Moonlight Sonata 3rd movement - Big Band Jazz Version (The 8-Bit Big Band)

ALSO AVAILABLE ON ALL STREAMING SERVICES AND BANDCAMP!
Here's a little side project for you! In between recording video game tunes the gang and I decided to have some fun and record an up-tempo swing arrangement of Beethoven's classic 3rd movement from the seminal "Moonlight Sonata"! Most people are familiar with the 1st movement of this great piece, which is beautiful and haunting, but the 3rd movement has always stuck with me as an incredibly powerful and dramatic piece of music.
I wanted to pay tribute to this great composer 8BBB style while showcasing the INCREDIBLE musicianship in this band! For those who don't know, we do not rehearse music before we record it. These absolute stone cold incredible musicians here in NYC came in and read this sheet music the day of the recording session, and let me tell you this arrangement is HARD. I myself tried to learn it on piano, but could never get it up to full speed so I arranged it for my friends to play instead :)
So I hope you enjoy this slight detour from our usual video game music repertoire and indulge the music nerd in all of us with some Ludwig Van. Thanks for listening!! The sheet music for this will be available soon on our website once I get it cleaned up and ready for release, but again I warn you, this arrangement is extremely difficult and I can’t in good conscious recommend that it should be attempted by anybody as it is INCREDIBLY challenging but I certainly can’t stop you from trying ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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"The 8-Bit Big Band" is a 30-65 member Jazz/pops orchestra that formed to celebrate and realize some of the best themes from video game music from all consoles and eras arranged in a large ensemble Jazz/Pop/Rock setting!
Blending together timeless musical themes from Nintendo, Sega, Sony, and more then re-arranging them in genres and styles of all musical inspirations, The 8-Bit Big Band has members from all around the world, but most reside primarily in New York City, and are some of the most highly sought after musicians and performers.
Band leader/Arranger/Orchestrated by:
/ crosenmusic
@CRosenMusic
FULL CREDITS:
Alto Sax 1 - Andrew Gould
Alto Sax 2 - Josh Plotner
Tenor Sax 1 - Sam Dillon
Tenor Sax 2 - Zac Zinger
Bari Sax - Andrew Gutauskas
Trumpet 1 - Bryan Davis
Trumpet 2 - Jay Webb
Trumpet 3 - Chloe Rowlands
Trumpet 4 - Danny Jonokuchi
French Horn - Kyra Sims
Trombone 1 - Jimmy O'Connell
Trombone 2 - Mariel Bildsten
Trombone 3 - Sara Jacovino
Bass Trombone - Rebecca Patterson
Guitar - Alex Wintz
Bass - Bobby Wooten III
Piano - Natalie Tenenbaum
Drums - Jared Schonig
Violins - Lavinia Pavlish, Daniel Constant, Audrey Hayes, Lucy Voin, Alissa Jackman, Camelia Hartman, Tomoko Akaboshi, Caroline Drexler, Meitar Forkosh, Tiffany Weiss, Kevin Kuh, Tania Mesa
Violas - Laura Sacks, Will Marshall, Matthew Beaugé, Yumi Oshima
Celli - Susan Mandel, Sasha Ono, Jessica Wang
Harp - Liann Cline
Music by Ludwig Van Beethoven
Arranged/Produced by - Charlie Rosen
Engineered and Mixed by John Kilgore
Mastered by Alan Silverman at Arf Mastering
Shot and Edited by Halleloo Productions
Thumbnail art by @MikeKILLUZ
#the8bitbigband #videogamemusic #videogamejazz

[@Randomcactus56]

Beethoven is my favorite gamer

[@explodedglue5509]

He made the first rhythm game

[@pixelzebra8440]

Same

[@Acs2004]

You ever seen his live streams, amazing I say, simply amazing

[@rainbowllamas7423]

We’ve got dogs playing video games now? Dang

[@AnimeSage77]

Lol

[@JavaDoodles]

This goes so hard dude.

[@dzhontrofey6048]

i can only think of cool fight scenes while listening to this

[@SuperM795]

I had imagined a cartoon-styled fight between Earthworm Jim and Psy-Crow the first time I listened to this.

[@dzhontrofey6048]

@@SuperM795 nah i straight up go with dnd stuff in better than jojo fights style

[@axjagfilms]

Skittle

[@arenndups5294]

was playing Baldur's Gate 3 while having this on. It was a very intense fight. I firmly believe I won because of this song.

