Music is a defining feature of The Legend of Zelda series, so much so that it becomes its own character. The soundscape molds Hyrule around Link and his friends, giving character to those he interacts with and helps the player connect with them on an emotional level. The awe-striking music from The Legend of Zelda played a significant role in why I chose to pursue Bachelor’s Degree in music, and it is why I have decided to take an in-depth look at different tracks throughout the scores that inspire me as a musician. I thought a good starting point would be Breath of the Wild, one of the soundtracks that I am least familiar with. Now, seeing as Breath of the Wild has a little over 4 hours worth of music (that’s 211 tracks, wow!), I figured I would start with working my way through the Sound Selection CD included in all limited editions of Breath of the Wild’s original release.


Last time we looked at the Riding (Day) track, but now we’re going to take a look at the differences and similarities Manaka Kataoka wove into the subtleties of the night time riding theme. Horseback riding is an integral skill for success in Breath of the Wild, but the time of day always has an impact on the way the game works. Riding is no exception!


Introducing the Piece

‘Riding (Night),’ also known as Track 7 from the selection, is the flip side of the ‘Riding (Day)’ track, as we will be exploring. It is similar in structure and feel, but with its own compelling features. The theme captures the more subdued life of nighttime in Hyrule, while still allowing the player to feel excitement and a sense of exploration.


General Analysis

The majority of the two analysis sections on this piece are going to be essentially the ways that the ‘Night’ track is the other side of the coin of the ‘Day’ track. The first thing to note is that they both use the same instrumentation: the piano creating the ostinato (a persistently repeating phrase) and a small string section giving us a bit of variety. Next, we can see that the left hand rhythm and general structure is quite similar:

Here we can clearly see, though the left hand is played in different registers and clefs, they follow the same general shape. The entire ‘Night’ piece is essentially the same piece, just all played in a much higher register (or range). Take the example now of the opening right hand figure compared with the ‘Day’ opening figure:

Again, we see (and hear for that matter) similarities between the two themes in how their respective figures take shape. Take the time to notice how the ‘Day’ theme follows the pattern of eighth-note/sixteenth-notes, whereas the ‘Night’ theme always leads with sixteenth-notes. Though not a complete reversal of rhythm or pitch, in musical theory we call this technique “retrograde.”


Theoretical Analysis

It is in analyzing the basics of this track that we start to see the differences between ‘Night’ and ‘Day.’ The first Major difference is the key. As keen-eyed readers may have already noticed, the ‘Night’ theme is set in Db-Major, whereas ‘Day’ was in Eb-Major. Otherwise its general structure is similar, and are both in the same time signature of 6/8. It is again, however, that at the exact same spot, 0:43, that the strings come in, this time with a different, perhaps even more recognizable tune:

Note: The notes have been compressed to save space on the page!

Yes, this track is on of the only, if not the only, track in the entirety of Breath of the Wild that has a clear reference to the theme written by Koji Kondo that started it all. And I for one think that astride a horse is the most appropriate place to find this adventurous tune. Being on the back of a horse, exploring the landscape is exactly what I think of when I think The Legend of Zelda.


Matt’s Musings

This track was actually among the very last that I heard while playing Breath of the Wild. This problem is twofold, the first being that I barely use a horse or end up discarding it as soon as I hit a new cliff, and the second being that I apparently just never had a horse at night. The first time I heard the track was long after I had defeated Calamity Ganon, gotten all the Koroks and Shrines, and was essentially just trying to max out all my armour. I got on my magical teleporting horse (yes, the DLC had come out by then) and was completely stunned when the main theme came on. I felt a little silly, as up to that point I was quite upset that the Hero’s Theme was no where to be found in the game. On subsequent playthroughs, I now usually make a point of finding a horse, just to remind myself of this awesome tune!


What do you think of this track? Do you prefer either the ‘Night’ or ‘Day’ versions of horseback riding? Do you even spend enough time on a horse to notice? Let us know in the comments!

Matt Pederberg is part of the Writing Team at Zelda Dungeon, holds a Bachelor of Music, and has used that knowledge to develop his love of excellent music in excellent video games!

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