The Godzilla Theme

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Djdndnejwnwn

MemberGiganApr-15-2021 8:57 AM

I was thinking about new themes of Godzilla compared to the new ones. Even though KOTM has one of the best soundtracks I’ve noticed a trend in modern music. They rely heavily on loud percussion to convey size and power it the song. This trait is clearly Lacking in the original themes, but still is able to convey that power, but how does this do it.

Well me being a person who enjoys classical music can trace it back to one specific piece. Igor Stravinsky’s Rite Of Spring. This piece was very revolutionary int classical music and shares many similarities to the Goji themes. Essentially it used the entire orchestra as percussion to give the power and having rhythm not melody be the driving force. I believe the Goji themes had this same characteristic. And that’s why they still hold up today.

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G. H. (Gman)
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April 15, 2021

Ah, yes. Not a full motif but worth examination, certainly. It's definitely a piece that inspired the moment, but Williams actually uses more notes in his variation.

"'Nostalgic' does not equal 'good,' and 'standards' does not equal 'elitism.'" "Being offended is inevitable. Living offended is your choice."

Djdndnejwnwn
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April 15, 2021

I guess.. but it’s just too noticeable.

expecting the worst, sets you up for thr worst

G. H. (Gman)
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April 15, 2021

If it were a full on melodic motif, I'd be more critical of it. But anyone can blare horns and zip strings at that octave or variants thereof.

"'Nostalgic' does not equal 'good,' and 'standards' does not equal 'elitism.'" "Being offended is inevitable. Living offended is your choice."

Djdndnejwnwn
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April 15, 2021

I has the same chords, build ups, one of the few differences is the inserted Star Wars theme.

expecting the worst, sets you up for thr worst

G. H. (Gman)
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April 15, 2021

And the notes. And the timing.

"'Nostalgic' does not equal 'good,' and 'standards' does not equal 'elitism.'" "Being offended is inevitable. Living offended is your choice."

Djdndnejwnwn
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April 15, 2021

Music copyright doesn’t make sense to begin with actually. So IDK anymore.

expecting the worst, sets you up for thr worst

EdCh
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April 21, 2021

You make an excellent point about the rhythmic elements of Ifukube's music producing memorable themes for Godzilla. I could even consider the opening notes on the 1954 soundtrack as a theme - essentially those tympani accents which are supposed to be footfalls.

The part in Rite of Spring which really has the G vibes for me is the section where strings are doing even rhythmic accents and then the orchestra does syncopated accents on top ("Augurs of Spring").

Another classical piece which has G vibes has got to be Holst's "Mars" from his "The Planets" suite. There's alot!

BTW I did a few analyses of Ifukube G music a while back. You can find them here:

http://cuebycue.blogspot.com/p/godzilla.html

Djdndnejwnwn
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April 21, 2021

EdCh

It might interest you to know that “Rite Of Spring” is the first western piece Ifukube heard.

expecting the worst, sets you up for thr worst