What Makes This Sound So Cute?
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- čas přidán 12. 05. 2024
- I loved the soundtrack to Super Mario Bros. Wonder, and I just had to break down one of the best moments from the game: The Piranha Plants on Parade music.
0:00 - Intro
1:24 - Piranha Plants on Parade
2:12 - The March Style
4:12 - The Melody
6:35 - Chromatic Neighbour Tones
8:46 - Secondary Dominant Chords
10:14 - Music as Part of the Level
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I also loved how they went full Tchaikovsky and used bullet bill sound effects as percussion in the other parade level.
"Tchaikovsky, cannons are not instruments."
@@silhouettoofaman2935"Yes they are, and I'm going to use twenty-one of them."
@@iansmith4184 "Tchaikovsky, no!"
"Tchaikovsky yes! Tchaikovsky ALWAYS yes!"
“Tchaikovsky IS using cannons as instruments!”
Never would have I expected a Mario level to have pacifist-genocide consequences. That's what surprised me the most. For most of the New Soup games, the Bahs were just there, you couldn't just get rid of them just like anything else in the music. Now, the musical parts are _baked_ into the mechanics, so your actions directly influence how the level goes forward. Super cool.
New Soup 💀
@@RadeonVega64Wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii
@@Sean-qg3ggMAAAAAaaaAaAAAAAAAaaAaaa!!!!!
Yegg
Undertale moment.
This is such a thesis statement for the game. Level 1 introduces the fact that Wonder Flowers make things weird, but it’s this level that says “No really. They make things WEIRD”
"talking plants? Almost as weird as talking plants."
Even visually, the Piranha Plants rarely show their teeth to add to the cute and wackiness of the Wonder Effect.
Though I love that they do show their teeth when singing "eeee" sounds (seen at 4:54).
somehow is weird
What? They show their teeth every time the open their mouths to bite Mario.
@@-inFinity05-during the parade section specifically, I believe is what op was implying
This may be rooted deep in primal psychology, as baring teeth is seen as aggressive action by most animals
My favorite thing about this level was that it wasn’t in the demo that was in stores, they knew this surprise needed to be saved for the release
Wasn't it in the announcement trailer?
@@Fopenplopnope! The trailer showed a little piranha plant walking out, but it wasn’t singing. They kept it hidden so surprise people
"Players with no joy in their heart" had me giggling
90% of youtubers that played this level
It was so funny when Dan from GameGrumps ate the piranha plants in their playthrough. And Arin’s laughter was soooo good, very healing for me :)
It’s at 10 minutes in their video “The WONDER of Friendship”. Definitely recommend :)
@@DrDark7 Many CZcams gamers hate the games they play, so you aren't wrong.
@@FinneganBenson GOOD SONG
when god put "thou shalt not kill" on the 10 commandments, he was referring to this
Tell that to the game grumps
@@stevenwallenstein2059 I hope they lost a good chunk of their subscriber base for it
yees
Never hurt the adorable piranha plants
I cannot express how devastated I was when I realised that not every level had a pleasant song like this
I dunno, adding a cute musical number like this to EVERY level might have made the game feel very samey... very one-note, you could say...
(End game SPOILERS inside) My takeaway from the game as a whole was that it was MUCH more musically-minded than any entry in the series prior. The final boss, of course, is a music level, but even before then, there are hints. When you get to the final world, the game opens up and says "yeah, we're grooving, this is a music game" in a way that's poignant even despite the hints on the way. The jump in time levels in the desert area have multilayered tracks just for this (including the underused "Secret Course" from Sunshine!), but it's only in the finale section that it puts it all together unashamedly. There hasn't been a Mario game, to my knowledge, that has leaned so hard into rhythm in gameplay before this.
" There hasn't been a Mario game, to my knowledge, that has leaned so hard into rhythm in gameplay before this."
Bro. Your Mario DDR Remix on the gamecube???
Shameful display of ignorance right here.
