At long last, the Super Mario Galaxy Movie has been released. Similar to The Super Mario Bros. Movie, it’s packed with easter eggs from the video game’s extensive history and the broader Nintendo canon. That includes the music.
Composer and arranger Brian Tyler had the difficult task of creating new songs for the Mario universe that would live alongside the game’s iconic soundtrack. Wisely, he utilized the most memorable themes. After sneaking it into the closing credits of the original movie, Tyler wove the theme to “Gusty Garden Galaxy” throughout the film. The piece is one of the most popular in the series.
Mahito Yokota composed “Gusty Garden Galaxy” in 2007 for Super Mario Galaxy for the Wii, which it appears in the galaxy of the same name. The game itself proved to be a turning point in the series’ music – and Yokota’s life.
In an “Iwata Asks” interview on Nintendo’s website, the composer explains that his “life was at its lowest point” when he wrote the music for Super Mario Galaxy. Koji Kondo, who wrote the original Super Mario Bros. Music, was rejecting all of Yokota’s ideas. The younger composer was even thinking of quitting before he had an epiphany.
“I’d always made music under the idea that Mario was cute, but Kondo-san said that Mario was cool,” he said. “The songs I wrote under that new conception were ‘Gusty Garden’ and [the main theme]. So this song represents my joy at crawling up from the depths of despair.”
“Gusty Garden Galaxy” has become one of the most beloved songs in the Super Mario franchise, with Watch Mojo ranking it 3rd best, only behind “Bob-Omb Battlefield” and the original NES main theme. The song’s melody is an earworm thanks to a perfect balance of repetition and variation.
8-bit Music Theory points out that this plays out in the song’s A section melody with phrases that alternate between two basic melodic ideas: an enclosure and an appoggiatura. “We have a real resemblance to human communication through this call and response or question and answer type of phrasing,” the video explains. “The first phrase poses a musical question and the second gives a satisfying answer.”
Another key to the song’s success is its textures. Yokota came up with the idea of blending orchestral music with more electronic sounds to blur the lines between reality and fantasy, he told IGN. However, he insisted on using live musicians to reflect the game’s emotions. He had to fight to get a live orchestra, as Nintendo most often uses synthesized instruments for its soundtracks.
“I think that abundant power of expression innate to a live orchestra helps the players to entertain the sense of expectancy for the unknown vast space universe,” Yokota said.
Amazingly, the orchestra’s recording session was also captured on video. Tubas, trombones, and trumpets give weight to the arrangement, while the strings add an air of levity. Listen closely, and you can hear the lively strumming of a guitar that adds excitement.
In the Super Mario Galaxy Movie, “Gusty Garden Galaxy” once again lifts fans into orbit. What began as Yokota’s redemption has become a universal anthem of hope and triumph. Nearly two decades later, it captures the heart of every Mario fan.
Get the sheet music for “Gusty Garden Galaxy”:
