What Makes Mario Music So Catchy?
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- čas přidán 12. 03. 2017
- Hello! I'm Scruffy, and today I'm taking a little break from Pikmin content to talk about the music in Nintendo's flagship franchise, Mario! Specifically, I'm looking why and how it is that Mario's many musical motifs get stuck in our heads so easily, with help from some important music theory concepts. I hope you enjoy it!
Thanks to Kevin Cheek for providing the alto saxophone in this video!
Check out his SoundCloud page here:
/ kevin-cheek - Hudba
"B flat, B for Bowser, and flat for Mario! Bwahaha!" Sounds like something that could be in a musical Mario game!
Too bad it wasn’t
They should make a musical mario game, where the music matters alot more and you actually have to play instruments found in the game to complete puzzles
@@nathanmccleery4091 maybe a game like the Mario & Luigi games! They always had a main idea, like Bowsers Inside Story had a main theme going on with the body of Bowser, with mini games including digesting food, burning fat, growing large, etc. Maybe something with a musical boss and theme introducing a sort of musical world or island lol.
I just read these lyrics, they perfectly sync up with his theme
"B hard. B for Bowser, and hard for Mario!"
*I ' M L E A R N I N G*
Cactoos
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
*T H E M O R E Y O U K N O W*
me to
Yee
*brain visually mutating*
I love how dark mode friendly these videos are
Fr!
📠
I’d love to see a Mario game solely based around it’s music
the closest we currently have is either the fact that the enemies react to the music in the "new" series, or melody motorway from Mario Kart
At 14:23 did scruffy just play FUCKING MEGALOVANIA
@@Grane1234 we also have ddr mario mix
@@ModernReapers no
Does galaxy count because... holy cow
Saying Bowser has a good taste in music makes me think he has speakers in his castle playing his own theme some constantly. That would be amazing if they did that in the games.
That’s something he’d definitely do
Dylan Dreisbach world bowser probably does
You must acquire a taste for free form jazz!
The torch fire in odyssey's bowser world scales with the music
In the new paper mario, there are some speakers you can destroy that kill the ost in the background.
How to avoid copywrote on CZcams:
Play melodies on an out of tune ukulele
big
brain
time!
Copy wrote lol
Technically, you're not playing the exact pitches of the peice
Nah, ruler or life
Absolute Zero tell that to the algorithm
Music educator here. This video is fantastic. Will be DEFINITELY using this is the classroom to describe compositions and basic music theory.
Well, that class is going to be fun!
wish I had a music teacher like you
wish I had a music teacher
wish i had a music
wish i had
I adore bowsers theme. This guy has so much swag and style, not just his sense of fashion in odyseey with his suit but also his music and aesthetic of his castles in the 3d titles, even down to that confident arms crossed pose with that grin..man oozes swag.
SAME OH MY GOD they should've kept it through more games
“it’s pretty strange from a classical music theory perspective, but from a jazz perspective, perfectly acceptable”
i just found my senior quote
Read this as soon as it played, nice.
New super Mario bros for the DS will forever be my starting point in the mario franchise
Imagine not being a failure and getting that far to actually be able to have a senior quote, couldn't be me, I want to die
@@crylune I mean hey I’m just a young teen and I’ve achieved a far amount
That brings a tear to my eye
Get off your phone
*BUT MOM ITS EDUCATIONAL*
Fun fact: it is
Sad fact: it's better education than In any school
eckermania minus Finland schools
Damn right it is!
🤣
"gesamtkunstwerk" caught me off guard because of bdg. love this analysis even though i know almost nothing about music theory!
I love how 14:45 is replayed so often because it slaps so hard
"Yeah! B Flat! B for Bowser..."
"And Flat for Mario! Gwahahaha!"
amazing
That was a pretty brilliant line. They really did a good job on that.
Heck, I could even picture Bowser saying that in an actual game, perhaps one based around music.
Shrektakular 2468 nice
they should call it Super Mario Melody and everyone would confuse it with Super Mario maker
That was my favorite part, for sure.
