Irregular meter in video games, part three
[Part one | Part two | Part three]
Hi there! After an unexpected (and unintentional) hiatus, I’m easing back into the groove with some game music analysis. I figured it was about time to revive the long-dormant irregular meter series, and the Warcraft franchise has plenty to offer.
First up is an Orc theme from Warcraft: Orcs and Humans. The snare part is transcribed below:
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There are a few noteworthy things here. First, the black noteheads are the famous pattern from “Mars, The Bringer of War,” part of Gustav Holst’s suite The Planets. (“Mars” has come up before in the discussion of “Feel My Blade” from Final Fantasy IX.) Second, if you compare the blue noteheads you’ll see that the last two beats of every measure are slightly different — they mix and match quarter notes, eighth notes, and eighth note triplets. Third, the pattern is a very unusual 29 beats long, owing to the last measure’s extra beat.
Here’s the intro from one of the Orc themes in Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness:
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This section features a 5/4 timpani ostinato reminiscent of “Take Five,” transcribed above, while the strings and chorus build tension. As you can hear at the end of the sample, the piece drops into 4/4 time once the introduction is finished. (We saw the use of irregular meter as a hook, briefly, in “Dead End” from Final Fantasy VIII.)
The same technique is used in this Orc theme from Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal:
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Here the irregular section is fleshed out a bit more. After a similar tension-building section, there is a brief melody played over the 5/4 ostinato before the piece reverts to duple meter. (As an aside: I love the modal ambiguity in that melody, and the tritone in the timpani part is great. This is far and away the most interesting part of the piece.)
In yet another example of the irregular hook, here’s a snip from World of Warcraft’s title screen music:
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Once again, the meter returns to “normal” after the introductory section. The takeaway, then, seems to be that irregular meter doesn’t have to carry throughout a piece to be effective — it’s also a useful way to grab attention at the beginning.
I’m not very good at picking out time signatures, but it’s great reading about this kind of stuff when someone’s already done it. Lovin’ it.
The earliest systems you’ve gone with are the SNES and Genesis, and you said in the first post in the series that the earliest example you could find was in A Link to the Past, so I figured I’d mention an NES track that uses some irregular meter: the normal battle theme from Dragon Warrior IV. It starts off in 4/4, but at 0:31 it busts out a 9/8 9/8 13/8 7/8 7/8 pattern twice (a compatriot counted that one out for me, all credit to Another Soundscape).
It also happens to be my favorite battle theme from the whole series. I also recommended the upgraded sound versions, like the DS version.
Nice takeaway. Although I am not headed towards the musical aspect of games, I shall try to remember it. I’ll even keep an ear out from now on to spot pieces that use irregular meter sparingly to grab attention. Now that I think about it, I’ve probably been “hooked” by some of my game music favourites by this very same technique…
Also, welcome back!
This has been an interesting series of articles. For older stuff, the Metroid series has all sorts of gems. Here’s from the first game, from 1986.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBKWYGXnIU4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yU8zoqD4h6o
One of my favorites, from Super Metroid:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gy1MZpv3L8U
And I can’t leave Metroid II aside:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ldok3AqXuHk
The series seems to use mixed/irregular time signatures extensively to stress the alien nature of the worlds Samus is traversing, and it works remarkably well.
I love this segment! I’d been trying to figure out the time signiture for Ganondorf’s battle theme in Ocarina of Time. I’ve recently found a neat little level theme that has 13/8, I think:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WssAT3ODh3Q
It’s from the fantastic, oft forgotten, Super Mario RPG. It’s made by the same people who did Final Fantasy, although the music is a bit different. This RPG also has a battle theme which is in 4/4, although there’s some weird time signature in the third measure that always trips me up.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yPsxiJOvIY&feature=related
Keep on keeping on!
BTW, I think that measure I was talking about in the previous post is a 5/8.
There’s a song from the original Contra on the NES with some pretty wacky meter stuff going on. Can’t quite wrap my head around it.
Here are a few More:
The main theme of Myst 4: Revelations, Which starts in 4/4 (I think), but the main part is in 7/8:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-KzXCvKYZY&feature=related
The main theme of Gabriel Knight 1: Sins of the Fathers, also begins in 4/4, and then passes to 7/8, again to 4/4, and so on…:
http://www.gkmysteries.nfo.sk/midi/maintheme.mid
Also from Gabriel Knight 1, this one is from the Crash interrogation scene, and it’s in 7/4:
http://www.gkmysteries.nfo.sk/midi/crash.mid
And Here are a few from Gabriel Knight 3: Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned:
Trailer music, in 6/8. It is a bit confusing because it is a little syncopated:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GzlD4rjayGM
From the part where Grace is entering Chateau de Serras, in 7/8:
http://www.students.tut.fi/~judine/gk3/Grace’s Ascension.mp3
And the most complicated one, the “Freemason Handshake” part, is alternating between 9/4 and 10/4 (you can say it’s in 19/4 if you really want).