[@EthanGeye]

Jazz renditions of classical pieces is not something I knew I wanted but dam is this good

[@chainthunder083]

The only one I had heard before this is Mozart's 40th symphony in Gm by Gordon Goodwin. Very good cover and I want more jazz versions of classical pieces

[@gyrrakavian]

There's a really good one of Flight of the Bumblebee I don't recall the name of, but it was featured in Fantasia.

[@johnreitz7792]

Glen Gray's album Shall We Swing has a good assortment

[@SethChristenfeld]

​@@gyrrakavianyou're thinking of Jack Fina's "Bumble Boogie," which was part of the film Melody Time, not Fantasia.

[@chuckporter9526]

There's a jazz version of Air On G String that is just chill vibe *magic,*. Used in the movie Collateral.

[@MineTroopa]

Ludwig Von Koopa is a masterful classical music arranger, I must say

[@bmprrr]

BRO ONTO SOMETHING 🗣️❗❗

[@dakotawaugh5029]

YAAAASSS!

[@Tetopettenson1]

Lmaoo

[@Lemuel928]

“I heard you’re back again,Mister Mario.”-Ludwig.😎

[@Deadvalley200]

Most orchestras: have fun playing video game music on the side. 8-bit: Have fun playing classical music on the side

[@The8BitBigBand]

Hahaha I love that. Hope I can use it in an interview someday

[@DeepestShadow]

Not something I expected to get a big band version, but I’m glad they decided to cover it! Great job!

[@gyrrakavian]

Hard same

[@cooldebt]

8-BBB Moonlighting as a classical orchestra ;)

[@o_o5578]

Where has this been in all of my life. Shit needs a million likes already.

[@HyperFreak89]

Listen 8BBB, I can confidently say that we are all lovers of music, PERIOD. So if you go beyond just video game music, trust me, we will enjoy every last bit of it. This was a masterful rendition and to think that they just did it on the spot is breathtakingly incredible and awe-inspiring. You do you boo

[@dzhontrofey6048]

*jumps of the chair scared after reding boo all of a suden*

[@samoftheam]

Man I love that cascade at 4:46, adds such a colorful touch to the rising tension. The way this arrangement handles all those long-range piano arpeggios is glorious

[@seyj7457]

I think the pianist is consistently my favorite part of this band whenever she gets a feature

[@tristandooley5594]

Reference to mvmt 1?

[@molliestanton2869]

@@seyj7457Yes, the piano shines! All the sections sound amazing, and they seamlessly bring it all together into a dazzling energy!

[@hooparc]

​@@seyj7457so your favorite part is the original piece 🤣🤣

[@GLOCOgaming]

Beethoven composing Boss fight music before it was cool.

[@gavy7746]

Used in change of scene. It is boss fight music.

[@therealludwigtheholyblade]

As a Moonlight enthusiast I have to say this is absolutely incredible.

[@cooldebt]

As a Moonlight pianist in the distant past, I have to say this is humanly impossible ;)

[@AdventuresAwait123]

@@cooldebt Angels fly low haha

[@LudwigVan_Beethoven]

Good job, I liked every single note of this.

[@The8BitBigBand]

You heard it here from the horses mouth folks!!

[@LeotheTiger1234]

​@@The8BitBigBandYes, we did!

[@megarayquaza2240]

How? Aren't you deaf?

[@LudwigVan_Beethoven]

@@megarayquaza2240 Erm... Yes I was... But that's not the case! I hope.

[@chaoticcar6231]

about to unmask beethoven like a scooby doo villain

[@vonriel1822]

Real boss fight energy in this version, especially starting at about 2:30. That piano is going _wild_ and I'm here for it!

[@super-toast-system]

This song was actually used in a video game boss fight

[@wololo_o]

I really like jazz and I really like classical music. This arrangement is really beautiful. I hope there will be more in the future

[@Leon-2026]

Couldn't agree more

[@zacharyf9064]

Horn representation in a big band is awesome!

[@Hawk71mm]

Oh, this is GREAT! From now on I'm gonna quietly hope you will do Vivaldi's Winter at some point.

[@seyj7457]

seasons would be awesome! I bet they could do the planets too 🤔

[@stefanmoret5246]

I second this

[@theSheighani42]

Why stop there? Could be interesting to see how they handled each Season 😁

[@chuckporter9526]

​@seyj7457 MARS. This song has Kirby boss vibes for days; can't imagine what the Bringer of War would sound like.

[@JorWat25]

​​@@seyj7457Until then, there is Jeremy Levy Jazz Orchestra's arrangement of The Planets from 2020.

[@SeanTheDiscoNinja]

Natalie crushing it on piano as always.