"It's called a leitmotif"
*Toby Fox has entered the chat*
cammiecookies oh yeah, god came back
:D
Next Level Games: *And* *here's* *where* *I* *enter*
@@thatonestarmanintorobotics4319 on the notification i saw you just put asterisks **** around every word but you can put it around an entire comment and it still works
@@gamingcookiereal So much time of my life could have been more productive...
Quick note: The association between the tritone and the devil was begun as advice for choral composers, since the interval was the least natural for the human voice and therefore hard to hit accurately. So it was more of a "devilish" interval as in tricky to sing, rather than sounding harsh or actually believed to be somehow infernal. That's why you can find it anywhere in European religious choral music as early as recorded music can be found. There's a super awesome video covering the subject on Adam Neely's channel.
Was gonna comment this but you beat me to it lol, awesome vid for sure ^^
I have also heard of people calling it the devil in music not because of it being demonic but rather it being incredibly hard to do well
@@PeterEvans_musicwhen it comes to singing tritones, yes it's rather hard. Adam Neely actually uses an example of Eddie Vetter singing "Even Flow". On the first word of the song "freezing", there is a melodic tritone on the two syllables, F# to C. When Eddie sings this you can hear him dip a considerable amount below C. I'm not sure what it is but something makes them peculiarly difficult.
I really would like to hear what Scruffy says about the Super Mario Galaxy music, since it’s just so much more different than music from any other Mario games, and in my opinion, serves as a Magnum Opus for Mario’s music
SMG and SMG2 soundtracks are my favorite game soundtracks out there. So much of the music for those games is fully orchestrated!! It’s just swell.
"It's called a leitmotif"
Toby Fox: you called?
Why is everyone saying this???
@@trainerlsw2444 Toby Fox, creator and composer of Undertale and Deltarune, uses leitmotifs (specific melodies if you didn't watch the video or if you didn't know what it is) a LOT, and I mean a lot in the two games. His understanding of leitmotifs is the reason people keep saying this.
I see
@@trainerlsw2444 and mainly SANS
@@linkified0471 That’s pretty interesting.
You just taught me more than my music teacher for 6 years
Archersforeal mood
Archersforeal your teacher must of sucked lmao
Stollen
I probably had an even worse one.
Lol me too
We need this guy to teach a class. I guarantee not a single person would fail.
Yes
Ah, yes, music theory. A subject that many musicians go through, but do not understand, yet it makes music that much more alive.
When you take all of this into consideration, it really goes to show just how much of a damn musical genius Koji Kondo is.
*Koji Kondo
@@sarahtonin58913 Sorry, lapse of thought. I fixed it, thanks. XD
He really is!
I have no idea of music theory so I was just "holy cow, Mr Kondo is freaking genius!!!"
Tfw when you're music is so well known and legendary there's conspiracy theories about it.
Reminder that Koji Kondo relistents his draft music for very prolonged hours and when he gets bored at ANY moment, he instantly knows that "something's not right" and recomposes. He really tries his best so that his compositions will be remembered eternally.
Koji kondo is a musical genius
@@drolemem he is. And his music is amazing
Creating musics which will be remembered forever is a great fit for someone who is working hard and aims perfection!
@@drolemem 1000% in agreement
he is truly a legend
I'm 15 and I'm out here learning music theory. I've watched this video countless times and I love it more each time I watch it. This video is what helped me decide, once and for all, that I wanted to pursue a music career, either as a performer or a teacher. Thank you Scruffy
How's it going?
Oh my god that's why spongebob's music is so catchy
Why is this all in black in white...
It’s so original
Squ3zee eye w Www zero as adjust noT
nAH
Wth this is not what i watched nor even knew about......who hacked my account? :/
@@danetl I'm sure
4:00 lol
"We're heading all the way back to late 19th century Germany"
what is this, learning?
*H E Y V S A U C E M I C H A E L H E R E*
I made to 399 likes. Someone can get 400th.
