Uploaded October 2021 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
🎵 Sheet Music & Parts ➤ musicnotes.com/l/3VgMb
💗 MIDI / XML / Sibelius ➤ bit.ly/TandABundle
🎹 Commissions ➤ jshaw.co.uk/commissions
🎮 More Arrangements ➤ jshaw.co.uk/TandA
👍 Facebook ➤ bit.ly/TandAFacebook
🐦 Twitter ➤ bit.ly/TandATwitter
🎵 Bandcamp ➤ bit.ly/TandABandcamp
🎵 Spotify ➤ bit.ly/TandASpotify
🎵 Deezer ➤ bit.ly/TandADeezer
🎵 YouTube Music ➤ bit.ly/TandAYouTube
🎵 Apple Music / iTunes ➤ bit.ly/TandAApple
Toby Fox knocks it out of the park once again with another absolute bop of an area theme, now orchestrated and complete with sheet music & parts for orchestras to perform.
--------------------
➤ Analysis:
How does Toby Fox make his music exciting?
One of his most common musical traits is syncopation ("off the beat"; melodies that emphasize being off the pulse). From the very beginning, we get some of this syncopation (0:03).
Normally, bass material would be on the beat in order to establish the pulse of the track. But here, Fox has delayed the bass material by an 8th note, causing it to be on the off-beat. This, combined with the melody being on the beat, creates our syncopation, adding excitement as our brains struggle to try and find the pulse when we listen to the track for the first time.
Adding to this is the harmony; Fox masterfully uses added note chords to create a more exciting sound. These are chords which have extra notes not usually found in the typical triad chord (e.g. C-E-G = C major triad, but add in a B, and you get a major 7th chord, C-E-G-B; an added note chord).
Again, right from the start we get have an added note chord. Our bass is anchored on G♭, but on top of this, our melody is playing D♭, C, A♭ and F. The first of these is a typical note from the G♭ triad (G♭-B♭-D♭ = G♭ triad), but the remaining notes are all added notes: C (the sharpened 4th or 11th); A♭ (the 9th); and F (the 7th). The use of these notes creates a wonderfully bright Lydian 11th chord, adding to the excitement.
Instrumentally, we start with only two voices (here, a clarinet and bass clarinet). Another way to create excitement is to play around with the number of voices, for example, expanding them. After the opening phrase concludes (0:18), we get this expansion: a drum kit; extra support on the bass; and a slightly echoed support for the melody are all added (well, in Fox's original at least - I didn't quite add that here!)
Next, we build and build and build on top of this material, adding countermelody upon countermelody: 0:35 (in the strings and horns); and 0:52 (in the bass clarinet, piano and cello). This could be considered a loose form of counterpoint - combining multiple independent melodies together, as if solving a harmonic puzzle.
This method of counterpoint is all over Fox's work, clearly seen for example in the climax of his "Battle Tower Battle Theme" from Pokémon, which builds to 4 independent melodies all playing at once (youtu.be/h5hl-q-aNsg?t=115, also demonstrating Fox's excellent employment of syncopation). The use of counterpoint is particularly exciting to listen to as the ear attempts to follow 2+ melodies that are beautifully crafted to work both together and independently.
By 1:10, we shift into a new section, falling down a tone to A♭ (from our original tonic of B♭ minor). Again, we get some more counterpoint: the main melody is in the altos and 2nd violins; and then we get a countermelody at 1:25 in the violins and E♭ clarinet.
At the close of the phrase, we get another form of excitement through a "tertiary shift". This is a form of tonal modulation as we shift a 3rd in either direction. Here, we are in G♭ and modulate to B♭♭ (or A♮) - a 3rd away. These types of shifts are incredibly exciting, and are commonplace in film and game music since they are a simple and effective way to modulate to a new key.
One final way Fox creates excitement is his re-use of existing material ("motifs") in new contexts. During the final climax (2:32), we get a return of our opening motif (0:03). Now, however, it has been painted in an entirely different harmonic context, whilst identically following its original contour. This development is wonderful to listen to, and demonstrates effective methods of getting the most out of your material.
So, here are just a few ways Fox constructs his music to be as exciting as they are.
--------------------
★Game: Deltarune: Chapter 2
★Developer: Toby Fox
★Publisher: Toby Fox
★Composer(s): Toby Fox
★Software: Sibelius 7.5, Cubase Elements 7, Cubase 10, Adobe Premiere Elements 15, EastWest Sample Libraries, Vienna Symphonic Library, Addictive Drummer 2
★Tags: Deltarune, Chapter 2, A CYBER'S WORLD?, A Cybers World, Music, Remix, Cover, Arrangement, Orchestra, Orchestral
#Deltarune
#ACybersWorld
#Orchestra
🎵 Sheet Music & Parts ➤ musicnotes.com/l/3VgMb
💗 MIDI / XML / Sibelius ➤ bit.ly/TandABundle
🎹 Commissions ➤ jshaw.co.uk/commissions
🎮 More Arrangements ➤ jshaw.co.uk/TandA
👍 Facebook ➤ bit.ly/TandAFacebook
🐦 Twitter ➤ bit.ly/TandATwitter
🎵 Bandcamp ➤ bit.ly/TandABandcamp
🎵 Spotify ➤ bit.ly/TandASpotify
🎵 Deezer ➤ bit.ly/TandADeezer
🎵 YouTube Music ➤ bit.ly/TandAYouTube
🎵 Apple Music / iTunes ➤ bit.ly/TandAApple
Toby Fox knocks it out of the park once again with another absolute bop of an area theme, now orchestrated and complete with sheet music & parts for orchestras to perform.
--------------------
➤ Analysis:
How does Toby Fox make his music exciting?
One of his most common musical traits is syncopation ("off the beat"; melodies that emphasize being off the pulse). From the very beginning, we get some of this syncopation (0:03).
Normally, bass material would be on the beat in order to establish the pulse of the track. But here, Fox has delayed the bass material by an 8th note, causing it to be on the off-beat. This, combined with the melody being on the beat, creates our syncopation, adding excitement as our brains struggle to try and find the pulse when we listen to the track for the first time.
Adding to this is the harmony; Fox masterfully uses added note chords to create a more exciting sound. These are chords which have extra notes not usually found in the typical triad chord (e.g. C-E-G = C major triad, but add in a B, and you get a major 7th chord, C-E-G-B; an added note chord).
Again, right from the start we get have an added note chord. Our bass is anchored on G♭, but on top of this, our melody is playing D♭, C, A♭ and F. The first of these is a typical note from the G♭ triad (G♭-B♭-D♭ = G♭ triad), but the remaining notes are all added notes: C (the sharpened 4th or 11th); A♭ (the 9th); and F (the 7th). The use of these notes creates a wonderfully bright Lydian 11th chord, adding to the excitement.
Instrumentally, we start with only two voices (here, a clarinet and bass clarinet). Another way to create excitement is to play around with the number of voices, for example, expanding them. After the opening phrase concludes (0:18), we get this expansion: a drum kit; extra support on the bass; and a slightly echoed support for the melody are all added (well, in Fox's original at least - I didn't quite add that here!)
Next, we build and build and build on top of this material, adding countermelody upon countermelody: 0:35 (in the strings and horns); and 0:52 (in the bass clarinet, piano and cello). This could be considered a loose form of counterpoint - combining multiple independent melodies together, as if solving a harmonic puzzle.
This method of counterpoint is all over Fox's work, clearly seen for example in the climax of his "Battle Tower Battle Theme" from Pokémon, which builds to 4 independent melodies all playing at once (youtu.be/h5hl-q-aNsg?t=115, also demonstrating Fox's excellent employment of syncopation). The use of counterpoint is particularly exciting to listen to as the ear attempts to follow 2+ melodies that are beautifully crafted to work both together and independently.
By 1:10, we shift into a new section, falling down a tone to A♭ (from our original tonic of B♭ minor). Again, we get some more counterpoint: the main melody is in the altos and 2nd violins; and then we get a countermelody at 1:25 in the violins and E♭ clarinet.
At the close of the phrase, we get another form of excitement through a "tertiary shift". This is a form of tonal modulation as we shift a 3rd in either direction. Here, we are in G♭ and modulate to B♭♭ (or A♮) - a 3rd away. These types of shifts are incredibly exciting, and are commonplace in film and game music since they are a simple and effective way to modulate to a new key.
One final way Fox creates excitement is his re-use of existing material ("motifs") in new contexts. During the final climax (2:32), we get a return of our opening motif (0:03). Now, however, it has been painted in an entirely different harmonic context, whilst identically following its original contour. This development is wonderful to listen to, and demonstrates effective methods of getting the most out of your material.
So, here are just a few ways Fox constructs his music to be as exciting as they are.
--------------------
★Game: Deltarune: Chapter 2
★Developer: Toby Fox
★Publisher: Toby Fox
★Composer(s): Toby Fox
★Software: Sibelius 7.5, Cubase Elements 7, Cubase 10, Adobe Premiere Elements 15, EastWest Sample Libraries, Vienna Symphonic Library, Addictive Drummer 2
★Tags: Deltarune, Chapter 2, A CYBER'S WORLD?, A Cybers World, Music, Remix, Cover, Arrangement, Orchestra, Orchestral
#Deltarune
#ACybersWorld
#Orchestra
