the best combat system in an MMO since Tera and best raids of ANY MMO) has music that goes so fucking hard. From "Swords Crossed" to "Astalgia of Phantasm" to the freaking literal broadway play-esque song & dance of "Romantic Weapon" I'd almost go back to this game just for its music if not for how much it wants you to no-life it to actually progress.

[@dallayg]

If y'all haven't checked out the Majoras mask ost redone by Theophany you must. Their version of this song is incredible

[@alealejotaro]

Finally someone talking about this thanks :)

[@gabababmacdorf6005]

The piece that compelled me to learn classical guitar.

[@Agent4286]

Astral Observatory is up there with gerudo valley as all time musical greatness

[@omencito]

Great video! I’d love to see an analysis of the Final Hours theme!

[@pault6294]

Thank you!