[@OffbeatPengu_personal]

I cannot get enough of the buildup/breakdown at 3:26 Absolute chills, and the bass goes disgustingly hard Incredible arrangement

[@fasanov123]

Man, how do these musicians make the impossible possible. So many hard spots for literally every section. You guys really do have the best of the best. I know plenty of professional recording orchestras and bands that could not pull this off even with 100 takes and pickups. Monumental recording, congrats!

[@ShamelessMayhem]

I was going to say how wonderful this is, then read that the band played this COLD?! Unrehearsed?! Mind completely blown. Yes, this is indeed a fine tribute to how good you guys really are. Thanks for much excellent entertainment! Looking forward to much more.

[@nuuukethewhales]

Let's all take a moment to appreciate not only the incredible musicianship of everyone playing here as well as the kick-ass arrangement of my favourite movement, but the amazing work done with the lighting, camera work and montage. Last but not least, as an audio engineer who worked for years mixing live symphonic, chamber and big band ensembles as part of my job, I just want to show my appreciation for the incredible mix, as I know first-hand of the challenges of the trade. Amazing job everyone, this classic's now got some serious pocket.

[@TheBaldPeter]

I thought the video game covers were awesome but this is one of the coolest classical covers I’ve ever heard!!

[@ramofeldduckington6257]

You can’t tell me that if Beethoven was alive today he wouldn’t go absolutely nuts over this

[@nikonaumann3457]

Legit adding to my jazz playlists

[@pmkinskye5903]

As a classical nerd you have no idea how much I appreciate this.

[@beatrixwickson8477]

After watching this 100 times and being blown away every time by the musicians, I finally noticed how brilliant the editing is. It's so perfect as to be invisible.

[@ziizification]

You talked in your interview with Adam Neely about the need to bring classics into a modern context and what a treat *this* is for just that kind of work. This is a powerful arrangement that immediately made me want to revisit its source material. I can't imagine that I'm alone and that's the power of what you do. ❤

[@noncrediblecase341]

God the orchestration choices in this arrangement are incredible, and all these musicians just proved they're in a different league that what I even thought before. Fantastic!

[@dukeofrodtown1705]

Oh my God. This is absolute 🔥. Trumpet, alto, and bari solos gave me goosebumps. Well done on this arrangement Charlie! You lot are terrific, and that's an understatement!

[@ultradmann2367]

There is no shortage of musicianship or passion for the music, just straight heat! Amazing performance as always!

[@blubba818]

Yep. I’d definitely like to see more big band Beethoven. Heck, other classical music too.

[@pikachuchild]

I just came here after SMW theme and Mabe Village. This was a completely different vibe, but I effing LOVE it! Holy cow! I'm glad I found you all!

[@rachelblaquiere9134]

This is incredible. Not often you get a piece this difficult due for everyone involved (unless it's badly written which this definitely isn't) - well done to EVERYONE involved

[@justsomeguywithoutamustach5573]

Omg THEYRE BACK AND WITH A BANGER

[@hooparc]

The fact that they're not rehearsing this is incredibly impressive

[@evarinagarmguardian113]

THIS WAS SO COOL!!! Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata is one my favorite pieces of his. I got chills listening to this arrangement! Y'all sounded amazing!!!

[@snickrs9096]

This is amazing!!! The band pulled off such a hard piece flawlessly! This band is so talented

[@evanandersen3587]

This deserves another Grammy

[@Agent0FluffyBoxOfVoicesCom]

I would love to hear a big band version of Claire De Lune someday.

[@Gerry9000000]

Unbelievable studio chops, this band needs some serious recognition (NOT JUST ONE GRAMMY)

[@johanwettergren]

This might be one of the most delightful pieces of music I’ve yet to enjoy during my 29 years on this planet.

[@ejiet]

Listened to it three times in a row. This is so well played! How they all work together. And all the quick fingers. Wow.

[@christophermartin545]

This goes CRAAAAAZY 🔥 Props to whoever arranged this and all those talented players. One of the best compositions of all time and this has to be my favorite arrangement outside the original.