The metric subdivision is: 3 2 2 3 2 2 2 2, 3 2 2 3 2 2 2 2 2.
http://www.students.tut.fi/~judine/gk3/Freemasons‘ Handshake.mp3
Sorry, the last two links don’t work. Check them out here:
http://www.students.tut.fi/~judine/gk3/music.html
(“Grace entering Chateau de Serres”, “Freemasons’ Handshake”)
The “Bad Boss Boogie” theme from Donkey Kong Country has a few bars of 5/8 and 7/8.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGDWlJ6D6h8
The full sequence (not counting the 2/4 intro) is:
4/4 (3 bars)
5/8 (1 bar)
4/4 (3 bars)
5/8 (1 bar)
4/4 (3 bars)
5/8 (1 bar)
7/8 (1 bar)
4/4 (3 bars)
5/8 (1 bar)
4/4 (3 bars)
5/8 (1 bar)
4/4 (3 bars)
5/8 (1 bar)
7/8 (2 bars)
4/4 (3 bars)
5/8 (1 bar)
4/4 (3 bars)
5/8 (1 bar)
4/4 (3 bars)
5/8 (1 bar)
4/4 (3 bars)
5/8 (1 bar)
4/4 (4 bars)
Also, Snowy Mountain from Sonic Adventure seems to have what sounds to me like an irregular time signature.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1L45HDc68c
From 1:21 to 1:40, it goes:
5/4 (3 bars)
3/4 (2 bars)
5/4 (2 bars)
3/4 (6 bars)
Also
In 4/4, but has the Holst Mars theme very clearly quoted:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1bitZ9e4lY&feature=related
Super mario galaxy battle music. Makes me want to get the game!
That’s not Battle music, that’s the music to Battlerock and Dreadnought Galaxies. They’re stages not battles. Also speaking of SMG music, the Speedy/Daredevil Comet music has a bit of 5/4 in it.
Thanks for the all the additional suggestions, everyone! Navto and TheUltimateKoopa, I think you guys have enough material for your own series at this point! But I’ll be happy to steal your suggestions and transcribe them when I have time. ;-)
In addition to Navto I would like to mention Robert Holmes’ “Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers” theme. It’s a remarkable piece of game music. I recently did a “remake” of the theme and came across the slight problem of converting it to an entire 4/4 track because a 7/8 is really difficult to “convert” to a dance-tune. :-) I just love this track, to bad Robert didn’t do much more into the gaming music.
(Both my 7/8 and 4/4 remakes are to be found on SoundCloud.)
I don’t mind of you “steal” my suggestions :D
It’s probably the smallest and probably un-noticeable example of irregular time signatures in a Mario game (or perhaps any game), but there is a single bar, in the ‘Athletic theme’ from SMB3 that has an extra beat. Also, you may have noticed (or not) that both the Speedy/Daredevil Comet themes and Bowser’s Galaxy Reactor themes in Super Mario Galaxy have some bars of 5/4 in them. There’s also a tune from Goldneye 007 (the N64 game) that is entirely in 5/4 (it’s called Unsquare Water Dance on the USF rips)
Can I ask? What do you use to make the scores?
I make the scores with Sibelius.
I used to use that a long long time ago. In 2001, to be exact, the same year Sibelius 2 was released. The latest I believe is version 6 released on May 19, 2009. It’s hard to believe the first ever version was released in 1993.
I’ve been listening some old Nintendo games’ soundtracks, and I found this:
Yoshi’s Story – Final Battle part 2 — the entire piece is 5/8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlCbDmDdZh0
Does any one know of any Mario game tunes that has irregular time signatures?
Also, I’d love to see your transcription of the Weapons Factory theme from Super Mario RPG. 13/8.
When are we gonna see more transcriptions or even a part 4?
Oh did I mention that “Bowser’s Galaxy Reactor” from Super Mario Galaxy is mostly in 4/4 but has a few bars of 5/4 followed by a few bars of 3/4 (or is it 6/4?)
This is a fantastic article! I’m a rock musician and love the 70’s prog scene such as kansas, styx, yes, where these meters create odd melodies and rhythmic beauty. Taking liberties as a musician but making it sound like hard driving rock n’ roll the whole while. Nice to see the composers in video games using this too. Beautiful stuff.
Just found another “irregular” music piece while searching for a nice old Commodore 64 song to cover.
“Kentilla” is a masterpiece from the famous Rob Hubbard, written for the game with the same title. The entire 13 minute piece is in 6/8. :-)
Also the VS Shake King music from Wario Land: Shake It!/The Shake Dimension has some weird stuff.
