Tadtone Tuesday: “Ballad of the Wind Fish”

Welcome to our second installment of Tadtone Tuesday! This week we will be lending our ears to the ever-so nostalgic “Ballad of the Wind Fish” from Link’s Awakening. For anyone who missed out on last week’s introduction to the series, we will continue to analyze, feature, and openly discuss our weekly Tadtone. Today, the spotlight goes to the one and only Wind Fish!

Take the jump for more on this week’s Tadtone!

 

 

“PLAY THE EIGHT INSTRUMENTS! PLAY THE SONG OF AWAKENING!!” – Wind Fish

Background (Spoiler warning! Please refrain from reading this bit if you wish to avoid spoilers)

According to the great sages of Koholint Island, the Wind Fish is “neither wind nor fish.” The massive whale-like sea creature with wings happens to reside in a peculiar polka-dot egg that rests at the very top of Mt. Tamaranch. Waking up the Wind Fish is a necessary evil that will ultimately shatter the dream that is Koholint Island, with exception of Link and the Wind Fish. The “Ballad of the Wind Fish” (also known as “Song of Awakening” or “Seaside Lullaby”) literally plays a tremendous role in Link’s Awakening. In fact, Link’s entire journey is devoted to assembling and orchestrating all Eight Instruments of the Sirens. The reoccurring theme is so prevalent in the game, it can be heard multiple times on various occasions:

-In the background, some notes of the song can be heard in the opening scene when Link gets shipwrecked,

-More notes can be heard yet again when Marin discovers him unconscious on Toronbo Shores.

-Part of the song also plays when Link acquires any of the Eight Instruments of the Sirens.

-A remixed version of the song is used as the theme to the Southern Face Shrine.

-The song also plays during the final scene, the credits, the secret ending, and the game over screen.

Although Marin likes to call it ‘her song’, “Ballad of the Wind Fish” was more than likely composed by Kazumi Tokata. In addition to Kazumi Tokata Link’s Awakening was also composed by fellow video game musicians Kozue Ishkawa, and Minako Hamano. The song is written in a simple quadruple meter and is typically played in the key of D major. The song itself is reminiscent of a sad and alluring melody that defines the waking of the Wind Fish. When considering how reoccurring and relevant the song is, the ballad itself seems to be an element of foreshadowing.

Although you can virtually find just about every track in the game online (usually songs are ‘ripped’ from the game), an official soundtrack was never released.

Fun facts: The “Ballad of the Wind Fish: was meant to appear as a remix in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, but was dropped for reasons unknown.

Playing the ballad around a Pole’s Voice can cause it to self-destruct.

Featured Artists- Avivi and Amaterasu

This minimalist cover by Aivi Tran and Amaterasu if by far my favourite cover of this song. It’s actually quite remarkable considering how they had just learned to play it by ear before recording. The gentle harmony of the piano that accompanies the subtle melody of the violin is what makes this cover all the more emotional.

Soundtrack Variations of “Ballad of the Wind Fish”

The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening (1993) (No official soundtrack)

Listen here

 

 

Notable Remix: Piasa- Triforce Tribute

Notable Orchestration: Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra

Open Discussion- Share your favorite variations in the comments!

Alright Tadtones, that wraps it up for this week. Do you enjoy listening to “Ballad of the Wind Fish” as much as I do? Know of any other noteworthy variations, remixes or covers? Please feel free to share appropriate links and discuss your favorite variations of this week’s Tadtone in the comments below!