The fanfare of healing
The coveted masks, the centerpieces of the game; they symbolize that Link has done something good for somebody. And “With every good deed, a child takes one step closer to adulthood” The simple core message at the heart of The Legend of Zelda Majora’ Mask, hidden behind layers of surrealism, mystery and complex emotions. Just never forget to fulfill your promises. It might end up helping yourself as the mask salesman promised.
If the Bombers’ Notebook gets its own celebratory cue based around the theme of Clock Town then it’s no wonder that the important masks at the heart of the experience also get a special custom acquisition fanfare. The new acquisition fanfare exclusive to Majora’s Mask is sounded each time the player receives one of the multiple masks that symbolize the good deeds Link has done, promises made and fulfilled, and sentiments of gratitude. On this story, masks are feelings and these moments require a different cue from the traditional item get cues.
The relevant obvious choice for Kondo was a simple matter of mixing his love for the Mario Cadence in all things that indicate success—three ascending major chords jumping a tone—with the main theme of Majora’s Mask, the Song of Healing; somehow he managed to implement the two musical notions seamlessly, as if they were always meant to be together. Who knew such a heartfelt, sorrowful song could sound so celebratory?
Musical Analysis
Structure: Section 1
Time Signature: 3/4
Tempo: 110 (last chord 80)
Melodic and Harmonic Profiles: A Aeolian/Minor; A Ionian/Major
With the standard instrumentation of a fanfare, Kondo applies the main motif from the Song of Healing, changing its sound by making the tuba do the main harmony work—technically it is not a proper Mario cadence (a bVI – bVII – I) since the first couple of chords have the diminished fifth emblematic of the uneasiness of the Song of Healing. But the idea of the cadence was still being made, Koji just cheated through it, leaving only the last chord as major.
The harmony that would work here would be F – G – A
Under the protection of the Goddess of Time, the hero lived to see another day, unlike Clock Town which, from this moment on, will be trapped in a circular pattern of three days. Only the masks are destined to survive as proof that Link changes these people’s lives, hence their importance. Link failed to fulfill his end of the deal to the Happy Mask Salesmam, another party that seems aware of the time loop (and like Link on this land, is able to conjure giant musical instruments from thin air). And even through Link and Tatl apparently tricked him into teaching them the Song of Healing, the song that can transform emotions and spirits into masks as if Link was an exorcise shaman, promises are meant to be kept in Majors Mask. The quest to conquer the emotion within the mask of Majora has just begun; it is just a matter of four simple stages of awakening. For the first one, it’s time to pay respects to the little Deku Scrub that is now forever intertwined with the Hero of Time.
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