@@tetsunuki7754😢😢😢
@@tetsunuki7754 I'm not gonna lie, I have played a lot of DDR/stepmania, I own pads, like enough that I can name Butterfly and various Healing Vision tracks, and I legitimately thought your comment was a troll until I googled it. What
@@tetsunuki7754 Mario DDR was such a boring, minimum effort excuse of a game, well below most Mario spinoffs, that even attempting to compare it to Mario Wonder's score is what's actually shameful.
@@Shroom-MageNever once implied it was comparable to Wonder's OST quality wise. But go you for making such an assumption. The original commentor stated that no Mario game mixed gameplay and musical rhythm quite like Wonder did...that's false. By default a DDR game fully mixes music rhythm/beats with gameplay.
Didn't even say it did it well or anything.
But good on you for getting upset at a joke comment bro.
My favorite bit is the note blocks. While they are coded to always tinkle in whatever key the song is currently playing in so it always goes along wherever they are, I don't think it's any mistake at all that this level gives you SO MANY. That way you can constantly run around on them and be part of the song too. One of hundreds of brilliant bits of game design.
Hmmm... maybe you should collab with GMTK on a video about SMBW...
Additionally, the joy-co s mirror the note block melody in their tinny little speakers, so that you feel even more connected to the tune
@@ChrisAuroraOh, they do? This means I have to play the game with Joycons instead of the Pro Controller.
To add to how note blocks work with the music:
This level (re?)introduces them, and with the walking piranha plant, you (re?)learn that they produce notes in a linear fashion. If you walk from left to right, they go do re mi fa sol la si do. Cute.
But as soon as the marching section begins, the note blocks actively follow the music! Players would notice the dissonance if they didn't, but it's so well integrated that we don't notice the change.
10:55 this is my absolute favorite part about it, it's so fun how they actually put the individual parts on individual enemies rather than it just being a music track in the background, it makes it feel so much more connected.
Also helps give the whole game a nice "this is just pure fun. There's no ultimate goal, there's nothing at stake. It's just a fun silly goofy time. Enjoy" feel to it.
10:56 Killing these joyful voices feels so brutal, it genuinely shook me when you did that. But at the same time it's absolutely hilarious that they programmed it that way and even added a custom death sound to perfect it, so it also made me laugh.
I have never felt those two emotions simultaneously before, wtf? 😂
There’s also the fact that the little fellas stop singing after they’re eaten or killed, which really adds to the idea that it’s the piranhas themselves singing in person in-universe and not just background music.
The voices stopping when they’re killed also feels intentional, because now players can edit the song in real time by removing parts of it
Out of all of this the most surprising part for me was how high pitch a piranha plant’s voice is. Always figured it’d be a growly lower voice.
It’s probably just a part of the Wonder Effect. I’m sure in reality it’s probably somewhat deeper
@@generalcrab0009 Maybe, but even their grunts outside the Wonder effect was kinda squeaky. Then again I also played the Mario RPG remake so maybe I'm just remembering that instead.
Did I understand anything: no
Did I watched the video as an excuse to listen to the song: yes
I never smiled harder this year than when I heard this for the first time in my playthrough. I didn't even think I could smile like that, lol.
even the animation committed to the music. the big “oooh” chord leading into the last section @6:30 was an “eeeee” sound and the piranha plants made the 😬 face with it
Yeah, the fact that they're lip-syncing _singing Pirhana Plants_ should show how much effort was put into this game.
Great catch! That face on the Piranha Plants is amazing
Tbh I’m glad you mentioned the drums and cymbal when you ground pound. It’s so satisfying every time and it feels like no one talks about
Whenever I read this title, I keep expecting Piranha Plants to cover Rage Against the Machine. "BULLS ON PARADE!"
I need someone to mod this into the game YESTERDAY
Maybe a level with Bulrush stampedes and the Piranha Plants choir.
Someone call siivagunner
*me losing in Mario Kart* "WHO THE HELL IS RALLYING AROUND THIS FAMILY MAN WITH A POCKET FULL OF BLUE SHELLS?"
That would be epic!
Did you know the deep voices are from the trees?
you mean the mountains?
