A Music Write Up (its on Castlevania!)
Aug 5, 2008 6:46:51 GMT -5
Post by Smithee on Aug 5, 2008 6:46:51 GMT -5
- My song is done as a chiptune of sorts, so the instruments playing are only interpretations of what is being played. What can be made out is drums, and a wind instrument. Because of the rock stylings had the sound quality been Redbook audio it could be assumed that the higher pitched "beeps" are electric guitar.
Due to the age and technology for digitized voices at the time they couldn't be produced on the Famicom, especially to make vocals and thus there are no voices.
This piece of music has a highly distinctive sound due to the sound chip it was produced on.During the 80s and early 90s most video entertainment consoles had very different sound chips to work with, a good example would be that the Commodore 64 vs the Sega Genesis, which is notorious for it's poor sound quality but is still defended by fans due to favourites such as Streets of Rage 2's soundtrack or Alisia Dragoon's.
- Vampire Killer steps in with a high energy intro in forte. The music switches between guitar like sounds to piano-esque leads, which makes up part A. Afterwards it switches to "spooky" flute style 8th notes, leading to a crescendo into the bridge which recreates the same tune as the flute part, only this time in different instruments and notes. It then creates a new bridge which leads back to the intro for an infinite loop.
- The texture of the piece starts off very thin with only two instruments playing, excluding drums as they are apparent throughout the piece. As the song continues a new instrument is added and leads are healthily abound. The music is fairly legato with the main instrument, but has the drums and low wind instrument (clarinet possibly?) keep the song interesting and layered.
- While I am not the greatest at making out the mechanics of music I understood originally that it was common time but quickly noticed that either the tempo was raised or it was cut time, due to the speed of the notes. I believe the tempo to be allegro because of it's speed, but it has a deaccelerando for dramatic effect, similar to the rubato of Romantic period music. The beats with the strongest pulse are 1 and 3 which proves my cut time theory incorrect as that only reaches up to two.
- I would classify the song as jazzy rock, because of the obvious rock influences (guitar, drum style) but I include jazz because of the instrument (piano, flute, clarinet), the overall tune, and how well Castlevania music can be converted into jazz (see Belmont Lounge by Daniel Baranowsky on OCremix.org)
- The melody of Vampire Killer definitely takes steps. Possibly "speedy waddles" as sometimes it sound like it's going to tumble over and collapse on itself, which gives it a very tipsy, and chaotic feel (in the good way!). The melody is extremely memorable which is quite a respectable aspect of the orchestrator since Konami (the actual artist is hard to identify, since credits where very vague and often mistranslated at the time [Capcom All Staff]) was one of the early "protestors" in the movement to make video game music an art form and not just filler (Capcom, Konami, Nintendo, Square, Enix (remember this was before the merger) to name a few. That isn't to say the melody is very complicated, but it is uber awesome especially for an early game on the console (oftentimes the secrets must be unlocked to fully manipulate a soundchip, before the best soundtracks are released.).
- The piece is technically completely ostinato due to it's design to loop. The fact that there is an ongoing rythm keeps the song together, even though there are infinite leads. Said leads and different sounds add contrast.
- I believe the lyrics are the most important part of the song, as they reflect issues such as rape, aids, poverty, drugs, abuse, and frightening gardens-- You know I'm kidding right? This isn't rap!
- I chose this piece of music for many reasons, and I could go on about technical stuff, but that really isn't it. I picked this piece of music because it is a part of my favourite videogame series from one of my favourite developers, staring one of my favourite characters. I also hold a lotta sentiment for the game. You see, I've always loved platformers, retrogaming, beat em ups, and vampires, so playing this game is wonderful for me and stimulates all senses simultaneously. Even taste (wait, that was the burger I was eating... nevermind.). I respect the use of controls and physics to make the game better (even if they technically hold back upon it), and still haven't mastered them even after years of playing. I also REALLY like the soundtrack. As a matter of fact, that's one of the reasons I've loved the game for so long, and keep coming back for more. Plus Konami chose a very good director to carry on the continuation for the series because even though Iga changed the gameplay he kept the spirit in style and music. Most of all though, I like the song.
