big fan of the progression of instrumentals in brighter as vincent starts climbing the ladder and how they get more and more heavy and overwhelming
by the time he’s preaching to his cult with his own network and lost what little sanity he had left, the background is just full blown dubstep, showing both the ‘new era of entertainment’ he intends to baptize them with and the fact that he’s all over the place mentally
I AM BY NO MEANS A MUSICIAN ANYMORE NOR HAVE I EVER BEEN A MUSIC THEORY EXPERT THIS IS PURELY MY RAMBLINGS
I HAVEN'T TOUCHED AN INSTRUMENT IN YEARS AND MY ONLY MUSICAL EXPERIENCE IS IN CHOIR, FLUTE, PIANO, AND VIOLIN I DONT KNOW SHIT OK? IM GUESSING AND GOING ON VIBES
ok so the first thing that i found interesting in "A Masterpiece" (Lohen's theme) is the including of a harpsichord melody after it opens with a guitar and scream. especially that this starts when we are introduced to the auction, and Lohen's infiltration and dismantling of it.
harpsichords for ppl who don't know are basically the proto-pianos that make that unique idk how to describe kind of plucking sound when played. these are usually used in music to give off an air of nobility and royalty, such as being played when a regal character is introduced to the scene. i find this interesting considering the descriptions i've seen ppl give of Lohen's design being "princely" alongside the Imunlaukr theory that had been going around before his release that he would be a remnant of the clan due to his signature weapon's description
this is especially emphasized i think with the including of a choir in his music too. does it give off ghostly a bit? idk how else to describe what it does to the music alongside the screams, to note his danger, mystery, and intimidation. but here's the thing: i think the choir singing is mixed with some sort of string instrument, a violin/viola maybe? when this melody starts playing, it starts as string instruments the first two times it plays then switches to vocals and then back to string. they're both being used because they sound so similar to one another it's easy to mistake them for the other without paying attention. kind of like how Lohen looks like any other high ranking Knight, you wouldn't know he's a hare in wolf's fur at a glance
the strings then reach a higher pitch, almost like screams of fear, when an additional melody starts playing. i dont know what instrument it is, it sounds digital but it could be smth im just not familiar with. but it reminds me of Monodrama in that it uses deep kind of digs to imply more danger, but its more melodic than Monodrama's to sound more like wails imo. not to mention, this melody and instrument drowns out most of the others or at least to my degree of hearing once it starts up until the guitar returns
afterwards, a sort of bass melody starts playing? idk what it's called its the scene in his trailer when hes taking out guards for his infiltration, but the music sounds like despite all the fast-paced action happening in the trailer it is also something that could be playing with him slowly skulking and stalking towards his prey instead
whats interesting to note is i dont rlly hear the harpsichord anymore up to this point. instead i hear the light, high-pitched keys of a piano. idk if this is supposed to be a transition of some kind, going from a historical harpsichord to a modern piano with him swapping himself out for the "killing machine from Fontaine"
the harpsichord actually makes a return when they show him reporting back in mondstadt and creating his "masterpiece" with the machine, possibly as his "princely and knightly" attitude returns since he's no longer in combat. however despite the constant back and forth between his string and keyboard instruments, the note he ends on is either. he ends with a guitar, the same instrument he starts with. kind of like his story quest: a lot goes on in there but at its core he starts looking for power and he ends still looking for power. his mindset may have gone through a bit, but the goal is the same he is still striving towards becoming stronger.
but at this point, i'd like to look at the instruments his theme uses as a whole: strings, piano, harpsichord, some sort of digital instrument. and a guitar. the first 3 when you hear of them are typically associated with historical music, especially Renaissance and Baroque era with the harpsichord. the type of guitar (idk what its called) played in the style of i think more metal(?) with the digital instruments feels more modern on the other hand. the two different styles are melded together pretty well, and i think overall plays into Lohen's duality themes
i uh. dunno what else to say. im sure there's more im missing so feel free to reblog/comment on if you found anything else but yeah these are my thoughts after actually paying attention to the music in A Masterpiece. cool bye o7
It's very interesting to go through the OST and try and spot links to other tracks, either from Deltarune or from Undertale.
What I've picked up on so far that seems of interest are thus:
Cutie Mew Mew Magic, especially at the start, seems to resemble Petal Dance, the theme of all the flowers except for Pink. In part it makes sense that they're different, secret bosses need their own music and whatever. But it also clearly establishes a link between Pink and the other flowers. They perceive her as a flower, even though she's so much more. Thus she has parts unique to her, but also parts characteristic of the flowers. This also goes with her out of battle theme, PINK, though the resemblance is a bit less notable as it's especially in battle where the differences really stand out (no OMEGA move and whatnot).