LOL
I got the 666th like. Bout to play a B flat when I walk in the room
14:20 that sounds like slow megalovania, not sure how i picked this up from 3 notes but sure
you can always recognise megalovania from 3 notes
Do da do
Nice pfp lol
@@basedSkeleton yeah missing the first note
@@basedSkeleton yeah I know I was just agreeing
Please. Do this with undertale. Its OST is so memorable and had a massive impact
4:43 " *H* ow do all these *M* ario- *m* ade *m* elodies *m* aintain a *m* o *m* entous *m* argin in our *m* e *m* ory?"
*HMmmmmmmmm...*
cracked me up, that part did.
hmmmmmommmem
You misspelled the hrmmmmm... By adding the O and E
I loved that part, too!
ow do all these ario- ade elodies aintain a entous argin in our ory?
Mr. Cheemps kñmxp
"Yeah! B Flat! B for Bowser, Flat for Mario!"
I died
@NATALIE.HERNANDEZ 102153 my ghost :)
@@mahogacha8277 ghosts only exist in...
Wait
Wait ghosts exist in gacha
@NATALIE.HERNANDEZ 102153 ;-;
Сыр Гауда
Leitmotif is one of my all time favorite musical concepts, and I'd love to make a video on how it exists and is so influential. In addition to what's discussed here, other franchises and media use it to their advantage such as Marvel and DC super heroes, Thomas the Tank Engine, the Looney Tunes, Beastars, and even to an extent even things like amusement parks use music to convey the different places and things they have to show. Any rollercoaster fan that hears Technonaut or Ready to Go will immediately be able to tell where it's from, and it's not just because they're obnoxiously funky tunes. They immerse you in the experience and I love it
Can confirm, been playing Paper Mario this week. The battle theme has been stuck in my head the whole time, and it's driving the voices in my head _crazy._
Ok dude wow, this video is so amazingly made, im sucked in
Yo I’m subbed to u I love ur vids!
@@soudelnoop same
woah its sean and scruffy in the same place
2 gods
Heyyy 69th like- and Its nice to see the legend in person!
"It's called a leitmotif"
Jojo villains: "that's what I've been losing to?"
Il Vento D'oro also has a lot of leitmotif too
I suscribed to you Botha/all
Is that a jojo reference?
@@JAY-zf6jw no
LordWeasel lol
As a German boy, I'm laughing about the way he pronounced "Gesamtkunstwerk"😂
“What makes mario music so catchy?”
*Childhood memories, my friend. Childhood memories.*
Video: This is a leitmotif for love, and romance.
Me: *Oh, so that’s why I haven’t heard it.*
Damn man now I'm sad
(Y) same
Update: Found love and romance Pog get good nerds
@@Its_MarsBars Congratulations! (also no i am not going to debate you calling me a nerd because it's true)
@@Its_MarsBars that's my boy! (took you long enough to be honest)
*"B for Bowser. Flat for Mario!"*
I just love that. ^^
B Flat
Bb
It definitely sounds like something Bowser would say if he started taking a music class.
5 year later and stills give me the nostalgic vibes
In Super Mario Maker 2, when you’re making a level there’s a kind of jazzy version of the course’s music, which fits so well!
14:06 I heard the first chord of Sweden and instantly thought of Minecraft.
Those damn leitmotifs...
Nostalgia Hit me
😔
same
Mmmhmmm same
Same
Wait
repetitiveness is key...
*YOU'RE A KID NOW YOU'RE A SQUID NOW!1!!1!!1*
Splatoon
YOU'RE A KID YOU'RE A SQUID YOU'RE A KID YOU'RE A SQUID YOU'RE A KID YOU'RE A SQUID YOU'RE A KID
Nobody:
Inklings: **squid noises**
Also nobody:
Octolings:VEEMO
noone:
inklings: [angry woomy noises]
14:19 is megalovania in three cords lol
For anyone who doesn't study theory, this is a GREAT introduction. I will be recommending this to ALL of my students. Well done Scruffy!
I’m guessing Imperial March is a Leitmotif for Darth Vader.
It's not actually, Imperial March is the leitmotif for the Empire
@@The1AMparty i feel when most people hear it, they think of Vader, but it is named after the Empire so I guess it can be both lol.