@@LieseFury no
@@LandonEmma sorry to tell you but those are mountains
@@LieseFury Dang… :( I swear they were trees in the game…
@@LieseFury No, go back in the video and you see trees moving from side to side and singing, they sing the deep low voices
It was so funny, I played this with my 6 year old and he wasn't able to get through this portion without wiping the plants out while I wanted to listen and do the wee bit of platforming required to avoid unnecessary annihilation.
I would highly recommend everyone to check out the "Ask the Developer" interview for Mario Wonder. Koji Kondo talks about how involved the sound team was with this game, and its super interesting
I'd like to imagine if there were lyrics to this song, it would be akin to 🎵"We're gonna eat you, run away or wait and see"🎵
THE FACT THAT THIS FITS WITH THE RHYTHM
@@headfullofdreams6083 Yes thank you, I tried. Merry Christmas
🎵"This Parade sounds better with a sa-tisfied tummy"🎵
There's so many fun subtle details as well in this game that really just go to show how much work the devs put into making everything feel alive. Like the way the sound of the music blocks joins the music as you run across them, or how the coins dance along with the music. And the mountains in the background are the source of the song's bass vocals! One of them even winks at you at the end of the parade. There's just so many wonderful details that they really didn't have to put in but add so much charm to everything.
There's so many details put in the game that every time you play you can find a new one. That's a remarkable work the devs made there, a truly work of visual and musical art in my opinion.
Anyway, it's fun to accidentally find one of my favorite TASers in such a different context; Flameboy here.
So long!
Surprised you missed how during the intro (3:53), the second measure has the second chord play a G natural instead before returning for the walk-up. It's subtle but adds a tinge more silliness!
After reading your comment I had to listen a couple times to even catch that subtlety. Nice!
Okay phew, I heard that and I thought I was going crazy reading the sheet music!
[3:50] Note: the 9th block is a Emin, so the composer could use its third (G natural) as a Chromatic Neighbour Tone to resolve up to Emaj's rised third (G sharp/A flat)
The second piranha plant level is even cuter which is saying a lot because this was already adorable
This level is what drew me into the game. I wasn’t really feeling it in the other intro levels, but the song and dance number just put a huge smile on my face and got me eager to see what other crazy things Nintendo had stuffed away in the game.
It’s just brilliant!
at 10:32 you can literally see the big pipe's cutoff 😭😭😭
that's crazy
Since that first trailer, I've thought that the Harmony voices sounded like Smooth McGroove. I would love it if Nintendo would hire him for how much he's done for video game music appreciation in the modern age.
*Edit: I looked back through his Twitter history and I definitely wasn't the only one who thought this- everyone was blowing him up about it 😁
Seconded! I looked for this comment as soon as I recognized his voice in the background (took me 45sec) ^_^
I think one of his songs is in pikmin 3
EDIT: I was wrong it's little big planet 3
Nintendo doesn't like taking risks with youtubers and the likes. And considering McGroove's political inclinations (which are fine but some people on the internet can be very pissy about someone that's super conservative) I doubt they'd take that risk with him
@@marcelsaldana123 true about Nintendo, especially with what has been happening with Jirard the Completionist recently. and interesting. I had no idea about his political inclinations though. I guess it depends on if "very conservative" means "limited government, small taxes" or "immigrants are poisoning the blood of our country, shoot them at the border" and "Western civilization is being destroyed" types. Cuz that's super disappointing if he's in the latter group.
@@JPBrooksLive With his reach the later could also be quite harmful, since he could drag others into them.
sobbing bc he keeps replaying the clip where that one little guy gets murdered
Ever since I heard the "Piranha plant of parade with lyrics" video I can never stop hearing the lyrics and I honestly love that.
Plants, plants, we are the plants.
Now watch us sing and dance!
We are piranha plants we're marching one by one.
In a plant precession, marching for piranha fun!
We are piranha plants and 'till the song is done
We're marching on, piranha plant parade!