[@PaulApollo]

The classical music nerd in me is 'gasming at this performance! Absolutely incredible!! 🎉🎉

[@TimelessTimothy]

My jaw dropped throughout the whole performance--my sense of awe was simply uncontainable. The jump between G# minor and A major tonalites at 0:51 & 0:57, with percussive hits in between, were absolutely lovely (heh, it really hits my soul)! This arrangement's exquisite chord progressions (& overarching harmonies) have greatly inspired me to accelerate my composing progress, and frankly, I wholeheartedly believe that this is one of the finest performances I've ever heard so far! Overall, maintaining such fast tempos (while keeping stellar intonation/pitch) like that on a big band must be extremely difficult to coordinate, which makes this performance even more impressive! *_Phenomenal work, 8-Bit Big Band (and all the supporting musicians featured here)!_*

[@Kiruklee]

WOW! This piece is already brutal enough to a single pianist, and you put a whole band through it?! Daaamn.

[@sadiefox7225]

Absolutely wild that this is the first time they played this arrangement 🤯🤯🤯 mad respect to you guys

[@Al-hg5ij]

Ngl having this piece in another style makes me appreciate it more. I’m not a fan of classical music, but I can feel the intensity put into this more than a traditional rendition. It’s like a modern translation put in a context I can understand. Love you guys!

[@scottevensen2615]

This arrangement is phenomenal! The flow between all the instruments is magical! Just WOW! 🤯👍😍

[@StrikerSans]

I didn't expect them to cover my favourite Beethoven piece but here we are. Amazing!

[@Trent-tr2nx]

I’m assuming you’ve heard the electric guitar one on KZbin that’s also total fire, right?

[@StrikerSans]

@@Trent-tr2nx probably, I've also heard another remix a while ago which uses 8-bit and dubstep.

[@ferreiroto2225]

Did not know I needed this until you guys made it.Awesome.

[@ponyphonic]

I don't know how you made this work, but it really works. Incredible arrangement and performance!

[@scotthelms7431]

MAD PROPS to Charlie Rosen for this brilliant arrangement! You're right, it's a BITCH, and I'm flabbergasted that these musicians played this COLD. Simply incredible!

[@huhwhat-queensofthestoneag8402]

Absolutely love this cover. Honestly some of the most skillful playing I’ve heard. I do want to mention on iTunes, there’s a half second right at the beginning of the song where it’s compressed. Not sure what’s up with that

[@88bit]

Finally someone did the music from the “See Jim Run” level of Earthworm Jim 2! ;) Incredible job all around. 🙌🙌

[@palmtree554]

As always, this was so much better than I expected (and I always expect top quality from 8 Bit Big Band). Since we're on topic of non-video game covers, I'm dying to find big band version of studio ghibli music. Please God!

[@AlgernonCSwinburne]

I loved the rendition of Moonlight Sonata’s 3rd Movement in Catherine: Full Body, and I REALLY love this!

[@godbeforeme]

This is incredible. I would love a whole album of this sort of mashup of a big band arrangement of classical pieces.

[@TrumpetBoredom]

This is amazing. It’s chaotic, energetic, amazingly arranged, and a ton of fun to listen to. Great work!

[@surfcello]

Editor: How many cuts do you want? Director: All the cuts. Editor: Say no more fam.

[@xxvskrunkle]

I JUST FOUND YOUR CHANNEL IM MELTING FROM YA'LLS MUSIC

[@Rezzzkin]

If this is a good show of what what 8bbb can do with classical music, I think we could all agree that we need more of it. This went unreasonably hard.

[@TheMesoamericanOrchestra]

I love how they explodes every harmonic, rhythmic and melodic aspect, and gets enhanced with textures and percussion... Simply amazing this reinterpretation.

[@劉文聖-z6z]

So incredible

[@hypecleffon2655]

Way to make an epic piece even more EPIC! Excellent orchestration and wonderful arrangement. Just Fantastic

[@AvenRox]

WHY DIDNT I SEE THIS SOONER IT GOES SO HAAAAAAARD (the speed and intensity makes it feel almost like it could belong in Cuphead tbh)

[@charliechimento852]

Holy crap this is so freaking good. PLEASE do more classical (and romantic) pieces PLEASE

[@tpr232s]

This has been on repeat since it came out this week. My jaw LITERALLY dropped in amazement after the first arpeggio. It's just.... YOU GUYS!!! It's insane. It's so, so, so, so WICKEDLY good. This is honestly one of the best things to come across my ears in, honestly, year. I never really loved Beethoven but the Moonlight 3rd has always held a special place. And this just... ugh. I love this so much. Y'all are amazing.

[@delishipiano]

this might be one of the hardest videos on the internet

[@gazzamuso]

THIS IS AMAZING! Please re arrange every classical piece ever

[@ardenwinter-h7x]

The fact that they saw this on the same day they recorded it is astounding!

[@ZTimeGamingYT]

Beethoven is one of my favorite classic composers. He composed music that stood the test of time.