Flower Man seems to take parts of both Bergentrückung, as well as Hopes and Dreams, which makes perfect sense, as well as, of course, Petal Dance. Flowery having his own theme can again link to that idea of him being a flower yet different. He's a golden flower, not really a colour. He thus stands out in this way, as well as him being closer to Asgore and doing what's best for him (well, what he perceives as such). The link with Hopes and Dreams (at the very least both having very prominent guitars, and maybe even some cords or smt, not exactly sure) is also rather obvious, Flowery = Flowey = Asriel in Undertale.
Does anyone else feel like the song Great Expectations from the Outsiders musical isn't just Ponyboy's song, but all of the greasers' song? Sure they wouldn't deliver it, or think of it the same way Ponyboy did, but the main ideas of the song? Doing your best with the hand you've been given, wondering if anything you do actually matters or if there's only one ending for you, looking around at the people you care about and realizing they could've been so much better if only life hadn't pushed them down, realizing that no one around you will truly be able to understand and that you won't be able to understand them because you aren't each other even if you wished you could understand and be understood, wanting to be more than what everyone sees you as, wanting to be seen as more than what everyone sees you as? You're telling me that not all greasers can relate to that?
I'll admit that I have terrible hearing so I had to go to a slime tut and look at the faces of all the actors as well as listen real close, but we can see and heat that when Ponyboy is singing Great Expectations and Far Away From Tulsa, some of the cast comes in to sing the ends of the songs with him, particularly the points where Ponyboy is singing the words 'great expectations.' Now of course this is a wonderful choice in terms of music and atmosphere because anyone who has seen the musical can attest to how the ground and air seems to shake with the force of their voices and the music, but I believe it's more than that as well! It's showing that hey, Ponyboy isn't the only one who wants to be more than he is. Sure the others don't think like him or act like him and that's shown very clearly in the book, but they all want to be more and we're showing that to you. In both songs, it's not just a music choice, it's them backing up his words - they have expectations and ways they want their life to go as well, even if they don't have hope or the means to get as far as Pony could. It's not just Pony's song, but everyone's song.
(we could also talk of how I believe Pony is the representation of the entire East Side's hopes, dreams, innocence, etc, but that's a whole nother post. if yall'd like it I could make a lil post on it)
There’s something so nice about how they used the word Beaming to mean grinning but also use imagery to imply that the star that guides the speaker is the person they’re coming to find.
Random rambling that might be obvious to most but just ocurred to me as i was listening to "My goodbye" from the Epic: The Musical soundtrack:
The lines between Athena and Odysseus are constantly referring to other myths:
Odysseus: This way you're out of my head now
It's referring to Athena's birth from Zeus's head as a fully grown warrior.
This way you're out of sight and out of mind
A reference to how Athena used her Barrete to turn invisible and hide from Ares during the Troy war.
Athena: This day you sever your own head
Comparing him to a botched Perseus
This day you cut the line
Comparing his fumble to Theseus and the ball of yarn his mother gives him as a way to find a way out of the labyrinth.
You're just a man.
Referring not only to the song, but to the fact Odysseus has no ichor in his veins, he's fully a mortal man.
So, in a nutshell:
Odysseus is literally calling her an "overgrown child" and a coward.
Athena is basically saying she made a wrong choice in thinking a mortal could be as smart as a demigod. Implying that he was never gonna be good enough to be a hero like her half brothers.
Jorge is truly an amazing storyteller to be able to express those sentiments in such few words. Incredible job!
So earlier I watched Be More Chill. (Slime tut not live)And this musical has been hyped up so much and I have been told it's the best musical ever and it's just ok? There's nothing wrong with it and I do like quite a few of the songs but idk. The plot just seemed a bit mushy. I only vaguely knew what was happening and didn't really connect with the characters. I don't really think they were fleshed out super well. Yes there were points where they felt more like people.
For example during Michael in the Bathroom he felt very real to me. Like I could actually know someone with similar feeling. But up until that point we hadn't seen him much. (Yes I know it's cuz of the squip bla bla bla so on and so forth). And Jeremy felt more like a characeture than a person. We know he wants to be popular and he has a crush on Christine and he's not happy with his life. So he takes the pill. He also has issues with his parents. He feels like more of a first draft character than a final product.
And I want to say that maybe the story it's self isn't for me but I think the concept is cool. And I do like kinda cringe sci-fi stories like this. And why does the Squip just shut down sometimes? I don't really understand.
A lot of people also compare it to Dear Evan Hansen and Heather which I also don't get? Like sure they all start with a nerdy high schooler who wants to get through school and even maybe be popular (obviously they are so much more complex that that but in there barest form it's true). But they are so wildly different stories and I guess I just wasn't prepared for what I was getting into.
ny way if you do like Be More Chill I would love to hear why!