There are two remix versions, HipHop and Techno❤
i just think its funny that they wrote a traditional style march, but put it in E, the literal worst key for a traditional march
You could write it in the super cursed key of F-flat instead.
completely 'out-of-the-loop' question, but why is E a bad key for a traditional march? Is it because many instruments are harder to play in specific keys? (I guess especially wind instruments)
@@TheFerdi265The key of E is an absolute pain for most marching instruments. it turns into F-sharp for trumpets. It turns into C-sharp major for alto/baritone saxes. Key of E is already a pain for trombones. Most wind instruments prefer flat keys. Pianists aren't too picky, but as a pianist myself, I'd rather see flat keys (but I know some who prefer sharp keys, so who knows, lol).
The only instrumentalists who like E are guitarists and bassists, 'cause it fits their open strings.. neither of which are actually in a traditional march.
Yet another excellent video! I found the thought experiment where you removed the sixteenth notes and replaced them with eighth notes particularly illustrative of how the feel of the song changes -- doing so feels more like a simple nursery/folk song for children (like "Sing a song of sixpence") than a march.
Just as an FYI, the "Kon"do in Koji Kondo's name is pronounced "kohn" (like ice cream "cone") instead of "khan" as in "con"dominimum. In other words the "koh" sound is the same as in his first name "Kohji."
Are you also correcting the pronunciation of foreign names by Japanese people? People speak different languages and have accents, all of which changes the pronunciation of names from the intended one.
I speak Japanese and this does not make any sense.
@@NuiYabuko , I agree that different languages and accents can affect one's ability to replicate the sounds of another language. That said, American/Canadian English (as used in this video) does not lack the ability to distinguish between "a" and "o" sounds. The main reason I wanted to provide a distinction was because the currently used pronunciation sounds more like 神藤 (Kando) which is an entirely different surname.
Ultimately, I shared this FYI simply because if I were in a similar situation, I would want to know the correct way to pronounce this name.
@@mathilliterate , I'm sorry that you didn't understand my explanation. Allow me to try saying it a different way.
Koji Kondo (or as he would write his name 近藤浩治 Kondo Koji) would be written "kondoː koːʑi" using the IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet). To most speakers of Standard American English and Canadian English, "Kondo" sounds quite similar to "cone dough."
@@clockworknavel I still fail to see the reason to Anglicise the pronunciation of Japanese names considering “cone dough” is pronounced “kəʊn dəʊ” but whatever.
Souza-style marches are ALL about the piccolos going crazy in the top end.
Gonna need more vocal harmony moments from you. “OHHHH!!!”
This track reminded me of the LocoRoco games on PSP, those were insanely adorable as well
The thing I love about the occasional 16th quantization in the melody is that it mimics how a melody might depart from the conducted takt to fit lyrics, making it sound more 'sung'. Also, the more or less equal accenting on 1 and 3 make me think this should probably be in a 2-beat meter. (most likely cut time since it would fit the phrasing the same as 4/4... 2/4 wouldn't make so much sense... also 2/2 would make the quantization 8ths instead of 16th to be a little easier to draw and read)
10:50 that was my mom when i tried to show her this level 😭💀
I never tried this, but it is a clever idea to take out the voices if you kill them.
Of course, the vocals being pitched up Chipmunks style is always fun in any context.
This piece is just a crash course of AP Music Theory curriculum
They rally 'round the plumber from a green pipe full of shells.
They rally 'round the plumber from a green pipe full of shells.
They rally 'round the plumber from a green pipe full of shells.
PIRANHAS ON PARADE
Oh my gosh this is the video I was waiting for! This is such an incredibly fun entry of the series and the music is just SUPREME! I love the Piranha Plant March. It's charming, adorable, and the accompaniment is perfect for the feel for the level. Now that you mention the "Woodland Creature completing a task," it makes so much more sense! That classic "OOM-PA" rhythm is what I remember from watching childhood Disney movies. Great analysis like always!
This video may convince me to actually buy Super Mario Wonder myself. It's been forever since I've played a Mario game, but that song is just the cutest thing ever.
Also really like the discussion of chromatic neighbor tones. I'm getting into music production myself and I've found I like throwing in a few strategic accidentals here and there; now I can find even more excuses to do so :)
This is the first of your videos where I was able to completely follow along with every concept you discuss. Every video I get a little bit better at it.
