Understanding the Magic of Joe Hisaishi *MUTED*

CLICK LINKS FOR AUDIO EXAMPLES:
ex3 - This example was supposed to be the solo melody without any chords, so the audio example kind of ruins the point I was trying to make. But it's the same link as ex4 below
ex7 & 8 , the Merry Go Round of Life ones, all use the same link as above. Again it's a slightly different arrangement from the film version so there's a couple discrepancies, but what're you gonna do
ex10 - This track isn't available on YouTube either, but it's at the end of the track "Totoro" on the film's soundtrack on any streaming service

Joe Hisaishi is one of the most important and accomplished living composers, and his work was an absolute pleasure to dissect for this video. From his perfect melody writing to his inspired harmonies, let's take a look at a few of the techniques that make Ghibli music instantly recognizable and completely unforgettable.

0:00 - Intro
1:36 - Perfect Melodies: Totoro Theme
5:50 - Modern Harmonies, Classic Melodies: Path of Wind
8:24 - 'Jazz Standard' Harmony - Osono's Request
10:38 - Jazz meets Classical - Merry-Go-Round of Life
13:08 - The 'Ghibli Turnaround': The Flower Garden & Totoro's Theme
15:49 - Quartal / Quintal Harmony: One Summer's Day
20:57 - Outro

#Ghibli #JoeHisaishi #8bitMusicTheory

[bitMusicTheory]

Sorry about the muted audio, everyone! This video went through many iterations and reuploads to avoid getting completely blocked on copyright grounds, and so to find out all of the examples have been muted from this comment section, with no notifications from YouTube, is a real kick in the balls. 

I don't think there's a point in reuploading the video. Examples that were reduced to me just playing the melody solo on my keyboard have been muted, so I don't think there's anything I could do to avoid the muting. I hope everyone checks out the link in the description to see the uncensored video, with each example of Joe Hisaishi's original brilliant music in all its untouched glory. If you'd rather stay on YouTube, I'll put links to each piece referenced in the description so you can play them alongside the video as well.

Thanks for checking out the video, I hope you all enjoy it in spite of everything!

[ChristianJovenGarcia]

Lmao every single time the music cut out, I would turn to my piano, sight play the music, then go "oh yeah that song"

[mitsuki]

I became a composer because of Joe Hisaishi, his work is so important for me and I'm glad you took the ~liberty to analyze him hahaha

[emmbeesea]

No wonder Hisaishi and Chrono Trigger blend so well. Chrono Trigger instruments suit this type of writing so well, even though Mitsuda uses so much non-functional harmony in Chrono Trigger's OST. So, so, so good.

[kevbloxtime]

I have fallen victim to listening to the 2 hour concert from the 25th anniversary, countless, and I mean COUNTLESS times. I love Joe Hisaishi’s work so much, and I loved this video!

[zeitgenosse]

Ah, now I finally understand the beginning of A Summer's Day. Thanks.

Also, covering Joe Hisaishi's music is *never* a mistake.

[Lucarianever]

This is an absolute gem of a video! I, personally, would love it if you continued to do this type of analysis of “video game-adjacent” music. Thank you for all your hard work!

[maromania]

If you're wanting to inform me about a subject you're passionate about, that's honestly the main thing I'm here for. Make videos on whatever songs, soundtracks, and artists you want!

[HarpoBard]

I’m surprised 8-Bit Theory didn’t get a copyright strike for using so many excerpts of 4’33. 😇

[A-Known-Enemy]

I've heard Ni No Kuni has great music, but the developers also made the Dark Cloud games, which I'm always hoping will show up on this channel at some point. The soundtracks for dark cloud 1 and 2 I think are one of the biggest reasons those games are so nostalgic for people who played those games growing up and it'd be interesting to hear a breakdown of how Tomohito Nishiura was able to write such simple but effective/memorable melodies.

[ChengHorn]

Hisaishi's music gives me chills every time and has definitely made me cry. Please keep talking about him. His sounds are soothing comfort food for my soul.

[SheenaMalfoy]

Commenting for the algorithm, cause I suspect this video's gonna need it more than most. But beside that, the most poignant Hisaishi work for me is actually from a Japanese film I saw thanks to a high school course I took: Okuribito, or translated to English: Departures. Not only is the cello a gorgeous instrument in the first place, but damn that melody is haunting, and it gets used throughout the film to capture so many different emotions. It has stuck with me so many years later - even when large parts of the movie itself have faded in my memory, the song, and the emotion behind it, is still so very clear. This dude understands human emotion and how to convey it musically so very well it's insane.

[AlexxForest]

This entire video is fair use, and yet every single instance of music is muted. I wonder how long the video itself will remain online.

[TheOutZZ]

OH. MY. GOD. Thank you, that is exactly the video I needed in my life!!

[gearsong]

6:37 seems like YouTube might have still meddled with this. Not getting audio in your examples 😢

[futur_sunds]

You should create a second channel where you analyze film sound tracks

[kaitlyn__L]

Just finished watching this on Vimeo. Thank you very much for this. I especially like the part about how reiterating the basics can be important, and using Hisaishi as an example of how you don't always need to go that far beyond it.

[jigpu]

Love that you covered Joe's work! It may "only" be game-adjacent but I don't mind in the slightest! Too bad about YouTube muting everything though 😫

[lavenderinthedark]

youtube sucks sometimes, im so sorry they took down even the midi versions without even telling you. i watched the vimeo version and it definitely made all the difference, i hope that theres more alternatives to youtube soon

[alastairwyn]

thank you so much for keeping the video up even with muted !! playing along was very rewarding, forced me to engage in a closer way with the material. love the video!