@Max Kathirgamanathan if it’s slow and edgy ( or possibly sad/creepy) it’s Vader or particularly something about Anakins fall, suffering, or darkness. Otherwise it’s the marching theme of the Empire and just means the Empire in general (especially if the music is in-universe coming from the environment rather than from the movie).
Vader represents the strength of the Empire, so it makes sense that the Imperial March is played when he's on screen, but it's also played when he *isn't* on screen
I’m trying to remember what Music Vader had in the first Movie since imperial March didn’t appear until ESB. If I recall Vader is a strange case in usually being scored in association with something else. Either being associated with the empire in the form of the imperial March. Or appearing at times when themes associated with the Death Star and Tarkin are also on screen.
In a lot of ways Vader’s theme reflects what he is. He is a tool Of the empire he is the empire he lacks a certain self agency. And that’s reflected in his musical identity being borrowed identities of other imperial threats.
Vader is less his own self and more is the might of the empire personified
I got recommended this after listening to coconut mall for the 23rd time today
for me athletic theme from SMW lol
That’s puzzle plank galaxy for me 😂
I loved coconut mall! That was my favorite Mario kart Wii level!
@@leirawhitehart1236 Hey me too, I was just playing that yesterday! Super fun :D And yes, I did come here from listening to that track right now lol
I was listening to Giorno Giavana
*Ba bo, bada ba ba ba bo bo bo ba bie, BADADABABABABABABA!*
i feel like this topic would be better suited for the Undertale sound track, there is a leitmotif in nearly *every* song. literally
But the video isn’t just leitmotif but more what makes a leitmotif universally memorable. And if you want a case study on music that everyone knows to explain leitmotifs and how they contribute to getting songs stuck on your brain mario is probably a better analysis.
Undertale might be better for how lietmotifs can be used to conceive relations between characters locations themes and other characters on the story
I only know 1 leitmotif from undertale lol
the amount of people who play this and how much of a classic the games are also helps make these songs much more catchy
It's crazy how I could listen to all of this and not retain one word
16:29 and, some months later, "Jump up, Super Star!" Is considered the best thing to come out from E3 2017
That songs plays in my head all day, every day...
@Benjamin Stevens
Same here
abigail hong
🎵 and if you find you’re short on joy, don’t fret just don’t forget that, you’ll be our 1-UP boooooyyyyy🎵
I honestly don’t like "Jump up, Super Star!" whatsoever.
The number of Mario song that are now stuck playing in my head
0:13 the bass clef used as the question mark. Perfection.
For me, the bowser theme doesnt feel at all evil, it just feels groovy. Like, it reminds me of nighttime streets in a huge city, walking alone and with style.
It feels like music Bowser would actually listen to in-universe.
thats bc ur evil
@@MattTOB618 I imagine him with Sunglasses and a huge radio on his arm
It feels like how bully maguire walks
aint no way you just predicted the axel in harlem meme 2 years ago. NO FRICKIN WAY.
Meanwhile in the school system:
Mitochondria is the powerhou... john get off your phone
John: NO IM LEARNING MUSIC
I would hit the like button but it's at 69
@@carlosabundiz6320 my reaction exactly lol
Now its at 100 lol. Sex number has been cleansed. Also i happen to be a John. All John's please reply below. #johngang
The school system, also known as the human trafficking web where dealers trade children around for dogecoin.
6 YEARS later, and I believe Forever…
This video will and always be, relevant…
Thank you for Your lessons, your Art, your knowledge.
that trumpet bowser theme, you have to make a hour long version of it, ITS JUST SO GOOD
This channel is so... chilled out. The relaxing musical remixes, the calm voice, the simple, black and white imagery. It all just oozes relaxation.
When people ask me what is my favorite music genre I say Nintendo
Pft. I say power metal!
Then Nintendo. >:)
let me guess, friends with bowser?
jk :P
Kathleen Formanek I agree.
Kathleen Formanek lmao same
Kathleen Formanek 100th like
This man is the equivilant of a teacher that just knows everything and knows how to teach in a full yet relaxing way. I love your content man!
It’s surprising how much this one video helped me with my AP Music Theory class 4 years from when I first watched it. Thanks Scruffy!