Also dang this song is cute as heck
Your video describes perfectly, why this level is my favourite since my first playthrough. Thank you for this! ❤
Aw man great video but I really really wished you covered the last bit of the melody where it's just alternating between the root note of the song and its tritone, that part sounds super cool!
Imagina liking your ringtone so much that you vibe to it until the call declines itself
I never thought I'd find piranha plants cute, but the piranha plants in Mario Wonder are ADORABLE! It makes me not wanna attack them >w>';
Even the tiniest details, like the natural G in the right hand chord sneaking in for one eigth to prepare us for the silly shenanigans to follow
You forgot to mention that Mario himself gets to join in as he runs over the coloured music note blocks... which just makes even more special!
I really love to discover the "essence" of the music trying to convey about the game.
For Mario, it is playfulness, fun, seeing thing in a childish lens makes the world looks like a wonder.
The silliness of this track and the piranha voices reminds me so much of the LocoRoco games and I love it
That 1 to 5 rhythm with the off beat almost sounds exactly like what Yoko Shimomura did with one of my favorite Mario and Luigi tracks, Thwomp Volcano, but seemingly used in a different way accompanying the melody. Super interesting
Thompson Volcano hahahahahaha
@@DaNintendude stupid auto correct lmao
This was really interesting. Makes you appreciate how much work and thought the composer put into this.
I haven't had time to keep up with your videos for a while, but this is an incredibly important video topic I had to make time to watch.
(Another bit of interactivity you didn't mention - the marimba blocks are hardcoded in what notes they'll play during the number, I think, which obviously changes depending on the moment you are in the tune? Rather than being generally in tune with the BGM as they are throughout the rest of the game)
You should look at the gang-plank galeon remix in smash ultimate. I can't get over how good it, with the multiple musical sections that are just really good. In fact, there are more sections than most video game music (or at least a lot that I've heard).
Video suggestion: the public domain chiptunes of the original Lemmings - how do they take a funeral march and "here comes the bride" and turn them into a bright adventure soundtrack?
Didn't J.J. McCullough make that video already?
Piranha Plants are my favourite in Mario, and the overall music in this game made it an absolute joy. The music notation in the Toad houses is such a treat!
I guess the way the note blocks you run on integrate into the music was just so well done you completely forgot to mention it :)
i would be overjoyed to hear your thoughts on the haunted opera section if you get the chance! its so classic but the atmosphere just charms me and i know it would pique your interest
I always love getting an education on here
I love how Nintendo went all in on fully and properly animating the Piranha Plants' mouths for the song, rather than just making them open and close their yaps in time with the melody and calling it a day.
Really shows that Nintendo's A-team has heart.
You didn't even notice that the note blocks which compose a good portion of the level's floor are actually part of the song!
No one's talking about how good those tree-hills in the background are singing the bass parts?
also the e chord to e dim at the end. agh, love it.
i knew these piranha plants was secretly goofy and wacky plants
they literally stop going up and down when on top of the pipe they're on in super mario bros
i was so shocked when i first played this level. i had no idea something that i hated so much would become something i loved so much because of their cute little song😭
Bro I just realized that the trees 1. Exist (never saw them while playing) 2. Sing the band part of the song. They didn’t have to add that and they still did
The semiquavers (sixteenth notes) are another classic bit of march writing. Jazz swings its quavers (eight notes), but marches have them as straight and clipped as possible.
Love that sneaky pianomovement @3:56 straight out of SMB1s swimminglevel
So there's more to this.
The Children's March is a common thing in Japan, for young students. Not only is it good for keeping students on track when they're on a field trip, but it also builds a sort of interpersonal unity among students. Remember, in elementary schools in Japan, it has a lot less to do with wrote memorization and more to do with building character, discovering the world around you, that sort of thing.
It's not as common nowadays, but it's still alive enough in the public consciousness in Japan that the cadence of a children's march is immediately recognizable. And the cool thing about it is how it's used to incredible effect to create an atmosphere wherever it exists, in this case, to really cement the childlike Wonder of the game and everything around it, as it helps to return Mario to a much less tense feel that some games portrayed, as well as being a signal to players to not take this so seriously.