An oral presentation by AllenSmithee
Due to the age and technology for digitized voices at the time they couldn't be produced on the Famicom, especially to make vocals and thus there are no voices.
This piece of music has a highly distinctive sound due to the sound chip it was produced on.During the 80s and early 90s most video entertainment consoles had very different sound chips to work with, a good example would be that the Commodore 64 vs the Sega Genesis, which is notorious for it's poor sound quality but is still defended by fans due to favourites such as Streets of Rage 2's soundtrack or Alisia Dragoon's.
- Vampire Killer steps in with a high energy intro in forte. The music switches between guitar like sounds to piano-esque leads, which makes up part A. Afterwards it switches to "spooky" flute style 8th notes, leading to a crescendo into the bridge which recreates the same tune as the flute part, only this time in different instruments and notes. It then creates a new bridge which leads back to the intro for an infinite loop.
- The texture of the piece starts off very thin with only two instruments playing, excluding drums as they are apparent throughout the piece. As the song continues a new instrument is added and leads are healthily abound. The music is fairly legato with the main instrument, but has the drums and low wind instrument (clarinet possibly?) keep the song interesting and layered.
- While I am not the greatest at making out the mechanics of music I understood originally that it was common time but quickly noticed that either the tempo was raised or it was cut time, due to the speed of the notes. I believe the tempo to be allegro because of it's speed, but it has a deaccelerando for dramatic effect, similar to the rubato of Romantic period music. The beats with the strongest pulse are 1 and 3 which proves my cut time theory incorrect as that only reaches up to two.
- I would classify the song as jazzy rock, because of the obvious rock influences (guitar, drum style) but I include jazz because of the instrument (piano, flute, clarinet), the overall tune, and how well Castlevania music can be converted into jazz (see Belmont Lounge by Daniel Baranowsky on OCremix.org)
- The melody of Vampire Killer definitely takes steps. Possibly "speedy waddles" as sometimes it sound like it's going to tumble over and collapse on itself, which gives it a very tipsy, and chaotic feel (in the good way!). The melody is extremely memorable which is quite a respectable aspect of the orchestrator since Konami (the actual artist is hard to identify, since credits where very vague and often mistranslated at the time [Capcom All Staff]) was one of the early "protestors" in the movement to make video game music an art form and not just filler (Capcom, Konami, Nintendo, Square, Enix (remember this was before the merger) to name a few. That isn't to say the melody is very complicated, but it is uber awesome especially for an early game on the console (oftentimes the secrets must be unlocked to fully manipulate a soundchip, before the best soundtracks are released.).
- The piece is technically completely ostinato due to it's design to loop. The fact that there is an ongoing rythm keeps the song together, even though there are infinite leads. Said leads and different sounds add contrast.
- I believe the lyrics are the most important part of the song, as they reflect issues such as rape, aids, poverty, drugs, abuse, and frightening gardens-- You know I'm kidding right? This isn't rap!
- I chose this piece of music for many reasons, and I could go on about technical stuff, but that really isn't it. I picked this piece of music because it is a part of my favourite videogame series from one of my favourite developers, staring one of my favourite characters. I also hold a lotta sentiment for the game. You see, I've always loved platformers, retrogaming, beat em ups, and vampires, so playing this game is wonderful for me and stimulates all senses simultaneously. Even taste (wait, that was the burger I was eating... nevermind.). I respect the use of controls and physics to make the game better (even if they technically hold back upon it), and still haven't mastered them even after years of playing. I also REALLY like the soundtrack. As a matter of fact, that's one of the reasons I've loved the game for so long, and keep coming back for more. Plus Konami chose a very good director to carry on the continuation for the series because even though Iga changed the gameplay he kept the spirit in style and music. Most of all though, I like the song.
An oral presentation by AllenSmithee