Dan,
Don’t forget that Holst’s “Mars, The Bringer of War” was first borrowed by Koji Kondo in the ship music from Super Mario Bros. 3!
I just wanted to say that I found this website today, and as a PhD student in music theory, I really appreciate all of your analyses. I’ll go back and read through all the archives. Keep up the good work.
Couple more songs to add to your list:
Death Egg zone from sonic 2 is in 12/4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZzwIpbA3Go
Smithy factory from mario RPG has alternating measures of 6/8 and 7/8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9WphMsc2f0
Bats from Conker’s Bad Fur Day is in 6/4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rC8Tfw36iig
Death Egg is actually in 3/4 which is not irregular.
Weapons Factory is 13/8 (it’s 7/8 6/8, not 6/8 7/8)
Bats is also just 3/4.
Death Egg is in 6/4.
Weapons factory, Yes, it adds up to 13/8
Bats is also clearly in 6/4. Listen to the bass. there’s a lot of emphasis on that first beat every measure.
1. Regarding 3/4 vs. 6/4, that tends to be a compositional (and perceptual) preference, with both favoring an obvious triple meter – but it can likely go either way. In general, I tend to reserve 3/4 for a waltz feel and the rare 6/4 for a meter that doesn’t break down quite so easily or consistently (e.g. 6/4 can be 3/4 3/4 or, say, 4/4 2/4 at times. Composers tend to prefer the simpler meters that group into 2, 3, or 4, where possible. They’re easier to count, conduct, and follow.
2. I actually think of “Death Egg” as a slow 6/8 with emphasis on the two beats. This also aligns well with the melody that comes in later. But again, it’s just a preference (well provided it makes logical sense).
3. To B’s defense “alternating measures of 6/8 and 7/8″ isn’t wrong, as 7/8 followed by 6/8 followed by 7/8 (etc.) still fits the pattern, and it sounds like B wasn’t being specific about which was first.
4. I hear “Bats” as 3/4. Going back to my first point, this has the waltz feel. Sure, its measures can be “paired up”, but a measure in music isn’t expected to contain the entire phrase. 6/4 is more complicated than 3/4, which fits well here.
But to take a step back, please, let’s not start argue over the thread. There’s nothing wrong with disagreeing, but we could all be a little more respectful and polite about it.
A great analysis, and as a fellow musician, a thousand thanks for including the scores.
I do a bit of small-time composing, and one of the first things I ask myself about a piece when I sit down to write is, “what do I want the listener to feel at this moment?” Sounds have an amazingly ability to evoke emotions, and as a composer I will shamelessly pull any trick I can think of to manipulate the listener.
What emotions do irregular rhythms convey?
Irregular rhythms make us feel excited and unsettled. They make you feel like something unexpected is just about to happen; something is just about to come at you from around a corner, so to speak.
Irregular rhythms increase our level of alertness. They are energetic, and cause us to ramp up in expectation of action or fight/flight.
Irregular rhythms are often paired up with a melody line that has a short leap in interval followed by a glide back down, as in the sample from World of Warcraft. The line starts with a short eighth note that propels the melody up a third, followed by a six beats of a sustained glide back down. The irregular rhythm’s job is to energize that initial lift, then keep the attention going during the glide back.
Irregular rhythms do get tiresome if they are repeated too often. The brain memorizes the pattern, and lowers its attention level because the perceived threat never materializes. One solution is to have a very long pattern, such as the 29-bar Orc theme. I like to throw in an irregular rhythm during the bridge of an otherwise regular song, just when the listener thinks they know what to expect.
I find it remarkable how much of the “feel” from a particular track is defined by the meter of the song.
I did a “remake” of the Gabriel Knight song for my mother who really loves this tune but didn’t like the quality and length of the original. In my remake I kept the original 7/8 parts and therefore also kept the somewhat mysterious feel of the song.
Later I decided to make another “remix” for my own enjoyment, re-scoring the 7/8 parts to regular 4/4. It gave a total different “feel” to the entire song.
(For those interested, both versions are in my “Game Music Set” on SoundCloud.com at http://soundcloud.com/omnidextrous/sets/game-music)
In the end I think I’ll be doing more irregular songs to regular 4/4, as long as fans don’t start to throw things at me. ;-)
Well it’s been 5 months… any more?
Gee, it sure is boring around here… but seriously.
This is a really cool list you’ve put together here (love the Flecktones connection, I’m a huge fan of theirs). Anyway, I don’t know if you listen to metal at all, but if you’ve never heard Meshuggah I would seriously check them out. They’re like mad scientists when it comes to complex rhythm. Even if metal isn’t your thing, I bet you’ll appreciate the rhythm aspect. :D