Main Theme (Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom) | Sheet Music, MIDI & More!
Fashionably late to the party, but I only just started playing it. So here it is: the Main Theme from The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, fully orchestrated with engraved sheet music & part scores, ready to perform!
A huge thank you to Jane Wei (Erhu) & Dmoll (Soprano Saxophone) for performing in this. Check out their other work!
If you're after the sheet music, score, XML or MIDI for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Main Theme // TotK Main Theme, you can find links here!
This includes individual part scores for:
Full Score
Piccolo
2 Flutes
2 Oboes
2 Clarinets in Bb
Bass Clarinet in Bb
Soprano Saxophone (or Alto Saxophone)
2 Bassoons
4 Horns in F
3 Trumpets in Bb
2 Trombones
Bass Trombone
Tuba
Timpani
Drum Kit (Hi-hat)
Bass Drum (or Taiko)
Snare Drum
Bongos
Suspended Cymbal
Crash Cymbals
Anvil (or Other Metal)
Cowbell (or Ceramic Bowl)
SFX (optional)
Piano
Harp
SATB Choir
Erhu (or Solo Violin)
Violin I
Violin II
Viola
Violoncello
Contrabass
If you are one of my Patrons, you can now find the MIDI, XML, SIB files, as well as stems and multitracks I created for this transcription now available to download from your Patreon Google Drive folders!
Arranger's Note:
The original track has a substantial amount of post-processing effects, notably with the warped voices. Translating that into a singable choir part therefore presents an interesting challenge: do you ask the performers to be mic'd up and process their vocals live? Or construct a choir part that can be sung as written, with no extra processing?
It was this latter option that I chose, largely for the greater accessibility it would allow for more ensembles to perform this arrangement. As such, the track begins with these "Zonai Voices" singing the Zonai motif that occurs regularly throughout the game. This is accompanied by various human noises (clapping and "shhh"), but is also doubled in some woodwinds to assist in following the rather tricky motif.
Tonally, we have no centre until 0:13, with the introduction of more instruments revolving around the note "C". Interestingly, by 0:24 we pivot into D (the secondary dominant of C), closing the phrase off with a massive 5-octave suspended 4-3 7th chord (A-D-E-G; 0:34).
From here (0:40), we would expect some sort of perfect cadence (A to D), or perhaps an interrupted cadence (A to B♭ or G). We get neither, and instead receive a tertiary modulation from A to D♭ (enharmonically C♯), which is far more exciting.
At this moment, we get a grand statement of the "Tears of the Kingdom" theme, which is constructed from snippets of the earlier "Breath of the Wild" main theme, now in F minor (the relative of D♭).
As the section closes (0:52), we remain in F minor and get an erhu solo (performed here by Jane Wei) accompanied by piccolo. This material is then taken over by the strings (1:05) for a short 4-bar phrase, tailing the section off 4-bars early (interrupted phrasing).
This is followed by a saxophone solo (1:13), performed here by @Dmoll , as we pivot into D♭ / C minor. There is an interesting snippet of "false relation" at 1:26 (where the same note is played at the same time but with differing accidentals), seen here between A & A♭, creating a very interesting soft dissonance.
The next section (1:28) jumps up another tertiary modulation (E♭ to G♭) and briefly prepares us for another orchestral return, now in triplets (1:32). As the track diminishes (1:35), we get a snippet of the "Breath of the Wild" motif, ever expanding in pitch and instrumentation into one final crescendo (1:42).
Ending in A, do we proceed with either a perfect or interrupted cadence? This time, yes we do, progressing to B♭ (1:46) with a grand statement of the TotK motif. From here onward is largely identical to my "2021 Trailer Theme" arrangement, now with additional choir, woodwinds and harp to make full use of the new instrumentation.
The Zonai voices return at 2:12, leading to a very dissonant triplet ostinato with tritone intervals, before a final erhu phrase playing the renowned "Zelda's Lullaby" motif.