[@nathand9044]

This is FIRE! By far my favorite parody of Moonlight Sonata 3rd movement

[@pokeclanz]

This really changes a scene

[@usernaperson]

idk this is kinda absolute garbage

[@andreittran]

I like the part with the green eyeball

[@wilh3lmmusic]

I was not expecting a geometry dash reference

[@oogleoo]

Yeeeeeesh this tempo is FAST! had me checking my playback speed omg

[@carbonc6065]

... Incredible ...

[@amanderps970]

DANG!!!! Gorgeous. This movement doesn't get enough credit and you gave it EVERYTHING!!!! Well done.

[@neildawson6274]

Bravo. A masterclass in big band arranging in just over 5 mins

[@nishthefish4489]

The sax harmony at 2:54 sent me to another realm

[@mikosoft]

Dang what the onslaught of notes! That was absolutely relentless but you handled that so well! Such busy yet clear arrangement played with absolute perfection.

[@ImperialGamer5]

This was so energetic and fun! I remember playing a salsa arrangement of the 3rd Movement in my high school marching band, and now seeing a jazz arrangement of this makes me so nostalgic. Play on and Swing long, 8BBB!

[@EnderKingDubs]

I recently learned that there's an alternate version of Fur Elise where Beethoven did some more improvisational segments that are considered a sort of proto-jazz in its structure, made long before Jazz was even really a thing, so this is... Oddly apt. Excellent job, guys!

[@neofalz7643]

I thought I had misread the title, but in fact not at all. What a surprise !

[@heliotropei]

Amazing. I’ve always loved Moonlight Sonata’s 3rd movement, and never would have even thought of hearing a jazz rendition of it. Simply exquisite!

[@windstryke]

I didn’t realize the band basically one-shots these pieces together, absolutely blown away at the level of skill shown here! You guys are amazing, never stop doing what you do!

[@The8BitBigBand]

Yeah the only split is we do the string section/f horn/harp as it’s own session. Big band in the morning, the rest in the afternoon

[@rainbowllamas7423]

@@The8BitBigBand I would just kill to be a fly on the wall of one of these sessions. The rehearsal and fine-tuning process of ensemble music is one of my favorite things in the world, and I imagine it’s even better when the musicians and the arrangements are this good! I hope you might consider making and releasing something like that in the future~

[@catspece4933]

That is a KILLER arrangement. It really works. So much detail.

[@minanes6549]

Can't believe how good this is. In a weird way, this is what I've been hearing in some part of my soul whenever I've listened to this movement of the Sonata, and you've just brought it to life. Fabulous.

[@javachef828]

Franz Liszt: "I'm the fastest musician in history" The brass in this video: "Hold my beer"

[@pichupal]

If Chopin can get Eternal Sonata, I can definitely enjoy more Beethoven from the 8BBB! Sounds lovely!

[@ez3rel871]

Well damn, absolute fire

[@CameronTyndall]

Can we make turning uptempo classical songs into Big Band normal? We need Flight of the Bumble Bee next!

[@LeotheTiger1234]

I can't help but wonder how Schroder (the character from Peanuts) would react to this. Still, you hit another grand slam with this one! Wow! In my heyday when I played piano, I loved Beethoven's music. Thank you, Schroder. (Thank you, 8BBB, for this also.)

[@satyasyasatyasya5746]

*Instant buy* Amazing work everyone!!!

[@ericshenderovich6023]

Heck yea! I would love to hear more classical arrangements too! You guys are killing it!

[@AndersSimply]

Not a single miss in their entire catalog. Not. One.

[@wunknownplayerw6666]

Good heavens! Nevered had i have such majestic tunes fill my head before like this! Truly astounding and amazing 👏

[@fetuutilini7857]

As a person born 1723 and is immortal I can confirm these were thy hits from the inner crime neighborhoods now empty the compartments of your jeans -black British man

[@majmage]

Nice, my all-time favorite classical piece (specifically 3rd movement). I play this _all the time_ when playing *Space Station 13* (which lets you play most MIDI songs in-game) while the station is falling apart due to cultists, nukies, spiders, xenomorphs, and traitors and I'm busy trying to revive people with their heads chopped off or fix hull breaches caused by explosions. So it counts as game music to me!

[@mostlyokay]

It is absolutely INSANE that there were no rehearsals. What amazing musicians!

[@rainbowllamas7423]

Yall just keep finding new ways to amaze. I thought we were at the top already but then you show up with a gdang crane to raise the bar even higher.