Your visual style surprised the hell out of me when it went from 2d Mario to 3d. I literally didn't expect that 4:29 lol that was actually awesome
776 likes and only 2 comments?!
Iʼll me third
801 likes damn, Guess I’ll be fourth
808 likes and only 4 replies? Let’s make that 5
810 likes and 5 replies? Let's make that 6
821 likes? and only 6 comments? make it 7 now
Kevin Moran sent me and I love it
Yes.
Youre here!
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
skeleton he's a yt
(_/°
This is honestly one of the best video's I have watched. To explain a relatively difficult concept so clear with perfect and funny animations and music. Amazing!
4:38 Speaking of first impressions, this is the first of your videos I've seen and so far I love it. I look forward to watching more of your content.
The musical transition at 8:37 is so smooth is a 1-UP to my soul
8:34
If someone asked my to whistle a Mario tune I would say, “I can’t whistle”
Same
what
am i dumb i don't get this lol
hol up
If you can’t hum just whistle
MAN, you are killing it :)
thank you so much for the effort and time you take explaining all of your viewpoints so thoroughly and simply :)
I'm impressed that 1) this video was so satisfying to watch, 2) my basic understanding of music theory was enough, and 3) you chose a game which I happened to have spent many hours in. 💯
Me When He Says Mario Music Is Catchy:
Y E A H N O K I D D I N G
Is it bad that I learned more about music than when I was in the band for school.
Yes actually
The only thing I got taught at school was flute and can’t even remember sheet
Yeah... me is in band and me never learned this.
BlueStarsFall That’s because band focused on you understanding how to play and how to become better at your instrument. If you wanted to know all of this you should have taken a music theory class, which is basically music explained with logic and philosophical ways.
No, band doesn’t do a good job at teaching you
Hey scruffy,
I hope you don't stop doing what you're doing. I hold your work very close to my heart.
Keep it up!
Wow, this is awesome! One thing that wasn't in that that i want to bring up is dotted notes (e.g. dotted eighth, dotted eighth, eighth, half). I love the effect they produce, like you're leaning into the music
I've watched this video, and the Breath of the Wild "Invisible Design" video, at least two or three times each now. There's just something about your visual and aural style that is so appealing. It's the quirky, minimalistic yet extremely expressive animations. The constant musical accompaniment - when you discussed the ruler analogy, you were actually playing a rhythm on a ruler. The thoroughly accessible analysis - never does it feel like you're beating us over the head with music theory. And other things I can't put my finger on. In some ways I find the presentation more compelling than the content itself. I love your style - it just works, and works really well. We need a "What Makes Scruffy's Videos So Interesting?" analysis vid.
i never noticed the ruler thing!!!
So I'm not the only one who keeps coming back to these videos and rewatching them!
Agreed!
I like how his art style is actually minimalistic instead of lazy.
13:56
I love this part. The sounds for the "good" and "bad" are so similar, yet one sounds heroic and the other sinister. I'm sure there's a music term for this but I don't know it.
7 months later, but the terms are really just “major” and “minor”
@@pay9397 so ths comment is 14 months old + how old this reply is
@@crrulean +11h
@@noskillman5275 + 23mins
@@jujt2258 + 1 hour
Amazing video! I love the ideas of leitmotifs and how they stick themselves in their brain. I've realized they're in so many movies and games, I especially notice them in Star Wars.
The ruler metaphor for syncopation is great and so well-executed in this video!!
The MARIO themes are not in the back of my head
Their in the front
*They're
Boomer
Me at 9pm: Just one more video
Me at 3am:
I feel that
@@jonathandeakins5645 I feel your mom
I don't need sleep I need answers
Very relatable.
I have exam tomorrow and still watched this
14:20
was so close to greatness...
My soul hurts
Your explanations and breakdowns make music history and theory very interesting. Using Mario music as an example helps as well
when that mario drawing turned out to be a 3D model I was very surprised and delighted
9:13 talking about a ruler, and playing the music on a ruler very epic
Yes! I'm a music teacher and have never thought of teaching it this way! Brilliant.
i feel inmense satisfaction from listening to the bowser theme holy hell
The sound design for this video is perfect
4:29 it represents all the "new" Mario games like new super Mario Bros Wii, new super Mario Bros, and new super Mario Bros u
ah yes, this is b1g bR41n t1m3
The games don’t stop coming and they don’t stop coming
That's exactly what I was thinking. The Mario theme at the beginning of the video, the one from the first game, represents the old Mario. The 8-bit one, it's one thats more nostalgic for most. While the newer one, at 4:02 represent the new, 3d mario and like you said, from super Mario bros wii, new super Mario bros, etc.
It is absolutely criminal how small your channel is. I can't wait till you blow up in popularity.
Still small. We're getting bigger though...
Still small.
Still small, but bigger.
This has been one of the clearest, beginner friendliest explanations on music theory I've seen in a while! Great video!
It's crazy how memorable almost every Mario track is, and if you've played a Mario game you can immediately determine which game a track is from, or at least get close. Each game or franchise within Mario has its own vibe and motifs. Mario galaxy, Odyssey, 3d world, Mario 3, NSMB, and so on so forth. You can just tell, and if you play any main nintendo game you can immediately pick out the Mario tracks from the rest
Why am I here? I don't know anything about musical theory. Most of this is going right over my head.
And yet... I want more.
How about "Harmonic Rhythm in Sonic the Hedgehog's Music
"? czcams.com/video/Vjj0aA933_s/video.html
Same
I love how when he’s comparing musical measurements to marks on a ruler the Mario theme in the background is played on a rubber band, cause there both school supplies. Such a fun detail.
It's not actually a rubber band, he's just straight-up using a ruler. You can produce those tones by vibrating a ruler on the edge of a table. It's incredible.
@@BenDover-xw7dv don’t know how i didn’t catch that a year ago but watching back it’s very obvious, all the cooler tho
Even after 5 years since you uploaded this video, I'm using them to reinforce my knowledge in music theory from home! I am part of the music club at school and although a novice, I am OVERFLOWING with the dedication and passion to make my attempt at music work! I've been told that I have the soul of an artist, and I firmly believe I just had trouble finding what it wants.
Thank you so much Scruffy, for making me learn about something I want to make my hobby! I am willing to drop sweat and tears learning about what I love, even before deciding on learning about it in more depth.
The theme at 4:30 is usually played in levels that are in the clouds with stripy platforms. Idk if it’s a leitmotif but that’s the type of levels it’s associated with from my memory
When you've been in school bands for 8 years and re learning basics so you just sit there with the new kids like
●_●
What was the version of bowser’s theme you played at 14:45 ? Please I like immediately fell in love. Amazing video man
Tinyprinny it’s called “a boss approaches” on the Mario 3d world soundtrack
I know
Its called bowser the swagger badass nk
“A boss approaches” from super mario 3D world ;)
@@nooblings1 he asks a question, someone provides him an answer and ur like: “I know” but you didn’t ask the question
This came up in my recommended (for some reason) so I decided to watch it. I really loved it and I also watched the breath of the wild one. These are really great. Keep up the good work!
10:08 we need a full version of this. i love it
Me at 3 am: I gotta get to bed soon
My recommendations: what makes Mario music so catchy?
Me: well well well then let’s find out
Thats literally me rn 😭💀
So only 40 people disliked this out of 97K people...
Shows how much people can agree with the question “Why is Mario music so catchy?”
@Playeryboi No way fam
I'm a sonic fan and I didn't dislike
@@cjth3beast265 I'm a sonic fan too and I didn't dislike
JAMES KOE it's a rhetorical question
@Playeryboi Naw, I'll give you a hint.
"Hey plumber boy, mustache man. Your greatest fear has arrived!"
0 dislikes today B)
I love, how this whole video is filled with musical help, to better understand, what Scruffy is trying to explain. I don't know any other CZcamsr who does this so intuitive and great. Its simply fun to listen, and I sometimes feel like it is as interesting as the information he's delivering
We need to hear full versions of the covers in this thing, I love them!