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6. Mt. Tamaranch
The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening
Link’s Awakening will always hold a special place in my heart, but one of my most enduring memories of this game was just sitting on top of Mt. Tamaranch and letting this piece of music flow into my young, impressionable ears.
Its busy, purposeful melody gave the game an instant boost of dramatic tension, driving home the urgency of the task ahead while still somehow managing to remind you of the dreadful fate that was waiting for you at the end of the game. As much as I loved listening to it, I always dreaded those last two treks to Eagle Tower and Turtle Mountain as the last thing I wanted to do was to make both the island and this beautiful piece of music disappear. But just like all the other warm and welcoming temptations of Koholint, I knew deep down that this was ultimately all just a dream– Link needed to wake up and return to Hyrule, after all, but that certainly didn’t make jumping down into the Wind Fish’s Egg any easier, that’s for sure.
Great list! I don’t think I could pick 10, there’s just been so much great music in the Zelda series. Zelda 2’s warbly “instrumentation” (if you can call it that) bugged me when I was young, but I’ve come to appreciate it and it made me smile to see its main palace music on the list.
I’d love to hear a modern take on the original Zelda’s Level 9 music. Many previous dungeon themes have resurfaced in one way or another but unless I’m forgetting something, I can’t say I’ve heard that particular melody of dread and danger come up again.
Thanks! Ah, yes, Level 9. Man, that music’s creepy. It did, in fact, reappear in Four Swords Adventures in the Tower of Flames, but I know what you mean – it would be great to hear it used more often! :)
My 10 favorites in no particular order.
1. Main Hyrule field theme
2. Gerudo valley
3. Temple of time
4. Fairy fountain
5. 4 gods from majoras mask
6. Bolero of fire
7. Ballad of the goddesses.
8. Song of healing
9. Ganondorf thheme from Twilight Princess
10. Serenade of water.
All great tunes, Lukas! I was actually this close to including Queen Rutela’s Theme from Twilight Princess in the honourable mentions (a re-working of the Serenade of Water), but if I decided that if I included any more then I’d have a never-ending list!
I’m also a very big fan of Ganondorf’s Theme, especially the Twilight Princess version (that final battle music is just epic!), but it’s a close tie between that one and The Last Battle from Ocarina of Time when it comes to my top Ganon music!
Woah, I completely forgot about the Four Swords Adventures rendition! I think I played through that level exactly once… Thanks for the tip! :^)