The same basic cadence and style of a children's march was used in Ghost in the Shell Standalone Complex for a very similar effect, wherein the childlike Tachikoma robots broke into singing such a song themselves during a very, Very somber moment that really nails home just how much the setup they're putting in place by doing so is supposed to hurt. There's a special sort of punch to the gut that comes from a song sung by children suddenly cutting to silence.
this video made me notice that the bass part that syncs up with the pipe movements looks like its being voiced by the mountains in the background
I think at 3:53, the G# on and of 2 in the second measure is actually a G natural. I felt like pointing it out bc ive watched ur channel for like 5-6 years (maybe longer my memory is ass) and i have not noticed a typo here before LOL
It actually has a purpose as a tutorial level, preparing you for future levels where you can time your inputs to the music, and probably they chose the perfect style of music to introduce this idea
Excellent musi theory video, thank you very much!
Always an amazing day when 8bit posts
I played Piranha Plants on Parade for the first time and immediately went on CZcams to see if there was any videos about the incredible music in this game, and there was.
I have never had the urge to learn more about the sound design for a game in my 30 years of gaming, that's how amazing the sound design in Wonder is.
The best part of the game is that Nintendo slaps you right in the face with this song in the second stage. In any other game you will find a level like this mid-game, but finding it in the very beginning is like finding the cutest puppy and having it as your pet.
This kind of musical interludes (lacking better term) are very much gimmick of Super Mario Bros Wonder so you definitely want to introduce it right away. I personally feel Final Fantasy VII was equally good at introducing it's own gimmick right at the beginning.
The whole presentation of this level, and its integration with the music, reminds me of Tadpole Treble.
Oh come on it's not that I have no joy in my heart, I just really like the background music : )
3:26 time is a tool you can put on the wall or wear it on your wrist
Now that you mention the Chromatic scale in these songs. I do realize that it’s present in a lot of these games.
bit of LocoRoco in there.
I think it’s fair to say now that Piranha Plants On Parade is going down as one of those iconic levels in Mario. Not on the level of 1-1, but it is up there.
My reaction to cuteness overload is to cry, and oh boy I need some tissues 😭
When I heard the Piranha Plants singing, it TOTALLY reminded me of the yellow Loco Roco. That game had cute and upbeat music being sung by little creatures too. 😁
at 3:25 i was looking at the sheet music and listening to him play the base line only to realize that it is the EXACT baseline (key and everything) that Larry plays in the Veggietales theme
All of the chromatic stuff, including the seventh chords, is also just characteristic if the march style. Especially rhe sevenths, as it is the standard way to link the sections as well as part of the basic blues-like progression that takes 8 bars instead of 12.
if you ever get the chance to check out the music of the Neverhood, do so. It is an old point-and-click claymation puzzle game. For me, the best video game soundtrack
If this becomes the channel's most-viewed video, just know that there is a three-year-old who asks to watch this about 4 times every day.
never would I imagine spending 11 minutes listening to someone tell me why i love singing and dancing piranha plants
I can't believe I just watched a whole video about Piranha Plants on Parade from a music theory perspective and not a single word was spoken about the spicy change happening under the second-to-last note. They could have just made the outro a revisit of the end of the intro, but they added that hint of spice just because they could.
I tried my best to ensure I wasn't spoiled for this moment before I played the game. When I finally got the chance, I had this huge grin on my face! This really does sound like something Danny Elfman would compose for a sequence akin to the Willy Wonka introduction in the 2005 Tim Burton film!
Now where you mention the barbervshop quartet intro, that's right. A German band once San a song in this style and used the same intro
10:56 listen closely when you walk on the note blocks they even sing it too :D
I was instantly reminded of Loco-Roco when I played this level
i feel like this channel might be the reason i pass ap music theory
Mario wonder is the first 2D Mario I have really cared about and even 100% it. Hopefully they keep this energy up.
Well you have missed a ton of great games then. But yeah, Wonder is a great entry in the series!
This song makes me think of Swisskapolka. It's not even all the similar, but the number of basic elements it shares, lol.
The digital piano that I ordered online arrived in the mail today. My piano journey begins!